David Emerson, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) Virgin Australia – Keynote interview, “Five years of change in five months”

David Emerson, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) Virgin Australia joined Bloomberg’s Danny Lee for a keynote interview focusing in on “Recovering from bankruptcy and a pandemic at the same time – the VA story.”

On 21 April 2020, Virgin Australia entered voluntary administration and in June the airline was acquired by US-based private equity firm Bain Capital. Under the new leadership of CEO Jayne Hrdlicka, the airline emerged as a leaner carrier filled with promise and by October the airline had officially returned to profit.

This 15-minute interview with David Emerson looks at how the airline shifted their business model, addressed the tech debt, and streamlined, to achieve one of the fastest airline turn arounds in history. David highlights the unique challenges and rare advantages of entering the administration process during a global pandemic as well as touching on partnerships in the longer term and the airline’s dynamic with Qantas.

For more content on Virgin Australia, see Q&A with Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka

Article by Jess Brownlow

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