Skip to Content News Archives Economy Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials HomeNewsTransportationAirlinesWho is Anko Van der Werff, Air Canada's incoming CEO?A look at the experience, qualifications and linguistic ability of the man set to take the helm of Canada's biggest airlineLast updated 42 minutes ago You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.Anko Van der Werff started his airline career in management at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (now Air France-KLM S.A.) before holding senior roles at Qatar Airways, Aeroméxico, Avianca S.A and SAS. Photo by Handout/Air Canada/PostmediaThe results of Air Canada’s executive search are in and the new chief executive, who starts early next year, is widely considered a proven change agent with broad experience at airlines around the world. Although the company said its succession plans have been in the works for a while, it seemed the process was expedited when its current CEO, Michael Rousseau, resigned in the spring amid controversy over his inability to speak French. Here, the Financial Post looks at the experience, qualifications and linguistic ability of the man set to take the helm of Canada’s biggest airline.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorBreaking business news, incisive views, must-reads and market signals. Weekdays by 9 a.m.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Posthaste will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againThe 50-year-old Dutchman grew up in a small village near Groningen. He has a master’s degree in law from Leiden University and completed executive studies at Harvard Business School, Air Canada said in a press release. Van der Werff is married with children, and on an April episode of the Dutch wellness podcast Health for Wealth described himself as a “family man,” a world traveller and lifelong sports enthusiast who stays active by playing football, tennis and padel. In a LinkedIn post last year, he said football is a “huge passion” and that he plays with a team from his current company, Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS) every week.“In many ways … I consider myself in a sense quite boring, because it’s really just family, and work, and then there are sports,” he said on the podcast. In its press release, Air Canada said that with his 25-plus years in the industry, Van der Werff brings an “exceptional breadth of international aviation experience.” He started his airline career in management at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (now Air France-KLM S.A.) before holding senior commercial roles at Qatar Airways and serving as executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Aeroméxico. Before joining SAS in 2021, he was president and chief executive of Colombia-based Avianca S.A. In a note, RBC Dominion Securities Inc. analyst James McGarragle said Van der Werff inherited the “structurally troubled carrier in mid-2019″ and that his “Avianca 2021” turnaround plan “measurably improved” the airline before the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. “This is a nuanced but important distinction — the bankruptcy was exogenous, not a management outcome,” McGarragle said. Canada’s largest airline, headquartered in Montreal, is subject to the Official Languages Act, which requires it to deliver services in both English and French. The company said in its press release that its performance criteria for the new CEO included the ability to speak French. Van der Werff speaks Dutch and Spanish fluently and can communicate in French, English, Italian and Swedish at varying levels. Air Canada’s outgoing CEO Rousseau announced his retirement back in March amid criticism in Quebec for his failure to speak French after he delivered an English-only message of condolence following the fatal collision at New York’s LaGuardia Airport. “Although we believed that Air Canada’s CEO search process was also considering internal candidates, Mr. Van der Werff appears to be highly qualified with extensive international airline industry experience and his successful turnaround of SAS is a clear positive,” Cameron Doerksen, analyst at National Bank of Canada Capital Markets, said in a note. McGarragle from RBC called him a “credible, experienced aviation executive with a genuine track record of navigating complexity” and his hiring is a “net positive” for Air Canada. He said Van der Werff joined SAS in 2021 during a period of “deep pandemic distress” and led the airline “from near-collapse through a controlled bankruptcy to emergence with new ownership, a renewed cost structure, and recovering profitability.” “His two most recent stints — at Avianca and SAS — demonstrate a consistent pattern of disciplined transformation execution under difficult circumstances, which is exactly the skillset (Air Canada’s) board was looking for,” McGarragle said.— With files from Denise Paglinawan Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.