German engineering giant Siemens AG's chief executive Klaus Kleinfeld said Wednesday he was standing down amid a damaging corruption scandal that has rocked the 160-year-old company, DPA reported. The 49-year-old Kleinfeld told a meeting of the company's supervisory board that he did not want to extend his current contract, which expires at the end of September, after meeting resistance to the extension among board members. "The company needs clarity with regard to its leadership during these times," Kleinfeld said. "I have therefore decided not to make myself available for an extension of my contract." His successor has not been named. Kleinfeld refused to accept the board delaying a vote on the contract, company officials said, as a result paving the way for a major shakeout in the group's top management. His decision to leave the company after a two-decade career followed last week's dramatic announcement by Siemens chairman Heinrich von Pierer that was stepping down. Although cleared of any wrongdoing, Kleinfeld's future had hung in the balance as the Siemens' board considered whether far-reaching changes of the group's management were necessary to help give the group a new start. Ahead of Wednesday's meeting the German media had reported that supervisory board members had launched a search for a possible successor for Kleinfeld as part of a push for a major shakeout of the company's top management. Despite launching an internal company investigation into the scandals and stepping up corporate control procedures, Kleinfeld has come under fire for failing to act sooner in dealing with the corruption scandals. This included claims that funds totalling as much as 420 million euros (573 million dollars) were siphoned off into illicit accounts over the last seven years During his two years at the helm of Siemens, Kleinfeld has also won plaudits from investors for his efforts to boost the company's finances through big cuts in the company's workforce and a major acquisitions drive. Siemens' shares edged down 0.94 per cent to 88.36 euros as trading drew to a close Wednesday.
