Search begins for successor to Royal Mail chief (UK)
The government has begun a search for a successor to Allan Leighton, the Chairman of the Royal Mail, who will step down from his post after seven years when his term expires next March.
Mr Leighton, Royal Mail’s longest-serving Chairman, took up the position at the state-owned group in March 2002, having joined the organisation as a non-executive director in 2001.
Mr Leighton believes the group is now in a strong position to recruit a new Chairman. Significantly, the Hooper Report on the future of the postal services market, by Richard Hooper, the former telecoms regulator, is due to be published next month. The report will examine the degree to which private capital should be involved in the service.
The government extended Mr Leighton’s tenure last year, ending a search for his successor after a number of unsuccessful approaches to several businessmen, including Sir Philip Hampton, the Chairman of J Sainsbury.
Industry sources said Mr Leighton, who has a reputation as a turnaround specialist, is likely to want to do one more “big job”. They said he had already fielded some offers.
The government has begun a search for a successor to Allan Leighton, the chairman of the Royal Mail, who will step down from his post after seven years when his term expires next March.
Mr Leighton, Royal Mail’s longest-serving chairman, took up the position at the state-owned group in March 2002, having joined the organisation as a non-executive director in 2001.
He is expected to be involved in the search for a successor, which is being handled by the Zygos Partnership, a headhunting company hired by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, which oversees the appointment.
His departure will cap a turbulent reign at Royal Mail. He has overseen a significant modernisation plan of the company, transforming it from a loss-making group into a profitable organisation.
But progress has not been without controversy. A dispute over pensions prompted the Communications Workers Union to launch the first national strike in a decade last autumn in protest at the changes, while the group has also come under fire over the scale of post office closures.
However, Mr Leighton believes the group is now in a strong position to recruit a new chairman. Significantly, the Hooper Report on the future of the postal services market, by Richard Hooper, the former telecoms regulator, is due to be published next month. The report will examine the degree to which private capital should be involved in the service.
The government extended Mr Leighton’s tenure last year, ending a search for his successor after a number of unsuccessful approaches to several businessmen, including Sir Philip Hampton, the chairman of J Sainsbury.
Prior to joining Royal Mail, Mr Leighton was head of supermarket group Asda, famously selling it to Wal-Mart of the US for GBP 6.7bn in 1999. He left in 2000, announcing he was “going plural”.
Although he has cut down on the number of boardroom posts he holds in recent years, he continues to serve as a non-executive director at George Weston, the Canadian food group, and is often working from Toronto. He is also on the board of BSkyB, the broadcaster.
Industry sources said Mr Leighton, who has a reputation as a turnaround specialist, is likely to want to do one more “big job”. They said he had already fielded some offers.
Last night, Adam Crozier, chief executive of Royal Mail Group, said: “Allan is the longest serving chairman of the company and his leadership has seen the company take huge steps forward. He remains chairman for a further six months and I know he will continue to lead the company with the enthusiasm, passion and drive that is his hallmark until he steps down.”
