The Supercars squad tweaked its senior staff structure ahead of the season-ending Adelaide 500 with Bruce Stewart named as CEO, while Carl Faux moved into the team principal role previous held by Stewart.
Splitting the CEO and team principal roles is becoming more prevalent in Supercars, with Dick Johnson Racing moving to that structure this time last year, while Tickford is looking to do the same as it recruits its Tim Edwards replacement.
For WAU, however, it was McLaren that inspired the restructure, with Stewart to play a role similar to McLaren CEO (and WAU co-owner) Zak Brown, while Faux will be in the Andrea Stella role.
In explaining the decision on the KTM Summer Grill, Walkinshaw also dropped a hint that a return to GT3 racing could be on the cards for WAU.
“We’re expanding our motorsport operations outside of Supercars,” said Walkinshaw.
“There is an element for having one senior leader that is focussed 100 per cent on the two cars that are purely racing in Supercars, and then having Bruce as the CEO overarching above all of that, who will work on Walkinshaw Racing, which is still a business that we’re trying to rekindle.
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“So our engine program, parts program, working in other categories, Toyota 86 and Super2, working in GT3 and so on.
“There’s value in having someone who can focus on the bigger picture, as opposed to just constantly being focused on the day-to-day of the Supercars team.
“It’s the same model you have at McLaren, with Zak Brown as the CEO of the group who manages the commercial side of things and the broader racing business, and then his team principal beneath him. And that seems to work very, very well.
“If you’re doing more than just being a Supercars team there is value in the structure. Carl will report to Bruce, and Bruce reports to myself, Michael [Andretti] and Zak. So ultimately that structure stays the same, it just means that there’s a wider scope for Bruce in the wider motorsport side of the business, allowing Carl to focus on driving the main game cars as hard as possible, giving them the focus they deserve to go and win championships.
“They are both really, really happy about it.”
According to Walkinshaw, an additional benefit is showcasing opportunities for promotion within the business to staff.
“It gives the opportunity for people within our team to step up,” he said.
“You’ve got to have a conveyor belt, otherwise you lose good people. Having the ability to keep promoting those people into those roles when they deserve it is important. It’s a key stepping stone.
“We want people to come into our team in Super2 and over a period of time they stay in the team, the IP remains within these four walls, and we give them the ability to further their careers as they improve and deliver.”
For more from Ryan Walkinshaw, watch the full episode of the KTM Summer Grill.
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