Zubin Appoo: WiseTech announces new chief executive, replacing billionaire co-founder Richard White
WiseTech Global on Monday named Zubin Appoo as its next chief executive, succeeding interim boss Andrew Cartledge, who is retiring at the end of the year.
Mr Appoo was a senior executive at the cloud logistics platform from 2004 and 2018, and the company said he had a foundational role in its rapid growth during that time.
He returned to WiseTech in April as its chief of staff and deputy chief innovation officer, with his new role starting immediately.
WiseTech lead independent director Andrew Harrison said the board had sought to hire someone who could 'seamlessly partner' with co-founder and executive chairman Richard White, who owns a 36.3 per cent stake in the $40 billion company, while also operating independently and decisively as CEO.
Four members of WiseTech's board quit in February, citing 'intractable differences' about the ongoing role of Mr White in the company he founded three decades ago.
Mr White stepped down as WiseTech's CEO in October, as the board hired two law firms to review 'specific issues raised in recent media coverage', including about his personal life.
A company-ordered review cleared Mr White in November of various allegations including bullying, misuse of company funds and failing to disclose close personal relationships to the board.
Mr Appoo said he was looking forward to working with the board, WiseTech's senior leadership team including Mr White, and the wider WiseTech family.
'I am a strong believer in WiseTech, and have been a shareholder since 2005,' he said.
'I've been a part of, and witnessed, the immense impact WiseTech continues to have on the global logistics industry since its inception more than 30 years ago.'
WiseTech's cloud-based platform, CargoWise, is used by freight companies including DHL to manage shipments around the globe.
Mr Appoo will be paid a base annual salary of $700,000, with the opportunity to make up to $1.05 million more in bonuses in the form of share rights.
Since leaving WiseTech in 2018, Mr Appoo has been the chief technology officer at InLoop, Flexischools and HICAPS, and held the title of CEO at Find a Carer.
His LinkedIn profile describes him as a 'software geek' and 'passionate problem solver'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Australian
a day ago
- The Australian
ASX plunges as Trump tariffs trigger healthcare, tech stock sell-off
Technology, healthcare and the big four banks led the market sell-off on Friday as US President Donald Trump made two announcements that smashed the Asian markets. The benchmark ASX 200 slumped 80.80 points or 0.92 per cent to 8662, while the broader All Ordinaries fell 81.90 points or 0.91 per cent to 8917.10. Australia's dollar gained against the greenback and is now buying 64.25 US cents. On an overall sea of red, 10 of the 11 sectors finished in the red. The utilities sector was the only sector to trade higher. Healthcare shares were among the major market falls after Mr Trump wrote letters to the 17 largest US drug companies demanding they lower prices for local consumers, making up the difference in other foreign countries. CSL slumped 2.53 per cent to $264.05, Pro Medicus dropped 2.45 per cent to $313.99 and Sigma Healthcare finished in the red down 1.04 per cent to $2.86. Technology stocks also led the falls. WiseTech Global dropped 2.55 per cent to $116.34, Xero fell 3.45 per cent to $174.75 and Technology One slumped 2.17 per cent to $40.19. Three of the big four banks also slumped. CBA led the losses down 1.60 per cent to $175.06, NAB dropped 1.21 per cent to $38.44 and Westpac slipped 1.09 per cent to $33.45. ANZ bucked the trend gaining 0.49 per cent to $30.87. The second announcement that rattled Asian markets was an announcement from the President around tariffs. While Australia will only face the 'base rate' of 10 per cent, many of the US trading partners will face higher levies, which is feared to slow down global growth. According to Commonwealth Bank's senior economist and senior currency strategist Kristina Clifton, US tariffs are now at their highest level since the 1930s. 'We expect the large increase in the US's global effective tariff rate will raise US business and consumer prices, weighing on purchasing power and demand,' Ms Clifton wrote in an economic note. But the impact on Australia is tipped to be relatively subdued. 'We estimate Australian GDP will be just 0.3 per cent lower over a few years because of the tariffs,' Ms Clifton said. Only about five per cent of Australia's exports are to the US and Australia's tariff rate is a relatively low 10 per cent. In company news, Star Entertainment will be forced to pay about $41m back to Hong Kong-based business partners, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium after a deal to buy the newly opened Queen's Wharf hotel and casino complex fell through. In a statement to the ASX on Friday, Star Entertainment confirmed it was 'unable to reach an agreement,' and will now be liable for almost $1bn in debt for the precinct. Shares plunged 16.36 per cent to $0.09. Shares in diversified investment house Soul Patts slipped 0.64 per cent to $40.32 after announcing preliminary, unaudited net asset values to come in between $12.18 to $12.68bn for the year ending July 31. Resmed shares flirted with a record high after the medical sleep device maker announced profits that beat market expectations. Shares jumped 1.01 per cent to $42.88. Read related topics: ASXDonald Trump Business Breaking News One of the country's key water agencies is axing nearly a quarter of its workforce, blindsiding employees and drawing union backlash. Business Breaking News Investors have struck gold with Australian miners riding an increasing appetite for safe haven investments, on a flat day of trading on the ASX.
