Manitou last week announced that Marcel Claude Braud has stepped down as CEO of the company. Braud will remain non-executive chairman of the board. Jean-Christophe Giroux was appointed the new CEO.

Giroux was previously chairman and CEO of Alcatel-Lucent France, a telecom company headquartered in Paris. Prior to that position he was an investment banker with Lazard.

In a statement, the company attributed the change in leadership to the global contraction of the order book on a world level, and the acquisition of Gehl Co. in the U.S. The company said that the current situation requires management that is both global and reactive to allow Manitou to better adapt to the new environment and to better consolidate its leadership.