New CEO appointment at Boral
Mike Kane appointed as company’s new chief executive officer and managing director
BORAL Ltd have announced the appointment of Mike Kane as chief executive officer and managing director with effect from 1 October 2012. He will replace Ross Batstone who became Boral’s CEO on a temporary basis in May 2012 when Mark Selway stood down from the role.
Mike Kane joined Boral in February 2010 in the role of president of Boral USA and has spent the past two and half years significantly realigning the US business to the changed market conditions and positioning the company to take advantage of the US market recovery.
He has extensive experience in the building and construction industry, including 24 years in senior executive roles with US Gypsum, Pioneer/Hanson Building Materials, Johns-Manville Corp. and Holcim, and joined Boral from Calstar Products where he was chief executive officer.
Commenting on his appointment, Boral’s chairman, Dr Bob Every, said: ‘Mike has a deep understanding of the US building and construction materials industry and has been doing an excellent job leading the US business through the most difficult period in the last 60 years of the US housing market.
‘He has delivered substantial improvements to the underlying business in the US at the same time as introducing innovative new technologies and integrating two key strategic acquisitions that position the business well for the future.
‘His proven track record in managing businesses through cycles and his stewardship of Boral’s US operations during a period of extremely difficult market conditions while delivering substantial operational improvements is critically important to Boral going forward.’
Although Mr Kane’s focus has been on managing the US business, he has also been a key member of Boral’s executive management committee and has spent a considerable amount of time in the company’s Australian offices over the past two and a half years, giving him a solid knowledge of Boral’s broader operations and markets beyond the US business.
Commenting on his new role, Mr Kane said: ‘Boral is an iconic building and construction materials company in Australia with an increasingly significant position in the global building materials industry.
‘The company has undergone significant change over the past two years to realign the business to meet current challenging market conditions and changing demographics, particularly in Australia and in the US.’
He continued: ‘My immediate priority is to work with Boral’s management team to continue to strengthen the company’s financial position by maximizing cash generation, further aligning Boral’s operational portfolio and delivering benefits from our LEAN manufacturing initiative.
‘My medium-term focus is to ensure that the company has in place the necessary strategies to maximize returns through the construction and building cycles, and I’ll be working with my team over the next six months to define a clear path forward to achieve both our immediate and longer-term objectives.’
Thanking Ross Batstone for his stewardship as CEO during the transition period, Dr Every added: ‘Ross has done an excellent job harmonizing the changes that have taken place over the past two years and continuing to drive improvements. I look forward to his continued support in the coming months before his planned retirement.’
Mr Batstone will remain with the Group in a consulting capacity until his retirement in July 2013 and will continue as chairman of Boral Gypsum Asia. In the coming weeks, he will work closely with Mike Kane to ensure a seamless leadership transition.
Meanwhile, with the appointment of Mr Kane to the CEO role, Al Borm, current president of Boral Roofing in the US, has been appointed to the position of president Boral USA with effect from 1 October 2012.
