Latest news with #BernardLooney
Newsweek
6 days ago
- Business
- Newsweek
What Coldplay Kisscam Scandal Says About America's Leadership Crisis
Advocates for ideas and draws conclusions based on the interpretation of facts and data. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. America's so obsessed with its own hype it's forgotten how to think. AirPods blur the line between presence and absence, reducing opportunities for mindfulness. Social media crowns swagger over substance. And leadership? It's just a glossy headshot with a corner office. Then one grainy video—a CEO caught cuddling with his HR chief at a Coldplay concert—did what no politician, pundit, or X post ever could: it united a fractured nation in stunned, meme-fueled disbelief. The now-infamous Coldplay kiss-cam moment wasn't just a viral blooper. It was a mirror held up to an important problem: the staggering lack of self-awareness among many of today's leaders. Even more ironic? The woman in the photo wasn't just any executive—she was the company's Chief People Officer, the person tasked with guarding its culture and aligning talent around core values. It's hard to imagine a more striking disconnect between stated purpose and public perception. This isn't a sitcom. It's America in 2025, where blind spots don't just affect individual leaders—they fracture trust, corrode boardrooms, and deepen the divide between the powerful and everyone else. The examples keep piling up. Kohl's ousted its CEO after just four months when it was revealed he funneled millions to a vendor led by his undisclosed romantic partner. MillerKnoll's CEO sparked outrage when, during a virtual town hall, she told employees—who were being asked to forgo bonuses while she kept hers—to "leave pity city." BP's Bernard Looney, Norfolk Southern's Alan Shaw, and McDonald's Steve Easterbrook were all forced out over inappropriate relationships with subordinates. These aren't isolated missteps—they reveal a troubling pattern: leaders so cocooned in power and affirmation that they begin to believe they're invisible, untouchable, and exempt from the standards they set for others. Self-awareness isn't a soft skill; it's the spine of leadership. Yet psychologist Tasha Eurich found that 95 percent of people swear they're self-aware, while only 10–15 percent actually are. At Heidrick & Struggles, our analysis of 75,000-plus leadership assessments pin it at a measly 13 percent. That's not just a self-deception gap—it's a five-alarm fire. This crisis isn't just for C-suites; it's a cultural contagion. In a world of curated feeds and algorithmic applause, we're all dodging reality. Empathy tanks. Teams coddle egos. Innovation flatlines. Truth becomes the first casualty of a culture that prizes performance over presence. Power makes it worse. Climb the ladder, and feedback vanishes faster than a budget surplus. Leaders get trapped in the "CEO Bubble"—a cozy echo chamber of yes-people and flattery where pride festers and accountability is a dirty word. The result? A nation of self-awareness haves and have-nots, where the powerful delude themselves into thinking they're indispensable. NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - JULY 22: Chris Martin of Coldplay performs at Nissan Stadium on July 22, 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee. NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - JULY 22: Chris Martin of Coldplay performs at Nissan Stadium on July 22, 2025 in Nashville, of a blind spot as a scotoma—a dead zone in your vision. In driving, it's the patch that causes wrecks if you don't adjust your mirrors. My daughter, exasperated in driver's ed, once snapped, "Why do cars have blind spots? It's stupid!" She's right. Smart cars now have sensors to catch what we miss. Leadership needs the same: feedback, reflection, and a swift kick of humility to shrink the danger zone. Our digital age is a self-awareness assassin. Social media fuels narcissism, not reflection. Leaders chase likes instead of truth, curating personas while ignoring their impact. At Heidrick & Struggles, we see it daily: teams dodge hard conversations to "keep the peace," only to breed chaos. When organizations reward charm over candor, blind spots don't just grow—they metastasize. Here's the kicker: what you are aware of, you control. What you are unaware of controls you. Self-awareness isn't just about dodging scandals—it's about unleashing potential. It's the key to trust, resilience, and leading with guts instead of gloss. That video from the Coldplay concert didn't