The Economist Group names Paul Deighton as its next chairman
For immediate release
The Economist Group names Paul Deighton as its next chairman
Paul Deighton will become the next chairman of The Economist Group. He will take up the position in July 2018, succeeding Rupert Pennant-Rea who is standing down after nine years in the role.
Lord Deighton is the former CEO of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and also served in the UK Government as treasury minister from 2012-15. Previously, he spent 27 years in banking, latterly as a partner at Goldman Sachs.
Lord Deighton said:
"I look forward to working with the management team and my board colleagues to ensure that The Economist Group's business strategy and financial performance are successful and continue to support its outstanding journalism."
Chris Stibbs, chief executive of The Economist Group, said:
“Rupert has been a fantastic chairman. As a former editor he knows the company well, and he has helped to steer it through unprecedented disruption to our industry. He also did much to secure the continued independence of The Economist in 2015, through the biggest change to our shareholder structure since 1928.
“We look forward to welcoming Paul as the next chairman. He brings vast experience from across the worlds of business and finance, as well as the highest levels of government. We look forward to working with him as we continue to build the future of the Group. He will be joining us at an exciting time, as The Economist reaches its 175th anniversary and the wider Group takes advantage of new opportunities.”
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For more information, contact:
Mathew Hanratty
Head of corporate communications
mathewhanratty@economist.com
+44 (0)20 7576 8546
Notes to editors
You can download a high-resolution image of Paul Deighton here.
About The Economist Group
The Economist Group is built on high-quality, independent analysis which runs through all of its businesses. It is the publisher of The Economist newspaper. Its businesses include the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and the Washington-based CQ Roll Call. In 2016/17 the Group posted an operating profit of £54m. First published in 1843, The Economist celebrates its 175th anniversary in 2018.
About Lord Deighton
Paul Deighton has had three distinct careers: in finance, leading the London 2012 Olympics and as a UK Government minister.
He spent 22 years at Goldman Sachs where he became a partner. In 2005 he left to become the CEO of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) and remains the only CEO in modern summer Olympic history to have lasted the full seven-year tenure. After the success of the Games, Paul was knighted by Her Majesty the Queen. He was also asked by the Prime Minister David Cameron to join the UK Government as a treasury minister in the House of Lords, with a brief to oversee the delivery of the country’s infrastructure and to attract foreign investment.
He is now non-executive chairman of Heathrow Airport and Hakluyt, a UK based advisory firm. He also serves on the board of Square Inc, a San Francisco based payments processing company, and chairs the audit and finance commission of the IAAF (the international governing body for athletics) and the governing body of King's College School, Wimbledon.
(March 1st 2018)