SAP has dropped its dual leadership structure just six months after adopting the idea of having two co-CEOs. Jennifer Morgan, the first female CEO to head a company on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange's blue-chip DAX index, will leave SAP at the end of April. Christian Klein will remain as the single CEO going forward.

Although SAP lauded the dual-CEO model as an arrangement that had worked in many prior instances for the company, it may have been sunk by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. SAP has faced a variety of business challenges mostly related to changing customer priorities, and the dual-CEO model may have slowed down the company's ability to respond quickly and decisively. One report described the leadership structure as "disorganized and, at times, chaotic".

In its own statement earlier this week, SAP said the decision to abandon the dual leadership structure was "taken earlier than planned to ensure strong, unambiguous steering in times of an unprecedented crisis."

Morgan was formerly the president of SAP's cloud computing business and has held various leadership roles in the company. She said of her departure: "With unprecedented change within the world, it has become clear that now is the right time for the company to transition to a single CEO leading the business."

Klein, formerly SAP's COO before the co-appointment last October, said that the company has a responsibility to give its customers clear guidance.