[transtraxman]

The news that Willy Walsh will not be around in two years time was published yesterday…
“IAG Boss Willie Walsh To Retire Within Next Two Years”, (Simple Flying 1-11-19)

IAG Boss Willie Walsh To Retire Within Next Two Years

Has he been successful?
He and his board have been very strict about achieving a 15% return on capital which is the highest in the industry – certainly in Europe. In that he has been successful.
However, he has been rather conservative in expansion. He started the wrongly named and ineffective “Open Skies”. His only success has been taking over “Aer Lingus” – and that was most certainly because of his history with the airline and his Irish connections. On the other hand he has failed with others and they have slipped through his fingers, e.g. “Laudamotion”, “Norwegian”. In response he has set up “LEVEL” which has still to make its presence felt while retaining an abnormal organisational setup.
I would say that a change at the top is needed which cannot come soon enough. We appear to be heading into a recession which needs a strong head with clear ideas who can take advantage of the opportunities this will present while maintaining the stability and profitability of the company. Good luck to him/her.

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Shamsh1, fqtvgla, Jacob, Swissdiver

[StephenLondon]

This is great news! Willie certainly had drive and ambition when he got behind his desk at British Airways and at IAG, but I think he has certainly lost sight of the business in the drive for profit. When a slide appeared in the investor day pack saying “show me the ****ing money”, to me it seemed like he was losing touch with the business.

My understanding is that he was not the man to select Alex Cruz to work at BA, so for someone so powerful to allow Alex to supervise the downward spiral that is taking place at BA today tells me change is needed. I guess that is why Willie publicly commented that, were he still at BA the pilot’s strike would have been resolved long before it got to the point it is at today.

So if Willie is riding into the sunset, perhaps he can clear out the current Leadership Team at BA and IAG and put people in who can do better. Certainly at BA, under Alex, there have been too many problems. I’m sure both are on diamond-studded pensions.

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Shamsh1, GordyUK, Johnnyg, DerekVH, traveldoc1, kevin46, fqtvgla, Jacob, Swissdiver, EU_Flyer, BA789

[ImissConcorde]

https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2020/0109/1105252-iag-ceo-to-retire/

[BAGoldcard]

Thanks but not a fan of cryptic thread titles.

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BugAdvisor

[transtraxman]

He said before that he was going to step down before two years are up. So he will step down as CEO on 26th March and then retire 30th June. Luis Gallego will replace him.

“IAG chief Willie Walsh stands down”, (Travel Weekly, 9-1-20)

http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/articles/354250/iag-chief-willie-walsh-stands-down

“IAG chief Willie Walsh to retire in June 2020”, (Flight Global, 9-1-20)

https://www.flightglobal.com/airlines/iag-chief-willie-walsh-to-retire-in-june-2020/136056.article

[rferguson]

[quote quote=976369]My understanding is that he was not the man to select Alex Cruz to work at BA, so for someone so powerful to allow Alex to supervise the downward spiral that is taking place at BA today tells me change is needed.[/quote]

Those of us with a long memory will say this started way before AC started. The disasterous opening of T5 and the biggest swathe of cuts came before AC took the helm.

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esselle, mkcol74, DerekVH

[capetonianm]

If you think Walsh was bad, wait until Gallego gets in and lets Cruz drag BA further down into the maelstrom. At least Walsh produced a reasonable RoI for IAG shareholders.

By the way I’m not sure that the disastrous opening of T5 was down to the airline’s incompetent management. I think BAA were mainly to blame, although granted BA was the core client.

[Shamsh1]

It’s time for WW to step down. BA has lost a decent part of its worldwide reputation as leading airline and many business travellers during his regency. Someone who installes 7 seats across in businessclass has no idea what business travellers really want. Some years ago, I had the opportunity to fly with WW in the same cabin from BKK-LHR. He was allowes to enter the plane (747) before everybody else, had seat 1A and the cabin crew was eager to take care of him. He should have taken a seat in C or WT to feel, how comfortable these seats really were. IAG needs a successor who will do better and travel as a “normal” BA-customer to feel, what his airline can do better for his customers.

[canucklad]

To answer the original question …..

Sir Tim Clark

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Johnnyg

[capetonianm]

[postquote quote=986309][/postquote]

I should have said HAL, not BAA.

I am sorry, in trying to quote my own post above, I somehow managed to report RFerguson’s #986227 as inappropriate. Completely accidental.

[esselle]

I think T5 opened in the days of BAA; HAL came along about three years or so later.

[capetonianm]

Willie Walsh, the outgoing chief executive of International Airlines Group, is in a relationship with a colleague, which could raise questions over governance at the British Airways owner.

From The Times.

[Author]

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