just roast one CEO and an HR chief—it exposed a nation fed up with leaders who can't see past their own egos. But it also lit a spark: a craving for authenticity, for leaders who aren't just Instagram-ready but battle-ready—grounded, present, and unafraid to face the mirror. From the 2008 financial meltdown to Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, blind spots don't just sink leaders—they crater economies. If no one dares tell the emperor he's naked, why would he check? But leaders who confront their flaws don't just dodge disaster—they spot trouble miles away. They're mindful of their strengths, honest about their limits, and—dare I say it—almost too aware to fail. This takes guts. Strengths like charisma or decisiveness can become liabilities without a leash. Leaders need external discipline—360 feedback, candid advisors—and internal rigor: daily self-checks. My AWARE framework lays it out: Alert to blind spots. Will to face flaws. Attentive to strengths. Reflect on risks and derailers. Exercise superpowers to lift others up. It's not easy in a world that fetishizes confidence and punishes vulnerability. But the payoff? Leaders who inspire trust, not snark. Who build trust and loyalty, not memes. That viral video wasn't just a gotcha—it was a warning shot. One CEO's lapse cost him his job, but the actual cost is ours: a culture where leaders sleepwalk into catastrophe. We don't need more rock-star CEOs. We need ones who know their flaws, own their impact, and lead with eyes wide open. America's begging for it. Will leaders finally look in the mirror—or keep posing for the next viral disaster? The irony of this Coldplay viral video surely can't be lost on us. The band's biggest hit, "Viva La Vida," opens with a haunting confession: "I used to rule the world. Seas would rise when I gave the word. Now in the morning I sleep alone... Sweep the streets I used to own." It's a fitting anthem for a generation of leaders undone not by enemies, but by their own blind spots. Les T. Csorba is a partner in the CEO and Board of Director Practice of Heidrick & Struggles and author of the forthcoming book, AWARE: The Power of Seeing Yourself Clearly – Diary of a Corporate Headhunter (August 2025). The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Arabian Post
17-07-2025
- Business
- Arabian Post
ADNOC realigns OMV and Borouge stakes under XRG
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai ADNOC will shift its 24.9 per cent holding in Austrian oil‑and‑gas group OMV AG into XRG P. J. S. C, the UAE state oil giant's $80 billion lower‑carbon energy and chemicals investment vehicle launched last November. The move aligns with ADNOC's intent to centralise its international growth assets within XRG's structure. The shareholding transfer, subject to regulatory approval, follows ADNOC's acquisition of the OMV stake from Mubadala in December 2022. In tandem, upon the completion of the proposed merger forming Borouge Group International —a polyolefins powerhouse valued at $60 billion—ADNOC's resulting 46.94 per cent BGI stake will also be held by XRG. ADVERTISEMENT The BGI framework merges OMV's 75 per cent‑owned Borealis with ADNOC's 54 per cent Borouge, and incorporates Nova Chemicals, securing the group's position among the world's top four polyolefins producers. OMV and ADNOC each will control approximately 46.94 per cent, with the remaining 6 per cent free‑float pending UAE Securities and Commodities Authority consent. Khaled Salmeen, ADNOC's downstream chief, described the move as a logical next step following the $60 billion chemicals merger, reinforcing the energy transition and investment diversification strategy. ADNOC's transfer of both its OMV holding and BGI stake into XRG reflects its ambition to streamline governance and position XRG at the core of its international chemicals and low‑carbon energy agenda. XRG, backed by global figures including former BP chief Bernard Looney and Blackstone's Jon Gray, aims to build a top‑five global chemicals platform, while expanding gas, LNG, and low‑carbon energy capacity to 20–25 million tonnes annually by 2035. The unit is also said to be exploring an international listing in London or New York within the next five years. Investors are watching for regulatory clearances across multiple jurisdictions—Austria, the UAE, and EU competition authorities—before finalising both the OMV share transfer and the formation of BGI. The new polyolefins entity is projected to deliver $500 million of annual cost synergies within three years post-merger.
