Annual Report 2019 23

Corporate Management Team

1 32

6

97 8

4 5

10

Dialog Axiata PLC24

1

PRADEEP DE ALMEIDAGroup Chief Technology Officer

Pradeep leads the Technology function of the Dialog

Group. In addition, he chairs the Technical Expert

Working Group across South Asian Region covering

Bangladesh and Nepal. His portfolio spans the

planning, development and operation of multiple

networks and services including but not limited to

the Group’s Mobile, Broadband, Fixed Line, Digital

Television and International Telecommunications

infrastructures.

Pradeep joined Dialog Axiata in 1996 and holds

a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronic and

Telecommunication Engineering from the University

of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka and is a Member of the

Institution of Engineers of Sri Lanka. He is a Chartered

engineer by profession. Over the course of his 24-

year career in technology management, Pradeep

has garnered extensive experience across multiple

generations of mobile telephony technology leading

up to the most recent 5G technologies, Pradeep is a

regular speaker at technology forums.

2

DR. RAINER DEUTSCHMANNGroup Chief Operating Officer

As Dialog’s Group Chief Operating Officer Rainer is

responsible for the Group’s Business Units, Corporate

Planning, M&A, and Corporate Strategy, spanning the

Group’s Mobile, Fixed Broadband, Pay TV, Wholesale,

Digital Services and Enterprise Businesses.

Rainer has designed, built and run telecommunication

and digital businesses for the last 20 years in mature

and emerging markets. His experience spans start-ups

and large public multinationals, in senior executive,

CxO and non-executive board roles.

Corporate Management Team

At McKinsey, Rainer helped high-tech, banking

and telco clients across Europe to embrace digital

technologies. At Deutsche Telekom Group, in Senior

Vice President and Board Chairman roles, he built and

led DT’s core product portfolio across 14 European

markets, serving 90 million customers and 30 million

households. As Chief Product and Innovation Officer at

Reliance Jio in India, Rainer was responsible for setting

up Jio’s business units and for leading the commercial

launch program to acquire the initial 100 million

customers in 170 days, soon to become the world’s

largest data network and India’s leading digital services

provider.

Passionate about technology, Rainer is an active

speaker, and advises digital telco, analytics, fintech

and blockchain companies. He serves as Non-Executive

Director at rain, South Africa’s digital mobile network

operator. He holds a doctoral degree (Dr. rer. nat.) in

Physics from the University of Technology Munich and

worked as a computation and neuroscience researcher

at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) / USA.

3

SANDRA DE ZOYSAGroup Chief Customer Officer

Sandra is the Group Chief Customer Officer of

Dialog and the Chairperson of the Digital Customer

Experience Expert Working Group for Axiata. Sandra is

also a Director of Dialog Business Services.

She has over 30 years of experience in the Mobile

industry and is the recipient of multiple awards for

women in management, leadership and for her

exceptional contribution and achievements in the

sphere of customer experience management. She

has been honoured by Constellation Research Inc.

USA as a Constellation Ambient Experience Leader

and won the Customer leader of the year award for

2019 awarded by My Customer, UK. In 2017, she

was honoured with the CMI Management Excellence

Annual Report 2019 25

Award for Women in Management. Sandra was also

one among 7 service practitioners across the globe

to have received the prestigious Customer Experience

Impact Award, presented by the Customer Experience

Professionals Association USA.

Sandra is an avid keynote speaker, panelist and

presenter and has spoken at over 100 global events

representing Dialog. She is a certified CE professional

from CXPA and an alumna of the Cranfield School

of Management UK. She is also a Lean Six Sigma

practitioner and a visiting lecturer at the University

of Colombo School of Computing since 2009. In

addition to her role at Dialog, Sandra is a founding

member and a Director of SLASSCOM, the national

IT-Knowledge solutions chamber of Sri Lanka and a

founding member and Vice President of the Sri Lanka

Institute of Service Management (SLISM).

