Observing C-suite and boardroom developments over the past 2 weeks at Barclays makes me wonder about the process of change at the top.
First we learn that Anthony Jenkins is out as CEO. We also learn that John McFarlane, who started at the bank as Non-executive Chairman less than three months ago, will guide the company, during an extended search period for a new, possibly external, CEO. However this morning's FT indicates this was not a coup but an action taken by the NEDs seeking clear leadership and a new strategic direction for the firm. But change breeds more change and news leaks that Deputy Chairman Sir Mike Rake will step down too, triggers a call from the Bank of England saying now isn't the time for more boardroom moves. In the end, Sir Rake clarified he will stay on until a new CEO is named.
Let's stand back and look at these developments through the lens of what is going generally in European banking. Considerable change in the C-Suite this year, upcoming stress-tests next year, an increasingly obtrusive supervisor (didn't the BOE trigger the departure of the Barclays CEO in the pre-Jenkins days?) and yet a realisation too that shareholders demand reasonable returns, all underscore some of the challenges of running a bank these days. I well recall Sir Mervyn King's words about the need for bank leadership of "an usually high order" is required to set things right in banking. May we live in interesting times....
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