Australia’s telecommunications provider Telstra have announced the appointment of executive Michael Ackland in the position of chief financial officer, as Vicki Brady moves on to the CEO’s role.
Ackland is currently in the position of executive for consumers and small businesses and was thought of as one of the main favourites to take over current CEO Andy Penn’s position, who will retiring, alongside Brendon Riley, the CEO of Telstra’s sister InfraCo.
However, the position ended up going to current CFO Vicki Brady, with Ackland replacing her from the beginning of September. Ackland has also worked at GE and Boston Consulting and became a member of Telstra’s main team in 2016.
Andy Penn pointed out that Ackland was the driving force behind a series of key changes which helped the company bring down its plans from 1,800 all the way to an impressive 20.
“Michael’s appointment to the CFO role also reinforces the strength of our internal talent and I look forward to continuing to work closely with him as we close out T22,” said Mr Penn.
Vicki Brady expressed her relief that someone from within the company was chosen to replace her: “I was thrilled that we were able to appoint an internal candidate to the role -Michael has exceptional credentials and is well placed to continue to drive Telstra’s financial outlook and success,“ she said via a press release that was made public on Monday.
These changes will come into effect at a crucial time for the telecommunications provider, as it attempts to fend off great competition from fellow companies Optus and TPG, while it implements its new T25 ‘strategy for growth’, which will replace the T22 strategy that saw them make a series of cutbacks in an attempt to cope with the heavy financial hit caused by the pandemic.
