Allison Kirkby appointed BT Group CEO

BT Group has announced Allison Kirkby will take over as its next chief executive by January next year, following the resignation of Philip Jansen.

Kirkby will move to BT from Sweden-based communications and telecommunications provider Telia where she served as CEO and president for more than three years.

“She is a proven leader, with deep sector experience and a history of having transformed businesses,” said BT Group’s chairman Adam Crozier.

“I look forward to supporting her as we drive our long-term strategy to transform BT Group, ensuring it delivers for all our stakeholders.”

The new boss, who will be the firm’s first female chief executive, already has ties with BT Group as a non-executive director, a role which she started in 2019.

BT revealed Kirkby’s predecessor Jansen was stepping down from the job at the beginning of this month.

Kirkby said: “Having been a member of the BT Group Board for the past four years, I’m fully supportive of our strategy and am excited about leading it into its next phase of development, as we grow to support customers, shareholders and the UK economy.”

Etc, BT’s startup and incubation division, last week said it is turning approximately 60,000 street cabinets into charging points for electric vehicles.

The telecoms firm is also exploring the use of hydrogen-fuelled drones to deliver mobile internet signal.