Diageo’s chair is planning a shake-up of the drinks giant’s board in a bid to bring in “heavyweight” industry experience as the group confronts a historic downturn in spirits demand.
Three people familiar with John Manzoni’s thinking said the chair was searching for new board directors with commercial experience in the drinks or drinks distribution sectors – experience that both he and Diageo’s decisive new boss Dave Lewis lack.
The Guinness maker’s 11-person board has only one non-executive director who has held a senior position at a spirits company, former Rémy Cointreau boss Valérie Chapoulaud-Floquet.
Manzoni “isn’t happy with the board he inherited”, said one of the people.
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As well as wanting to bring in more sector expertise, the former head of the civil service is keen to hire non-executive directors who will be able to challenge Lewis as he attempts a sweeping overhaul of the business. “He’s hiring some heavyweights that Lewis will respect,” the person said.
Former Tesco boss Lewis, who took the helm of the FTSE 100 company in January, has embarked on an aggressive restructuring at Diageo, overhauling his leadership team and implementing strict cost-cutting targets across departments and regions.
He will unveil his much-anticipated turnaround strategy at the company’s full-year earnings event on August 6th. Investors are eager to hear how he plans to boost sales growth during a dramatic downturn that has raised concerns that the sector may be in structural decline.
Another of the people with knowledge of Manzoni’s thinking said he was keen to appoint directors whose experience and clout in the drinks sector could act as a counterweight to Lewis if needed.
The person said Manzoni was concerned that the current board did not have enough industry knowledge “to steer him or stop him from going too far”, as he forged ahead with his rapid turnaround of the company’s organisation and strategy.
A third person said that Manzoni would still “rather Lewis went fast than slow”.
Lewis has indicated plans to cut prices of some brands, like Casamigos tequila, to win back consumers. The approach marks a departure from the group’s long-running “premiumisation” strategy, which encouraged consumers to trade up to increasingly pricier bottles.
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He also plans to invest heavily in the fast-growing “ready-to-drink” beverages category, in a bid to attract younger drinkers to Diageo’s brands.
Drinks industry analysts say Lewis’s biggest challenge will be to reposition the portfolio towards the mass market without undermining the perceived value to consumers.
[ Guinness owner to part ways with several top executives as part of revamp planOpens in new window ]
Lewis spent three decades in top roles at Unilever before becoming chief executive of Tesco, where he earned the nickname “drastic Dave” for his aggressive cost-cutting and asset sales.
He is Diageo’s third chief executive (CEO) in less than three years after the decade-long reign of Ivan Menezes. His predecessor Debra Crew departed last summer after the board failed to quash speculation that her chief financial officer (CFO), Nik Jhangiani, was angling for her job.
Jhangiani resumed his role as CFO in January after acting as interim CEO following Crew’s exit.
Former BP executive Manzoni got to know the alcohol industry as a non-executive director at South African brewer SABMiller from 2004 to 2015. He stepped down shortly after he was appointed chief executive of the civil service, following complaints by public health groups of conflicts of interest.
Diageo said its board has “relevant consumer industry experience”. It added that Manzoni is “supportive of the current board, but like any chair, he is always looking to strengthen the appropriate mix of backgrounds and skill sets in order to drive returns for shareholders”. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2026
