Auckland Airport recognised for excellence in corporate governance in the Deloitte/Management Magazine Top 200 Award ceremony in Auckland

Auckland, New Zealand, 2013-12-12 — /travelprnews.com/ — Auckland Airport has been recognised for excellence in corporate governance in the Deloitte/Management Magazine Top 200 Award ceremony in Auckland on 28 November.  The Chair of the board of directors of Auckland Airport, Sir Henry van der Heyden, said, “The board is delighted to have been recognised for excellence in corporate governance.  This award has been achieved through the focus of successive boards and board leadership on developing corporate governance standards in the company’s strategic leadership.”

“The board of Auckland Airport is focused on representing the interests of the company and growing shareholder value by providing our management team with independent, informed support and advice in relation to strategy and operational direction and monitoring the performance of our chief executive and his senior managers in executing the company’s strategy.  We are also committed to the development of the next generation of directors and took part as a foundation participant in the Future Directors programme established last year.”

Sir Henry went on to say that, “The board of Auckland Airport does not consider that corporate governance is a static situation.  We are continually seeking to improve.  We think that it is crucial to bring fresh ideas and independence into our board room whilst also maintaining strong levels of industry and company specific knowledge.  The board has therefore decided to adopt as its policy that directors shall serve for a maximum of up to nine years before being considered as a non-independent director whose re-election would not be supported by the board in the usual course. The board wishes to keep the flexibility for it to ask a director to contribute for longer than nine years if, in special circumstances, it is in the company’s interests.  Whilst the election of directors is a matter for our shareholders each year, the board considers that this policy enables it to maintain the balance between institutional knowledge and independence that is required of any leading board and sets in place a proactive approach to director succession planning.  This change will help the board to continue to lead the company through its next phase of growth in engaging with the emerging travel markets of Asia and in delivering its 30 year vision for the airport.”

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For further information, please contact:

Simon Lambourne
+64 9 255 9089
+64 27 477 6120
simon.lambourne@aucklandairport.co.nz