After leading the Qantas Group for the past 15 years, CEO Alan Joyce has announced that he will retire today, two months earlier than planned.
Joyce told the Qantas board he made the decision to help the group fast-track its “renewal”.
With today’s announcement, CEO designate Vanessa Hudson will assume control of the airline from tomorrow (6 September 2023).
“In the last few weeks, the focus on Qantas and events of the past make it clear to me that the company needs to move ahead with its renewal as a priority,” Joyce said.
“The best thing I can do under these circumstances is to bring forward my retirement and hand over to Vanessa and the new management team now, knowing they will do an excellent job.
“There is a lot I am proud of over my 22 years at Qantas, including the past 15 years as CEO. There have been many ups and downs, and there is clearly much work still to be done, especially to make sure we always deliver for our customers.
“But I leave knowing that the company is fundamentally strong and has a bright future.”
“A challenging time”
Qantas Chairman Richard Goyder said, “Alan has always had the best interests of Qantas front and centre, and today shows that”.
“On behalf of the board, we sincerely thank him for his leadership through some enormous challenges and for thinking well-ahead on opportunities like ultra-long-haul travel,” he remarked.
“This transition comes at what is obviously a challenging time for Qantas and its people. We have an important job to do in restoring the public’s confidence in the kind of company we are, and that’s what the board is focused on, and what the management under Vanessa’s leadership will do.”
Shareholders will vote on Hudson’s appointment as managing director at Qantas’ annual general meeting in November.
With Hudson moving into the group CEO role, Rob Marcolina will take up the position of group chief financial officer from 6 September.
“Welcome news”
Meanwhile, the Transport Workers Union (TWU) has heralded Joyce’s early retirement as “welcome news for workers”.
“The question now should turn to whether the board should spill their positions following years of decimated jobs and standards, illegal outsourcing, and outrageous bonuses,” TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said.
“Alan Joyce is slipping into retirement two months early with a $24 million pay packet, leaving one of the biggest messes in corporate Australia’s history in his wake.
“After finally receiving the public scrutiny he deserves for trashing one of Australia’s most cherished companies, Alan Joyce is exiting with a $10 million bonus, announced on Friday. He must be stripped of those bonuses immediately.
“The new regime must embark on a total reset. Qantas needs to bring back good, secure jobs and quality standards.”
Huge profit and plane order
Two weeks ago, Qantas Group revealed its first full-year statutory profit after tax in four years, reporting a $1.74 billion profit for FY23.
At the same time, the company announced it had placed an order for 24 more wide-body aircraft comprising 12 Boeing 787s and 12 Airbus A350s, with deliveries to commence in FY27.
Last week, Qantas said it would remove the expiry dates on $570 million worth of COVID travel credits issued to passengers impacted by the pandemic.
Meanwhile, Qantas has released a statement about an ACCC investigation into the company.
