A seasoned telecom expert, Alan Sinfield has been appointed a new Chief Executive Officer of Nigeria’s fourth telecom operator, 9mobile.
He became the first substantive CEO of the telecom firms since it changed from Etisalat to 9Mobile, succeeding Stephane Beuvelet, who held the position in an acting capacity when the new board took over the company in November 2018.
Prior to his appointment, Sinfield has held leadership roles at numerous mobile, fixed-line, and broadband data operators as well as retail, media, and wholesale distribution businesses across emerging markets in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe.
Making the announcement, Chairman of 9mobile, Alhaji Nasir Bayero, said: “Alan’s wealth of experience of building high performance and high-growth organisations will play a pivotal role in strengthening 9mobile’s market position in the highly competitive telecommunications industry.
“He brings with him the vision, passion, and years of experience from diverse environments, which will consolidate our priorities to provide superior customer experience and sustained network quality.
“He is expected to work closely with the Board of Directors and all stakeholders to define credible and achievable long-term business plans, through the introduction of solutions to address the evolving needs of the Nigerian telecommunication market.”
Expressing happiness at the new position, Sinfield said: “The Nigerian telecoms industry is characterised by strong competition, but it is also an industry that is important to people everywhere.
“Nigeria is rich in diversity and boasts of energetic, resilient, friendly, and hard-working people. I am delighted to join the 9mobile family and I look forward to using my experience and unique value propositions to lead the company in the next exciting phase of its journey.
“The goal is to build on the existing strong foundation of the company to create value that will transform the Nigerian telecoms sector.
“I also look forward to embracing the people, the culture, and the unique knowledge that Nigeria has to offer.”
Sinfield has been a Chief Executive Officer since 2006. He brings extensive international and operational experience from wireless telecom, fintech, and banking sectors to his new role at 9mobile.
His global experience covers countries as diverse as the United Kingdom, Germany, Portugal, Slovakia, Iraq, Qatar, Myanmar, South Korea, Cambodia, and Hong Kong.
He was previously the Chief Executive Officer at Amara Communications Co. (ananda), a 4G LTE mobile broadband operator in Myanmar, and before this he was the Chief Executive Officer of Cadcomms (qb), in Cambodia.
Other roles Alan Sinfield 9mobile CEO has held include CEO at Ooredoo (Starlink), a subsidiary of the listed Qatari Telecommunications Group, operating in Qatar and regionally, and also as Chief Information Officer and Chief Customer Services Officer at Orascom Telecom (IraQna), a subsidiary of the listed Egyptian Telecommunications Group, operating the first mobile network in Baghdad and surrounding territories, providing voice and nascent data and satellite services.