Overhauling embattled casino giant Crown will be a mammoth task, but incoming Crown Resorts chair Ziggy Switkowski has told the Perth Casino Royal Commission it isn’t rocket science.
Overhauling embattled casino giant Crown will be a mammoth task, but high-profile businessman and incoming Crown Resorts chair Ziggy Switkowski has told the Perth Casino Royal Commission it isn’t rocket science.
Dr Switkowski appeared before the inquiry this morning, questioned at length by counsel assisting the commission Patricia Cahill about how he foresees rebuilding the company and his prior experience.
The former NBN Co chair was announced as the replacement for former chair Helen Coonan back in August, with his appointment still awaiting regulatory approval in all jurisdictions but Western Australia.
He acknowledged the deficiencies in the company’s management of financial crime, compliance, customer due diligence processes, and a range of employee and cultural issues.
But he said the most acute and urgent of the issues was the priorities of the enterprise, financial crime and compliance; the task of new chief Steve McCann.
“Steve McCann has a big job, but I believe Crown has the capacity to remediate itself,” he said.
“The fact that Crown has been found lacking in areas of compliance is an unfortunate state of affairs, but these are issues I have seen elsewhere in banking and financial services that can be broken up into digestible pieces and addressed over a period of time.
“It’s not rocket science, I believe all of these things can be addressed and you’ll have a great company.
“My optimism comes from experience, and in my experience, compliance issues, and any number of issues, can be remediated.”
But Dr Switkowski did express concern at how much needed to be done simultaneously.
“You wouldn’t normally attempt to do all of these things at the same time,” he said.
“It will certainly cost a lot more, you have to do it, but it will cost more.
“Remarkably, we continue to attract remarkable people that want to be part of the organisation; so that’s not an issue.
“It is hard, but it is all within the capability of capable people to execute.”
He was also quick to rule out the reintroduction of international junket activity.
“Crown’s position is that they would not reintroduce junkets, and I don’t have a separate view,” he told the inquiry.
When asked about his capacity to guide the remediation of the crisis-riddled company, Dr Switkowski drew parallels between his role chairing NBN Co and his appointment to Crown Resorts.
He said the company underwent significant change around the time of his appointment in 2013, when all but two of its board members asked to step down, half of the executive team left in short order and the chief executive department.
Dr Switkowski reflected on grappling with rebuilding a board amid substantial change in leadership and demoralised staff in an unsettled industry while managing one of Australia’s largest infrastructure projects.
“It feels similar,” he told the inquiry.
He likened the process of repopulating NBN Co’s executive team, addressing its change of direction and communicating new priorities while swatting away media scrutiny to that that was being undertaken at Crown.
“I see that there are steps already being taken at Crown,” he said.
“Those steps will need to be taken further, but what needs to be done at Crown is doable; it’s not rocket science.
“The momentum is there and I have at least some experience working with board colleagues and chief executives to progress the change.”
Dr Switkowski acknowledged the need for a comprehensive governance review of the Crown board, which he said was well-established and already underway, having reviewed the Bergin report and been briefed on evidence given by Crown officers.
Reflecting on the evidence given by his predecessor Helen Coonan regarding the delivery of “asymmetric information”, he stressed that all information should flow freely.
“That’s a position you would hope never to be in,” he said.
“Certainly on boards in which I have had any influence, all board members should be informed, information should flow freely and there should be no situation where board members are excluded.
“It’s in the selection of board members, you are going to select and appoint board members that value trust, teamwork and transparency. It depends on the behaviour of the chair and how they run meetings and communicate with management - and that’s a role I carry as chair.
But Dr Switkowski did reaffirm his faith in Steven Blackburn, Crown Resorts Limited’s new chief compliance and financial crime officer, and his ability to address potential financial crime risk, despite him having no prior experience in gambling risk minimisation.
“I am less troubled by lack of experience because capable executives get to understand these areas quickly,” he said.
“Whether he [Mr Blacburn] has the personal capacity to take these on I don’t know, but I am confident in Steve McCann’s appointment.”
The hearing falls on the eve of the delivery of the Victorian Commission Report, which will determine whether the casino giant will retain its licence.
