William Hill Australia CEO Sullivan departs
Hills' group director of operations James Henderson takes temporary charge as former Sportingbet Australia boss departs
William Hill is on the hunt for a new Australia CEO after its current boss Michael Sullivan agreed to leave the firm yesterday.
Speculation regarding the former Sportingbet Australia CEO’s departure circulated last week when the operator confirmed talks over the “future leadership” of its operations in the country were taking place.
Reports also suggested Australia COO Anthony Waller could be also be on his way out of the business, however Hills has not confirmed the move.
The operator’s group director of operations James Henderson has taken temporary charge while it recruits for a new Australia CEO.
Sullivan led Sportingbet Australia since it opened a betting shop in the Northern Territory in 2002. Following Hills’ AU$660m (£485m) takeover of Sportingbet and Centrebet last year he was retained by CEO Ralph Topping to run the entire Australia business.
A spokesperson for William Hill said a mutual review of Sullivan’s leadership would take place a year after Sportingbet had been acquired, and that both parties believe the time now is right for him to pursue other challenges.
“The whole team at William Hill would like to thank him for all his hard work and significant achievements over the years, and to wish him well for the future,” the spokesperson said.
“Michael has played a pivotal role in the development of the corporate bookmaking industry, has built the Sportingbet business into one of Australia’s strongest betting brands and has supported the seamless transition of Sportingbet Australia into the wider William Hill business.”
Sullivan and his senior management team were in line for a £15m shared retention bonus payable in 2017 and 2018 and it is unknown whether he will miss out on his share of the bonus given his early departure.