Today, the new AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan was announced.

After 11 seasons with Andrew Demetriou at the helm, a new CEO will be keen to shake things up.

Here is my advice for the Gillion, in order of priority.

Refurbish office

Nothing could be more important. You need to announce yourself and nothing says ‘I’ve arrived’ than kicking some executives out of their offices to knock down the walls and triple the size of yours.

Get some nice modern art and a mini Zen garden so people think you’re deep.

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This is both an expensive and pointless exercise but an essential one.

You need to break with the past and make it appear like change is occurring.

Don’t do anything drastic, just some stylistic changes. Fly a few kites in the media about a new tagline to provide cover for what you’re actually doing. Don’t do a new tagline.

Order Business Cards

This is really why people go for big jobs. There is no greater feeling than when that box arrives with your new title and you pretend you don’t care.

Having a business card that says ‘AFL Chief Executive Officer’ is like having a card that says ‘God’ in Melbourne.

Or ‘The Devil’.

Get a new car

You’re going to be making big money. Not ‘I’m CEO of a bank’ money but enough to get something nice.

Remember, you’re going to be filmed driving out of AFL house everytime there’s a scandal, so most weeks.

Whatever you do, don’t get a car from your sponsor. You’re CEO of the AFL, not Badminton Australia.

Do some media in casual clothes

Unlike real life, you only get one honeymoon in public life. Early on is the time to do some profile pieces with you and the family. You want the photos and story to make you seem like someone who cares about your family and other people.

While this is a stretch, remember you have PR people to help you with this.

Embed a New Culture

Every CEO needs to do this.

It changes nothing but it gives you the opportunity to talk about nebulous concepts you'll never define, like ‘accountability’, ‘transparency’ and ‘Innovation.’

The more someone talks about these things, the less they do them but it’s great copy for internal magazines and gives HR something to do.

Get Rid of One Thing

Early on, you want to get rid of one thing the fans hate. It will make you appear like you’re listening.

I’d suggest variable ticketing. It’s deeply unpopular and you can always bring it back under another guise in a year or so.

Other suggestions are, get rid of Standard Definition coverage, the interchange cap or GWS.

Don’t do these all at once. Save a few for when you start becoming unpopular.

That means July.