The Awful Truth About The ARU's Financial Position

[I like to watch]

In that case,the ARU should rightfully cease funding Schools rep programs.
It's not right to tax the clubs and fund the Schools,is it?

 

[TOCC]

Oh, right. What would you have done? Who would you have hired?

Let's get to the root of the argument, do you think John O'Neill was the best person for the job and do you think his total salary was a fair reflection of his employment?

 

[I like to watch]

Do you honestly, sincerely, believe that JON was paid more than his contractual entitlements?


I would bet London to a brick on that his "generous leaving bonus" was agreed to as part of an overall package. If you can do better than those who re-hired him, put your application in the next time there is a vacancy.


Hindsight is a wonderful thing. If we all had enough of it, we would all be gazillionaires.

Here is a better reply to some of the issues you raise,from another thread some time ago...

Surely one of the most staggering facts buried in the 2012 ARU AR (page 25 of the financial Notes) is as follows:

---> JO'N presides over 2 recent years of large ARU losses, a failed RWC campaign, gradual ARU revenue shrinkage, a Wallabies' gate attendances level falling and a very mediocre w-l%, spends large chunks of 2012 with another project altogether (Echo Ent), resigns (allegedly) voluntarily in October 2012 (so only part-year salary due and no severance etc), and lo and behold these are his total 2011 and 2012 total cash remuneration levels:

2011: $942,500 2012: $2,186,000 ...and of this latter total figure fully $895,000 is listed as 'Incentives'. JON's 2012 base salary of $1,291,844 was a more than $500,000 increase over his 2011 base salary.

This says it all to me: The ARU board does not oversight Australian rugby competently, adequately, efficiently, fairly, or with due care for all its constituent stakeholders and the wider rugby community. Over $2m paid to JON on the above basis for 2012 with a huge Incentives payment is, objectively, scandalous, there is no other word.

And, just btw, how could JON (who was also paid large $ sums by Echo in 2012) in good conscience take that level of 2012 cash from the ARU given its very large level of $ losses in 2012? Says much that he did.

(Finally, ponder this: The base annual salary of the new BHP CEO running near Australia's largest company with large $Bns in profits and cash flow is $1,700,000. The ARU is a c. a $100m revenue company making material losses. If we extrapolate JON's CEO 2012 salary for 10 months as above to 12 months it's very close to that of BHP's current CEO.)

 

[barbarian]

In that case,the ARU should rightfully cease funding Schools rep programs.
It's not right to tax the clubs and fund the Schools,is it?

I don't think that would concern the schools too much.

And frankly I think the ARU barely put a dollar into that program, the kids have to pay almost every cent themselves.
.

 

[I like to watch]

Mightn't bother you,but Uncle Bill has stated they invest 6 figures into the Schoolboys program each year.

 

[Quick Hands]

But the ARU don't run the game in schools, be they public or private. So they can't make them pay a cent, and rightfully so.

The ARU can only levy competitions which they administer, those being club competitions.

Yes, that's my point

 

[Quick Hands]

I still find it staggering that the ARU, would pay any CEO $1.2 million. Even more staggering that there are people trying to defend it.

 

[I like to watch]

What about the sneaky extra nine hungy for doing such a bang up job!
Maybe he threatened to stay if they didn't pay up?

 

[Inside Shoulder]

Inside Shoulder,

What was the alternative to professionalism? "They" were us, people just like us, who loved rugby and knew that it would only survive if we went professional. I know some of "them", one in particular has given many thousands of hours of unpaid service to the NSWRU and then the ARU over the years, because he loves the game. Incidentally, he is also a former Wallaby who played a lot of club rugby at a struggling club.


"They" did not take your community game. Rugby belongs to all players and supporters, old chap. It is not your game. It is our game, including those who work as volunteers at all levels.


The way things are now is the product of a lot of factors, but blaming "them" (whoever they are) is a pretty peurile thing to do.

I never said it was my game, is that a deliberate or accidental misrepresentation?

 

[Quick Hands]

What about the sneaky extra nine hungy for doing such a bang up job!
Maybe he threatened to stay if they didn't pay up?

