Change apace with four-pronged attack

The boardroom coup at the WA Cricket Association last September was headlined by new president Dennis Lillee, but standing with him were three prominent business figures, who were also elected to the WACA board.

They include former test cricketers Graeme Wood, now an executive at Carlton and United Beverages, and Sam Gannon, a director of West Perth financial planning firm Gannon Growden Schonnell.

The fourth member of the Lillee team, David Williams, has ended up with arguably the top job at the WACA.

Mr Williams, a former lawyer and former Subiaco Football Club president, is currently a senior executive with Western Plaza Hotel Corporation, which owns several themed pubs in Perth.

He was elected to the WACA board in September and went on to be elected unopposed as chairman of the WACA after Argonaut Capital founder Charles Fear decided not to seek re-election.

Mr Fear, who had been chairman for eight years, continues as one of four vice-presidents on the WACA’s 16-member board.

Another casualty of the boardroom coup and last year’s financial problems was accounting firm KPMG, which was dropped as the WACA’s auditor in favour of PKF.

The new board instituted a major strategic review to try and improve the organisation’s financial performance.

In 2003-04 the WACA suffered a loss of $1.3 million on revenue of more than $13 million; in the current financial year it has budgeted for a 10 per cent increase in revenue to $15 million and an improved bottom line.

The strategic review is designed to lift performance and the first batch of changes was adopted early this month when the management structure was streamlined and staff numbers were reduced.

The WACA is also looking to boost revenue by vacating the Bradman Room in the Lillee Marsh Stand, so that it can create entertainment packages for 80 individual and corporate sponsors.