Under-fire Pearson chief John Fallon steps aside after seven 'tough' years at the helm

THE departing boss of struggling education giant Pearson today signed off with a £530 million deal as he revealed he will stand down next year after seven years in the role.

John Fallon’s departure comes just weeks after Pearson issued a profit warning following weak textbook sales in the US as the business continues to battle to move online.

The publisher said Fallon will only depart once a successor has been appointed in order to ensure an orderly transition and the firm has hired head hunter Russell Reynolds to oversee the process.

Fallon said Pearson was now a “more efficient company” and at a stage where it was “time to transition to a new leader, who can bring a fresh perspective”.

Sidney Taurel, chairman, said Fallon had “worked tirelessly leading Pearson through a period of significant change and led its transformation from a media conglomerate to a single-focused learning company”.

Pearson said his pay-off had not yet been decided. Last year’s annual report shows his total remuneration package was £3.14 million in 2018.

Fallon was appointed to the top job in 2013 and had the unenviable task of replacing former boss Dame Marjorie Scardino, popular in the City.

Fallon started his career as a researcher for Labour politician John Prescott in 1988 and became director of communications of Pearson in 1997.

He has streamlined the business and in 2015 sold the Financial Times to Nikkei. In the same year the company offloaded its stake in the Economist. He has overseen six profit warnings.

Fallon was accused of selling the “family silver” when he shed the FT, Roddy Davidson, analyst at Shore Capital, believes he was not aggressive enough in the early stages in moving the business online. Davidson said: “He could have gone faster. In the early stages he did not move quickly enough and he held onto the dividend for too long.”