Monadelphous has announced four major changes to its leadership, most notably the retirement of chairman John Rubino, bringing to an end his 30-year partnership with Rob Velletri.
Monadelphous has announced four major changes to its leadership, most notably the retirement of chairman John Rubino, bringing to an end his extraordinary 30-year partnership with Rob Velletri.
The engineering and construction contractor has promoted Mr Velletri to executive chairman.
His role as managing director will be filled by long-serving executive Zoran Bebic.
The company also announced the retirement of long-serving non-executive director Peter Dempsey.
Messrs Velletri and Rubino have jointly led Monadelphous for more than three decades, with the company growing to become one of Australia’s largest and most successful contractors.
It employs almost 8,000 people across its operations in Australia, Chile, China, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines.
The stability at the top of the company contrasts with most other ASX companies, where the average tenure of chief executives is closer to seven years.
Mr Rubino joined Monadelphous at the tail end of the 1980s when the contractor came close to collapse.
He was appointed managing director and chair in 1991 and became executive chair in 2003.
The company said the 77-year old was retiring for health reasons but did not elaborate.
Deputy chair Sue Murphy acknowledged Mr Rubino’s outstanding contribution.
“For so many of us who have had the opportunity to work closely with John, we have enjoyed his wry sense of humour, admired his phenomenal negotiation skills, his generosity of spirit and his willingness to roll up his sleeves and get involved,” Ms Murphy said.
“His strong belief in relationships and values defines us as a company, and Monadelphous has been incredibly fortunate to have spent the past 30 years with John at its helm.”
Mr Velletri praised his outgoing chairman, saying he left a great legacy.
“John encapsulates the Monadelphous values on which our company is built – safety and wellbeing, integrity, achievement, teamwork and loyalty – and his belief in building strong, respectful relationships as a foundation for success is at the core of how we operate,” Mr Velletri said.
“One of John’s greatest features is his belief in empowering people.
“The success of Monadelphous is thanks to the contributions of many people who are all empowered and encouraged to play their part.”
Monadelphous was the second business where Mr Rubino made his mark.
He was previously part of a quartet of Italian migrants who established and built United Construction into a highly successful business during the 1970s and 1980s.
Mr Velletri’s move to executive chairman comes after 33 years with the company.
He joined Monadelphous in 1989 as general manager, was promoted to executive director 1992 and succeeded Mr Rubino as managing director in 2003.
In a statement, the company said its board unanimously supported Mr Velletri’s appointment to the role of executive chairman.
It’s a relatively unusual move, as best practice guidelines for corporate governance call for listed companies to have a non-executive chairman.
Commenting on his new role, Mr Velletri said Monadelphous has a very experienced board that promotes and encourages a culture of openness and a diversity of views.
“It’s one of the reasons we’ve achieved such success over such a sustained period of time,” he said.
“The board is confident its current composition, with its combined skills and capability, and its mix of experience, best serves the interests of our shareholders.”
New managing director Zoran Bebic is another Monadelphous veteran, having been with the company for almost 30 years.
His past roles include being chief financial officer and company secretary and, since 2014, executive general manager of the company’s Maintenance and Industrial Services division.
The company said that during this period, the division has almost doubled sales revenue to over $1 billion per annum and strategically broadened its scope of services, geographies and customer markets.
Mr Dempsey has provided notice of his intention to retire as a non-executive director of Monadelphous at the close of its upcoming AGM.
He was appointed to the board in 2003.
The company acknowledged his strength for identifying and managing material business risks, and his focus on guiding the desired culture of the organisation.
