| Notes |
Given Austal’s poor performance and ongoing ethical questions over serious securities fraud, a leadership change at the troubled company is both overdue and welcome. But the current moves don’t really solve anything. Rothwell has, effectively, stepped down without losing the ability to control the leadership, direction and culture of the company.
Rothwell has done this before, leaving the post of Executive Chairman in 2008, to be a “non-executive chairman”, only to return in 2010. Now, as a retiree, he’ll likely still continue pulling the company levers as a “non-executive director.” It’s a savvy move, ripped right from the movies. Robert De Niro, playing a Los Vegas executive in a Martin Scorsese movie Casino, changes his title from “Casino Executive” to “Food and Beverage Chairman” to stay a step ahead of regulators. Like De Niro, Rothwell’s titles may shift, but Rothwell’s underlying influence on Austal and Austal executives always, somehow, remains the same. |