American Airlines has announced that its former CEO and current Chairman, Doug Parker, is going to step down on April 30, 2023.
His successor will be 56-year-old Boeing Executive Greg Smith, who joined the American Board of Directors just a year ago in January 2022.
In the aviation world, Doug Parker is a controversial executive who has seen pretty much everything in his 20+ years stretch leading America West, US Airways and American Airlines.
Some say that his tenure at each of these companies wasn’t exactly to the benefit of the customer experience, as Parker drove a hard bargain and tightened the screws on all of these carriers to cut costs and improve profitability. While that might be true, that’s pretty much the job of the Chief Executive.
In March of 2022, Parker passed the torch of the CEO Role over to Robert Isom who has led the airline since then:
Following the leadership transition, Parker became Chairman of the board for a year and is now ready to retire from American Airlines at the age of 61.
American Airlines released the following press statement:
American Airlines Group Inc. (NASDAQ: AAL) today announced that Greg Smith has been named independent chairman of the company’s board of directors, effective April 30, 2023. Smith, 56, will succeed Doug Parker, who will retire from the board at that time. Smith’s appointment is part of the board’s long-term succession planning process.
“Our CEO transition has been flawless thanks to the great work of Robert Isom, his team and our board,” said Parker. “Now is the right time for our chairman transition and we are fortunate to have Greg Smith in place to assume that role. Greg has made outstanding contributions since joining American’s board, and his strong knowledge of the aviation industry and his decades of leadership experience will be invaluable going forward.”
Smith joined American’s board in January 2022 after a more than 30-year career at The Boeing Company. He most recently served as Boeing’s Executive Vice President and CFO, leading the company’s Enterprise Operations, Finance, Strategy and Shared Services organizations. He managed Boeing’s overall financial activities and had oversight of the company’s manufacturing, operations, supply chain, quality and program management teams.
“It’s an honor and privilege to serve as a board member and now as chairman of this iconic company,” said Smith. “Due to the leadership and dedication of Doug, Robert and the entire American team, we are well-positioned to take the airline to the next level of excellence. The board and I look forward to working with Robert and this great team as we lead American Airlines into the future.”
“The American Airlines team will be forever grateful to Doug for building our airline into what it is today,” said American’s CEO Robert Isom. “On a personal note, I’m thankful for Doug’s partnership over the past year as I took on the CEO role. I look forward to continuing to work with the board and Greg in his new role as we shape the American Airlines of the future.” …
Here is Parker’s profile, and no matter if you like the guy or not, it is rather impressive:
This will conclude Doug Parker’s career at American Airlines and the airlines that eventually ended up as the American we know today.
It’s unlikely that his departure as Chairman of the Board at this point will have any significant impact on the company compared to when he changed from the CEO to the Chairman role. The new Chief Executive Robert Isom who is an AA veteran has been at the helm for a year now.
He’ll probably retain and obtain some more board seats in the next few years as a cushy side gig. Probably even another senior executive role at another company since 61 is really young in this day and age IF someone has the desire to keep working. Unlikely that he has to, considering the substantial remuneration as CEO of America’s major airlines for two decades.
Conclusion
Doug Parker will leave American Airlines as of April 30, 2023 when he passes the Chairman role to his successor.
I think it’s always easy for people to criticize company executives even if they themselves have little to no experience managing a large company. At the end of the day, these companies aren’t charities and the CEO serves the shareholders while answering to the board. Of course, that doesn’t mean that one should push the envelope too much and destroy the business by alienating customers, and pushing them to the competition.
Parker had a pretty good run as a top executive over two decades. I wonder if he will stay in this field and maybe be poached by another carrier (possibly one from the middle east) in the near future or if he’ll be taking it easy until full retirement.