Harvard beckons for Fuller's' Simon Emeny

Simon Emeny, group managing director-designate at Fuller, Smith & Turner, said he hopes to return from a two-month-long sabbatical at the Harvard Business School brimming with fresh ideas for the business.

"After 14 years in the group this is a really exciting opportunity for me," Emeny said. "My time at Harvard will give me the chance to clear my head and get some fresh ideas. It will also be a challenge for my team while I'm away."

Emeny, who joined the London brewer and pub operator as head of operations for its then-smaller managed house estate in 1996, is to take the same fast-track management course that his boss, Michael Turner, undertook prior to becoming chief executive at the brewer in 2002.

In his new role Emeny will have operational charge of both Fuller's pub and brewing divisions. Brewing managing director John Roberts will report directly to him from November, when he takes up the top job.

"I'm very excited at the prospect of working with John in this role. Fuller's is in excellent shape and there won't be any radical changes to the way we do things," said Emeny.

"There will be some differences, but the long-term strategy of challenging ourselves to continue to deliver innovative offers both in our pubs and across our beer range will remain in place without risking shareholder value," he added.

Speaking of Emeny's promotion Turner said he had a "wealth of experience in the beer and pub industry which will help him drive the business forward whilst preserving our core values".

Emeny's move to group managing director came as Fuller's announced like-for-like sales in its managed pubs for the 16 weeks to July 17, 2010, up 4.1 per cent.

Tenanted like-for-like profits were up one per cent, while own-brewed beer volumes declined two per cent.