CAL’s great executive search

The company has been searching for a chief executive since Brunton left in November 2011 and although there were two possible candidates, the position has remained vacant. In October 2011, an American Airlines executive based in Puerto Rico, Pedro Fabregas was tipped to take over CAL’s joystick, but negotiations fell through at the last minute, when it is believed that American sweetened his pot with a salary increase and a promotion.

More recently there was talk on the aviation grapevine that a former BWIA vice-president, now living in Miami, Michael Dolsingh, was set to take the job, but again negotiations fell through, but hopes were re-awakened when Dolsingh accompanied Minister Vasant Bharath as part of his team for talks with the Jamaican government. There has been no word on Dolsingh after that trip, although it has been learnt that his advice is still sought from time to time, as is advice from two former CEOs Ian Bertrand and Conrad Aleong, who have both been involved in conducting workshops with employees following requests from the new board.

In a way, the airline has never stopped looking for a CEO, but with the arrival of the new board a few months ago, led by Phillip Marshall, who holds a special position in the Ministry of Finance, the executive search has been intensified.

In late September, the company put out full page advertisements in all the local dailies, as well as in several airline associated global publications for the three top positions at the airline – Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Vice- President, Commercial and Customer Experience. In the case of the Chief Financial Officer, the airline has gone through two of them this year. Andre Mills left early in the year and then more recently, there was the short-lived tenure of Shiva Ramnarine. The airline has also continued to operate without a commercial and customer experience vice-president since Corbie assumed the position of acting CEO in November 2010.

The head hunting job was placed in the hands of a local company run by former Senator Diana Mahabir-Wyatt. Deadline for applications for all three positions was October 25, but efforts to get information on how the recruiting went in terms of responses, proved elusive since there was no reply to an email request. The same treatment was meted out to a Jamaican reporter from the Gleaner, who was seeking the same type of information.

But more than that, the airline, according to its website, is also looking to hire a Human Resources Manager, an internal auditor, as well as a fraud analyst, all positions to be resident at its Piarco, Iere House Headquarters. It is also looking to fill a sales position in New York.

While nothing has been confirmed, Business Day understands that employment of the fraud analyst became urgent because of the discovery, earlier this year of a credit card scam which cost the airline almost (US)$2 million.

The increased attention being given to filling the vacancies is obviously part of the Marshall Plan which insists that all these positions be filled soon so an improved management team could put into place the mandates of the new board as soon as the new Business Plan has been approved by Finance Minister Larry Howai.

It is the view of the minister that the airline is in dire need of proper leadership as early as possible and hence the urgent desire to have the vacancies filled. According to well-placed sources the airline continues to fly in skies full of red and losses look like they could reach as high as (US)$75 million ($450 million) by the end of the financial year in December. The airline has not made public through the Parliament, its audited figures for the past four years.

The new executive team, whenever it is put in place, faces tremendous challenges, to change the colour of its financial skies from red to black, moreso as the fuel subsidy it has enjoyed from its inception in 2007, has been discontinued. The subsidy has cost the Trinidad and Tobago taxpayer more than (US)$ 45 million annually.

Meanwhile, efforts to get some details about the new Marshall Plan have run into a wall of silence, but as Business Day understands the new plan will not in any way compromise the airline’s service standards, as a matter of fact there are protocols which would ensure improvement in these areas, like the re-introduction of Business Class on the Port-of-Spain/Kingston services and a better delivery of services.