Paul Guerra announced as new Melbourne Demons CEO, but may not begin role until September
New Melbourne CEO Paul Guerra has made an early show of support for coach Simon Goodwin as uncertainty surrounds when he will take charge of the club.
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Incoming Melbourne boss Paul Guerra has made an early show of support for coach Simon Goodwin as uncertainty surrounds when he will take charge of the club.
Guerra said Goodwin had made an “enormous” contribution to the Demons and deserved respect from the club’s leadership as he flagged conversations with the coach and Melbourne board over his future “in time”.
A decision on Goodwin, who is contracted until the end of 2026 and has alleviated some pressure in the last fortnight after a horror 0-5 start to the season, looms as one of the key tasks for the new chief executive over the coming months.
In a letter to members on Monday night announcing Guerra’s appointment, president Brad Green said the experienced business executive would “hit the ground running”.
But the Herald Sun understands Guerra may not commence his duties with Melbourne until the end of the home and away season in September as he remains committed to his role as Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive.
Guerra said he intended to remain at the VCCI until it hosts the World Chambers Congress – a major international business forum – in Melbourne between September 2 and 4.
The Demons confirmed the delay to Guerra’s official start, and said interim chief executive David Chippindall – who was overlooked for the permanent role – would continue until he was ready to take over.
“The appointment is less than 24 hours old – let me work through that with my board and also with the Melbourne footy club board, and we’ll come to the right arrangement,” Guerra said on Tuesday.
“But we have David (Chippindall) doing a wonderful job as interim CEO, we have an experienced president in Brad (Green) as well – so we’ve got leadership in place at the football club, and I’ll get across there as soon as I can.”
Guerra said he looked forward to meeting with Melbourne’s players, including contracted stars Kysaiah Pickett, Christian Petracca and Clayton Oliver, and had met with Goodwin on Tuesday after touring the Demons’ administrative offices at the MCG and their Casey Fields training base.
“I think you have to respect the fact that Simon is a premiership coach, he’s a premiership player as well,” Guerra said when asked if Goodwin was the right man to continue leading the club.
“This is a blip in time, where the footy club is at, and there are conversations that I’ll have in time with the board and Simon himself.
“But I think we need to respect Simon and the job he’s done at the football club, because it’s been enormous.
Guerra, who quipped he had renounced his lifelong support of Essendon after his appointment, said he would bring “strong CEO and leadership” acumen to the Demons that would offset his lack of football experience.
He was previously state director for Vodafone, which has sponsored several AFL clubs, and vice president of Motorola during its longstanding partnership with Richmond.
“I think there’s a lot that business can learn from sport, but equally I think there’s a lot sport can learn from business as well,” Guerra said.
“Melbourne is one of the great clubs of the AFL … there’s a bunch of off-field speculation. I don’t know whether that’s true or not.
“Certainly the conversations I’ve had with the board have left me comfortable that Melbourne is the right football club for me to lead.”
Guerra said it had not been decided whether he would step down from his position on the board of Racing Victoria.
One of the biggest priorities in his tenure will be overseeing Melbourne’s bid to move its administration and football operations into a new base at Caulfield Racecourse.
He indicated he would be reluctant to push for an external review of the club after Green, former All Blacks manager Darren Shand and then-chief executive Gary Pert conducted a review last year.
Pert, who resigned in October, remains at the club as a consultant on the move to Caulfield.
“Look, I’m not inside the football club yet … all those conversations will be had in time. I think sometimes we overplay reviews. In a business environment, we review everything we do every single day, and that helps us get better at what we do,” he said.
“It’s uncomfortable at the start, but that’s a discipline that has worked well for my career, and I’m sure it’s a discipline that we’ll bring into the football club as well.”
WHO IS PAUL GUERRA? GET TO KNOW MELBOURNE’S NEW CEO
- Callum Dick
The Melbourne Football Club has confirmed Paul Guerra will be its next CEO.
This masthead can reveal Guerra, the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO, will step into the Demons’ top job which was vacated by Gary Pert at the end of last year.
The decision was ratified at a board meeting on Monday, drawing to a close a protracted search for Pert’s replacement that saw the club cast a wide net following a string of rejections.
President Brad Green confirmed the news on Monday night.
“We set out to secure the best possible leader for our future and we have found that person in Paul,” he said.
“Paul is a highly respected CEO with a proven track record of results in member organisations. His vast experience and deep business connections, people-first approach and alignment with our values make him the standout choice.”
Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Adrian Kloeden said: “Paul’s passion, dedication and strategic leadership have strengthened the Victorian Chamber and made a lasting difference for our members and the Victorian economy.”
The Victorian Chamber Board has commenced a selection process to replace Mr Guerra.
As this masthead reported last month, a long list of potential candidates declined the Dees’ top job including MCC boss Stuart Fox, Fremantle’s Simon Garlick, GWS football manager Jason McCartney, Brisbane CEO Greg Swann, Western Bulldogs’ Ameet Bains, North Melbourne’s Jen Watt and former Fremantle chief Steve Rosich.
Melbourne’s chief operating officer David Chippindall, who had been acting as interim CEO, and AFL Coaches’ Association boss Alistair Nicholson were among the leading candidates who had put their hands up for the role.
But the Demons’ board ultimately settled on Guerra, who has served as CEO of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the past five years.
Prior to that, the experienced business executive was CEO of the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria from 2018-2020.
He also holds a number of non-executive director roles with various Asia Pacific companies, including Racing Victoria.
Guerra was previously linked to the vacant Essendon CEO role in 2022 - the club he supported - before the Bombers appointed Craig Vozzo in December that year.
His Melbourne appointment comes after the club recorded back-to-back wins over Fremantle and Richmond, which has breathed life into the Demons’ season following a disastrous 0-5 start, and ends a five-month long search for Pert’s replacement following his resignation.
Melbourne travels to Perth to play West Coast on Saturday.
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