Rose to clock off at Rolls-Royce

ENGINE giant Rolls-Royce yesterday announced that chief executive Sir John Rose is standing down after more than 14 years at the helm.

His successor has been named as John Rishton, a former British Airways finance chief who is currently the boss at Dutch retail group Royal Ahold, and who has also been a non-executive director at Rolls since 2007. The firm is required by the government to have a British citizen as its chief executive due to its importance as a supplier to the Ministry of Defence.

Rose, 57, will clock off at the end of March, having been in the post since May 1996 and having notched up a 26-year career with the FTSE 100 firm.

Sir Simon Robertson, chairman of Rolls-Royce, paid tribute to his "leadership, strategic vision and tenacity" during his time at the helm of the civil aerospace and defence firm.