Airtel

1 2 /2 4 /1 2 Africa’s T elecoms T itans: Airtel Africa | T echzim A f r ic a ul s T e le c o m s T it a n s : A ir t e l A f r ic a Clinton Mutambo t Like 3 3 Tw e e t 0 0 0 Shar e Ema il 3 Like Africa’s Telecoms Titan s is a s eries b y Tech zim p rofilin g th e top 20 lead in g mob ile op erators on th e con tin en t. Each s eg men t focu s es on a s p ecific mob ile op erator with in s ig h ts in to s ervices p rovid ed in clu d in g marketin g an d tech n ical comp eten cies . Airtel Africa B.V: Indian Ro o ts, P an African Ambitio ns o tal bscribers Africa: o tal Tw e e t bscribers lo bal: Bi Bi . illio n illio n est mar et lo bal: est mar et Africa: illio n s bscribers in India illio n s bscribers in i eria A ril ners i stat s: Amsterdam re istered s bsidiar o f Indian based B arti Airtel ar et a italisatio n Ann al Re en e ro ro Ann al Re en e Africa : 0 Indian P arent : Indian P arent : , et arnin s Africa : m lo ees Africa : Billio n millio n , Billio n Billio n o llars ll ear earnin s As o f ecember Airtel Africa is a art o f t e Indian based B arti Airtel imited. B arti Airtel as fo nded in as e lo ded fro m an initial in India alo ne. It as a Shar e s bscribers in ro imatel to i antic . and millio n s bscribers A ril illio n s bscribers o erall Indian s bco ntinent and Africa . Airtel India as acco m lis ed t e feats o f beco min : Ema il ne o f t e natio n s to mo st tr sted co m anies co no mic imes o st Admired o m an P o erf l Brand India s o st Inno ati e o m an inner o f t e o bile co no mic imes t e o nl co r o rate brand to be a arded t e AAA ratin all treet o rnal o rld o n ress www.techzim.co.zw/2011/07/africa’s-telecoms-titans-airtel-africa/ 1 /6 1 2 /2 4 /1 2 Africa’s T elecoms T itans: Airtel Africa | T echzim E c o n o m ic im e s e le c o m A ard s A irt e l A fric a o n t o a ard s at t h e M o ile B e s t M o ile M o n e y o rld C o n re s s ( M ro d u c t o r s o lu t io n ( fo r A irt e l O n L in e B e s t C u s t o m e r C are C) lo al A ard s , t h e y are : ay ) C u s t o m e r R e lat io n s h ip M an a e m e n t ( C R M ) p ri e h e c o m p an y s A fric an as s e t s B illio n C u s t o m e r E p e rie n c e E n h an c e m e n t e re ac u ire d fro m t h e u ait i as e d ain h e c o m p an y s e e s A fric a as t h e n e t ro t h e n in e o f t h e ait in t o h ap p e n I t h as in v e s t e d h e av ily in in fras t ru c t u re an d d e c lin e p at h in A fric a I t is t h e m ark e t le ad e r in I t s ro t h t ra e c t o ry is u ilt o n h at h as e e n d u av e ra e p ric in S ran d in as t h e fo rm e r ain A fric a as o n a A fric an n at io n s it o p e rat e s in an d s e c o n d in ran d an d m ark e t c o n s o lid at io n an d it c o m p e t e s fie rc e ly o n p ric in e d as t h e p ric e y up to A fric an c o n s u m e rs of the ro u p at a c as h v alu at io n o f o rld , e s s e n t ially an o t h e r I n d ia ars , t h e c o m p an y h as m o v e d in t o m ark e t s lik e In i e ria y s las h in it s A irt e l s c o s t e ffic ie n c ie s an d c o n s o lid at e d ro u p s t ru c t u re e n a le it t o p ro v id e it h s e rv ic e s at rat e s t h at fe c an m at c h I t s k e y d iffe re n t iat o r fro m o t h e r o p e rat o rs in I n d ia an d A fric a is t h at it is n o t o n ly a m o ile o p e rat o r u t a fu lly in t e rat e d t e le c o m s p lay e r I t p ro v id e s ire le s s ( ) , e le m e d ia ( B ro ad an d an d I S e rv ic e s , as s iv e I n fras t ru c t u re S e rv ic e s , an d a v e ry in t e re s t in t h at A irt e l ill c h alle n e S p ac k a e ( S at e llit e s c o n t in e n t al m o n o p o ly in t h e n e ar fu t u re n lik e t h e ) , E n t e rp ris e ) e c h im rav e fe e lie v e s e fo re it , t h is c o m p an y h as t h e s c ale , k n o le d e an d e p e rt is e t o ro le o u t a m as s o n s lau h t in t h is re ard Bran d Competen cies: Airtel is positioning its brand across the continent as being youthful, passionate and positi e. The company’s challenge in this regard is the series of names consumers ha e had to contend with (Celtel then Zain, and now Airtel). Massi e in estments into building the brand ha e been made with aggressi e promotions and pricing complementing these. The feel free promotion spearheaded the rebranding effort as it sort to connect with consumers. igh profile