Scyne appoints business veteran John Mullen as inaugural chair

Transport and logistics leadership veteran John Mullen has been appointed as the inaugural chair of PwC’s public sector consulting breakaway Scyne Advisory, which officially launched this week.

Public sector consultancy Scyne Advisory has marked its official launch with the appointment of John Mullen as inaugural chair, demonstrating the firm’s commitment to independent oversight.

The former global CEO of DHL Express joins retired federal court judge Andrew Greenwood alongside Adrian Loader and Fay Bou of private equity owner Allegro as the first members of Scyne’s board, which once finalised will confirm the firm’s executive leadership.

“Following the intensive work to separate the business, we’re delighted Scyne Advisory is now open for business,” stated Loader. “We committed to a new governance structure that we think is right for advising the public sector, and we’re confident John will be an excellent leader of a diverse board. He will bring valuable governance disciplines, as well as his perspective and experience in leading organisations through transformation.”

Loader, a one time senior manager at Arthur Andersen and former Turnaround Management Association president who co-founded Allegro in 2008, added that Mullen’s experience as an ASX chairman and executive leader spoke for itself.

Indeed, in addition to heading DHL Express in the Asia Pacific and globally out of the US and Europe for seven years, Mullen also spent four years as CEO of TNT Express during a decade-long stint with the company in Amsterdam.

Meanwhile, his top-level board experience includes 16 years at Telstra, where he recently retired as chair, and ongoing chairmanship of Brambles, Treasury Wine Estates, and the Australian National Maritime Museum. Mullens is also an independent director at North American asset management firm Brookfield Infrastructure, and last year stepped down as chair of Toll Group, which had earlier sold its Global Express business to Allegro.

Mullens stated that his latest board offer was too attractive to pass up. “Scyne Advisory is well positioned to disrupt the industry. It’s pretty unique in one’s career to get the opportunity to participate in the birth of a new vertical within an industry with a very different approach to an old problem. We are establishing a new, specialist model, unconflicted by the private sector, and Allegro is assembling a strong and diverse board to guide Scyne Advisory through its transition.”

Mullens will now be tasked with helping to oversee the recruitment of Sycne’s remaining independent board members – to instil what he describes as “public company rigour” into the firm’s leadership structure – with two further directors expected to join in the near future as a step closer to finalising the executive. As it stands, Scyne nationals managing director Richard Gwilym, a two-and-a-half-decade veteran with PwC, is still in the position on an interim basis.