Crown appoints Danielle Keighery as Chief Corporate Affairs and Brand Officer

Crown Resorts has named Danielle Keighery to the newly created role of chief corporate affairs and brand officer.

Australia.- A week after Judge Raymond Finkelstein deemed Crown Resorts unsuitable to hold a licence for its Crown Melbourne casino, the company it making changes. The company has announced the appointment of Danielle Keighery to the new role of chief corporate affairs and brand officer.

Keighery will start working for the group by 2022 and will be in charge of Crown’s brand and reputation work across all touchpoints. Keighery will also align the company’s corporate affairs, public relations, government relations, brand, sponsorship, media and all corporate communications functions under her stewardship.

According to a company filing, Keighery spent 16 years at Virgin Enterprises and Virgin Australia Group in senior executive roles across corporate affairs, brand, marketing and customer experience.

Steve McCann, Crown Resorts CEO, said: “Danielle’s experience in high profile, highly regulated and complex industries makes her a perfect fit for Crown Resorts. 

“As part of our transformation, we have committed to a more proactive approach with our stakeholders to rebuild trust as well as equity in our brand more broadly. Danielle’s unique experience makes her perfectly placed to drive this and we look forward to her joining the executive team early in the new year.”

As part of Crown’s business transformation programme, the company has previously appointed Craig Durham as group company secretary and legal counsel and Anne Ward as an independent non-executive director.

In August, Crown Resorts appointed Ziggy Switkowski as chairman of the group to replace Helen Coonan, who stepped down after Adrian Finanzio, the counsel assisting Victoria’s Royal Commission into Crown Resorts, questioned the appropriateness of her remaining in the position.

Crown Resorts allowed to keep its licence under stricter conditions

Judge Raymond Finkelstein has decided the casino operator can keep its licence through the appointment of a Special Manager to oversee the casino for the next two years. Stephen O’Bryan QC, as Victoria’s first Independent Broad-based Anti-Corruption Commissioner, will be appointed to the position.

The Special Manager will have unprecedented powers to oversee Crown Resorts, veto decisions of the Board, and will have access to all areas of the casino and its books and records. 

Finkelstein said he had taken the decision because he understood that if Crown Melbourne’s licence was cancelled, it would hurt the Victorian economy. The proposal has been approved by the Victorian government, which said Crown’s licence will be cancelled unless Crown Resorts can convince the regulator it has changed. 

A total of 33 recommendations were made by the Royal Commission, which recognised that Crown Resorts has started a significant reform programme.