marketing efforts such as the sponsorship of the MT Africa Music Awards and the launch of the One super group ha e played a key role in raising brand awareness among young and influential markets. One is an Airtel sponsored music group led by R Kelly and artists from African nations in which the company operates. The company is also le eraging on its sponsorship of Manchester nited to promote its brand across its operating markets. One of their promotions with Manchester nited enables subscribers to win a trip to Old Trafford to train with the team. In keeping with its focus on connecting with consumers Airtel also pro ides sponsorship in other areas such as cultural, music and de elopmental initiati es. T ech n ical Competen cies Airtel’s technical competencies are built on a holistic foundation. It outsources non core network functions to technical partners like Ericsson, Alcatel Lucent, uawei and IBM to concentrate on growing and managing its networks. It also seeks to partner with alue added ser ice pro iders across all its markets to pro ide premium sms, ringtones and multimedia messaging ser ices. The Airtel Africa unit stands to benefit from the Indian parent’s ery large critical mass as it benefits from economies of scale when negotiating Airtel Founder and an IBM Representativ e deals. Its international infrastructure includes ownership of the i i submarine cable system connecting Chennai to Singapore, consortium ownership of the SM submarine cable system connecting Chennai and Mumbai to Singapore and Europe, and in estments in new cable systems such as Asia America ateway (AA ), India Middle East and estern Europe (IME E), nity orth, EI (Europe India ateway) and East Africa Submarine System (EASSy). www.techzim.co.zw/2011/07/africa’s-telecoms-titans-airtel-africa/ 2 /6 1 2 /2 4 /1 2 Africa’s T elecoms T itans: Airtel Africa | T echzim h e c o m p an y ( t h ro u h C e lt e l) as a o rld firs t p io n e e r v ario u s c o u n t rie s ( m ain ly o n it s n e t o rk s ) an d s im p ly h e n it lau n c h e d it s am it io u s O n e u y lo c al airt im e h ile e t o rk p ro e c t h e p ro e c t e n a le s A fric an c o n s u m e rs t o t rav e l t o e in a le t o re c e iv e c alls fro m t h e ir h o m e c o u n t ry at n o e t ra c o s t s t e p p in u p it s t e c h n ic al c ap a ilit ie s in A fric a t h ro u h an e c h an e p ro ram m e in h ic h e m p lo y e e s in I n d ia an d A fric a are e p o s e d t o h e c o m p an y is o t h m ark e t s T h e Z imbabwean con n ection Airtel Z ambia’s CEO; Fayaz Kin g is a Z imbabwean Fayaz is a holder of an MBA ( ni ersity of Zimbabwe) and a Chartered Institute of Marketing diploma ( ni ersity of Zimbabwe). Fayaz began his career as a management trainee in Zimbabwe under Le er Brothers (now known as nile er), he then rose to become a brand manager at the company and its marketing manager. e went on to become a Business roup ead thereafter. Fayaz then joined Innscor as its group Marketing Director in Zimbabwe and operated three businesses after this. is tenure at Airtel Africa began when it was still known as Celtel where he worked as the Marketing Director for ganda. After this he became the eneral Manager for Lagos and orth Central igeria. hen the Kuwaiti based Zain group bought out Celtel, Fayaz was seconded to Malawi where he ser ed as the company’s CEO. is e perience spans the whole of Sub Saharan Africa and would be the best leader if Airtel were to make an entrance into the Zimbabwean market. O er and abo e this, Fayaz can make a significant contribution towards the realignment efforts of the local ICT sector through his wealth of e perience. Airtel Z ambia’s CIO (Ch ief In formation Officer), James Mu seba is also a Z imbabwean . James is a holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Mathematics, an ACCA Certified Diploma in Accounting Finance. e also holds an MBA. rior to joining Airtel (then Zain), James was the ead of IT at African Banking Corporation (now BancABC) and the roup IT and Operations Director at Interfin Merchant Bank (now Interfin Bank). e has o er years worth of telecom, banking and information technology e perience. According to his Airtel Zambia profile, he was responsible for laying the blueprint of an efficient and robust IT and back office infrastructure at Interfin. James has the e perience