Marc Allera, the CEO of BT’s Consumer Division would be an ideal prime candidate to take over as BT Group CEO from Philip Jansen (main pic) says top telco analyst Paolo Pescatore.
“This has been on the cards for some time” said Pescatore.
“There’s not much more left for him (Philip Jansen) to do. He has helped navigate the group through a difficult period. It’s probably time to think about the next chapter for both him and BT. Openreach is now in a better place, consolidated the enterprise function and moving away from costly sports rights. All eyes now turn on the successor. A prime candidate is already at the business with Marc Allera who heads up the consumer segment”.
Kester Mann, Director, Consumer and Connectivity, at CCS Insight added.
“Mr Jansen had been looking on increasingly shaky ground at BT. The company’s shares have almost halved since he took over in early 2019, while recent inflammatory comments about the role of fibre altnets drew concern from Ofcom. He has endured a rollercoaster ride at BT. He presided over the operator’s impressive response to the pandemic; embarked on a massive cost-saving drive; oversaw a major acceleration in the deployment of full fibre; witnessed Patrick Drahi take a near-25 per cent stake in the company; and watched thousands of staff strike over pay.
“Confirmation of the new CEO is expected within weeks and while many names will inevitably be linked to the role, there appears no obvious initial candidate to take it on. BT will likely cast its net wide.
The BT board announced this morning that Jansen will be stepping down within the next year.
“In preparation for this, the Nominations Committee of the Board has been conducting a formal succession process
Adam Crozier, BT Group Chairman said:
“Philip has done an excellent job in his time at BT and the Board is fully supportive of our long-term strategy which he and his team are pursuing. Whilst we are still in the early years of that transformation we are on track to deliver.
The succession process to replace Philip is something that the Board was well prepared for. All appropriate candidates are being considered and we expect to be able to update the market on progress over the course of the summer. In the meantime, it is business as usual, and we are focused on executing our plans and delivering for all our stakeholders.”
Jansen, Group Chief Executive said:
“We’ve made a lot of progress over the last four and half years and I’m proud of what we’ve achieved to date. We’re investing heavily in both BT’s and the UK’s future. We’re building like fury, have now passed over 11m homes with fibre, have got 5G service to 68% of the country and our customer service is much improved. This is creating a much stronger BT Group which is starting to drive growth for both investors and the UK. But there’s a lot more to do and I am fully committed to driving the business forward until I hand over to my successor.”
