NZME attracts former ASB boss Barbara Chapman to its board

NZME attracts former ASB boss Barbara Chapman to its board

By Paul McBeth

April 18 (BusinessDesk) - NZME has appointed former ASB Bank chief Barbara Chapman as a director as part of the newspaper publisher and radio station operator's efforts to renew the board.

Chapman's appointment is effective immediately and shareholders will vote on the appointment at the annual meeting on June 21, Auckland-based NZME said in a statement. The media company has been overhauling its board, which saw the departure of John Anderson in December as the former ANZ National Bank boss scaled back his duties at public companies. Former ad man and Lewis Road Creamery founder Peter Cullinane took over the chair from Anderson and ex-investment banker David Gibson joined the board. Former accountant Carol Campbell, appointed in 2016, rounds out the board.

"I am delighted to announce that Barbara Chapman will be joining the NZME board team," Cullinane said. "Barbara will further enhance the experience and diversity of our board, bringing valuable governance to the table in relation to people and culture, marketing and technology."

The NZME position is Chapman's second board slot announced this week after she was appointed a Genesis Energy director on Monday. The country's biggest electricity retailer cited Chapman's skills in disruptive innovation, marketing, digital transformation, consumer technologies and driving leading brands when announcing her appointment.

NZME intends to appoint one more director this year to make sure it has "the appropriate resources and skills to support its growth strategy", it said.

The shares last traded at 84 cents and have declined 4.6 percent so far this year.

(BusinessDesk)

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