The question is whether Vanessa Hudson, part of former CEO Alan Joyce’s senior management team that has been engulfed in two scandals, is really going to set the airline on a new course.
Last month, Vanessa Hudson, Qantas’ incoming chief executive, gave a rousing send-off to Alan Joyce, while both were on a call to stockbroking analysts. It followed the airline’s announcement of a record $2.47 billion full-year pre-tax profit.
Hudson wasn’t supposed to replace Joyce until November 3, at the company’s annual meeting. But Joyce exited early yesterday given the public backlash. Now, the question is whether Hudson, who was part of Joyce’s senior management team that was engulfed in the two scandals, is really going to set the airline on a new course.
“How does she now set herself apart? It’s very difficult,” says a former airline executive, who requested anonymity. The executive said Hudson needed to be bold and show the public, customers and shareholders how she is different.To do this, the first step, the executive says, would be to hold a press conference and commit to immediately refunding the $570 million in credits it owes customers for cancelled flights during COVID.
Joyce’s 15-year tenure was defined by a pugnacious leadership style and a laser-like focus on the bottom line. This was best illustrated in his decision to ground the airline’s entire fleet in 2011, stranding tens of thousands of passengers, amid an industrial dispute. And more recently, by appealing to the High Court after a ruling found it had illegally outsourced nearly 2000 baggage and ground handlers during the pandemic.
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