Qantas appoints new Stephanie Tully as Jetstar CEO ahead of Gareth Evans’ departure

The surprise appointment of Qantas chief customer officer Stephanie Tully as Jetstar CEO could put her in line to replace Alan Joyce next year.

Qantas chief customer officer Stephanie Tully, centre, has been named the new CEO of low fares carrier Jetstar, ahead of Gareth Evans’ departure later this year. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

Qantas chief customer officer Stephanie Tully has been named the new chief executive of Jetstar in a surprise appointment that could put her in line for Alan Joyce’s job.

Ms Tully will replace Gareth Evans who will leave by the end of 2022 after resigning in June.

Mr Evans had been considered a contender for the role of Qantas CEO when Mr Joyce departs, expected to be late next year.

Previous Jetstar CEOs include Mr Joyce and Jayne Hrdlicka, now the Virgin Australia Group chief executive.

Ms Tully joined the flying kangaroo in 2004 after an earlier stint with Ansett, and has held a range of senior roles including head of airline Loyalty, executive manager of brand and marketing and head of customer experience and design.

She was promoted to her current role in 2019 where she has taken on a higher profile, occasionally fronting media events such as the launch of non-stop flights between Melbourne and Dallas.

Her replacement at the Qantas Group, Markus Svensson, is currently executive manager of network, revenue management and alliances.

The role involves overseeing a large part of the commercial strategy for Qantas international and domestic operations.

Mr Svensson began with Qantas in 2011 after senior roles at Bain and Co and in telecommunications in Australia, Sweden and Korea.

Mr Joyce said the appointments came at an important time for the airline group, which was working “incredibly hard” to overcome challenges facing the whole industry.

“Managing this kind of executive renewal internally means we keep our momentum and can leverage a huge amount of corporate knowledge including through the transition,” Mr Joyce said.

“Stephanie has worked across several different parts of the airline from crewing to marketing and has a deep understanding of customer experience.”

Stephanie Tully has been named the new CEO of Jetstar. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

He described Ms Tully as “an outstanding leader” who would lead a very experienced team at Jetstar to keep building on the strengths of that business.

It’s understood the role of Jetstar CEO was hotly contested internally with a number of senior managers vying for what was considered to be one of the best jobs in Australian aviation.

Of Mr Svensson, Mr Joyce was equally effusive.

“Markus has navigated incredible levels of complexity in recent years, managing most of the commercial elements of the Qantas network through several waves of lockdown and recovery, and also managing our relationships with alliance partners around the world,” he said.

“His knowledge of airlines means he understands the many elements that have to work to deliver exceptional customer service which is a key focus for us.”

Mr Joyce also paid tribute to Mr Evans, who is expected to stick around to help transition Ms Tully into her new role.

“Gareth has been a superb member of the Qantas Group executive team for many years,” Mr Joyce said.

“We’re pleased to have his knowledge and experience in the months ahead to help with this transition and key projects in our recovery.”

Other potential contenders for Mr Joyce’s job are Qantas chief financial officer Vanessa Hudson and Qantas Loyalty CEO Olivia Wirth.

Ms Tully will face a considerable task as Jetstar’s chief, with the low fares carrier recording a $796m loss in earnings before interest and tax in the 2022 financial year.

A reduction in flying to help improve performance also saw the airline give up 5 per cent of its domestic market share between April and August, sliding from 28 per cent to 23 per cent. On the plus side, Jetstar is undergoing a major domestic fleet renewal, and has begun taking delivery of new Airbus A321neos with longer range capabilities.

As well as seats designed for improved passenger comfort, the jets feature super-sized overhead bins to swallow up as much carry on luggage as possible.