Crozier confirmed as BT Chairman
August 17, 2021
By Colin Mann
Following earlier speculation, BT Group plc has confirmed that Adam Crozier will succeed Jan du Plessis as Chairman. Crozier will join the Board from November and will become Chairman with effect from December 1st 2021 when du Plessis will retire.
Crozier is an experienced chairman with significant operational and transformational experience in both public and private businesses across a range of industries, making him an excellent candidate to chair BT, says the telco. He is currently Chairman of Whitbread plc, ASOS plc, Kantar Group Limited, as well as a non-executive director of Sony Corporation. He has built a strong track record in turning around organisations and for his ability to build and lead successful management teams. Earlier in his career and for over 20 years he was a CEO across four different sectors, most recently as the CEO of ITV plc and before that as CEO of Royal Mail Holdings plc, where he led its modernisation and transformation.
On taking up the chairmanship of BT, Crozier will step down as Chairman of ASOS plc on November 29th 2021 and will not put himself forward for re-election at their upcoming annual general meeting. He will also step down as a non-executive director of Sony Corporation with effect from December 31st 2021.
“I am delighted Adam is succeeding me,” declared du Plessis. “Chairing the Board of BT over the past four years has been a tremendous privilege. BT is a truly unique and special business and what this company does really matters to so many people. I am immensely grateful to my fellow Board members for their support and hard work during my tenure as Chairman. I wish Adam every success as he joins the Board at a very exciting time for the Company and I wish BT the very best for the future.”
“After a thorough and comprehensive process to ensure we identified the very best candidate to lead BT, Adam is the unanimous choice of the Board,” stated Iain Conn, BT’s Senior Independent Director. “He has significant experience in leading public company boards, developing teams and managing stakeholders and brings a strong transformational and operational track record in large-scale executive roles.”
“It is an honour to join the Board of BT and to succeed Jan as Chair,” commented Crozier. “BT is a hugely important company, with a critical role to play in building the digital networks and services to support the UK’s future. I look forward to working with the Board, Philip and his executive team to create value for all our stakeholders.”
“I would like to thank Jan for his leadership over the last four years,” added Philip Jansen, Chief Executive. “He has overseen the achievement of significant milestones and the recent improvement in BT’s fortunes and his careful stewardship has left the business in a better, stronger position. On behalf of the Executive Committee and all our colleagues, I would like to wish him well for the future. I am delighted to welcome Adam to BT and I really look forward to working with him as we target returning BT to consistent growth.”
On joining the Board, Crozier will be appointed to the Nominations Committee and will succeed du Plessis as Chair of that committee on December 1st 2021.
Crozier is currently Non-Executive Chairman of Whitbread plc, ASOS plc and Kantar Group Ltd. He is also Non-Executive Director of Sony Corporation. Previously he held the chairmanships of Stage Entertainment BV and Vue International Cinema Group.
Crozier has had over 20 years’ experience as a CEO across four different industries, most recently as the CEO of ITV plc from April 2010 to June 2017. Over that time, he has built a strong track record in turning around troubled organisations and in building and leading successful management teams. Under Crozier’s leadership, ITV plc was transformed into one of the most successful and dynamic media and content companies in the world and its financial performance improved dramatically, with earnings per share increasing by over 800 per cent.
Before joining ITV, Crozier was chief executive of Royal Mail, where over seven years he led its modernisation and transformed it from a heavily loss-making position to profitability. Prior to Royal Mail he was CEO of the Football Association between 2000 and 2002 and Joint CEO of Saatchi & Saatchi from 1995 to 2000.