Women on top?

Rewind a couple of years and there were three female CEOs at the top of three major UK national newspaper groups – Carolyn McCall, Rebekah Brooks and Sly Bailey. Two rose to the top through the commercial side of the business and one through the editorial side.

They all faced a common challenge in navigating a news and content business from a physical print-based product to one that needed to increasingly embrace digital platforms. However, each of their organisations are different and pose their own political challenges.

GMG loses millions of pounds each year and is bank-rolled by the Scott Trust. Its investments in other media properties to fund “The Guardian publishing in perpetuity” have not fared well. The joint deal with Apax, the private equity firm, in the Top Right Group (previously EMAP) has seen the value of the investment crumble from £1 billion. Carolyn McCall, the CEO in 2010, moved to easyJet, where she is perceived to be doing a good job and keeping the very vocal shareholder Stelios Haji-Ioannou subdued. Stelios is, however, still rumbling on about executive remuneration.

Remuneration of CEOs is obviously a hot topic, especially when linked to non-performance and the decline in shareholder value. Sly Bailey has faced an increased shareholder and media furore. She has just stepped down as Trinity Mirror CEO. It is a tough gig running a publicly listed newspaper group when you need to meet short term goals through a very transparent lens.

And next week we will see Rebekah Brooks at the Leveson inquiry following a tumultuous reign in charge of News Corporation’s UK newspaper interests. News Corp’s fiscal performance is masked with the grouping of worldwide newspaper interests, and its UK accounts filed at companies house are somewhat confusing. But the one major shareholder, Rupert, loves newspapers, which grates in varying degrees among other shareholders.

For more on newspapers, get your ticket to our Future of National Newspapers event now. With senior execs from NI, Associated and The Guardian on the panel, it is not to be missed!