Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting disputes ‘top gun’ label for former employee

“Top gun” is widely applied in a generic sense to a senior figure in an organisation but does it imply someone is a company director?

When is a “top gun” not a “top gun”?

Sure, we all know the phrase from the Tom Cruise movie and, of course, it’s widely applied in a generic sense to a senior figure in an organisation.

But does it necessarily imply that someone is a company director?

According to Jay Newby, it absolutely suggests that’s the case.

Newby, a longtime senior player at Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting, took us to task recently for referring to Brisbane mining identity Paul Mulder in passing as a “former top gun’’ at the resources giant.

Paul Mulder

“That is incorrect,’’ Newby wrote to us in an email.

“Mr Mulder was never a ‘top gun’ in the organisation and if he has represented such to you it was wrong for him to do so. Would you please correct your article, and all online versions.’’

His complaint then got us wondering if we had somehow messed that one up.

But no, Mulder, who now oversees Mayur Resources, has a LinkedIn page which very clearly spells out his senior role at Hancock Prospecting over a seven-year period to 2014 in both Brisbane and Perth.

As “Group managing director – Coal & Infrastructure,” he says he held roles in business development and as a project director.

True, people can embellish or whitewash their LinkedIn job histories, so we responded to Newby, asking if this self-description was inaccurate.

“The title of Managing Director was for marketing purposes - Mr Mulder was never a director of any Hancock entity. However, the title does not mean he was a ‘top gun’ in the organisation, which he wasn’t. We would appreciate your correction,’’ Newby wrote back.

Wait…what? Senior figures at one of Australia’s biggest miners have titles that are purely for public consumption?

We had to find out more about this!

“So the title ‘group managing director’ was just for marketing purposes?,’’ we wrote back to Newby.

“You realise, of course, Jay that that begs the question of how many other Hancock employees have job titles that don’t accurately reflect what they actually do.

“Can you elaborate? Is your title of ‘executive director’ just for marketing purposes as well?”

Newby, clearly irritated by this obvious line of inquiry, didn’t respond to these questions in his reply.

“There is no need for sarcasm,’’ he sniffed.

“The simple point is that at no stage during his employment with Hancock Prospecting was Mr Mulder a ‘top gun’ for Mrs Rinehart. Therefore your article is incorrect.’’

You might think someone at Newby’s level would have something better to do with his time than nitpick the small stuff. But okay Jay, we stand corrected if it makes you feel better.

Mulder could not be reached for comment.

VACCINE PASSPORT

With the global roll out of COVID-19 vaccinations gathering speed, we’ll be heading overseas soon enough and needing to prove we’ve had the jab.

To that end, tech firm VST Enterprises has already wheeled out what it claims is the world’s first “fit to fly’’ secure digital health passport.

The firm is promoting its so-called “V-Health Passport,’’ which consumers can already download from all the usual spots.

Notably, it does not use bar codes or QR codes which have had some notorious recent dramas with lack of security, including identity theft. Fake COVID-10 test certificates have also surfaced in Russia and the Middle East.

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