SmaXtec Announces New Leadership
Smaxtec Announces New Leadership
SmaXtec, the global leader in advanced dairy cow health monitoring, announced new leadership appointments as the company continues its strong global expansion in the United States, Europe and New Zealand and completes 2025 with another year of significant double-digit growth.
At a time of significant momentum for smaXtec, the company is announcing the appointment of Charlie Sheppy as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to further drive smaXtec’s global growth and innovation agenda, effective immediately. Charlie is an experienced animal health executive with more than 25 years in the animal nutrition and livestock technology industries, most recently a member of the Global Marketing & Technology Solutions leadership team at MSD Animal Health, a division of MSD (also known as Merck & Co.).
Charlie succeeds Stefan Scherer, CEO of smaXtec since 2020 and the architect of the company’s initial dynamic growth phase, who will execute his planned transition to the smaXtec Board as a Non-Executive Director. In this new role, Stefan will continue to contribute strategically to smaXtec’s long-term growth and innovation roadmap.
smaXtec also announced the appointment of Hein Schumacher, former CEO of Unilever and FrieslandCampina, to the company’s Board as a Non-Executive Director. In addition to these, smaXtec is expanding its management team and Board with world-class expertise across finance, strategy, dairy technology, and global business leadership.
Stefan Scherer, Non-Executive Director and outgoing CEO –
“I am excited to hand over the CEO position to Charlie after six very successful years of growth. smaXtec has become the leading global dairy health management system, and I’m fully committed to supporting the company’s continued success from my new board role. Under Charlie’s leadership, the outstanding team at smaXtec is ready to write a bold next chapter of innovation and continuing to deliver for our customers. I want to thank our team all of the great achievements so far. More to come!“
Charlie Sheppy, incoming CEO –
“I am hugely excited to join smaXtec at this moment of great opportunity and to lead this talented team in continuing to build on the impressive growth they have delivered under Stefan’s leadership. Livestock farming, particularly the dairy industry, is undergoing a technological revolution and few companies are as uniquely positioned as smaXtec to make a genuine and lasting impact on both animal wellbeing and farm efficiency.“
Hein Schumacher, newly appointed Board Member –
“I am pleased to be part of the exciting smaXtec journey. Animal health is a pre-requisite for any farmer to run a successful operation, the SmaXtec solutions contribute significantly to this goal. I am looking forward to contribute to the global growth of the company.“
Marta Szczerba, Board Member and a Director on KKR’s Tech Growth Team –
“On behalf of the board, I want to thank Stefan for his significant contributions to the company, and I look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role. What Stefan has achieved is truly remarkable, leading to smaXtec’s position today as the benchmark in dairy health monitoring technology. It is also exciting to welcome Charlie Sheppy as the new CEO to lead smaXtec’s next phase of growth and Hein Schumacher as a Non-Executive Director. Their deep expertise and track-record in the dairy industry is a testament to smaXtec’s great momentum and will support the company’s further expansion. “
About smaXtec
smaXtec is the global leader in dairy cow health monitoring, providing farmers with precise, continuous in-cow data to optimize herd health, productivity, and sustainability. With its patented sensor technology and AI-driven analytics, smaXtec enables early health detection, improved reproductive management, and data-based decision-making for modern dairy operations worldwide. For more information, visit smaXtec.com.
November 2025