Irish Times
07-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Shell denies takeover talk, but BP's woes persist
Shell has denied it. No plans to buy BP . No talks. Nothing to see. Still, when your biggest domestic rival has to publicly insist it's not trying to take you over, the market smells blood. BP's weakened state has long been a talking point: a failed green pivot, poor returns and a chief executive exit (Kerryman Bernard Looney ) under a cloud. In February, Murray Auchincloss, the ex-chief financial officer who is now in charge, promised a reset. Back to oil and gas, back to what BP knows. READ MORE However, if Looney's green pivot angered shareholders, Auchincloss's pivot back hasn't soothed them either, with shares down almost 20 per cent since February's peak. Its renewables unit may be too big to sell, and its best assets – Gulf of Mexico oil, US shale, LNG – are also the ones Auchincloss doesn't want to lose. The problem is if oil prices drift lower and earnings disappoint again, Auchincloss may lose control of what gets sold. BP trades below the value of its parts, and investor patience at BP's current price may be running dangerously thin
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why BP Became Target of Biggest Potential Oil Deal in Decades
Reports and rumors have intensified this year that BP is in the crosshairs of rivals, especially Shell, for a potential takeover that would be the largest deal in the oil industry since the Exxon and Mobil merger in 1999. Five years of U-turns in strategy and the abrupt departure of the architect of the 'greener' BP, Bernard Looney, have left investors unconvinced in the direction the UK supermajor is taking and whether it could – at some point, finally – convince shareholders and the market that it is a stock worth holding. The latest speculation, from a few days ago, again placed UK-based rival Shell as a potential buyer of BP. Shell dismissed the latest market talk with a statement, but didn't close the door on a potential bid down the line, or 'if there has been a material change of circumstances.' Shell, and any other suitor for that matter, would need to carefully consider the idea of a takeover because of the enormity of a deal, the debt level and ratio at BP that are higher than these of its peers, and likely stumbling blocks in regulatory approvals in numerous jurisdictions, including at home in the UK. BP Became The Weakest Link A BP-Shell tie-up has been the talk of the market for years. BP's stock has underperformed those of its peers for years, and the two strategy resets in five years this decade alone haven't helped investors believe that either of the two strategy shifts could bring significant value. First it was former CEO Looney who, in 2020, steered BP into turning into an integrated energy company from an international oil major by reducing its oil and gas production and boosting investments in low-carbon energy solutions. This 'performing while transforming' strategy failed to convince investors as returns from renewables were meager, at best, and the stock market did not appreciate reduction of the most profitable business, oil and gas, at the expense of costly and lower-value-creating came 2022 and the energy crisis, which upended all plans and strategies. All majors started emphasizing the need for affordable, reliable energy in a move to continue producing more oil and gas. BP's then CEO Looney talked about solving the energy trilemma – affordability, security, and sustainability, until September 2023, when he abruptly departed over previously undisclosed relationships at the workplace. Then, CFO Murray Auchincloss took over in the interim before being officially elected chief executive officer in 2024. Strategy Reset Early this year, Auchincloss announced a fundamental strategy reset to return to the core business of pumping more oil and gas and slashing investments in renewables. The reset was likely also the result of activist hedge fund Elliott buying nearly 5% in the UK-based supermajor early this year. Elliott, known for aggressively demanding changes, big and fast, at any company in which it is building stakes, pressured BP to reward shareholders by reducing debt. Hopes at BP that the strategy reset would now reverse the fortunes for the BP stock were quickly dashed. In a very unfortunate development for BP, any positive short-lived share performance from the strategy reset was obliterated within a month by the tariff and trade wars, which crashed the price of Brent Crude oil to the low $60s per barrel in April and May. The prices were already lower in the first quarter of 2025 compared to a year earlier—and BP's financials showed it. After BP reported the weakest set of Q1 results among Big Oil and reduced by $1 billion its quarterly share buyback program as cash flow declined and net debt rose, speculation of a Shell-BP megadeal intensified in April. What's Next? The speculation resurfaced in the last week of June, after The Wall Street Journal reported that Shell is in early-stage discussions to acquire its British rival. A day later, Shell said it hasn't actively considered an offer for BP and has no intention of making such a bid. 