Grameenphone gets Foley as new chief executive, Furberg as chairman

Grameenphone's Board has appointed Michael Foley as the new Chief Executive Officer of the company.

Foley, who has been with Grameenphone's parent company Telenor since 2014, will replace interim CEO Petter-B Furberg from May 26.

The company said in a statement on Monday Furberg, who has served as interim CEO since October 2016, will remain as the chairman of Grameenphone's Board.

Christopher Laska will step down as chairman of the Board and continue in his role as senior vice president for Board Governance and Partnership Relations in Asia.

The announcements were made following GP's 177th Board Meeting on Sunday.

“I am very pleased that Michael is taking on the challenge of leading Grameenphone through the next phases of digitisation in Bangladesh. Grameenphone is on a strong trajectory and it will be Michael’s job to ensure continuity to the current direction together with all the employees in Bangladesh,” the statement quoted Telenor Group President and CEO Sigve Brekke.

A Canadian by birth, Foley has been with Telenor since 2014, most recently as the CEO of Telenor Bulgaria. Prior to that, he served as CEO of Telenor Pakistan.

The 56-year-old McGill University graduate has more than 30 years of sales, marketing and operational experience in telecom, retail and gaming sector in both advanced and growth markets, Grameenphone said.

“I am honoured and excited to become part of Grameenphone at a time when connectivity and digitisation is transforming Bangladesh. I hope to bring learnings from other markets and further strengthen GP’s position as a leader in digital services,” the statement quoted Foley saying.

Yasir Azman. bdnews24.com File photo

Grameenphone's Board has also appointed Yasir Azman as the deputy CEO.

He will remain as chief marketing officer, while taking on extended responsibilities for the digital and commercial strategy within GP and Telenor’s Emerging Asia Cluster, said the statement.

Launched in 1997, Grameenphone claims to have 99 percent surface coverage in the country and a more than 50 million-strong subscriber base.