BREAKING: Alan Joyce To Leave Qantas With Vanessa Hudson Appointed CEO
The Qantas Group announced this morning that its CEO of 15 years, Alan Joyce, is retiring from his role in November this year. His successor will be another Qantas stalwart, Vanessa Hudson, currently the airline's Chief Financial Officer and a 28-year executive with Australia's national airline.
While talk of Joyce's retirement or replacement has swirled around for years, usually surfacing in times of crisis, this is the first time Qantas has confirmed the succession plan.
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Photo: Qantas
Chairman Richard Goyder said the appointment of Hudson came after a rigorous selection process and allows for a smooth transition from current CEO Alan Joyce.
"A lot of thought has gone into this succession and the Board had a number of high-quality candidates to consider, both internally and externally.
"Vanessa has a deep understanding of this business after almost three decades in a range of roles both onshore and offshore, across commercial, customer and finance. She has a huge amount of airline experience and she's an outstanding leader."
What is the Joyce legacy?
Announcements such as this one are often written in two parts, somewhat along the lines of the 'King is dead-long live the King' so favored by politicians. The reality is that Joyce has steered Qantas through some serious existential shocks, including the grounding of the fleet, the global financial crisis, numerous industrial relations battles and COVID-19.
Photo: Airbus
He will sign off with probably the largest profit in the history of Qantas and an airline set up for even more success, both financially and operationally, as Project Sunrise becomes a reality. Much will be written about him and his legacy, colored by his fiercely competitive nature and polarizing standpoint of doing what is best for Qantas.
As expected, the chairman was effusive in his praise of Joyce, saying that "much of the credit for the bright future in front of Qantas goes to Alan." Goyder pointed to an airline that has a clear strategy, strong balance sheet and record profitability that "supports a pipeline of investment for customers, opportunities for our people and returns to shareholders."
Image: Airbus
While Joyce will no doubt have much to say today and in the weeks ahead, today's announcement only contained this from him.
"At the Board's request, I extended my time as CEO to see through the COVID recovery plan, so now that we're on the other side of that crisis it's a logical time for me to step down. There's still a lot I want to deliver in the next six months and at the top of that list is ensuring a smooth handover to Vanessa, who I'm sure will excel in the role."
Who is Vanessa Hudson?
Today is also about Vanessa Hudson, who joined the airline in 1994 as an internal audit supervisor and now finds herself on the Qantas board and sitting in the chair as CEO-designate. She will be the airline's 13th CEO in its 103-year history and will take over the role following this year's Annual General Meeting in November.
Photo: Qantas
Her Qantas career has included senior management roles in finance, catering, inflight services, sales and distribution and commercial planning, plus a stint as senior vice president for the Americas and New Zealand. Hudson will continue in her current role as Group Chief Financial Officer until her succession, a position she took on in 2019 just as the pandemic threw its gigantic spanner into the Qantas balance sheet.
She also led the fleet selection process for renewing the domestic fleet last year and will now have the opportunity to see that happen under her watch. This depth of experience across most facets of the airline, including the last five years on the Group Management Committee, means there will be no L-plates needed when she takes on the top job. Hudson gave an insight into her approach this morning:
"It's an absolute honour to be asked to lead the national carrier. This is an exceptional company full of incredibly talented people and it's very well positioned for the future. My focus will be delivering for those we rely on and who rely on us - our customers, our employees, our shareholders and the communities we serve."
Photo: Qantas
With any speculation around Joyce's future as Qantas CEO now settled, the focus will move to analyze his legacy and achievements, with both his fans and detractors lining up in equal measure to have their say.
Twelve months ago Qantas was in a mess with its reputation looking decidedly ragged, but since then Joyce, and his team, have turned that situation around, and the airline he is passing on to Hudson bears no resemblance to the early-2022 version.
Probably the big question is where will he turn up next?
What do you think of this change? Let us know in the comments.
Source: Simple Flying
