Rabbitoh’s Nick Pappas appointed chair of SBS

South Sydney Rabittoh’s chair and existing SBS board member Nick Pappas has been appointed SBS’s new chair.

Pappas, a former lawyer and current Bank of Sydney board member, took up the post on March 5, following the retirement last year of George Savvides.

While the appointment solves the issue of SBS board leadership, the executive is still open, with former managing director James Taylor departing last year (he now runs Ooh Media) and commercial head Jane Palfreyman standing in as acting MD.

Palfreyman is a contender for the top job, a fact highlighted in an awkward public exchange with Senator Sarah Henderson last month.

Henderson, who initially did not know or had forgotten that Taylor had left, asked Palfreyman if she was “applying to keep the job”. Palfreyman affirmed that she was.

SBS has a strong tradition of promoting from within its ranks, and its executives tend to be long-serving. Taylor, for example, began as head of corporate finance in 2012, rose to CFO and then MD.

Palfreyman has been at the public broadcaster for more than 13 years, while people and culture director Stig Bell has been there more than 12. Current CFO Nitsa Niarchos’ has worked at SBS for more than two decades.

Savvides held the chair for five years, and had been a board member for several years previously. The SBS legislation mandates the maximum time any board member can serve is 10 years.

In a release, SBS thanked acting chair Christine Zeitz, who had been in the role following Savvides exit.

“SBS also wishes to recognise and thank Deputy Chair Christine Zeitz for her service and commitment as Acting Chair since July 2025.”