CHICAGO (Reuters) - Procter & Gamble Co <PG.N> said on Wednesday that the head of its North American business, Melanie Healey, will retire next June, as the company puts together a new leadership team in an effort to revive sagging sales growth and gain market share.
Healey, once widely considered to be a potential successor to current Chief Executive A.G. Lafley, will be succeeded by Carolyn Tastad, who is currently P&G's global customer development officer.
"The way to think about this change is that we are putting together the leadership team for a more streamlined and focused P&G," Paul Fox, director of corporate communications, told Reuters.
In August, the world's largest household products maker said it could sell about half of its brands in the next two years and cut jobs to revive growth.
The company's North American business, the largest contributor to revenue, has struggled in recent years. P&G's sales have missed Wall Street's estimates in nine of the last 13 quarters.
P&G had previously sought to cut expenses by streamlining management, reducing costs and cutting jobs under a five-year, $10 billion restructuring plan announced in 2012.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose; Editing by Leslie Adler)
