Alphonzo Samuels, a 30-year veteran at Telkom, has been appointed as the company’s new chief technology officer (CTO) with immediate effect.
Telkom group CEO, Sipho Maseko, says Samuels’ appointment is in line with its plan to completely overhaul its top leadership structure.
“Since November last year, Telkom has been appointing the industry’s best into top leadership positions including, most recently, the appointments of Len De Villiers, Enzo Scarcella and Ian Russell to lead the IT, Marketing and Procurement functions respectively,” says Maseko.
“I am pleased to announce that this process has gained further momentum with the appointment of Alphonzo Samuels as Chief Technology Officer.”
Samuels joined Telkom in January 1984. During his 30 year tenure he has held positions in the Infrastructure, Planning and Engineering environments. More recently he has been taking care of the Wholesale and Networks organisation as Acting MD. His experience in both the Wholesale division at Telkom as well as the Network Infrastructure division makes him the ideal candidate for the position, says Maseko.
“In his new role as CTO, Alphonzo will continue the push to build an invincible network that is capable of meeting our rigorous high-speed broadband ambitions,” he adds. “He will assume responsibility for both the fixed and mobile networks.
“He will also work closely with our Transformation Office to ensure the implementation of the functional separation of our Wholesale and Retail divisions. Key to his portfolio is strengthening our wholesale services to ensure we play a decisive role in furthering South Africa’s social and economic transformation.
“Alphonzo will focus on delivering Telkom’s next generation network aspirations and leading the transformation towards an all-IP network,” says Maseko.
Says Samuels of his appointment: “This is an exciting time for Telkom and I am pleased to join the ranks of those tasked to turn the company around. The evolution of Telkom’s network holds great promise as we gear up to deliver on South Africa’s growing technology demands.”
