Ex-Wesfarmers boss Richard Goyder to take over as Qantas chairman
Former Wesfarmers boss Richard Goyder will replace Leigh Clifford as Qantas chairman.
Mr Clifford will step down from his role in October this year after 11 years in the job, the airline said, and will be replaced by Mr Goyder, who is also chairman of the AFL and Woodside Petroleum.
Mr Goyder joined the Qantas board in November last year following 12 years as chief executive of Wesfarmers, the conglomerate that owns Coles, Bunnings, Kmart, Target and Officeworks. He was immediately seen as Mr Clifford's likely successor.
Mr Clifford, a former Rio Tinto CEO, said it had been an “absolute privilege” to lead the Qantas board.
“The national carrier has never been in a stronger position and that’s a credit to the management team and the 30,000 employees that make up the Qantas group family,” he said.
“Richard is one of the most experienced business leaders in Australia and an excellent choice to lead the Qantas board into the future.”
One of Mr Goyder’s most important tasks as chairman will be to appoint a replacement for CEO Alan Joyce, who has been running Qantas for just under 10 years.
Mr Joyce has signalled he wants to stay in the top job at least until Qantas’ centenary celebrations in 2020, and said in a statement on Thursday he was "looking forward to working with Richard in the years ahead.”
Mr Goyder said he was honoured to be appointed to the role. “Qantas is an iconic Australian company and one of the best performing airline groups in the world,” he said.