Starhub CEO to quit to 'pursue own interests'
SINGAPORE: StarHub CEO and executive director Tan Tong Hai will quit his positions from May 1 to pursue his "own interests", the telco said in a surprise announcement after trading hours yesterday.
Mr Tan, 54, has led the company for almost a decade - five years as CEO and four years as its Chief Operating Officer (COO).
The group said it is doing a global executive search for a new CEO.
Mr Tan, in a statement released by StarHub, said he had achieved what he set out to do for StarHub and that is to grow its enterprise business.
"I believe it is now the right time for me to step down to pursue my own interests," he added.
He also said he would be working with StarHub's board in its search for a replacement CEO to ensure a smooth transition.
Mr Tan first joined StarHub in 1999 as general manager of StarHub Internet. He left to helm Pacific Internet and Singapore Computer Systems before returning to be the telco's COO in January 2009.
"I believe it is now the right time for me to step down to pursue my own interests."Starhub CEO and executive director Tan Tong hai
He was promoted to CEO and executive director of StarHub in March 2013.
StarHub chalked up a number of firsts during his leadership.
Among them was his push for the launch of Singapore's first free-to-cable sports channel SuperSports Arena in 2013, and in the following year, the start of the market-first integrated fibre and cable home broadband solution.
StarHub chairman Terry Clontz said Mr Tan was chosen to lead StarHub because of his experience in the enterprise, regional IT, Internet and e-commerce industries.
Under Mr Tan's leadership, the group has grown its enterprise business "by more than two folds and has struck numerous strategic partnerships with established partners to give StarHub a global presence", Mr Clontz added.
In its third quarter results released earlier this month, StarHub posted a net profit of S$76.2 million in the third quarter, an annual decline of 11.5 per cent, as a result of lower takings from mobile, Pay TV and broadband services.
Its revenue was S$580.4 million, a dip of 0.8 per cent.
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