Episode Details

ESG Stuff

BP removes chairman Albert Manifold over governance issues 9

The board said the decision was unanimous. In a statement, Amanda Blanc, BP's senior independent director, described the board as having been caught off guard by what it found: "The board has been surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable and has taken decisive action."

The company did not elaborate on the specific nature of the concerns.

Ian Tyler has been named interim chair, BP said, with the board set to begin a formal process to identify a permanent successor: "The Board and leadership team have deep conviction in the strategic direction we have laid out, and the company is moving at pace to deliver it."

Manifold took up the chairmanship just last October. At last month's annual general meeting, just 81.8% of shareholders backed his election

Among the most consequential decisions of Manifold's short tenure: pushing out former CEO Murray Auchincloss and overseeing the selection of Meg O'Neill to succeed him — a hire that marked the first time BP had recruited an external CEO and the first time a woman had led one of the oil industry's largest players.

Tulsi Gabbard Exit Marks Fourth Woman to Leave Trump Cabinet 0

Apology Tour

Bank boss sorry after describing workers as 'lower value human capital' 7

Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters triggered a massive PR firestorm by describing the bank’s plan to replace back-office staff with automation as replacing "lower-value human capital" with financial investment

Standard Chartered is cutting roughly 7,800 jobs—representing about 15% of its global back-office corporate support roles—over the next four years to make room for AI

After internal anger and blistering public criticism, Winters posted a formal apology for his "choice of words." However, he initially fueled the fire by attaching the full interview transcript to justify his broader context, drawing further criticism for being defensive

In his first attempt to quiet the storm, Winters leaned heavily into the corporate strategy rather than apologizing for the specific phrasing: "I said that lower-value roles are more vulnerable to automation, and that we have a responsibility to help colleagues move into higher-value roles. That is what a responsible employer should do. We will continue to speak honestly about the impact of