Bodner to depart in bwin.party board shake-up
Operator to replace third of board after review by third-party corporate governance advisory firm - Bwin co-founder Manfred Bodner to step down as director
Bwin.party plans to appoint three new directors to its board before the end of the year in a move which will see founding partner Manfred Bodner (pictured) step down as a director.
The changes follow a review undertaken by third-party corporate governance advisory firm Lintstock Limited, which bwin.party said produced “no material adverse findings”.
However the operator said the changes were necessary given the” increasing complexity” of the business and, along with the length of service of a number of the non-executive directors, there was a need to prevent the board from becoming “too large and unwieldy”.
The move will see deputy chairman Rod Perry and Audit & Risk Committee chair Helmut Kern both retire from the board, which currrently has 10 members.
And it was also mutually agreed that founding partner Bodner would retire as a director at next week’s AGM and be retained in an annual consultancy agreement, to offer advice in the areas of brand management and digital marketing.
Bwin.party says the changes will ensure it has the right skills and experience to “support the company’s future success”.
Last year three non-exec directors left the board in quick succession: Lord Moonie, Tim Bristow and Geoff Baldwin.
According to the firm Perry’s replacement will be an individual with “extensive public company experience” while also bringing “complementary and relevant experience” to the board.
While Kern’s replacement looks set to be like-for-like, the search for a third director will target candidates with extensive knowledge and expertise in information technology, market trends and technology delivery in consumer-facing digital businesses.
The evaluation process undertaken by Lintsock entailed each board member answered a detailed questionnaire, as well as chairman-elect Philip Yea meeting individually with each director to discuss their opinions about the board’s performance.
Yea also met with a significant number of the company’s major shareholders and was able to discuss their concerns or questions regarding previous and future governance of the Company, bwin.party said.
The board has appointed Spencer Stuart, a leading executive search firm, to conduct an international search to identify suitable candidates.
Commenting on today’s announcement, Philip Yea, Chairman-elect, said:
“The steps we are announcing today will ensure that succession is in place to allow the Board to anticipate and address the complexities of technological change, the inevitable transition to regulated and taxed markets and also to maximise the long-term value of the business for its shareholders, customers and employees,” said Yea.