Shushing, no shush for Tim Worner scandal

Cartoon: Rod Clement

Billionaire Kerry Stokes’s Seven West Media board has proven, once again, that it answers only to the boss.

Six weeks ago the media group was rocked by the stunning revelation that, just before he was made the CEO of Seven West Media, Tim Worner had a racy work affair with a now former Seven executive assistant, Amber Harrison.

Although it turned out the sex-and-expenses tryst wasn’t a revelation to most of the board. It was news only to its three most recent directors: former iiNet founder and chief executive ­Michael Malone, former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett and Gilbert + Tobin corporate law ­expert Sheila McGregor.

One of the trio of Seven newbies, McGregor (the corporate law expert), resigned hours after the board decided — allegations of cocaine use after work ­functions notwithstanding — Worner was staying on.

She may have deemed an ­ongoing role to be dangerous to her career as a non-executive ­director.

And it seems McGregor was able to deliver her resignation in person. It’s understood she was in Colorado, where Stokes has been skiing over the American winter.

While her departure is understandable, the Worner scandal — and the muscular management of it by the Seven board and its senior executives — is unlikely to scare off the other two board newbies.

Malone is loaded, having made $56 million when TPG Telecom paid $1.4 billion to buy iiNet, the Perth-based internet service provider he founded. He doesn’t need to worry about ­endangering future director fees by being associated with questionable governance.

Kennett’s Seven situation also made his departure unlikely. Not only does he get $126,281, plus super, for his Seven director fees, Kennett gets an extra $200,000 to appear on the network, from time to time, as a political commentator. It would be tough to surrender that package.

Seven’s now sole female director Michelle Deaker, the managing partner of venture capital firm OneVentures, also has personal reasons to stay around at Kerry’s. As it happens, one of the key investors in her outfit is trusted Stokes lieutenant — and fellow SWM board member — Peter Gammell. He’s also a OneVentures board member.

So there are plenty of reasons for the remaining Seven board members to grin and bear it — whatever Harrison might say about Worner’s “platinum package”.

Express career path

Kevin Rudd’s former boy wonder has climbed another rung of the corporate ladder at Richard Goyder’s Wesfarmers conglomerate.

Alister Jordan, 37, was given a further chunk of profit and responsibility at John Durkan’s important Coles supermarket division. The responsibility for Coles Express (the grocer’s petrol station stores) has been added to Jordan’s Coles Online and corporate affairs duties.

By all accounts, Jordan’s transition from politics to business has been a success. Goyder is known to be a fan.

Jordan — a Pearl Jam fan — has never lacked confidence. Back when the Queenslander was prime minister Rudd’s fresh-faced chief-of-staff, Jordan would on occasion fill in for his boss at national security briefings (to the barely concealed horror of the greybeards of the Canberra Defence establishment).

Expect his sights to be set a few more rungs up the Perth-headquartered conglomerate than this latest promotion.

Bankers integrate

The week ended with a minor shake-up in the local boutique investment banking scene.

Luminis Partners — the outfit founded by Ron Malek, Simon Mordant and Jamie Garis — have begun the year by cementing their partnership Evercore, a New York-headquartered global boutique.

Evercore now has a 19 per cent stake in Luminis, and its president Ralph Schlosstein has joined the Australian outfit’s board.

It’s a formalising of an ongoing partnership between the two firms.

Meanwhile at the Luminis gang’s former outfit Greenhill Australia, managing director Bryan Pearson has begun the new year by resigning. Apparently, he wants a life out of investment banking. Fair enough.

Packer summons

Billionaire James Packer’s terrible 2016 appears to have bled into the new year.

According to a report in The Jerusalem Post, police have issued a summons to the Crown billionaire to testify in the graft inquiry against the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The rolling scandal concerns lavish gifts allegedly from Packer to Netanyahu and his family while Packer’s lawyer was asking about residency or citizenship for the billionaire.

Back home, Independent senator Nick Xenophon this week took an interest in the scandal.

“Mr Packer needs to be given an opportunity to explain himself,” Xenophon told the ABC. “But on the face of it, it would seem extraordinary if the AFP (Australian Federal Police) did not conduct a thorough investigation of these very serious allegations.”

The billionaire’s problems go much further than China where 17 Crown employees remain in prison.

Great and the good

The Melbourne establishment celebrated the 80th birthday of John Calvert-Jones at Cruden Farm last night.

Wife of the party’s subject Janet Calvert-Jones and their daughter and Herald and Weekly Times chairman Penny Fowler were joined by a huge crowd of distinguished Victorians, including too many Baillieus to list and Environment and Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg, who was never going to miss the chance to chat to fellow guest Rupert Murdoch, the brother-in-law of the birthday boy.

The visiting News Corp executive chairman and wife Jerry — who was also along at Cruden — are now off to Texas for Super Bowl 51. The showdown between the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons screens on Murdoch’s Fox in the US on Monday morning (AEST).

Alibaba opens doors

Also in Melbourne this weekend is visiting Chinese billionaire Jack Ma.

The founder of Alibaba is opening the business’s Australian office with a big bash at the Grand Hyatt. Ma is the second richest person in China, according to Forbes, with a fortune estimated at $37 billion, and his online store is a crucial portal to the Middle Kingdom. Naturally, a huge crowd is expected. Due to attend are Industry and Innovation Minister Arthur Sinodinos, Coles boss John Durkan, Kevin Rudd’s entrepreneurial daughter Jessica, former trade ministers Craig Emerson and Andrew Robb (now a consultant with the Chinese Landbridge Group), Victorian Premier Dan Andrews, Australia Post chairman John Stanhope, Lion boss Stuart Irvine, Ellerston Capital chair Ashok Jacob, ANZ’s NSW chair Warwick Smith, businessman Sidney B. Myer and banker David Williams.