It’s time for the oil giant to wave goodbye to Peter Sutherland , its Irish chairman, but what next will prove a big enough lure to a person who has already been in charge of the world trade organization?
Peter Sutherland was not in a great mood on Monday morning: the day preceeding his native country’s loss to Argentina in the Rugby World Cup, he could scarcely contain himself. He’d been at the game at Parc des Princes with his children and words such as “suicidal” and “bejesus” poured from his lips.
Barely a few hours previous, he was on the Eurostar, on his way back to Paris, for a meeting that was part politics and part business. Such are the contrasting worlds of Sutherland: Dubliner, father of three, huge rugby enthusiast, chairman of BP, chairman of Goldman Sachs International, new chairman of the London School of Economics, diplomatic fixer and afterdinner speaker extraordinaire.
If when we reach the gates of heaven we are presented with a choice I’d like to come back as a smart Irishman. In the past, I might have said an English aristocrat but it’s the Irish who are the masters these days. They seem to be in charge of everything. None more so than, an integral figure in two business powerhouses as well as an extremely wealthy individual, thanks to his partnership at Goldman. But he’s served 10 years at BP and has initiated the search for a successor. Suddenly, the oil major has to confront life without him .
Talk to almost anyone at the top of BP, these past few years to realise what a powerhouse Peter Sutherland has been behind the scenes. While the company has had its problems in America, they have been operational. On personnel matters, notably the attempt by Lord Browne and his friends to get the chief executive’s term extended, and then Browne’s departure following his lying under oath, Sutherland has played a pivotal role. His contribution in bringing BP forward is something which few can dispute.
