Qantas is poised for some significant management changes as the airline’s longtime CEO retires and is replaced by another senior Qantas executive.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce will retire in November 2023
Alan Joyce will retire from Qantas in November 2023. Joyce, 56, was CEO of Qantas for 15 years, making it one of the longest-serving CEOs in the industry as it’s rare they stay in one position for that long. Joyce was reportedly scheduled to retire early in the pandemic, but stayed throughout the pandemic at the request of the board.
Qantas Chairman Richard Goyder said the following about Joyce’s resignation:
“Much of the credit for the bright future ahead of Qantas goes to Alan. He has faced more than enough challenges as CEO and has mastered them exceptionally well – from the GFC to record oil prices to intense competitive pressures and the COVID crisis.”
“The company was restructured to deal with a series of external shocks and Alan led it to several record profits. He has overseen many investments in aircraft, lounges, the creation of Jetstar, our cornerstone partnership with Emirates and innovations such as the Perth-London route and Project Sunrise.”
“Alan has done an outstanding job leading a team that is absolutely committed to the national carrier’s long-term success, and it is from that team that his successor was selected.”
If you ask me, Joyce has mixed heritage with the airline and is quite divisive – some people think he’s done a great job while others think he’s done a terrible job.
To his credit, Joyce has always run the airline in a disciplined and conservative manner, and the company has weathered some storms under his leadership. Some cool innovations have come under Joyce’s leadership, like introducing non-stop flights from Perth to London, ordering Airbus A350s for the world’s longest flights, which will be known as “Project Sunrise”, and refreshing the narrowbody fleet.
However, what strikes me most about Joyce is the way he approaches industrial relations. He has always viewed staff as fully replaceable and has made some fairly reckless staff cuts, from outsourcing to hiring staff under new contracts.
Additionally, there is no denying that the perception of Qantas in Australia has deteriorated significantly during the pandemic as the airline is no longer the beloved national carrier it once was. On the other hand, the declining perception of airlines is hardly limited to Australia.
Qantas has ordered Airbus A350
Vanessa Hudson becomes the new CEO of Qantas
Alan Joyce will be replaced by Vanessa Hudson, who will serve as CEO of Qantas from November 2023. She currently serves as Chief Financial Officer of the Qantas Group and has worked with the airline group for over 28 years, including positions as Chief Customer Officer and SVP Americas and New Zealand.
Here’s what Richard Goyder, Chairman of Qantas, had to say about Hudson’s appointment:
“Vanessa has a deep understanding of this business after almost three decades in a range of roles both domestically and internationally, in retail, customer and finance. She has tremendous airline experience and is an outstanding leader.”
“Vanessa has been directly involved in shaping our strategy as a member of the Group Management Committee for the past five years and her handling of the finance and treasury portfolio during the COVID crisis has been outstanding. She also led the 2022 fleet selection process for our domestic jet renewals over the next decade.”
“A key strength of Qantas is the sheer depth of talent it has and Vanessa is supported by a large group of leaders across the business as well as the board.”
Congratulations to Hudson on her new job. I think it’s safe to say that Qantas will be business as usual and they won’t rock the boat too much. She seems like a safe bet considering how long she’s been in the Qantas ecosystem and working with Joyce.
While it’s fun to imagine a CEO with fresh thinking and an outside perspective, the reality is that Qantas is at quite a transition point between replacing the narrowbody fleet and adding the A350s to the fleet in the coming years . I think she will have her hands full to realize this vision.
Qantas has ordered Airbus A220
bottom line
Qantas will finally see a change in senior management as Alan Joyce retires after 15 years as the company’s CEO. He will be replaced by Vanessa Hudson, who is currently CFO and has been with the airline for decades. Congratulations to Hudson on this new role as it’s always great to see more female CEOs in the airline industry.
If Qantas’ goal is to maintain the status quo (which it seems), then I think it’s a good choice.
What do you think of Qantas’ CEO change?