'In response to recent media speculation Shell wishes to clarify that it has not been actively considering making an offer for BP and confirms it has not made an approach to, and no talks have taken place with, BP with regards to a possible offer,' Shell said in a statement, addressing the report. Under UK market rules, Shell confirmed it has no intention of making an offer for BP, and by confirming this, Shell will be bound by the restrictions in the rules not to make an offer for BP in the next six months. The supermajor, however, left the door slightly open to an offer in the future if a third party announces a firm intention to make an offer for BP, or 'if there has been a material change of circumstances.' Shell and other majors, including the U.S. giants, are not being ruled out as BP suitors in the future. 'The fact rumours keep circulating might suggest there is some truth in the matter, be it Shell or someone else looking to buy the UK oil and gas producer,' Dan Coatsworth, an investment analyst at AJ Bell, told Yahoo Finance. Yet, any bid for BP would need to clear a lot of regulatory hurdles in various jurisdictions, and the bidder will have to weigh the potential benefits of synergies against BP's debt and potential asset sales to win regulatory approvals. By Tsvetana Paraskova for More Top Reads From this article on Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
CNBC
30-06-2025
- Business
- CNBC
How BP became a potential takeover target
For weeks, market tongues have been wagging about a potential merger between Britain's oil giants — until, ending weeks of speculation, Shell on Thursday denied reports that it's in talks to acquire BP. But how did we get to the point that BP, a U.K. oil exploration company that was founded in 1909 under the name Anglo-Persian Oil Company, is now seen as a possible takeover target for its long time rival? Back in 2020, under the guidance of then newly appointed CEO Bernard Looney, BP announced it would embark on a strategy to remake itself as a "a net-zero company by 2050 or sooner," while ramping up its investment in renewable energy projects. The energy giant committed to "performing while transforming" as it laid out this new strategy. At the time, Looney acknowledged that the shift would be a challenge but argued that it was "also a tremendous opportunity". Looney launched the strategy just as the Covid-19 pandemic was making its way across the world, triggering a demand shock and cratering crude prices. The energy giant posted its first full-year loss in a decade, but the company proceeded with its revamp, posting an annual profit in 2021 of $7.6 billion — before more than tripling to $27.65 billion in 2022, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine sent oil prices surging. Looney lauded the results, telling CNBC the firm was now leaning into its strategy. "We're announcing up to $8 billion more investment into the energy transition this decade and up to $8 billion more into oil and gas in support of energy security and energy affordability this decade," he said. This increased investment into the company's energy transition was reinforced by forecasts, published in the 2023 edition of BP's Energy Outlook, that the share of fossil fuels in primary energy would fall from around 80% in 2019 to as low as 20% in 2050. BP was left reeling when Bernard Looney abruptly announced his resignation in September 2023 after less than four years into the job, with the company revealing he had not been "fully transparent in his previous disclosures" about relationships in the workplace prior to becoming CEO. Then Chief Financial Officer Murray Auchincloss stepped in as interim CEO before being appointed on a permanent basis in January 2024. But the man who had driven the vision of BP as a renewable energy giant was now out of the building. Declining annual profits in both 2023 and 2024, along with Looney's departure and a continued underperformance in BP's shares compared to its peers, raised fresh questions about the oil major's strategy and its future as a standalone company. Aside from Shell, Chevron and Exxon Mobil have also been touted as potential suitors for BP, while the Emirates' Adnoc has reportedly eyed some of its gas assets. Activist investor Elliott reportedly built up a stake in the oil major in February, just before Auchincloss revealed BP's strategic reset that set out to ramp up investment in oil and gas and reduce the focus on renewables. Investors have yet to be impressed, with shares down 15% since that time. Speaking to CNBC in April, Auchincloss brushed off concerns that the company was becoming a takeover target, saying "we're a strong, independent company. His peer, Shell CEO Wael Sawan, meanwhile told CNBC in June that "we have a very high bar" for M&A opportunities, but argued that the company continues to favor buying back its own shares. Shell's robust rejection of these reports appears to have, for now, thrown cold water on a potential takeover bid for BP. Morningstar Senior Equity Analyst Allen Good has questioned the merits of a Shell deal for BP at this point, telling CNBC that "unless the valuation is super attractive" then it would probably not be worth the headache for executives.
