Ocado Group appoints technology expert Adam Warby as next chairman

Ocado Group has appointed Adam Warby to replace Rick Haythornthwaite as chairman from the beginning of December.

Warby will join the online grocer’s board of directors as a non-executive director on Friday before taking on the role of chairman the following month.

He is already chairman of leadership advisory group Heidrick & Struggles, CEO emeritus of IT consulting firm Avanade, and senior advisor to private equity giant KKR.

Warby began his career in sales at IBM, then moved into consulting and management positions at Microsoft and became president of SoftwareOne, based in Switzerland.

His arrival at Ocado follows a challenging period for the FTSE 250 company, which is struggling to boost sales and become profitable amid a post-pandemic return to supermarket shopping.

In its half-year results covering the six months ending June 2, the company posted a pre-tax loss of £153.9 million, partly due to costs associated with the rollout of technology in warehouses.

However, Ocado raised its full-year profits ahead of the unpleasant cash flow outlook, with the latter expected to improve by £150m on an underlying basis rather than £100m.

It has since raised its annual revenue forecast following a strong performance in the third quarter, when retail sales rose more than 15 per cent year-on-year to £658m.

The Hatfield-based group believes sales at its grocery e-commerce division, a joint venture with Marks & Spencer, will grow by a low double-digit percentage.

Ocado also struck deals to provide robotic equipment to warehouses run by US retailer Kroger and build a third customer fulfillment center for Japanese hypermarket operator AEON.

Tim Steiner, chief executive of Ocado, said: “Our world-leading technology is now available from 11 of our 13 partners globally, and we continue to expand the reach of our technology into new markets and sectors.

“As we work with our partners to expand their online capabilities and refine their operations, Adam’s experience as a global consulting and technology leader will be a valuable asset to the board and leadership team.”

Rick Haythornthwaite, 67, announced his departure from Ocado in April to devote his time to chairing NatWest Group.

He joined Ocado in January 2021, when the company was enjoying galloping sales growth while stores in Britain were forced to temporarily close or were subject to severe operating restrictions.

Since then, ocado actions have plummeted by more than 90 percent as slowing expansion and cost-of-living pressures drive consumers to discount supermarkets.

On Thursday afternoon they fell 0.3 per cent to 349.1 pence, meaning their value has more than halved this year alone.

Haythornthwaite said: “It has been a great pleasure to be Chairman of Ocado for the last four years and to have had the opportunity to help a visionary technology company that continues to drive change in the online grocery industry and beyond.”

“I look forward to seeing this market-leading business continue to thrive under Adam’s leadership in the years to come.”