Telkom has named one of the country’s top chief information officers, Len de Villiers, as its new CIO. De Villiers is a former CIO for both Nedbank and Absa.
De Villiers takes on the role, which has been newly created in Telkom, on 1 November.
He has 25 years’ experience in the IT industry having started in IT management at BP, Metro Cash and Carry and Gencor. He joined First National Bank as GM of IT in 1986, followed by three years as MD of Microdata and as an executive director at Datakor Holdings.
He was named MD of Nedbank group operations in 2003 and as MD of technology and support services in 2004.
He joined Absa as group CIO in 2008, where he was “responsible for articulating the technology plans and initiatives necessary to create and support the underlying technology required for the ‘One Absa’ strategy”, Telkom says.
He then became CIO of Transaction Capital in January 2012.
The CIO role at Telkom forms part of a newly designed leadership structure at the telecommunications operator, which includes Sipho Maseko as group CEO, Brian Armstrong as group chief operating officer and Miriam Altman as head of strategy. Telkom is also looking to fill the positions of chief marketing officer and chief procurement officer.
Maseko says the appointments are meant to help Telkom “compete effectively in a demanding marketplace and reach our ultimate objective, which is to restore our leadership position in the telecoms sector”. He says Telkom’s “IT factory” is a crucial part of the company’s long-term strategic plans.
In a statement, Maseko says: “…We rely heavily on IT architecture and systems that are of a world class standard. At the same time we have to strengthen our focus on innovation and research and development.” — (c) 2013 NewsCentral Media