Iberia Reorganises Management to Meet Covid-19 Challenges

Editor -
  • Principles: Austerity, experience, urgency and focus on crisis management
  • New “People” manager takes responsibility for labour relations and people development.
  • Fewer management units and a smaller structure to save costs.

You can see the organization chart and see and download CV and photos of the Board Members, here.

Appointed on 9 September, Iberia’s new executive chairman Javier Sánchez-Prieto has already designed a new management structure whose priority is to meet the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic and to advance toward the gradual recovery of demand.

The new organisation will continue to rely on its most experienced people in dealing with the economic crisis engendered by the pandemic and its harsh impact on travel and the airline industry.

The structure reflects the need for austerity as such a time, by merging four departments into two, headed by people with experience in their respective areas.

The sole new appointment from outside the company is the head of the “People” unit, which now combines labour relations and people development.

Iberia’s new Executive Chairman Javier Sánchez-Prieto explained that “The current situation, sharply affected by the coronavirus pandemic, obliges us to make decisions quickly. The new management team has the experience, the technical expertise, and the determination that we need at this time to meet the challenges we face and to continue to advance towards the recovery of demand.”

The new Management Committee is divided into eight units:

  • Commercial, formerly headed by Marco Sansavini –recently appointed CEO of Vueling--, and the Network and Alliances department, have been merged into a single unit under Maria Jesús López Solás, currently Customers Manager and formerly head of the Network and Alliances unit.
  • Similarly, the Transformation and IT and Customers units will be merged into a single department under Gabriel Perdiguero, the current manager of Transformation and IT, and a former Customers manager.
  • To replace André Wall, who recently left the company, Andy Best is to head the Maintenance division while we carry on the project of analysing the future development of the division. Andy Best has been the Commercial manager of the division in recent years.
  • The newly created “People” department will be headed by Agustín González Hermosilla, previously Labour Relations Manager for Ferrovial Corporación and Human Resources manager for Ferrovial Servicios España.
  • José Antonio Barrionuevo will continue as head of the Strategy and Finance unit, as will Juan Cierco as Corporate Manager, Rafa Jiménez Hoyos as Production Manager, and Ángel Marcos as Airport Services Manager.