The Antinori saga

Many in the German air transport industry have been wondering why Thierry Antinori opted not to become Austrian CEO. He told the company’s board about his decision four days before he should have started in the new job. The only explanation people came up with was that he got a very attractive alternative job offer that he could not resist.

But according to industry sources, things are different. They say that Antinori, who was heading marketing and sales at Lufthansa Passage, has so far not said where he will work in the future simply because he does not have a new job. He left Lufthansa because he felt that it would have been impossible to turn around Austrian and thus fulfil expectations that were supposed to be the basis of his term at Austrian, people with knowledge of the situation claim. It is certainly no coincidence that he stepped back not only days before he should have taken over, but also within about a week of Austrian announcing another tough cost savings program that aims at finding another €30 million. But where?
Lufthansa has reason to be worried, not because it has lost a prominent executive, but because of the reasons of his departure. The takeover of Austrian is seen by many in the group as a big mistake already and Antinori’s move shows that a turnaround is even more difficult than believed.

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http://www.flottau-aviation.com/2011...ga-part-2.html