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Qantas will more closely tie CEO Vanessa Hudson’s bonuses to the company’s reputation under a new plan to be voted on at the airline’s annual general meeting (AGM).
The proposal would see up to 20 per cent of Hudson’s total share rights under the Qantas long-term incentive program vest based on the Flying Kangaroo’s reputation score, as tracked by external firm RepTrak. The Qantas board is also raising her salary from $1.65 million to $1.7 million.
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Qantas earlier this year was named the fifth most distrusted brand in Australia by pollster Roy Morgan, though researchers did note signs of recovery.
According to the Qantas Group’s AGM notice released on Friday, none of Hudson’s affected share rights will vest if Qantas’ reputation is below 70 (“strong”), scaling up to 100 per cent if its reputation is above 80 (“excellent”).
“This measure underlines the determination of the group to bring Qantas back to its position as one of Australia’s most trusted brands,” Qantas said.
“Historically, Qantas has enjoyed a track record of monthly calculated reputation scores in the strong (70–79) to excellent (80+) range; however, during FY23, the group experienced a fall in our reputation scores associated with significant reputational and customer service issues.
“While the group has made progress in the period since, the group currently remains in the average range (60–69) at the end of FY25.”
According to Qantas, the group is looking to achieve a “sustained improvement” in reputation scores.
“As a result, the performance targets are set such that vesting will only occur if the group returns into a reputation range assessed as strong to excellent by the end of the performance period,” the notice read.
“The assessment will seek to ensure that performance improvement is sustained, and not achieved as a one-off, by considering both monthly and rolling annual performance.”
Under the proposal, up to 40 per cent of Hudson’s long-term incentive share rights will also vest based on growth in total shareholder return (TSR) compared to the ASX 100, while the remaining 40 per cent will vest based on TSR growth compared to a group of other global listed airlines.
Formerly a highly trusted brand, Qantas saw its public image decline steadily during and after COVID-19 before suffering a massive hit in late 2023 with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s “ghost flights” lawsuit and the subsequent resignation of chief executive Alan Joyce.
