African mobile operator MTN has named Vodafone executive Rob Shuter as its new CEO. Currently CEO at Vodafone Netherlands, Shuter is expected to return to his native South Africa to take up the position at MTN as soon as possible and no later than 01 July 2017, MTN said.
Shuter has served as Vodafone NL CEO since 2012 and last year was named to the Vodafone Group Executive Committee with responsibility for Vodafone's smaller European markets. He's also worked previously for Vodacom Group, Standard Bank and Nedbank. Vodafone NL confirmed his departure and said it will name a replacement later.
MTN said this brings an end to the review of its governance and management structure, started after it received a multi-billion-dollar regulatory fine in Nigeria last year, which led to the departure of its previous CEO Phuthuma Nhleko. Nhleko has stayed on in the interim as Executive Chairman to help MTN weather the Nigerian crisis, and he will revert to non-executive chairman once Shuter takes up the CEO job. Until then, MTN Group CFO Brett Goschen and the new VP M&A and Strategy will assume additional responsibilities, under the guidance of the Executive Chairman.
The new VP M&A and Strategy will start 1 October. The unnamed appointee has a "wealth of banking experience" and will assist in the formulation of a revised strategy for growing MTN's revenues, focusing particularly on convergence between mobile telephony and financial services, the company said. His name will be announced by the end of June. In addition, Godfrey Motsa has been appointed to oversee MTN's operations in south and east Africa (excluding South Africa) from 1 July. Motsa joins from Vodacom where he was Chief Officer for Consumer Business. He was previously CEO of Vodacom DRC Congo and Vodacom Lesotho.
At MTN Group, the company also named the new non-executive directors Paul Hanratty, Stan Miller and Nkululeko (Nkunku) Sowazi, effective 01 August. Hanratty is a veteran of Old Mutual, which he joined in 1984. Miller, who currently works with Len Blavatnik in London and Capital Group in New York, is also an executive chairman for MTS, a telecommunications conglomerate which covers investments in multiple emerging countries. Sowazi was born in Soweto, was educated in Swaziland and then in the US. After his return to SA in 1991, he joined Kagiso Trust, then the Urban Development Trust, before joining Tiso and setting up his own fund. Thereafter, he led the merger with Kagiso Trust to form KTH.
Meanwhile MTN South Africa has appointed Mike Harper, Lerato Phalatse, Mike Bosman and Trudy Makhaya to the board with effect 1 July, saying the extensive commercial experience of these additional directors will greatly benefit MTN South Africa.