and the passion for ICT to be able to make a meaningful contribution locally. e is another Zimbabwean that could return should Airtel setup shop locally. *Th an ks to C h arles Garan g an g a, on e of ou r read ers for g ivin g u s th e h ead s u p on th es e two g en tlemen . Leadersh ip Competen cies Su n il Bh arti Mittal: Fou n der, Ch airman an d CEO of Bh arti Airtel Limited Sunil is one of the most accomplished entrepreneurs on the Indian sub continent today. e built Bharti Airtel from scratch to con uer the nation as its leading operator. is accomplishments to date include (in random order): Awarded the lobal Economy rize’ by The Kiel Institute( ermany) Business Inno ator of the ear B DT ( ) lobal ame changer at Economic Times Telecom Awards ( lobal Telecom Leader award by oice Data magazine ( ) ) Awarded the adma Bhushan (India’s third highest ci ilian honor) Co chairman of the orld Economic Forum in at Da os Transforming India Leader, DT Business Leader Awards SMA Chairman’s Award adma Bhushan in Sunil Bharti Mittal: Founder, Chairman and CEO of Bharti Airtel , from the resident of India. Asia Businessman of the ear, Fortune Magazine Telecom erson of the ear, oice CEO of the year . . Data, . , at the Frost and Sulli an Asia acific ICT awards Best Asian Telecom CEO, Telecom Asia Awards Best CEO, India, Institutional In estor, Limited . . . . Business Leader Of The ear, Economic Times, . I SEAD Business Leader Award Su n il is also: A member of the Board of Trustees of the Carnegie Endowment for International eace. On the Indian rime Minister’s Council on Trade Industry. www.techzim.co.zw/2011/07/africa’s-telecoms-titans-airtel-africa/ 3 /6 1 2 /2 4 /1 2 Africa’s T elecoms T itans: Airtel Africa | T echzim On the o ard o f I n t e rn at io n al e le c o m m u n ic at io n A m e m e r o f s e v e ral p re m ie r in t e rn at io n al o d ie s art o f t h e A d v is o ry C o m m it t e e o f An o n o rary F e llo n io n ( I ) , a le ad in A e n cy L e ad e rs h ip C o u n c il o f h e C lim at e S E E u ro n e t B o ard o f ro u p ire c t o rs , I n t e rn at io n al B u s in e s s A d v is o ry C o u n c il fo r L o n d o n as e ll as R o m e o f t h e I n s t it u t io n o f E le c t ro n ic s an d e le c o m m u n ic at io n E n in e e rs A h o ld e r o f a o c t o r o f L a s ( o n o rary ) y t h e A h o ld e r o f a o c t o r o f S c ie n c e ( o n o rary ) y t h e n iv e rs it y o f L e e d s , B an t n iv e rs it y Man oj Koh li: CEO (In tern ation al/Africa) an d Join t Man agin g Director, Bh arti Airtel Ltd. Manoj is the CEO of the Airtel International Business roup (Airtel Africa). The Airtel IB is the actual name of its Africa operations which he runs from Airtel Africa’s airobi base in Kenya. Manoj heads the International Business roup which leads the international strategy for Bharti Airtel and he pre iously held multiple roles as CEO and Joint Managing Director, CEO, and ead of Mobile Ser ices business at Bharti Airtel Limited. Manoj was the Chairman of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) ational Committee on Telecom Broadband. e was member of the Board of SM Association ( SMA) in . e was the Chairman of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI). e has also accomplished the following: Telecom Man of the ear Media Trans Asia Telecom erson of the ear by oice Data Magazine. e is a member of the Academic Council of the Faculty of Management Studies Faculty of Commerce Business e has been awarded the Best Alumni Award by SRCC, Delhi ni ersity. Manoj holds degrees in Commerce, Law and MBA from Delhi ni ersity. Manoj also attended the E ecuti e Business rogram at the Michigan Business School and the Ad anced Management rogram at the harton Business School. An dre Beyers: Ch ief Market Officer (Airtel Africa) Andre Beyers A South African is the Chief Marketing Officer of Airtel Africa. e has o erseen the challenges of positioning the brand across di erse African markets. e is the chief architect of the Airtel brand strategy and says that cellular is in his eins. According to his Airtel profile, his goal is to make Airtel the most lo ed brand in Africa by through meeting the emerging needs of customers with inno ati e, affordable and rele ant solutions and connecting customers emotionally with the brand. Andre pre iously led odacom’s marketing