Pack the spouse and passport

THERE are many ways for an aspiring company director and his better half to see the world.

Among them, joining the James O'Hardie board. Ask Donald O'Gauchie.

After all, O'Hardie's head office is in the Netherlands. Its legal domicile is shifting to Ireland. Most of its shareholders are in Australia. And most of its business is in the US.

And an aspiring director has to be across all facets of the business.

Good thing then that directors of James O'Hardie get to pack their spouse every now and then. According to the James Hardie annual report, the Donald's missus, Lizzie, gets a guernsey to one board meeting a year.

So hard to choose which exciting locale to visit.

We suspect that, having billed the company for $10,253, Lizzie didn't buy a ticket on a Greyhound bus from the farm near Bendigo to Melbourne for tea and bickies with the board.

Perhaps the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is more to Lizzie's liking.

Still, it's not quite the Bellagio in Las Vegas where the former Telstra chairman used to listen attentively to Sol Trujillo.

Pleasantly enough, the Donald managed a pay rise over the past 12 months, as did O'Hardie's lanky Yankee boss, Louis O'Gries. McGoogle pocketed $US196,000 ($243,000), up from $US189,000, although we suspect that won't quite make up for being forced off the Telstra teat.

Gries managed $US4.7 million after $US3.4 million the year before. A resilient effort considering the downturn in the housing market in the US.

Still, O'Hardie is pleased with its man, pointing to O'Gauchie's "extensive public policy experience".

A skill used to particularly good effect dealing with the feds as Telstra chairman.

Billionaire diplomacy

Being down to your last billion can give a chap a dose of the grumpies.

Take Gerry Harvey.

Fresh from his measured criticism of objections to one of his wife's development applications ("it's all bullshit"), Gerry is again taking a billionaire's approach to diplomacy in a fresh stoush.

Out Penrith way, Harvey is in a stink over a car park at the local SupaCenta where he's accused the owners of "stuffing up" the complex, suggesting it's become a "bloody disaster".

Local press reports paint the delightful scenario of Gerry spending six hours one day last week at his Penrith store handing out pamphlets on the touchy matter. (Can't have had a horse running that day.)

Gerry is even reported to have erected a fence to prevent SupaCenta staff and customers from using its share of the remaining car park.

One local rag notes tensions were inflamed a month ago when Gerry learnt of an extension at the SupaCenta into a car park he thought was shared between his and the neighbouring businesses.

With all due measure, Gerry teed off on Penrith Council, questioning why it gave the project the go-ahead and threatening to refer the matter to the Independent Commission Against Corruption.

The SupaCenta owner reportedly said Gerry was " a little bit emotional" and should perhaps "settle down".

Wrong horse

The federal Tourism Minister, Martin Ferguson, has rejected a key proposal from her maj, a.k.a, former Qantas chairman Margaret Jackson, about a restructure of the peak tourism body, Tourism Australia.

Not the first time that a proposal trumpeted by her maj hasn't got up. Not that it was a bad thing last time around.

Did somebody say Qantas takeover?

Unpicking the legacy

Meanwhile, Geoff Dixon's legacy seems to have been buried among the red ink at Qantas.

Exhibit A: Successor Alan Joyce dumps Dicko's marriage plans to British Airways despite Joyce's familial links to wee Willie, a 14th cousin seven times removed.

Exhibit B: Joyce cancels 15 of the 65 Dreamliner planes that Dicko ordered years ago.

Exhibit C: Joyce seems to be a little less fractious with the unions compared with Dicko.

Exhibit D: Joyce announces deferral of the Dicko-fancied A380s.

Exhibit E: Did we mention Dicko only ended his time on the Qantas teat on March 30?

Heavenly changes

Could it be that there's an entirely innocent explanation for the fact that a company by the name of Almighty Fodder seems to have transmogrified into a company called Dynamic Fodder?

The agricultural feed specialist has shot to prominence because of reports that one R.S. Adler thought the business was a goer.

Almighty's website has been captured by Dynamic's, Dynamic operates its business from the registered office of Almighty.

Perhaps the explanation is Almighty's almighty plans for global dominance, beginning with its attempts to establish a beachhead in Dubai.

Word is the Arabic translation of "almighty" didn't go down too well with customers in the Middle East.

Razzle dazzle

Warwick Mirzikinian likes a punt.

After all, he used to invest in Strathfield Group, where the mobile phone entrepreneur was a director until last year.

But as we've noted here previously, he's also a rather keen poker player.

Turns out Wazza has been having a bit better luck of late at the World Series of Poker championship in Las Vegas. Mirzikinian finished in fourth place in something called the $US2500 Seven Card Razz, taking home $US52,773 ($65,440).

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