Mike Sneesby steps down as Nine CEO
Nine has announced that Mike Sneesby will step down as chief executive officer and as a director on the Nine Board, with effect from 30 September 2024.
Chief finance and strategy officer, Matt Stanton, has been appointed as acting CEO.
Sneesby’s resignation comes after a raft of issues at the beleaguered network, including multiple sexual harassment claims against senior executives, a current third-party investigative into Nine’s workplace culture, and the recent axing of 200 staffers. Following this, Sneesby departed the country for Greece on the same day he informed staff of the cuts – leading to a five-day strike at Nine papers, which began on the eve of the Olympics.
In addition, Nine’s yearly financials showed a 12% drop in earnings, with net profits down 28%, and even John Fairfax publicly stated he is glad his family name is no longer associated with the “tarnished” Nine brand.
Nine issued the following statement to the ASX on Thursday morning:
“Following the successful completion of the Olympics and the Paralympics, Mr Sneesby and the Board consider now is the right time for a transition of leadership to take Nine into the next phase of its strategic transformation.”
Chief finance and strategy officer, Matt Stanton, has been appointed as acting CEO with effect from 1 October 2024, while the company undertakes a recruitment process to identify a new head.
“On behalf of the Board, I thank Mike for his significant contribution to Nine over more than a decade. As Chief Executive Officer, his achievements include guiding the company out of the challenging COVID-19 pandemic, securing the rights to the Olympic Games through to 2032 and progressing the strategic and cultural transformation of Nine,” Nine chair, Catherine West, said.
“The world-class coverage of Paris 2024 showcased the power of the Nine’s diversified portfolio of premium media assets. It’s also important to acknowledge Mike’s immense contribution to the success of Stan, building a successful streaming service that now boasts a broad entertainment and sport footprint with more than two million paying subscribers.
“Matt Stanton is well-placed to lead the business while a search for a new CEO is underway. An experienced media, FMCG and retail executive with a deep understanding of transformation programs, Matt is the right choice to ensure stability and continuity for the Nine business and our people. Matt will work closely with Mike to ensure a smooth handover. Matt will be well supported by an experienced and passionate leadership team who will ensure Nine continues to build on its strategic priorities of Content, Data and our Integrated Audience Platform. Nine is in a strong position to execute the next phase of transformation and growth.”
Sneesby added: “It has been a privilege to lead this business but now is the right time to hand over to a new leader. I take great pride in the achievements of the Company during my time as CEO and thank the Board, the leadership team and everyone at Nine for their support during my tenure. Together, we have navigated significant change in the media landscape in Australia.
“I firmly believe Nine is Australia’s best media business, with premium assets and the sector’s leading media professionals. I am confident in the future of Nine and remain committed to ensuring a seamless handover to Matt.”
Sneesby sent an all-staff email shortly after this ASX notification:
“After more than 10 years combined as CEO of Nine and before that, founder and CEO of Stan, I’m announcing today that I will be stepping down. I am extremely proud of what we have achieved together over this time and consider myself privileged to work with the incredibly talented team we have at Nine.
“I want to be completely open about the circumstances surrounding my departure. To give some context, this year has been one of the most challenging in my career – one where our resilience has been tested. Despite the intensity of the scrutiny, my focus has not wavered from achieving the best outcomes for our people and for Nine.
“In recent months I have reflected greatly on my plans for the future, and in consultation with my family and those close to me, I made a personal decision to consider new opportunities in 2025 after seeing through the important work we are doing around our workplace culture and the outcomes of the culture review.
“Recently when our Board opened a discussion with me about my tenure, we agreed that the timing was right to commence a leadership transition. With commitments around Nine’s full-year financial results completed and Nine having successfully delivered the world-class coverage of the Paris Olympics and Paralympics, the Board and I agreed now was the best time for a transition to commence.
“Our culture review is progressing, with Intersection compiling your input and conversations into their report. It will build on the work we have done over the past three years to enhance our culture and employee engagement, including embedding our Purpose and Values to provide the foundation for a high-performance culture. As I said from the start, we will share the findings of the culture review when Intersection has completed its work, which is expected to be in October. Our Board and leadership team remain committed to taking on the report findings and using them constructively to ensure we continue our path of cultural improvement.
“As I told the market today, I believe Nine is Australia’s best media business, with premium assets and the sector’s leading media professionals. Nine is in a strong position to execute the next phase of its transformation and I remain very confident in the future of the business.
“I am grateful for the incredible friendships and personal relationships I have built with so many of you over the years – and I know those will continue in the years to come. We have shared some great adventures and achieved so much together – these are things I will remember fondly.”
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As a staff member, there has been plenty of joy internally at this news. Faceless and nobody aligned to his vision or took his internal communication seriously.
Has destroyed the brand and what a terrible tenure,
Mr Sneesby was also responsible for the redundancy of more than 100 staff after the 5-year partnership with SCA regional TV stations… Millions were spent on studio upgrades and hiring staff from Cairns to Ballarat for it all to be shut down when Nine got back in bed with WIN. Regional News was only on air for 4-years… The company tried to sack all of this staff in the middle of the pandemic – luckily for the regional based staff, SCA held Nine to contract.
Great to see the people that at the very least condoned the horrendous behaviour our industry has seen continue to fall. Just a shame he gets to try and leave with his head held high
Will be studied for years in PR of how not do CEO Comms. The Paris doorstop by Channel 7 was gold. Sneesby stunned.
You haven’t seen the last of me!
(insert Skeletor laugh)
Shameful tenure. Should have been Janz. West needs to clean out the rest of Sneesby’s Mensa Inc. cronies before share dives further.
What a tenure.
1) No pre-planning on Meta, leading to huge redundancies
2) Oversaw huge cultural issues in TV leading to huge external review
3) Departure of Darren Wick
4) Emailed staff to say there would be redundancies, didn’t hold a single in person meeting, heading to Greece for a holiday the next day
5) Strikes looming- stays in 1500 AUD plus a night hotel in Paris and carries Olympic torch, flying Scotty Cam out too
6) Shareprice lower than a snake’s belly
Absolute disaster
A walking punchline to all that worked with him.