4

RENUKA FERNANDOGroup Chief Digital Services Officer

Renuka is a highly experienced, successful and well-

regarded banker who has significant experience in the

financial services industry spanning 39 years. She has

vast exposure to implementing innovative strategies

with a special focus on Digital transformations.

She has been leading Nations Trust Bank PLC (NTB)

as the Director/Chief Executive Officer from 2012 to

2020, and has played a pivotal role in bringing the

organisation to where it is today. During her stint

with NTB she has played many senior leadership roles

including Deputy Chief Executive Officer, DGM – Retail

& Consumer Banking and AGM - Corporate Financial

Solutions. Prior to joining NTB, Renuka held the

positions of Vice President / Head Global Transactional

Services and Head of Consumer Banking at ABN

AMRO Bank NV Sri Lanka. She has also worked at

Banque Indosuez, Sri Lanka as Manager Corporate

Banking and at Nederlandsche Middenstands Bank -

Hong Kong.

Renuka is an Associate of the Charted Institute of

Bankers, UK and possesses a Higher Diploma in

Business Administration (Banking). She has also

completed an Advanced Management Program at

Harvard Business School.

5

UPALI GAJANAIKEGroup Chief Officer - Programme Management and

Tele-Infrastructure

Upali currently holds the position of Group Chief

Officer – Programme Management and Tele-

Infrastructure. His portfolio includes Enterprise

Programme Management, Supply Chain Operations,

and Tele-Infrastructure Management including related

commercial operation.

Upali joined Dialog in 1994 and his experience largely

covers management of Telecommunication and IT

networks and systems. Prior to being appointed to the

current role, he served the group in the capacities of

Chief Operating Officer Dialog Broadband Networks

and General Manager – Engineering Operations and

Information Technology.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Electronic and

Telecommunication Engineering from University

of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka, and a Master of Business

Administration from University of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Upali is a Member of the Institution of Engineering

& Technology (IET) UK, a Corporate Member of the

Institution of Engineers Sri Lanka (IESL), and a Senior

Member of the Australian Computer Society (ACS)

Australia. He is a Chartered Engineer registered with

the Engineering Council (UK).

Dialog Axiata PLC26

6

SHAYAM MAJEED Group Chief Corporate Officer

Shayam currently holds the position of Group Chief

Corporate Officer of the organisation. Shayam’s

current portfolio spans Group Human Resources,

Group Supply Chain Management, Group Legal and

Contract Management, Group Sustainability and

Group Corporate Services.

Shayam has previously served in the capacities of

Group Chief Officer – Commercial and Programme

Management, Group Chief Programme Officer, Group

Senior Vice President - Access Network/ Technology

Resource Planning, and Head - Network Planning of the

Company, prior to being appointed to his current role.

Shayam holds a Master of Science in Electrical

Engineering specialising in Wireless Communications

from the University of Texas – Arlington, USA and a

Bachelor of Science in Computer Systems specialising

in Telecommunications from the University of Houston

- Clear Lake, Texas, USA. He is a Member of the

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)

- USA, a member of the Institution of Engineering

& Technology (IET) – UK, and a Chartered Engineer

registered with the Engineering Council (UK).

7

AMALI NANAYAKKARAGroup Chief Marketing Officer

Amali is one of Sri Lanka’s most renowned marketing

professionals and a business leader, drawing from over

two decades of experience in senior management

positions both in Sri Lanka and overseas attached to

leading global multi-nationals.

Named one of Sri Lanka’s 10 Most Powerful Women in

Business as ranked by Echelon Magazine, Amali is an

honours graduate from the University of Colombo.

Corporate Management Team

She began her career at Unilever Sri Lanka, where

she traversed multiple leadership roles, before her

appointment to the Board in the capacity of Director,

Foods & Personal Care.

