BP Removes Chairman Albert Manifold Amid Bullying Allegations BP’s abrupt removal of chairman Albert Manifold has exposed deep tensions inside the oil major’s boardroom over leadership style, workplace culture and corporate governance.

Early concerns and internal clashes

In the months leading up to his ousting, several large shareholders complained that Manifold was difficult to access, with one report noting that “several BP shareholders found [the] ousted chair ‘challenging’,” including when trying to arrange meetings with him. Internally, his “hands-on approach” was increasingly viewed as aggressive by colleagues, feeding allegations of bullying that would later trigger his departure.

Tensions escalated when Manifold “clashed with [the] company secretary before removal,” an altercation that was serious enough that company secretary Ben Mathews subsequently took time off work. Around the same period, questions were also raised over Manifold’s use of personal devices for board business, which became part of a broader probe into his conduct and governance practices.

The removal and widening fallout

On May 26, BP’s board moved to remove Manifold after “claims of bullying,” formally ending his short tenure as chair and confirming that his behaviour had become untenable within the UK oil major. The decision intensified scrutiny of the broader culture in BP’s upper ranks and “piled pressure on CEO Meg O’Neill,” who now faces questions about how the situation was allowed to escalate.

Manifold’s defence and investor reaction

Manifold has pushed back strongly, publicly “hitting out at ‘lies’ over his conduct” and insisting that he merely “pushed hard” for performance at the FTSE-listed group. He argues that criticisms of his behaviour are exaggerated and that his commitment to the company’s success has been mischaracterised.

Investors, meanwhile, are weighing these competing narratives. While some acknowledge his focus on results, others cite access problems and the boardroom upheaval as evidence that BP needs a reset in both governance and tone at the top.

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