Telstra has beefed up its top executive team, amid major in-market consolidation and preparation for the roll-out of the NBN telecoms public-private partnership.
Australian telco Telstra (ASX:TLS) has promoted Cynthia Whelan to group executive of international and new business, as part of its biggest management shake-up in years.
Whelan was previously group managing director of strategic finance and is now thought to be on the shortlist as an eventual replacement for Andy Penn, who became CEO earlier this year.
Also newly added to that list are Karsten Wildberger, previously group MD of consumer, who is now group executive of retail, and Joe Pollard, who was promoted from group MD for media and marketing to chief marketing officer and group executive for media.
All three will report directly to Penn, who said: “Karsten, Cynthia and Joe are outstanding executives who have already made significant contributions to our growth ambitions and will take even larger roles in this new structure.”
Penn, who took the top job in May, is said to have been picked over three other internal candidates: COO Kate McKenzie, global enterprise and services group executive Brendon Riley, and Gordon Ballantyne, who is group executive for retail but recently announced he would leave in December after more than five years with the group.
Telstra’s three new appointments will be tasked with driving its growth strategy amid sweeping changes as operators consolidate ahead of the roll-out of NBN, a public-private partnership deploying a range of communications technologies to all its premises.
The company said the new positions will also elevate its media and marketing activities, aligning them across the business.
Whelan joined Telstra in 2013 from Barclays, where she had been CEO for Australia and New Zealand since 2010. Her new responsibilities include driving growth initiatives in new markets such as health and smart home solutions.
Wildberger, who also joined in 2013, is a former partner and MD with The Boston Consulting Group, where he advised on global telecoms, technology, industrial goods and utilities.
Pollard started in November 2014 as GMD for media and marketing, after an extensive global marketing career that included a decade at Nike.