Royal Mail's Batchelor to leave

by Ed Kemp, Marketing 28-May-08, 09:05

Royal Mail faces further upheaval with the news that marketing director Alex Batchelor is to depart, coming just days after it announced an operating loss of £279m for last year.

Batchelor will leave the postal operator at the end of next month following a board-level restructure that has resulted in group strategy director Alex Smith taking on the role of strategy and commercial director.

The reorganisation had appeared to sideline Batchelor, requiring him to report directly to Smith, who took over ultimate responsibility for marketing. Batchelor, who was ranked 28th in Marketing's Power 100 list last year, had been with the company for three years.

It has not been a good month for Royal Mail; its universal service, which allows consumers to post a letter anywhere in the UK for one price, made a loss for the first time. It has also come under fire for paying big bonuses to senior staff; chief executive Adam Crozier, for example, received a £2m performance-related bonus, angering several unions.
A potential domestic partnership deal between Royal Mail and London 2012 also now hangs in the balance. Batchelor, who was understood to have been a strong advocate for the tie-up, had been in discussions regarding a tier-two deal. This could still materialise, but Batchelor's departure effectively puts an end to the prospect of an agreement in the immediate future.
Prior to joining Royal Mail in 2005, Batchelor held senior marketing roles at Unilever and Orange.