Workspace Group (WKP) has replaced chief executive Laurence Hutchings as the flexible office space provider rushes to prepare a defence strategy against hostile shareholder Saba Capital.
Hutchings has stepped down with immediate effect and will be replaced on 2 February by Charlie Green, former chief executive and co-founder of The Office Group (TOG), which sold a majority stake to Blackstone in 2017 that valued the group at £500m.
Chair Duncan Owen thanked Hutchings for launching the “Fix, Accelerate and Scale” strategy which he said was delivering positive results.
Owen said Green’s “deep expertise in growth strategies and operational performance ideally positions him to accelerate the execution of our existing strategy. We look forward to working with him as he leads Workspace into its next chapter, with a continued focus on generating income growth, rebuilding occupancy and delivering shareholder returns.”
Last week Saba, holder of 13.5% of Workspace shares, demanded the company enter a one-year managed wind-down to crystallise value in the business obscured by a steep and long-standing share price discount.
In a down day for the market, Workspace shares today slipped 1.4%, or 6p, to 413p, unwinding some of the gains after Saba published its open letter last Wednesday.
Green will also have a new chief finance officer to work with as Workspace named Tom Edwards‑Moss as its new CFO from 23 February, with the current finance chief Dave Benson staying on until 30 April to ensure a smooth handover.
Hutchings said: “We have laid a strong foundation for future growth and I have no doubt the business will go from strength to strength as the strategy is implemented.”
Green said he was “hugely excited about the opportunity”. He said Workspace had “an outstanding portfolio of characterful buildings and a customer proposition that is highly relevant in today’s market… The strategy in place is clear and provides the right platform to rebuild occupancy and drive income growth over time.”
Our view
Richard Williams, senior analyst at QuotedData, said: “The stepping down of the CEO a few days after activist investor Saba requested a wind-down of the company looks poorly timed, however the replacement appointment in Charlie Green lays to rest any worries that it is folding in. Green has a strong track record in the London flexible office sector and seems the ideal person to rebuild WKP’s rental income and returns. We await the board’s response to Saba, but it looks to me that it will rebuff its attempts to wind up the business and press ahead with its turnaround strategy with a new CEO at the helm.”
