In a shakeup of the Board of Royal Mail, the CEO of Post and Parcels UK Sue Whalley is standing down with immediate effect. She had worked at the postal operator for 12 years.

A statement from Royal Mail says that it is revising its executive structure – the commercial responsibilities of Post and Parcels UK is to be handled by the new Group CEO Rico Back. Keith Williams, Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee, is also being appointed Deputy Chairman with immediate effect.

Les Owen, Chairman, commented: “We are very pleased that Keith Williams has agreed to increase his commitment to Royal Mail. Keith is a seasoned business leader, with a range of experience in regulated, customer-focused industries that we can leverage at Royal Mail.

“The Board would like to thank Sue Whalley for the significant contribution she has made to Royal Mail across a whole range of issues over the last twelve years. She has a strong track record of driving operational and cultural change, supporting letters, and implementing digital transformations to support the growth of the parcels business. We wish her well in the future.”

Rico Back, Group Chief Executive Officer, said: “Since Keith Williams joined us in January 2018, his broad experience has been very helpful indeed. I am delighted that we will be working even more closely with him in the future.

“Sue Whalley has worked tirelessly for the company and I have worked closely with her for a number of years. My executive colleagues and I very much appreciate the work that she has done for Royal Mail and the positive change she has brought to many areas in the business. Sue has all our best wishes for the future.”

Sue Whalley said: “Following all we have done to move the organisation forward in recent years and to implement change to position Royal Mail as a leader in e-commerce, now is the time to move on. I would like to thank the many colleagues – frontline and management – who have helped me in my time at Royal Mail.”