Following her tenure at Unilever, Amali transitioned

to the telecommunications sector where she was

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of

Bharthi Airtel Lanka, before taking over as Group Chief

Marketing Officer of Dialog. At Dialog, her portfolio

encompasses the Marketing and Sales functions of the

Group’s multiple businesses.

8

ANTHONY RODRIGOGroup Chief Innovation Officer & Chief Architect

Anthony has been with Axiata Group of Companies

since 2010 as the Group Chief Information Officer and

Chief Digital Services Officer of Dialog Axiata. He was

appointed Chief Information Officer of Axiata Group in

August 2017 and continues as Chief Innovation Officer

& Chief Architect of Dialog Axiata.

Prior to joining the Dialog Group, Anthony was the

Head of the North America Systems Integration

Business for Nokia Siemens Networks. He was

responsible for Solution Development, Systems

Integration and Business Management of converged

Fixed and Wireless solutions for communication

service providers in North America. Anthony counts

over two decades of experience in Europe, Asia and

the Americas in Operations Support Systems/Business

Support Solutions and Systems Integration, holding

leadership positions at British Telecom, AT&T, Nokia,

NSN and Hayleys.

Anthony holds a B.Eng from Kings College London,

and an MBA from Regis University Denver, CO. USA.

He holds several European and United States Patents

in the area of Charging and Speech Recognition

technology.

Annual Report 2019 27

9

LASANTHA THEVERAPPERUMAGroup Chief Digital Officer

Lasantha assumed duties as the Chief Digital Officer

in November 2018, leading the digital transformation

programme incepted to reinvent the organisation, and

meet the demands of IR 4.0.

Lasantha joined Dialog in 2004 as Manager – Finance

Operations and has progressively taken on greater

responsibilities, while simultaneously gaining a wide

range of experience in the Telecommunications

industry through the multiple roles he has held as

Head of Finance – Dialog Mobile, General Manager –

Group Business Operations, Head of Business – Dialog

Mobile and Vice President – Group Corporate Planning

and Strategy.

In 2017, Lasantha was seconded to Axiata Group

Berhad in Malaysia, where he served as its Head of

Strategy.

Prior to joining Dialog, Lasantha has held positions at

organisations in the Leisure, Distribution, Shipping,

Printing, Software, Consultancy and Audit sectors.

He is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Chartered

Accountants of Sri Lanka and holds a Bachelor of

Science in Accountancy (Special) Hons. from the

University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka. He also

holds an MBA from Edith Cowan University, Australia.

10

YAP WAI YIPGroup Chief Financial Officer

Yap is the Group Chief Financial Officer of Dialog

Axiata PLC effective 1st October 2019. In his capacity

as the Group Chief Financial Officer, Yap provides

leadership to the portfolios of Group Finance, Group

Business Control and Group Facilities Management.

Yap counts over 38 years of experience of which more

than 11 years has been in the Telecommunication

industry. He joined the Axiata Group Bhd in October

2008 commencing his tenure as the Group Financial

Controller, a position that he held until March 2013.

In addition to his role as the GFC, Yap was appointed

as the Acting Chief Financial Officer of Dialog Axiata

PLC from January 2010 until October 2010. Further, he

held similar pivotal leadership roles within Axiata and

its subsidiaries of Axiata Group, notably as the Chief

Financial Officer at Robi Axiata Limited, Bangladesh

from April 2013 until October 2016, and as Acting

Axiata Group Chief Financial Officer from November

2010 to May 2011 and from January to May 2017.

In November 2016, Yap once again assumed

responsibilities as the Group Financial Controller of

Axiata Group Bhd, a position in which he served until

he was assigned as the Axiata Director of Special

Projects in May 2019.

He holds several memberships from reputed institutes

in Malaysia and the United Kingdom. He is a Fellow

member of the Chartered Association of Certified

Accountants, United Kingdom, member of the

Malaysian Institute of Accountants, graduate of the

Institute of Chartered Secretary and Administrators,

United Kingdom and holds a Chartered Accountant

membership in the Malaysian Institute of Accountants.