Richard Leigh Clifford (born 1948) is an Australian businessman and corporate executive who served as

Chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

Qantas Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded ...

from 2007 to 2018.Qantas Chairman
/ref> Clifford was appointed Chairman at the company's November 2007 Annual General Meeting, succeeding

Margaret Jackson Margaret Jackson, AC (born 17 March 1953) is an Australian corporate executive. Jackson was born in Warragul, Victoria, and studied at Warragul High School. She graduated with a Bachelor of Economics degree from Monash University and a Master o ...

. He is also Chairman of

Bechtel Bechtel Corporation () is an American engineering, procurement, construction, and project management company founded in San Francisco, California, and headquartered in Reston, Virginia. , the ''Engineering News-Record'' ranked Bechtel as the sec ...

Australia.

Early life and education

Clifford was educated at the

Anglican Church Grammar School The Anglican Church Grammar School (ACGS), formerly the Church of England Grammar School and commonly referred to as Churchie, is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school for boys, located in East Brisbane, an inner suburb of Brisbane, ...

and the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

, where he graduated with Bachelor of Engineering (Mining) and Master of Engineering Science degrees.

Career

His career with the

Rio Tinto Group Rio Tinto Group is an Anglo-Australian Multinational corporation, multinational company that is the world's second-largest metals and mining corporation (behind BHP). The company was founded in 1873 when of a group of investors purchased a mine ...

, starting as a mining engineer and retiring as chief executive, spanned 37 years and included time both in Australia and overseas. Clifford was the

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of the Rio Tinto Group from April 2000 to April 2007. He succeeded

Peter Costello Peter Howard Costello (born 14 August 1957) is an Australian businessman, lawyer and former politician who served as the treasurer of Australia in government of John Howard from 1996 to 2007. He is the longest-serving treasurer in Australia' ...

as the number-one ticketholder for the

Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers, is a professional Australian rules football club. The club plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCracken family in their A ...

in March 2008. However he was, in turn, replaced by

Lindsay Tanner Lindsay James Tanner (born 24 April 1956) is a former Australian politician. A member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), he represented the seat of Melbourne in the House of Representatives from 1993 to 2010 and served as Minister for Finance ...

in September 2009. Clifford also served as chairman of the

Murdoch Childrens Research Institute The Murdoch Children's Research Institute (MCRI) is an Australian paediatric medical research institute located in Melbourne, Victoria, affiliated with the Royal Children's Hospital and the University of Melbourne. The institute has six researc ...

. On 28 June 2018, Clifford announced his intention to resign as Chairman of

. Former

Wesfarmers Wesfarmers Limited is an Australian conglomerate, headquartered in Perth, Western Australia. It has interests predominantly in Australia and New Zealand, operating in retail, chemical, fertiliser, industrial and safety products. With revenue o ...

CEO

Richard Goyder Richard James Barr Goyder AO (born 1960) is an Australian businessman and sporting administrator who is the current chairman of the AFL Commission, the governing body of Australian Rules Football. He was previously CEO and managing director of ...

replaced Clifford as Chairman in October 2018.

Honours

Clifford was appointed

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the

2008 Australia Day Honours The 2008 Australia Day Honours are appointments to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 2008 by the Governor General of Australia, Michael Jeffrey The Australia ...

for "service to business through executive roles in the mining industry, to the promotion of international trade and the development of export markets, and to the arts". In June 2022, in the 2022 Queen's Birthday Honours, Clifford was promoted to Companion of the Order of Australia for "eminent service to business in the aviation, arts and education sectors, to the community through charitable support and scholarships, and for philanthropic contributions". Clifford was awarded a Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) by the University of Melbourne in February 2022.

Personal life

Clifford currently resides in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia. He is married and has two daughters.

References

1948 births Australian corporate directors Australian mining engineers Businesspeople from Melbourne Companions of the Order of Australia Living people People educated at Anglican Church Grammar School Qantas people University of Melbourne alumni {{australia-business-bio-stub