The Welsh Rugby Union’s global search for a new Chair has culminated in the appointment of successful Welsh businessman, Lyndon Faulkner.
The WRU searched near and far, scouring its international diaspora as well as looking close to home, in search of someone with the right credentials to lead the WRU board at a pivotal time for the game in Wales.
Now, in a major coup, it has found a chair in Faulkner to court the respect of both its community and professional game and the wider business world around it.
Immensely proud of his Welsh roots, he says he has used his athletic determination and team leadership, forged as a young player in the amateur era on rugby pitches throughout Wales, to drive success in the business world during his distinguished career.
“I know personally how important Welsh rugby is in many different ways to the nation,” said Faulkner, who will be in place at the helm of the WRU by the time of its next Annual General Meeting on Sunday 22 November.
“So, it is a huge privilege for me to return to Welsh rugby as chair of the WRU and give something back to a sport which has helped define me and means so much to me, my family, friends and the people of Wales.
“Empowered by the high standards and scrutiny of the interview process that recruited me and I look forward to meeting member clubs at our AGM in November and listening and learning from all of the major stakeholders across both the community and professional game in the coming weeks.
“This is a pivotal time for the game and I will start by listening to those around me and of course remaining open to credible challenge.”
Faulkner’s mandate as the new independent chair of the Welsh Rugby Union, is to continue to lead the Board in setting the strategic direction for the game in Wales and to hold its executive team and staff to account for its implementation.
He will dedicate significant time to the role on a weekly basis in a professional capacity and will also represent the WRU in an ambassadorial capacity at the highest level around the global game.
WRU vice-chair John Manders said: “We are delighted to welcome Lyndon to lead the WRU Board.
“To be able to attract someone with such obvious high calibre business credentials, who is also steeped in Welsh rugby heritage, is a major coup for us and testament to the strength of the very proactive recruitment process we have been engaged in.”
Fellow board member and WRU senior independent director Alison Thorne said: “Lyndon’s leadership experience, entrepreneurship and achievements in business are hugely impressive and this is a welcome appointment for Welsh rugby.
“He brings a fresh perspective and added value to both our rugby and business thinking and I know that he will be a huge asset to the game.”
Faulkner was born near Newport and educated at Bassaleg Comprehensive School. He played rugby at the school, before joining Newport Youth and playing representative rugby winning the Welsh Youth Cup.
At club level he played for Newport RFC before joining Pontypool RFC during what was the team’s glory era. In his time at the club, Pontypool won the Welsh Cup final and were Welsh league winners three years in a row. As well as earning numerous county caps he also played in Anglo Welsh matches and against the touring Australian national team.
After a serious knee injury cut his athletic career short, he transitioned successfully into a corporate career. Throughout his time in business, Faulkner has been recognised in key senior executive roles and driven billions in revenue to industry-shaping, Fortune 100 companies that include Technicolor®/Nimbus CD International and Microsoft ® Corporation.
He played an integral role in the launches of revolutionary technologies like the Compact Disc (CD) and Digital Video Disc (DVD) in the music, computer and movie industries.
Faulkner led an IPO of then Welsh Company Nimbus CD International on the US-NASDAQ stock market that fuelled numerous corporate acquisitions resulting in the building of a high-tech, world-class operation spanning the globe.
In the process Faulkner built one of the world’s largest and most profitable companies in the digital media and home entertainment arena at Technicolor.
He continued to become a driving force behind the launches of such illustrious products such as Microsoft’s XBOX®, Windows XP and Microsoft Office 2000.
Faulkner joined Pelican Products Inc in 2006, during his time there the company grew significantly through acquisitions and international expansion, and now operates in 26 countries, with seven manufacturing facilities around the globe.
In July of 2017, Peli Biothermal was awarded the Queen’s Award for Innovation in a ceremony at their United Kingdom location and again, in 2018, Pelican was awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise & International Trade for its work in the UK.
He retired from Pelican in 2021 when it was sold to the private equity giant Platinum Capital.
Faulkner has been honoured with numerous international business awards, winning the E & Y entrepreneur award twice with two different businesses and has been profiled in high profile business publications including Forbes, Fortune and the New York Times.
He also featured in the US TV series ‘The Mentor’ and has lectured at the Stanford University Business School and at the University of Virginia’s Darden Business School.
WRU CEO Abi Tierney added: “I am very much looking forward to Lyndon’s arrival at the WRU. Establishing a working relationship with the right level of challenge and support between CEO and Chair in any organisation is a vital part of ensuring positive progress and maintaining a healthy and progressive culture.
“I know Lyndon and I are ready to form a formidable team working to advance Welsh rugby at all levels.”