News.com.au
2 days ago
- News.com.au
Auction comedy: prankster waves $100 to speed up bids
A marathon auction in Melbourne's south east turned into a 'carnival' when a cheeky onlooker jokingly offered to give bidders cash to speed up the event on the weekend. Ray White Bayside Group's Trevor Bowen said almost 60 people turned out to watch the three-bedroom house at 77 Albenca St, Cheltenham, go under the hammer. Three buyers competed for the blonde brick home featuring a garden with a pergola, built-in barbecue and outdoor kitchen. 'It was a great auction and it went for a long time, about 40 minutes and there was a total of 49 bids,' Mr Bowen said. 'At one stage, someone in the crowd yelled out, held up a $100 note and said, 'I'll give it to you if you buy now'.' The interjector, a neighbour, drew plenty of laughter from the crowd. Mr Bowen returned the banter, offering to buy the house himself so that he could get the cash. 'The auctioneer said 'no' because they knew we were all joking,' Mr Bowen said. A couple who plan to rent out the residence for a year or two before moving in themselves were the successful buyers. 'They loved the garden, it was beautiful,' Mr Bowen said. 'The reserve was at the top of the range at $1.29m and the home sold for $1.325m.' Mr Bowen said the entertaining auction had given the house's owner a fun-filled send-off. 'Because of all the laughing and the guy in the crowd, it was like a carnival,' Mr Bowen said. 'The vendor had lived there for more than 30 years, a lot of love had gone into the home.' Another Saturday auction saw a Mulgrave house with views across the iconic Waverley Park grandstand and complex that served as Hawthorn's base until recently, when the club sold the site to the AFL ahead of its move to a new base in Dingley, go under the hammer. BigginScott's Ming Xu and Jing Chen starred in a Hawks-themed online listing video showing the four-bedroom home. Mr Xu said three bidders contested the auction for the 60 Waverley Park Drive residence. 'It ended up selling to a lady who used to live in Mulgrave, she likes the view from the balcony,' Mr Xu said. 'During the auction, I said that because the AFL has bought Waverley Park, for non-Hawks' fans that is maybe good news as the AFL might put a different team in there.' Mr Xu also joked that the home's balcony could serve as a 'corporate box' for any football games held there in the future. The residence, advertised with a $1m-$1.1m range, sold for $1.19m. And two-bedroom unit in Melbourne's east sold shortly after passing in on a $680,000 bid at an auction involving two bidders. Woodards Blackburn partner Rachel Waters said the home at 3/61 Blackburn Rd, Blackburn, had been inspected by several first-home buyers during the sales campaign. However, it ended up selling to a downsizer, the highest bidder, for $701,000 following post-auction talks. 'It didn't take long to negotiate after the auction because it's a fantastic unit,' Ms Waters said. 'The location was really important to the buyer as it was within walking distance of the library, her favourite cafe, the train station and Blackburn Lake.' The home features polished hardwood floors, new blinds and a recently updated kitchen, bathroom and bedrooms.
Perth Now
4 days ago
- Perth Now
What this supermarket stamp means
A fresh food movement is currently sweeping Aussie supermarkets with its founder focused on sharing the homegrown message with shoppers. Locavore's is a fresh produce initiative aimed at 'shortening the distance between plate and paddock' by giving local producers shelf space in nearby supermarkets. It was founded by Roz White, who owns six IGAs across Queensland's Sunshine Coast and wanted to use her reach to support the local industries. 'We've been practising locavorism for many decades, which basically means we're just buying local products and produce from a local region,' she told NewsWire. Ms White came across the 'locavore' term on Wikipedia and created a program around it to 'showcase all of our fabulous, talented, diverse, unique, beautiful, bespoke, handcrafted products from within a 200km radius'. Ms White's stores currently stock 170 local suppliers. Supplied Credit: Supplied 'We bring all those products and the producers into our stores through the locavore program and their products are identified in store with a tractor emblem, which is the locavore little tractor. 'It's got whites on it and 'supporting local producers,' 'join the locavores'. That helps our customers to identify local products, where the origins of the fresh food comes from and the story behind it.' Ms White said after seeing first hand the work that goes into making our produce she wanted to celebrate the families who were responsible for it. 'I grew up on the land. I'm a farm girl, farmer's daughter, a primary producer's daughter. I grew up on a farm with cattle and agriculture,' she said. The stamp marks products from within 200km in supermarkets. Supplied Credit: Supplied 'I just have a great respect for food and where our food comes from. Seeing first-hand the hard work, that goes into producing it and the blood, sweat, and tears, the highs and lows and the droughts and the good times and bad times. 'That had a big influence on being able to recognise (local work), bringing it into the store and celebrating the families who create our food that we enjoy.' Ms White has been running the initiative for 13 years, with some local suppliers going on to become multimillion-dollar brands after getting their start in Roz's stores. However, not content to rest on her laurels Ms White has set the ambitious new goal of growing the number of local suppliers to 200 by the end of the year. 'It's important to a lot of people. There are conscious and mindful shoppers and this is for the conscious and mindful shopper, but it's also about inspiring and igniting interest and engagement of other people that's sort of bringing them in because people do really care about where their food comes from and people care about our planet,' she said. Coyo Yoghurt is one of the local suppliers that went onto to mainstream success. Supplied Credit: Supplied 'If they can enjoy something that is quality freshness, that is good for the planet and good for the community, I am finding that there are more and more and more people that want to be a part of that.' The renowned Mooloolaba prawns are among personal favourites, however, Ms White says just because it's local doesn't mean it'll be any more expensive than supermarket standards. 'There's so much here to enjoy. It's particularly the fresh produce, the lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, eggs, pineapples, strawberries, avocados, it's truly endless. I can walk in and I go, 'yep, that's local, local, local'. I don't even need a sign because I know where it all comes from,' she said. 'Don't be hoodwinked into thinking that you can just walk into a store and get a product that's cheap just because that's what they're known for. 'Think about the taste, think about the quality and freshness of that product that's going to last longer in your fridge and think about the enjoyment of being able to nourish your family and nourish another family at the same time when you're having that.'
