Andrew Cavanagh

When news came out about the Rangers takeover there were two names linked to the move. First up was Paraag Marathe, who was something of a known quantity. His roles with the San Francisco 49ers and Leeds United were well established and a matter of public record. We were even able to get well known American journalist, Matt Maiocco, onto the podcast to tell all about him, which you can find here (hyperlink to episode: https://youtube.com/live/U1c2YiNMxyg)

For as much as Marathe was a known entity, the second name in the frame wasn’t so well known. Andrew Cavanagh, the American health insurance executive, would have been a name few Ibrox fans could pick out, until the takeover news. So the big question to most fans was simply who is he and what has he done to date, to suggest he can take on the job of running a major football club?

He started in commercial banking, before making the switch to insurance. Cavenagh has a degree in economics and his business history is mostly in the insurance industry, where he has founded three companies. His current company has been going for 14 years and currently provides insurance in the US to over one million customers.

He is acknowledged as a leader in transformation within his industry, catching on to “benefit captives” early on. He has made huge use of this area, establishing ParetoHealth as a market leader and has transformed employee benefits use in the US.

At 68, Cavenagh isn’t a young man but he has fully immersed himself in sport for a number of years and even played as a goalkeeper in his youth. He is self-made after his previously mentioned successes and alongside the role of Chairman, he has invested his own money in this venture. He absolutely has skin in the game, ensuring that it’s firmly in his interests for the club to be successful.

When he first signed on he confirmed he would operate as Chairman and Marathe as vice Chairman, however Patrick Stewart would be responsible for the day to day running of the club. Instead, Cavenaghs role would be to set the objectives and provide the over arching strategy, with others left to implement it.

This shows that, whilst he is willing to get involved where needed, he is also capable to taking a step back and trusting his staff to get the job done. Whilst some may have questions over Stewart, we all likely know from our own experience the trouble micromanaging can cause so this is welcome, so long as he is trusting the right people. In the case of Stewart, only time will tell if his decision is right.

Perhaps the most important part of Cavenaghs back story is his reputation as an innovator. Throughout his different business, he has shown adaptability to position his company in the right place for future growth, such as the aforementioned “benefit captives” change he bought in. This has now reshaped how many insurance providers offer their product and for a club that has spent years entrenched in the same old tired thinking, would be extremely welcome.

Many fans will be seeing the current start to the season and will be calling for change. Well Cavenagh has shown he is more than happy to make major changes, however it will be done on his terms. He will have to see there is a benefit to swapping out managers and that it’s not just change for change sakes. If he sees this, then his business history suggests he will absolutely act but if not, then he has also shown an ability to ignore “noise” and get on with what’s needed.

Whilst us football fans crave instant success the business world doesn’t really work like that. Look at the time to complete the takeover as a good example of this. It took roughly nine months to complete, so although the results aren’t good enough on pitch, this is still incredibly early into his tenure in a business sense. Everything about his record suggests he should be good for us, we just need to wait and see if he can make that translate onto the pitch and earn results.

I think if the fans had been offered an identikit prior to the takeover, an innovator with the strength of his convictions, a good history in business and a record of success would have been right up there with the qualities desired. It will be an interesting few years to see how our great club progresses.