Words: Ashley Rigg
Published: 7th August 2008
Global property chief sacked
Simon Baker, the man who grew a single Australian website into a multi-million dollar global property business with 22 websites in 10 countries, has been sacked as Chief Executive of REA Group.
Chairman Richard Freudenstein says: “Now the board feels it is time for new leadership to take the business to the next level…the board would like to thank Simon for his contribution to this success and we wish him well in his future endeavours.”
Baker was the mastermind behind the growth of Australian market leader realestate.com.au before becoming Chief Executive of REA Group, which owns a large number of international property portals including
Propertyfinder.com and
HotProperty.co.uk in the UK and Casa.it in Italy.
Personal sacrifice
Baker’s commitment to building his global property empire cost him his marriage and he recently told Australian Blog Smart Company: “I don’t have a life. I spend way too much time travelling”. On the plus side, growing the business from nothing to a AU$480 million (£224 million) juggernaut has made him a multi-millionaire. His wealth includes AU$11.8 million (£5.5 million) in share options in REA Group. Enough one feels, for the board to ensure he toes the party line and keeps his mouth shut about the exact reasons for his dismissal.
Hard to handle
For all his considerable entrepreneurial and management talent, Baker is famous for being “hard to handle”. He has
never been afraid to mince his words and his confidence and self-belief can sometimes come across as arrogance.
Sources say there are no nasty financial results in the pipeline and the board is moving forward with his global strategy. The evidence suggests his dismissal is down to personality conflicts and political issues rather than financial performance.
In our opinion, it’s a risky decision by the REA Group board and one they could come to regret. Baker is not only a talented businessman but is a natural leader and inspires loyalty from the people who work for him. His straight talking "no bullshit" approach is refreshing and from our point of view he's a headline writers dream. We hope he gets another high profile position in the overseas property sector!
Higher prices for agents?
It is likely the REA Group board will appoint a more corporate man with the brief of delivering better short-term “shareholder value”. It could mean cost-cutting as well as higher prices for agents in markets where they have a dominant position. We'll keep you informed of the latest developments.
