Rangers remain on the hunt for a new Chief Executive as reports linking the club to St Mirren vice-chairman Jim Gillespie cool.
Reports earlier in the summer had suggested that Rangers were set to appoint Gillespie, who is a bluenose Paisley director and CEO of local Renfrewshire charity the Kibble.
The proposed appointment was met with some apprehension from within the Rangers support, who’d hoped that a more robust name with greater experience would be appointed.
At this time it is not known if the scrutiny of the Ibrox support has played a major role in the situation but it is now believed Jim Gillespie is no longer a frontrunner for the position.
Jim Gillespie ‘turns down’ Rangers CEO gig
According to the Daily Mail, Jim Gillespie is set to ‘drop out’ of the race to become the new Rangers CEO.
The report claims discussions had reached an ‘advanced stage’ with Gillespie expected to be appointed all the way up until last week.
Whilst the report doesn’t go into detail as to why the deal for the award-winning CEO collapsed, Rangers are now believed to be assessing new candidates.
According to the Scottish Sun, the deal collapsed on Gillespie’s end, with the St Mirren boss opting to remain in Paisley instead of making the switch to Ibrox.
They claim that Gillespie informed John Bennett only this week that he would not be taking the job with the tabloid suggesting it’s ‘unclear’ as to why the deal collapsed.
The Ibrox side have had a disastrous summer at the top of the club with former CEO James Bisgrove leaving for Saudi Pro League side Al-Qadsiah.
The ex-Ibrox marketing guru had been promoted to the position last summer when current chairman John Bennett came into his role.
Bisgrove managed to jump ship before his role in the club’s delayed renovation of the Copland Stand came into focus, with the Gers forced to play their opening home matches of the 24/25 season at Hampden.
The situation with the renovation of Ibrox has taken precedence in the wake of Rangers’ CEO search, with chairman Bennett admitting as much in an interview at the end of July.
“I wouldn’t say that absolutely everything was parked when I got this call in June that we had this materials delay,” Bennett told RangersTV.
“I wouldn’t say everything was parked but it was kind of almost like that, the first priority was dealing with that.
“So everything else was kind of slowed down but that’s been my other objective, is to get that delivered and I hope to have some news pretty soon about our CEO.”
Rangers Board under pressure to appoint right man
The Rangers Board are under major pressure to get this next CEO appointment right.
Former Ibrox managing director Stewart Robertson was part of the team that managed to deliver 55 but the club’s sharp decline in the wake of the title victory eventually cost him his job.
Rangers fans led protests against the likes of Robertson and sporting director Ross Wilson, who left the club as Douglas Park stepped down as chairman.
James Bisgrove – who’d revamped Rangers’ commercial department – then stepped into the top job in what was viewed as an ambitious and inventive appointment.
However there were issues under Bisgrove’s stewardship and it’s unsurprising the ex-UEFA suit took the opportunity to jump ship to the Middle East.
Given the lack of leadership at Rangers from the boardroom to the dressing room, the appointment of the CEO is a potentially crucial moment in the club’s trajectory.
Rangers have the opportunity to stump up for an individual with big football experience who can fight the club’s cause at home & abroad and most importantly, deliver consistent success.
Fans want someone with a track record of winning who can navigate the parochial world of Scottish football and – with all due respect – Jim Gillespie had failed to inspire fans in this regard.
Former Ibrox director Chris Graham had released a timely thread on social media platform X regarding Rangers’ hunt for a new CEO.
This was before the news surrounding Gillespie had broken.
In it, Graham lambasted a lack of ambition & leadership at Rangers and suggested the club’s hierarchy had ‘cheaped out’ on the appointment.
“There is no proper recruitment process in the world – no set of metrics, required traits or experience – that throws Gillespie up as a serious, potential candidate for the Rangers job – never mind the successful candidate. So why would he get it?” Graham said.
“Well for starters he should be relatively cheap. This board will waste money on almost anything, from disastrously run infrastructure projects, to a merry-go-round of manager payoffs and woeful player recruitment. But what they apparently won’t do is invest in a proper CEO.”
