Alan Knott-Craig’s plan for Cell C

Cell C’s newly appointed CEO, Alan Knott-Craig (59) has indicated that social networks will be a new avenue of interest for the mobile operator.

The former head honcho of Vodacom says he is hoping to refocus the company and exploit all areas of growth by taking it back to basics and re-energising staff members.

“There are critical things that need to be addressed and I don’t think that Cell C has gotten them right in the past ten years,” said Knott-Craig.

These include improving the company’s distribution channels and competitive pricing.

Knott-Craig, whose son  (by the same name) heads up popular social networking channel, MXit, says that he doesn’t foresee any direct relation between Cell C and MXit as yet but, believes that taking a dive in the popular scene will help the company “get ahead” and that all networks will have to get more  “social network savvy”.

Knott-Craig has been out of the telco space for the past three and a half years since leaving Vodacom. He had a restraint of trade, but this will lapse in February before he assumes office on April 1.  The chief executive says he is hoping to make a contribution to the network whilst also picking up where his predecessor Lars Reichelt left off.

“Lars did a great job in the company, number one, and I think he really put it on the map, at least data wise… This is a numbers game and we need to increase our market share…I’m not sure how long it will take, but we will do well,” said Knott-Craig.

Cell C chairman and acting CEO Simon Duffy believes that Knott-Craig is the perfect man for the job as his “experience and expertise are unrivalled in the country”.

“You look at his achievements, they are remarkable. He took Vodacom from nowhere to 25 million customers and he was successful before that at Telkom and he turned Vodacom into a very formidable operation.”.

Duffy says he is delighted by Knott-Craig’s appointment following a lengthy six month search to find a CEO, both locally and internationally. Knott-Craig is Cell C’s first South African CEO the fifth to take the helm.

Following Reichelt’s resignation from Cell C, last year, several calls were made for the company to appoint a BEE candidate as CEO. Duffy says the company did consider local black candidates for the role, but “Knott-Craig was the best qualified candidate”.

“I’m hoping at some point or other that we will appoint a BEE candidate CEO of Cell C – not from the outside, but from the inside and that’s what we hope to do,” said Duffy.

Source: Moneyweb