Stephen Hester appointed next chair of easyJet board
EasyJet announced on Monday that it has appointed Stephen Hester as a director, and chair-designate.
The FTSE 250 low-cost airline said the former RSA chief executive would join the board as a non-executive director on 1 September, and then would succeed John Barton as its chair on 1 December.
At that point, Barton would stand down from the board, having served almost nine years as chairman.
EasyJet’s board described Stephen Hester as a “highly strategic and successful” leader with more than 35 years of experience at major businesses, bringing a “strong” record of value creation and listed board experience.
He served as chief executive of RSA Insurance Group from February 2014 to May of this year, as well as chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland Group, chief executive of British Land, and chief operating officer of Abbey National, as well as holding a number of senior executive roles at Credit Suisse First Boston in London and New York.
Hester currently serves as a senior independent director of Centrica, having previously held a senior non-executive position as deputy chairman of Northern Rock.
“I am delighted that Stephen has been appointed as the next chair of easyJet,” said John Barton.
“His significant and varied experience leading major international businesses in regulated industries, coupled with his outstanding strategic thinking will serve the airline well as it leads the recovery in the post-pandemic era, complementing and adding to the skills of the existing board and leadership team.”
Barton described it as an “absolute privilege” to have been the chair of easyJet for nearly nine years.
“I am proud of how easyJet has not only navigated through the pandemic but has adapted and built back stronger leaving it extremely well positioned for the future.
“So it is with much confidence I will hand the reins over in the coming months to Stephen who will continue to drive easyJet's future success.”
At 0812 BST, shares in easyJet were up 2.18% at 816.4p.