National parcel carrier, Australia Post, has named Paul Graham as its new Group CEO and Managing Director.
He joins Australia Post after a successful tenure as Chief Supply Chain Officer at Woolworths Group, and an extensive career working in eCommerce, and supply chain as well as global experience in digital marketing and retail.
Graham, who will commence the role in September, is the former Managing Director of Primary Connect is also on the board of Healthy Heads in Trucks & Sheds.
Australia Post Chairman Lucio Di Bartolomeo said Australia Post undertook a thorough global search before choosing Mr Graham to lead the business through the next phase of its transformation program.
“On behalf of the board I am so pleased to announce Paul as the next CEO of Australia Post – an outstanding candidate with strong logistics, digital and retail experience both here and overseas, including as a senior executive at Deutsche Post DHL,” said Di Bartolomeo.
“Paul has a demonstrated track-record of delivering results in large, complex organisations and is a proven leader managing large teams.
“The Board was impressed by Paul’s 40 years’ of deep industry experience working in supply chain in Australia, Europe and Asia. We are also confident Paul’s community and customer philosophy is a perfect fit for Australia Post.”
Originally from Northern Ireland, Graham began his career in the supply chain industry in 1980 and joined Woolworths in 2016.
He said in a statement he was proud to be appointed as CEO of such an iconic Australian brand and looked forward to getting started in the role later this year.
“Australia Post has proven itself to be one of the most resilient and successful postal businesses anywhere in the world,” Graham said.
“I feel fortunate to be joining at a time when we can truly capitalize on the extraordinary growth in eCommerce experienced in the past year and continue developing our retail and digital offerings while keeping letter deliveries strong,” he said.
“I am most looking forward to meeting the team across the country – the posties, Post Office workers, mail processors and delivery drivers that kept our country operating during COVID19. I am also looking forward to getting out into regional Australia where Australia Post has an enormous presence, as well as meeting with the thousands of Post Office licensee partners who play a critical role every day serving the country.
“I have been so privileged to run Woolworths’s supply chain for the past five years and it has shown me how important it is to keep our customers at the centre of everything we do – without our customers we don’t have a business.”
Graham’s remuneration has been set at $1,456,560 fixed annual total remuneration and the potential to earn incentive payments of up to $1,456,560, in accordance with the parameters set by the Commonwealth Remuneration Tribunal.
The Australia Post Board today also confirmed that Rodney Boys will continue to lead the business through the CEO transition period until Graham commences in September.
Boys was appointed in the interim following Christine Holgate’s resignation as CEO late last year after she revealed that she had given four staff members luxury Cartier watches two years prior as a bonus for securing a lucrative deal.