department for se en years including brand and retail strategy and customer segmentation across Africa and he set up the initial marketing frameworks in Mozambi ue, Congo, DRC, Tanzania and Lesotho. rior to that Andre was at FCB, South Africa’s largest ad ertising group at the time, where he spent four years supporting odacom’s Inno ation ub a unit within the ad agency that was tasked with concei ing fresh ideas for the company. Social R espon sibility Competen cies Andre Bey ers: Chief Market Officer (Airtel Africa) Airtel has not only replicated its Indian CSR culture but responded to the different needs of the African continent. The company has focused on education as its main area of in estment by launching adopt a school projects across its operating markets. The company also works with organisations like the Red Cross to address the arying needs of societies. In Kenya alone the company has partnered with the Red Cross to help school children from o er schools with food donations to schools. East Africa is currently facing one of the worst droughts in its history. www.techzim.co.zw/2011/07/africa’s-telecoms-titans-airtel-africa/ 4 /6 1 2 /2 4 /1 2 Africa’s T elecoms T itans: Airtel Africa | T echzim The com an elie es t hat t he role of e Accor in t o it recei in an e not e it wor s wit h inist ries of cat e a o ert cannot e o erst at e . o ert . n t his cat ion across it s 16 mar et s t o im ro e. t also elie es t hat t he ower of an e enerat ions as e cat ion in era icat in cat ion is erha s a chil s i est arrier t o esca in cat ion cont in es t o ro i e enefit s t o s lt s t en t o marr lat er in life ha e healt hier chil ren at wor recei e et t er a in t he wor lace an enerall en o se ent e m or e r o ct i e reat er healt h. rt hermore it elie e t hat in Africa t is common for r ral o t h es eciall irls t o ro o t or e force t o t ra el far awa from t heir homes in or er t o at t en school. The ma orit of e ist in schools es eciall in r ral areas are o ercrow e Africa e cat ion has onl oorl f rnishe an n er-reso rce . o efore t hat im alance is re resse . Airt el s A o t -A- chool ro ect is e ist oricall in een a aila le in t he cit ies an lar er t owns an t here s st ill a lon wa t o il in on similar eriences in n ia as it see s t o t ransform li es. Tech zim wou ld like to th an k Mich ael Okwiri (Airtel Africa’s C ommu n ication s Man ag er) for availin g h is time d u rin g th e comp ilation of th is p rofile. e lat e d p o s t s . A frica’s T e le co m s T it an s M T Gro u p 2. A n lt ra o w C o s t h o n e o r A frica . T h e A p p le i ad o fficially lau n ch e d in o u t h A frica . Eco n e t En e rg y . re s s e le as e e ll p lace d t o p o w e r o u t h e rn A frica ag e as t e l ay ro ll s o ft w are s e e s s t ro n g g ro w t h in A frica www.techzim.co.zw/2011/07/africa’s-telecoms-titans-airtel-africa/ 5 /6 1 2 /2 4 /1 2 Africa’s T elecoms T itans: Airtel Africa | T echzim ALSO ON TECHZIM RECOM M ENDED FOR YOU Is s t a r t in g a t e c h s t a r t u p ju s t t o o c o s t ly fo r u s' 51 c omments 6 Sig n s Th at Y o u 'v e M ad e It To M id d le Class Inv es topedia Zim in fo r matio n min iste r calls fo r r e g u latio n o f th e in te r n e t, so cial me d ia Bo n d Gir l Be r e n ice M ar lo h e 's M o st Stu n n in g Re d Car p e t Lo o ks Sty le Bis tro 38 c omments Ho lid ay d e als: F r e e mu sic d o wn lo ad o n ly if b r o wsin g fr o m a Zim in te r n e t … 4 c omments Th e iPh o n e 5, a Zimb ab we an r e v ie w What's this ' Br ad An d An g e lin a's Lu xu r io u s Glo b al Life style Re v e ale d Zimbio 5 State s Th at Ar e Bad F o r Re tir e e s Inv es topedia 12 c omments 2 c o mme n t s 0 Leave a message... Dis cus s ion Com m unit y Mu k a n ya Shar e 10 months ago • T his is a very well written article with lots of useful information 0 • Reply • Shar e › C h a r l e s Ga r a n g a n g a • a y ear ago really big l wish one of them could be a player in this country, we wait to see what happens at T elecel in the wake of Vimpelcom.......we need massive rate cuts on both voice and data, l cant imagine that it is cheaper for me to roam with my Kenyan numbers than using local sim cards.....how ridiculous... 0 • Reply C o m m e n t fe e d • Shar e › S u b s c r i b e vi a e m a i l www.techzim.co.zw/2011/07/africa’s-telecoms-titans-airtel-africa/ 6 /6