Hundreds of mouths opened as wide as departure gates at the British Press Awards last week as the wildfire news spread that Carolyn McCall, chief executive of Guardian Media Group, was whizzing away to run easyJet. "Doors to manual," said a grinning Will Lewis, the Telegraph's editor-in-chief, celebrating a return to solid profitability as well as being named journalist of the year.
And naturally, beyond the quips, the speculation started. What can a newspaper chief whose only aviation experience is buckling up on holiday bring to an airline engaged in continual dogfights? You've seen Royal Mail's boss move to ITV. You've watched what a pizza entrepreneur makes of Channel 4. Even by such unlikely standards, this seems a landing in left field.
But running anything complicated needs a lot more than technical expertise. EasyJet is a weird, sometimes wacky public company whose ebullient founder still controls nearly 40%. Conflicts about strategy swilled the previous management regime right out of the door. How will a 24-year veteran of a trust-owned newspaper group cope with such tumult? The question (posed with relish from Times to Indy) portrays the Guardian as some kind of rest home. If only … It's a sometimes bewildering blend of trusts, boards, chairmen and editors, where progress often depends on intuition, empathy and understanding. In short, you have to know how to rub along to survive.
McCall mastered that complex culture; she wouldn't have risen so far if she hadn't. And maybe that's exactly what easyJet needs as she flies away from Fleet Street's black clouds and red ink in search of a clear blue sky. Fasten your safety belts.
