Phil Bentley Press Conference on the leaving of CEO Geoff Houston and the appointment of Leon Williams. June 10th 2014 at BTC HQ at JFK.
The Board of Directors of BTC today announces that Geoff Houston has decided to step down as the CEO and will leave the business on 31 August, 2014.
The Board has appointed Leon Williams on a 12 month contract as CEO. Mr. Williams is a BTC Director and an adviser to the Chairman, Phil Bentley, as well as being a former CEO of the business. The Board also intends to put in place a longer-
term succession plan for the CEO role.
Geoff Houston has been with Cable & Wireless for 22 years having worked for the Company in Hong Kong, South Africa, the Channel Islands, the Seychelles, Jamaica and Panama. He has been CEO of BTC for 3 years, following its privatisation in April 2011. Under his leadership, BTC has undertaken a major investment programme, improving BTC’s networks and introducing new services like mobile data and high-speed broadband. During his tenure, BTC has increased its support for projects in The Bahamas including the sponsorships of the Olympic team and the annual Mr. Houston will stand down as CEO with effect from 30 June, 2014, but will be available to help Mr. Williams until the date of his departure. Phil Bentley, BTC Chairman and CWC Chief Executive, commented:
“Geoff Houston has made an outstanding contribution to Cable & Wireless over the last 22 years. He has served as CEO of BTC for the last three years and on behalf of the BTC Board of Directors, I want to thank Geoff for his exemplary leadership. Geoff has driven a large amount of change which has made BTC stronger, and prepared it for the competitive market we face. He has led major upgrades of our networks and technology, and reshaped our customer service. He has also improved the culture of the business, and won broad respect from a wide variety of stakeholders.
I am delighted that Leon Williams has agreed to lead BTC. Leon has also been an invaluable support as Special Advisor to me since March, and knows BTC well as a Board member and former CEO. He will bring continuity and valuable experience as we transition to a fully competitive market, and as the Board puts in place longer-term succession plans.
Geoff Houston, CEO of BTC, commented:
“BTC has developed significantly over the past three years. We have transformed our technology, improved our retail and customer experience and, most importantly, changed many of our internal processes to make BTC more customer-focused. The last financial year was a record year of profitability for BTC reflecting the strenuous efforts made to become a more efficient organisation while passing on significant price reductions to our customers. I would like to thank my hardworking colleagues at BTC who have done so much to get us to this position, and to our customers for their support. We can be proud of what we have achieved.”
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