John Rowley Appointed Next CEO of Wallem
The Board of Directors of Wallem Group have announced that John-Kaare Aune will be stepping aside as Wallem Group’s CEO and after a period of transition will leave in January 2024.
The Wallem Board has appointed John Rowley to succeed him, with effect from January 1, 2024. Rowley is currently Senior Vice President Global Food and Transportation Divisions at NSF, prior to which he was CEO SAI Global Assurance following eight years on the executive team at the Lloyd's Register Group, as CEO Lloyd’s Register Quality Assurance (LRQA) as well as the Group’s Asia Pacific President.
Nigel Hill, Wallem Group Chairman, said, “We are delighted to appoint John Rowley as Wallem Group’s next CEO with his experience in, and understanding of, the global maritime industry and his successful track record of accelerating revenue growth across a number of industry sectors. The Wallem Board and I look forward to working with him to ensure the success of the next stage of Wallem’s journey.”
Rowley said, “I am thrilled to be joining Wallem Group as CEO of this amazing organisation. Wallem is one of the maritime industry’s most trusted and respected brands, and I look forward to working together with the Wallem board, management, and employees, as well as the many clients and stakeholders, to lead the company forwards through the next chapter of its incredible voyage.”
Having joined Wallem in 2019 as Managing Director, Shipmanagement, Aune was appointed as Group CEO in January 2021. “On behalf of the Wallem Board, I would like to thank John for his leadership and dedication over the past three years as CEO,” says Hill. “We are grateful for his hard work and commitment in stabilising Wallem’s operations and positioning the company for growth after what has been a challenging time for the maritime industry. We respect John’s decision, and he leaves with our thanks and best wishes for the future.”
Aune said, ‘It was a difficult decision to step aside as the Wallem Group CEO. However, with operations having normalised after the impact of the pandemic, I felt that the time was right. Now that my successor has been identified, I will be exploring new opportunities. It has been an honour to have had the opportunity to be part of the Wallem Group, we have improved client service levels, continued the digitalization of the company services, and set the foundation for Wallem’s journey towards decarbonization. I would like to thank our shareholders, Board of Directors, our excellent clients and all my colleagues ashore and at sea for their support during my time at Wallem. I wish the Wallem Group and my successor every success in the years to come.”
