Abu Dhabi based Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has announced some very big management departures, with four senior members of the management team being shown the exit door, with the departures resulting in a significant re-allocation of roles and responsibilities within Etihad, with CEO Tony Douglas describing Etihad going forward as a mid-sized carrier.
The departures, which are all relatively recent arrivals at Etihad include: Chief Commercial Officer Robin Kamark, who has only been with Etihad for just over two years; Sales and Distribution Senior Vice President, Duncan Bureau, who has only been with Etihad for 18 month; Chief Risk and Compliance Officer, Mutaz Saleh, who has only been with Etihad since May 2019; and Chief Transformation Officer Akram Alam who has only been with Etihad for around two and a half years.
Tony Douglas, Etihad CEO said in a statement , “As a responsible business, we can no longer continue to incrementally adapt to a marketplace that we believe has changed for the foreseeable future,” adding, “That is why we are taking definitive and decisive action to adjust our business and position ourselves proudly as a mid-sized carrier.”
He said, “The first stage of this is an operational model change that will see us restructure our senior leadership team and our organization to allow us to continue delivering on our mandate.”
With losses continuing to mount even pre COVID-19, in 2017, then CEO James Hogan and Group CFO James Rigney) both stepped down, rumoured to be as a result of the ongoing losses and investments in a number of loss making airlines, with Etihad reporting a US$758 million loss for the first six months of 2020, with the airline’s loss for the last ten years reported at over $6 billion.
The statement says Tony Douglas will remain CEO along with: Chief Digital Officer Frank Meyer; Chief Engineering Officer Abdul Khaliq Saeed; and Chief Investments Officer, with current Managing Director for Cargo and Logistics, Martin Drew, taking on Duncan Bureaus’ role, reporting directly to Chief Operating Officer, Mohammad Al Bulooki, with Al Bulooki, Chief Financial Officer, Adam Boukadida, and Executive Director Guest Experience, Brand, and Marketing, Terry Daly, takin on netween them Robin Kamark’s responsibilities, with the Chief Commercial Officer role ceasing to exist. Boukadida will also take on a number of Akram Alami’s and Mutaz Saleh’s former responsibilities.
CEO Douglas said, “What’s clear is that while the senior management ranks at Etihad are being thinned, those keeping their job will be worked harder than ever before”, adding “I must express my gratitude to each member of the team for continually proving our adaptability to the most unexpected of circumstances.”
A report by John Alwyn-Jones
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