Vocus today confirmed the appointment of Andrés Irlando as Chief Executive Officer, effective 14 July.

Penny Bingham-Hall, Vocus Chair, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Andrés to Vocus at a pivotal time in our history. Vocus is uniquely positioned at the intersection of growth and opportunity with our world-class fibre network, dedicated teams, and strong customer base.

“Andrés’ extensive experience in in building, integrating and leading multi-billion-dollar digital infrastructure businesses and large, complex teams in one of the world’s most competitive infrastructure markets aligns with our vision and is particularly important as we look to complete the acquisition of TPG’s enterprise, government and wholesale fixed business later this year.

“The convergence of fibre infrastructure and AI-driven intelligence is creating a new era of connectivity and Andrés’ valuable expertise in bringing to life technology-driven strategies that harness the transformative potential of AI, will help place the Vocus network at the leading edge of economic opportunity and industry transformation.”

Mr. Irlando brings two decades of executive leadership experience in the telecommunications and technology sectors, most recently as President and Chief Operating Officer at Zayo Group, one of the largest global internet backbone companies and a leading independent service provider with dense, high-quality networks spanning 147,000 miles (almost 240,000 kilometres) connecting every major market in North America and many in Western Europe.

Prior to Zayo, Mr. Irlando held multiple senior leadership positions at Verizon Communications, including President of the Public Sector Business Unit as well as CEO of Verizon Connect, a $1 billion global SaaS company specialising in fleet and mobile resource management. Under his leadership, Verizon Connect became the largest subscriber base in its Internet of Things vertical worldwide, expanding operations across the Americas, Europe, China, Australia, and New Zealand.

Mr Irlando said: “I’m thrilled to join the Vocus team, particularly at this transformative stage of its history and growth. I’m impressed with the company’s vision of becoming a scaled challenger and disrupter, offering customers differentiated products and solutions to help enable Australia’s digital future.”

Ms Bingham-Hall also thanked Jarrod Nink for his role as interim CEO. “Jarrod stepped up as interim CEO over the past 8 months as the Board undertook a global search process and I would like to thank Jarrod for his strong leadership during this time. I look forward to Jarrod continuing to play an important senior leadership role in Vocus’ future and continued success.” she said.

Mr Irlando’s appointment is subject to customary visa approvals in Australia, as well as Singaporean regulatory authorisation.