New Group CEO for Singtel

Singtel – According to a recent press release by Singtel, Group CEO, Ms Chua Sock Koong will retire on 1 January 2021. The Singtel Board has appointed Mr Yuen Kuan Moon to succeed her as the Group’s Chief Executive Officer.

Mr Yuen is a Singtel veteran who joined the Group in 1993. He currently is the head of Singtel’s Singapore Consumer Business and the Chief Digital Officer. He has risen through the ranks of the company, with leadership positions in marketing, business development and sales. For a period of time, he led Telkomsel in Indonesia. Singtel appointed him as CEO, Consumer Singapore in 2012. Singtel announced his appointment as GCEO-designate and will assume the role of Group CEO upon Ms Chua’s retirement. His appointment comes after Singtel conducted a global search that considered both internal and external candidates for the job. Ms Chua will stay on as Senior Advisor to the Chairman to assist with the transition.

Chairman of Singtel acknowledges Current CEO’s contributions

Mr Lee Theng Kiat, Chairman of Singtel, said, “On behalf of the Board, I want to acknowledge Sock Koong’s demonstrated leadership and outstanding contributions to Singtel.”

“Sock Koong is one of Singapore’s most successful CEOs. She’s played a key role in making Singtel the operationally and financially strong company it is today. She joined when Singtel was still a statutory board. She led the company through its corporatisation, market listing, market deregulation in Singapore and regionalisation. Under her leadership, Singtel added Optus in Australia to its portfolio. She has built an unrivalled footprint across Asia. Currently, Singtel has stakes in all the lead telecom players in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand.

Led Digital Transformation

In 2012, Sock Koong led the Group on its digital transformation. The transformation included the digitalisation of its core telecom business as well as the growth of new digital businesses. This has seen the building out of its global cybersecurity business which continues to scale. She has also developed a strong enterprise business with a thriving ICT arm in NCS. In recent months, Sock Koong led the team on its 5G investment plans. These plans not only promises 5G coverage for Singapore. It also repositions Singtel for growth in the converging world of telecoms and tech.”

“Sock Koong’s belief in people has seen her nurture a diverse and inclusive workforce. She has championed the growth of women in senior executive roles and mature workers. Her strength in developing talent has created an excellent management bench. These talents have allowed the Board to choose an internal candidate for succession. She leaves the Group well-primed for growth in its next phase. We are fortunate she will stay on as Senior Advisor to ensure a smooth leadership transition.”   

Singtel’s Transition

Ms Chua said, “It has been an immense privilege to be involved in Singtel’s growth and transformation. It has been an amazing 31 years, 13 of those as GCEO.”

“I’m proud that we have a unique regional presence that is of scale. While competition is escalating across the region, our positive long-term view of our regional assets and diversification hasn’t changed. We expect exponential growth in smartphone adoption. We see the development of their enterprise business to drive positive growth for our associates. I’m also pleased with the market leadership we continue to maintain in Singapore. As well as with our partners in the region. I’m happy with the progress we’ve made with our enterprise business. Our ICT arm NCS looks to expand regionally and our cyber business continues to scale globally.”

“I’ve seen a few global crises on my watch. The dot.com bust, the Global Financial Crisis, the India competition challenges – and I’m proud of how we’ve weathered those storms and businesses challenges. I’ve always said that Singtel’s strength lies in the resilience of our people. I’m confident this will see us through the current COVID crisis as well.”  

New CEO is a Singtel Veteran

“With Singtel well-positioned for the future, it is a good time for me to retire. I’m glad to be passing the baton to Moon. His unflagging commitment to managing and growing the Consumer business has earned him the respect of his peers and colleagues. As part of the management team, he gained exposure to all areas of the business. Firstly, He has been heavily contributing in key operational decisions. Secondly, Moon has also contributed extensively to the growth of our Telkomsel associate. Thirdly, he spent five years in senior management roles there. Moon drove product development and commerce. He has served on its Board of Commissioners since 2009. His proven leadership capabilities and ability to adapt and compete in a fast-changing technology and business landscape will serve Singtel well in its next phase of growth.”       

Chairman pleased with New CEO

Commenting on Mr Yuen’s appointment, Mr Lee said, “We are pleased to have a leader of Moon’s calibre take on the mantle of Group CEO in January. His has years of honed experience in the company’s core telecom business. His recent focus on transforming the Group digitally, well place him to lead Singtel forward in an era of disruption. My fellow directors and I look forward to working with him to grow and develop the Group’s businesses.”

Commenting on his appointment, Mr Yuen said, “Sock Koong has set an inspiringly high bar. I will do my utmost to build on the success of Singtel. I’m honoured to be given the opportunity to lead Singtel at this exciting juncture. 5G is changing the game not just for the telecoms sector but enterprises across industries. I look forward to working even more extensively with my fellow colleagues. We wish to harness these changes for the benefit of our retail, enterprise and government customers as well as our international business partners.”

Mr Yuen holds a First Class Honours degree in Engineering from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Science in Management from Stanford University.

More news of the press release can be found here.

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