I think these things are termed "performance bonuses". I just wonder which part of his performance justified the payment of a bonus?

 

[Gnostic]

I am astounded that given the depths of the &^%$ the ARU is in financially people are not calling for the immediate resignations of the remaining board members from the JON era that permitted this debacle. Surely this has to signal the end of the gravy train that has seen past players and hangers on assume management roles with the ARU (and Super Unions).
As was eloquently put first by Redshappy nearly three years ago, the board was asleep at the wheel and little more a rubber-stamp for JON. We shouldn't forget the role that the Flowers administration had in setting the foundations (or lack thereof) for this situation in basically spending the bulk of the 2003 RWC windfall.
Nobody should be surprised at what is happening, there are and were members of this forum who have extensive significant business experience who were ringing the alarm bells. Few were listening and the media by and large were too beholden to the ARU to publish anything insightful or investigative. It is disappointing that many continue to shrug and say all these assessments are easy to make in hindsight, in an interesting parallel to the assessments made of the Deans coaching era.

 

[TOCC]

I am astounded that given the depths of the &^%$ the ARU is in financially people are not calling for the immediate resignations of the remaining board members from the JON era that permitted this debacle.

Those who appointed him were from 5 years ago, the whole board has changed and not to mention been restructured with the independent commission appointments.

 

[I like to watch]

True,but who were the weak kneed patsies that approved firstly his massive pay increase,and secondly his exit payment,and thirdly the performance measurement that could possibly allow such a payment.
How many $200 levies to pay $900k in performance bonuses?

 

[TOCC]

Given the non-disparagement agreement I doubt we will ever know all the details.

 

[I like to watch]

What is disparaging about listing his many accomplishments that warranted such a payment?
As a comparison,look at the AB's Annual report,where they list the KPI's of the organisation and the weighting of each KPI.They also clearly mark the previous years performance in detail.

 

[Gnostic]

Those who appointed him were from 5 years ago, the whole board has changed and not to mention been restructured with the independent commission appointments.

http://www.rugby.com.au/News/NewsAr...eID/10115/ARU-announces-changes-to-Board.aspx

Three resigned but others remain including Mr Hawker. A brief reading of this report shows just how long the board members had to be asleep for to allow this to occur.

Some great ironies in the "committees" that they were part of "Audit & Risk" "Governance" FFS what a laugh, what did they do in these meetings, decide what coffee and biscuits to have and what wine was to be served at the next game?

 

[wamberal]

I still find it staggering that the ARU, would pay any CEO $1.2 million. Even more staggering that there are people trying to defend it.

I am defending the people who made the decision, I know one of them and he is a former Wallaby who is a partner in one of the top international executive recruitment firms.


I find it staggering that you are able to question the competence and integrity of people like him.


Incidentally, I hope that Pulver is earning that sort of money. If he is not, we probably do not have the right calibre of CEO. Jobs like this need good people. Good people get paid good money.

 

[Inside Shoulder]

Good people get paid good money.

but not all people on good money are any f*%king good

 

[Gnostic]

I am defending the people who made the decision, I know one of them and he is a former Wallaby who is a partner in one of the top international executive recruitment firms.


I find it staggering that you are able to question the competence and integrity of people like him.


Incidentally, I hope that Pulver is earning that sort of money. If he is not, we probably do not have the right calibre of CEO. Jobs like this need good people. Good people get paid good money.

Well they obviously were not competent, its a bit like defending the Bear Sterns and RBS bankers who got huge payouts as their respective organisations went broke.

Your mate/acquaintance may well be a good bloke personally, but the results of this board have nothing to do with that, so be staggered I question competence and integrity.

 

[Quick Hands]

Surely if someone is the head of recruitment firm and recruits someone who stuffs up the job the he's been recruited for, the recruitment process needs to be at least questioned?

If the GFC proved anything, it was that people on big salaries, in high positions, with private school and university educations weren't necessarily very competent.

As an aside the ARU engaged a recruitment company to conduct a worldwide search for a CEO to replace JON, and came up with someone who went to school with the Chairman. (This is not a criticism of Bill Pulver, just the process)