‘Dirk Tirez brings stability and confidence to Bpost’, reacts Audrey Hanard, the chairwoman of the board of directors of Bpost. Minister of Public Enterprises Petra De Sutter is pleased that Bpost has chosen ‘an experienced man from its own ranks’.
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Both Minister De Sutter and the chairwoman of Bpost, Audrey Hanard, are delighted with the news that Dirk Tirez (57) will be the new CEO of Bpost. Earlier in the evening, this newspaper announced that the government and the board of Bpost chose the interim CEO as the new CEO.
Dirk Tirez had been interim CEO of Bpost since mid-March, he was appointed after the resignation of Jean-Paul Van Avermaet. Tirez has been praised for helping Bpost navigate the governance crisis, a crisis that arose after it became known that Jean-Paul Van Avermaet was suspected of illegal agreements and cartel formation when he was director of the security firm G4S.
Bpost gained the trust of the Vivaldi government for its commitment to sustainability, social dialogue, quality service and healthy profitability. Both the Minister of Public Enterprises Petra De Sutter (Green) and the chairwoman of the board of directors of Bpost, Audrey Hanard, were soon won over by Tirez. They preferred Tirez over a external candidate of the logistics company DHL.
Calm after turbulence
On July 1, it didn’t seem clear which way things would go, but the government said it saw Tirez as the ideal candidate. Earlier today, Bpost’s board of directors rallied behind Tirez.
Minister De Sutter responded tonight to Tirez’s choice with the message that she was happy that an experienced man from her own ranks was chosen. ‘He knows the company and the employees very well and, as CEO ad interim, he managed to restore calm after a difficult and turbulent period (….).’
Hanard pointed out that in recent months she had listened a lot to the various stakeholders of Bpost, also participated anonymously and had conversations with the trade unions. ‘They showed the need for stability and trust within the company and Dirk Tirez brings this. He has built up trust in recent months and was selected after a thorough and objective process.’
Crucial times
These are indeed crucial times for Bpost. It is very important that it makes its organization resilient, tailored to the digital economy. Corona caused explosive growth in the parcel market. Under Van Avermaet, Bpost turned out not to be ready for this, but competitors such as PostNl did benefit from it. The parcel market is a volume business with very low margins. Bpost sometimes has to deal with competition from bogus self-employed workers and is under pressure to keep its own productivity as high as possible.
Tirez proved in recent months that he understood very well the challenges facing Bpost and that he was able to mobilize around a set of priorities. For example, more efficient distribution rounds. According to Tirez, there was an optimal volume of parcels that benefited profitability. Too few packages means that the fixed costs weigh too heavily, too many packages means that external people and equipment have to be sought.
Tirez also restored social dialogue with the unions. In recent months there has also been negotiations with the cabinet of Minister De Sutter (Green) about a new management agreement. The government wants to place social and sustainable accents in this. Europe must approve the management agreement. A procedure is also underway regarding the renewal of the concession for the distribution of newspapers and magazines.
Johnny Thijs
Tirez has been working at Bpost for 18 years and knows the company well. Prior to becoming CEO ad interim, his role as a member of the executive committee focused on strategy, acquisitions and relations with regulatory authorities. He advised the CEO in these areas. He negotiated important contracts with Europe. At the time, Tirez was brought in by Johnny Thijs to become head of the legal department.
Tirez is what is called a typical ‘public servant’. Someone who works for the government. In the early 1990s, he was active for several years as an advisor to the cabinet of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Philippe Maystadt (CDH). Tirez’s mother was close to the Christian labor movement. His father was vice-chairman of the court of first instance in Ghent.
When a successor was sought for Koen Van Gerven, he was not a candidate. A rare disease had kept him in the hospital for four months, followed by a year of rehabilitation. In a conversation of Free he said this had changed his life. But after Bpost’s bad experience with Van Avermaet, Tirez decided to apply anyway. Successfully, as it turned out earlier today.
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