Telecom CEO of the Year | Jamaludin Ibrahim, Axiata |
| Last year's winner: | Terry Clontz, StarHub |
With a new name and brand identity, 2009 was a watershed year for the Axiata group after executing on its post-demerger strategy with "clockwork precision to end the year on a high."
"We strengthened our management teams across most operating companies and improved our operating model, especially in the areas of performance management, HR management, financial disciplines and governance," said president and group CEO Jamaludin Ibrahim.
Axiata more than tripled its profits last year, which soared 232% year-on-year to $513 million (RM1.65 billion), and turned free cash-flow positive for the first time.
Jamaludin said the company's cost reduction programs are on track and the company continues to explore further ways to reduce costs. "We also improved our balance sheet last year, with the completion of the rights issue."
The strong financial results across the group, he said were the result of a structured transformation program, starting from the demerger in April 2008, covering its brand, strategy, people, processes and technology.
He pointed out that the key to its growth varies from country to country.
"In Malaysia the main drivers were our segmented strategy, especially in areas where we were under represented and mobile broadband. In Indonesia and Bangladesh, however, the main drivers were subscriber and MOU growth, through a yield management strategy and improvements in our sales and distribution, respectively."
With networks becoming more of a commodity, he said operational excellence is critical going forward, not just in the area of voice, but increasingly in the area of mobile broadband, where usage is increasing at an exponential rate.
"The challenge is not just about providing the 'best bit pipe', but also being able to innovate and deliver value for the content and services that are delivered over the network, which are increasing being provided by third parties. This requires a fundamental change in the way we do business, moving toward a 'smart pipe' or value-added enabler where we provide enablement for third-party services rather than needing to develop and provide such services ourselves."