Saga CEO Euan Sutherland to step down

(Sharecast News) - Saga said on Tuesday that chief executive Euan Sutherland will be standing down after four years with the business. Sutherland will be replaced by current chief financial officer Mike Hazell, who in turn will be succeeded by Mark Watkins, currently group chief corporate development officer.

Saga said Sutherland informed the board earlier this year that he believed the time was right time for him to stand down, allowing for the appointment of a new CEO "to take Saga onto the next phase of its development".

Saga said that Hazell - who joined Saga in October this year - has more than 25 years of multi-sector experience in a variety of executive roles. Most recently, he was interim CFO at the Co-op Group. Before that, he was joint CEO of Debenhams, and had held senior roles at BSkyB and Pfizer.

Hazell and Watkins will assume their new roles with immediate effect and Sutherland will stay on until the end of January 2024 to support in the transition to new leadership.

Non-executive chairman Sir Roger De Haan said: "I would like to thank Euan for the enormous contribution he has made to Saga since he joined the business four years ago. His belief in the strength of the Saga brand and the talent of our people was central to everything he has done to stabilise this business and return it to profitable growth. We wish him well for the next phase of his career.

"I am delighted that Mike is becoming group CEO and that Mark is stepping up into the role of CFO. These changes are the result of carefully managed succession planning. Mike and Mark have the right skills and experience to take Saga into the next phase of its development."