Air NZ chair a stickler for standards

By DANIEL RIORDAN

Air New Zealand's new chairman, John Palmer, says improving the company's corporate governance is one of his top priorities.

He said he watched the Air NZ saga unfold from a distance with some concern.

"As a reasonably senior person in the Institute of Directors, I was pretty concerned with aspects of corporate governance I read about.

"I asked myself at the time, 'If you were a director sitting around the table would you have allowed some of these things to happen?' In hindsight, we'll never know."

Nelson-based Mr Palmer's corporate experience includes chairing listed agricultural company Wrightson, heading the Kiwifruit Marketing Board as it fought its way out of financial strife, playing a leading role in the formation and float of Trust Bank NZ, and membership of AMP NZ's advisory board.

Though he acknowledged that his lack of aviation experience posed "a bit of a handicap", he said his experience nursing companies through sustained periods of reorganisation and financial pressure would stand him in good stead.

"There are a whole lot of complexities in the industry that will take some time to understand but the fundamentals of most businesses are the same.

"You have to ensure you know what the key drivers are and ensure you have sufficient cash reserves to sustain you through good and bad times.

"You have to show leadership and give clear messages to the market about the way the business will be run, starting at board level."

The only other Air NZ director he has worked with is Liz Coutts, and then only briefly at Trust Bank.

A self-described "activist" chairman, Mr Palmer, 54, said he was not accustomed to failure.

"Part of the attraction of this role is taking on something that's really difficult and succeeding.

"I accept it's a high-risk position with as much to lose as gain. I don't have any problems taking responsibility for things the board should do and things we should anticipate. But even with good governance and good thinking, the business could take turns no one expects and get into difficulty.

"This is a New Zealand icon business. It's important for the country that it succeeds and I'm pretty determined to ensure it does."

Mr Palmer expects to eventually spend about three days a week in Auckland on airline business, but is at present devoting more time than that.

* Air NZ's board comprises Government appointees Mr Palmer and Roger France (executive director), independents Dr Jim Farmer, QC, Ralph Norris, Sir Ronald Carter and Ms Coutts, Singapore Airlines' Dr CK Cheong and Brierley Investments' Bill Wilson, QC.

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