The Star Entertainment Group Limited (ASX code: SGR) (The Star or Company) announces the appointment of Scott Wharton as Chief Executive Officer of The Star Sydney and Group Head of Transformation, pending all necessary regulatory approvals.
Mr Wharton joins The Star from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) where most recently he was a member of CBA’s Executive Leadership Team as Group Executive, Program Delivery.
At CBA Mr Wharton was responsible for leading key bank-wide transformation efforts, including the design and implementation of CBA’s response to the Australian Prudential Regulatory Authority’s (APRA) 2018 Prudential Inquiry Report into governance, culture and accountability.
Mr Wharton will report to The Star Entertainment Group’s incoming CEO and Managing Director, Robbie Cooke.
Interim Chairman Ben Heap said: “Scott has exemplary credentials as we drive a Renewal Program across the group. The work he led at CBA has been recognised as one of the most comprehensive reforms of corporate culture in Australia.
“His leadership capabilities, expertise in delivering significant transformation working closely with regulators, together with his commercial skills and experience managing complex businesses, made him the ideal candidate to take on this key position within the organisation.
“Scott has broad business experience. He has led large teams and managed multifaceted change programs with significant budgets in the United States and Asia as well as Australia. We are delighted to have him join The Star at this important juncture.”
Mr Wharton joined CBA in 2016 from Citigroup where his roles in Hong Kong and later New York included the position of Managing Director, Global Head of Supply Chain.
He has held numerous Board positions and is currently Co-Chairman of Supply Nation and a member of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Vice Chancellor’s Advisory Board.
Mr Wharton said: “I am looking forward to joining The Star at this critical moment in its history. The Star plays an important role in the economies of NSW and Qld as a major employer and catalyst for the states’ tourism industries.
“I look forward to working closely with the team at The Star, as well as regulators and other stakeholders.”
The appointment of Mr Wharton as CEO The Star Sydney and Group Head of Transformation continues the build out of the Company’s Transformation Office, which is leading the Company’s Renewal Program.
The program is an important body of work as The Star renews its focus on its operations in NSW and Queensland. The Renewal Program comprises a number of near-term and medium-term initiatives focused on governance, culture, training, and risk and compliance systems and technology, particularly with respect to AML/CTF and KYC obligations.
The Renewal Program is consolidating and expanding existing programs of work in the risk and compliance functions. It will also implement new programs to improve operations and uplift elements of the operating framework.
“The Renewal Program commenced several months ago and, while we still have a lot of work ahead of us, we are pleased with the initial progress,” said Mr Heap.
“This program is integral to redesigning the way we do things. It’s about enhancing the systems and controls to help ensure our casinos operate free from criminal influence and creating an environment to work collaboratively and cooperatively with regulators.
“The recently announced appointment of Robbie Cooke as CEO and Managing Director, and now Scott in a pivotal role as CEO of The Star Sydney and Group Head of Transformation, continues to advance that commitment.”
