黑洞社区

Interserve鈥檚 streamlining initiative has claimed its most senior figure yet with main board director Dougie Sutherland leaving the firm.

Sutherland (pictured), one of the key architects of the firm鈥檚 Fit for Growth programme, is stepping down from the board immediately and officially leaves the firm at the end of the month.

The 53-year-old has been on the company鈥檚 main board for eight years and was among those board members named last week by the New York hedge fund, which owns 17% of the business, who it wanted to see leave.

Coltrane Asset Management has called for an emergency general meeting to discuss its concerns about the firm鈥檚 restructuring initiative announced last Wednesday which will see Interserve鈥檚 lenders cut what they鈥檙e owed by half, swapping their stakes for shares resulting in creditors owning 97.5% of the company 鈥� wiping out shareholders.

Coltrane wants to vote out all of the group鈥檚 board with the exception of chief executive Debbie White.

Sutherland, who joined the business back in September 2006 after spells at Lend Lease, Amey as well as the Treasury, was the main baord director in day-to-day charge of the firm鈥檚 energy-from-waste contracts which have so far racked up crippling losses of more than 拢220m.

An Interserve spokesperson said Chris Tyerman, the managing director of its infrastructure division, would now be in charge of closing out its remaining energy-from-waste schemes, which include sites at Rotherham and Derby.

Sutherland was managing director of the firm鈥檚 developments division and was also in charge of UK construction. According to the firm鈥檚 latest annual report, he was paid more than 拢380,000 in 2017.

Interserve chairman Glyn Barker, who Coltrane also wants to see leave, said: 鈥淚 would like to thank Dougie for his dedication to Interserve and especially his recent contribution to our business transformation programme 鈥楩it for Growth鈥� integrating the Developments business into Support Services, the integration of the UK and International Construction businesses and the sale of a number of investments and businesses.鈥�

Interserve has 20 days to respond to Coltrane鈥檚 request for an EGM, made last Wednesday, and a further 20 days to hold it 鈥� meaning it is likely to be held at the end of March.

Senior figures who have left Interserve in the past few months include Gordon Kew, Interserve鈥檚 former boss of its construction business, who went in September, and in December two executive board members, head of of citizen services Yvonne Thomas and Robin O鈥橩elly, the group鈥檚 director of communications, also left as part of a management rejig.

Last week 黑洞社区 reported that Matthew Fundrey, who had been bid director at Interserve鈥檚 fit-out business, Paragon, since October 2017, had left to become pre-construction director at Mace Interiors.