Telenor Undergoes Major Managerial Reshuffle: ProPakistani

Telenor Undergoes Major Managerial Reshuffle
CEO, Telenor Pakistan, Moves On!
[Official] PTCL Gets new Slogan: Hello to the Future!
Dawn of a New Zodiac Sign: Ophiuchus
PTA Continues its Quest of 3G in Pakistan
Zong’s M9 In The Spotlight

Telenor Undergoes Major Managerial Reshuffle

Posted: 18 Jan 2011 07:34 AM PST

Telenor Undergoes Major Managerial Reshuffle is a post from: ProPakistani

Telenor Pakistan has reshuffled number of top level management positions, told us close-to-company and official sources separately.

As per sources, Aamir Ibrahim has become CMO, Aamer Izhar the Head of Corporate Affairs, Ahmad Jawad will server as Director Procurement.

Earlier today Telenor Pakistan had announced the departure of its CEO, Jon Eddy Abdullah, who is going to join DTAC as CEO, group's telecom arm in Thailand.

Lars Christian, the CMO/VP at Telenor Pakistan is flying back to Norway, after serving for three years in Pakistan. Lars was responsible for Sales, Marketing, product development & product management, Customer care, segments & pricing at Telenor Pakistan.

Aamir Ibrahim will be replacing Lars as new CMO. Aamir had been heading Strategy and Corporate Affairs at Telenor.

Corporate Affairs will now be headed by Aamer Izhar-ul-Haq. He was earlier leading procurement department.

Ahmad Jawad will be replacing Aamer Izhar to head procurement department as Director. He was earlier heading the legal department.

Sources suggest that legal department is yet to be assigned to anyone.

During this managerial reshuffle, we have heard, company may undergo some structural changes as well. For example, corporate communication or PR will come under CEO's office.

CEO, Telenor Pakistan, Moves On!

Posted: 18 Jan 2011 03:33 AM PST

CEO, Telenor Pakistan, Moves On! is a post from: ProPakistani

Telenor Pakistan today announced that its CEO, Jon Eddy Abdullah, is set to leave the company on March 1st.

Jon has been appointed CEO of the Telenor Group's Thai mobile operator DTAC.

"I am very pleased with Jon's achievements as CEO of Telenor Pakistan. Under his leadership the company has strengthened its position as a leading mobile operator, launched several innovative services like easypaisa, and taken a clear position on corporate responsibility", said Sigve Brekke, Executive Vice President of Telenor Group, and head of Telenor's Asian Operations.

"I am excited that the Telenor Group will continue to benefit from his vast telecommunication experience and his knowledge about Asia in another of our Asian markets".

"Even though I am thrilled to take up new challenges, I have to admit that leaving Telenor Pakistan will not be easy. My period here has been very rewarding, and I will take many fond memories with me. In Telenor Pakistan I have had the privilege of working with a highly qualified and dedicated team that has continuously focused on developing services that benefit our customers. The company has experienced fantastic growth since it was established in 2005, and I believe it is well positioned for the future", said Jon Eddy Abdullah

Telenor Group is a global provider of communication services with operations in 12 markets. In Asia the Telenor Group has more than 95 million customers, and operations in Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Pakistan and Thailand. Jon has been CEO of Telenor Pakistan since August 2008.

Jon will succeed Tore Johnsen who has been appointed new CEO of Grameenphone, the leading mobile operator in Bangladesh. Tore Johnsen previously served as CEO of Telenor Pakistan.

Telenor Pakistan has already started the process of finding a new Chief Executive Officer to succeed Jon.

Through our source, we got following email that Jon sent to Telenor employees today:

As I begin to write this note to you, I realize that today is one of the most emotional days of my life. I'm sure you have guessed where this is headed?

I will soon be leaving Telenor Pakistan and moving to Thailand as CEO of DTAC – another successful OpCo within the Telenor Group. This is not only an exciting professional challenge but also a personally blissful move as I am once again united with my family. At the same time, I struggle to find the right words to describe the emotional hurricane stirring within me; saying good-bye to my TP family is much harder than I ever imagined. I will start my new job on March 1; my successor will be announced in due course.

I have transitioned many times between jobs and countries, yet leaving TP feels like I'm leaving something behind. I've never experienced the love, respect, and hospitality that you have so unconditionally given to your leader. The last 2 ½ years have gone by in a flash, yet I can write book after book on some of the unique challenges and scores of achievements I was fortunate enough to share with you.

Let's start with the Tameer Bank acquisition and the launch of Easypaisa. My friends, we are part of creating history. Easypaisa is already on its way of changing lives, empowering people, taking the handset to the next level of utility and functionality, etc. Thank you Lars for your initial support here and thank you Roar for taking it to the next level.

Through my periodic emails you would have been able to gauge the continuing success of this company; but once combined into a 30 month window, it's nothing short of a corporate fairly tale. We grew subscribers from 18 million to 25million, revenue from Rs. 50 billion to Rs.65 billion, EBITDA from 19% to 30%. 2010 become the first year we became operationally profitable. None of this could have happened without your commitment. We broke records, we won awards, we became centers of excellence, and became the No. 1 exporter of talent to the Telenor Group. What a record and you are the talent that made it possible.

General Thank you's

I'd like to thank so many individuals and teams that I'm almost certain I will run out of space and may still make some embarrassing omissions. But I'd still like to have a go at it in any case.

Firstly, the commercial division, thank you for letting me challenge you in the CMMs. Together, we used all the experience we had to stay ahead of the competition, ensuring the customer comes first, and create excitement through our adverts. We not only created "Karo Mumkin" as a slogan but as a way of life at TP.

To the technology division, you transitioned from a greenfield rollout machine to driving efficiency out of your organization, systems and network. It was awesome to see it happen from my position. We showed that IT and Technology conversion is not a futuristic idea but a reality.

To the finance division, you transformed TPs financial story from one of a questionable business case to the "best performing company in Telenor Group" – we grew from strength to strength every quarter – you applied the pressure and gave the support that expedited this process.

To the financial services division, well it goes without saying: you not only beat all local expectations, you were also recognized on the world stage (CNN) as the model of the future. This is a lifelong achievement that can never be taken from you. Wow, Wow, Wow!

To the human capital division, we developed a close relationship in the last 6 months that taught me a lot. Winning awards like "Best place to Work", "Most preferred Employer" is just the beginning. If we stay true to "Care and Growth" and our core values, we are well set on our journey of From Good to Great.

To the strategy and corporate affairs division, you helped me put it all together. You managed our external relationships, kept us out of trouble, and did an excellent job at supporting core businesses while thinking about the new ones. You continued to beat expectations and challenged the status quo. Well done!

Happy Endings

Over the past 2 ½ years we have had a fairly consistent strategy centered on our culture, way of work, and most importantly, our greater Telenor family – our employees. Our only sustainable competitive advantage is our unique organization and our culture – based on 4 simple values. These values must be preserved and lived consistently. Our extended management must continue to exhibit leadership behaviors; our people managers must continue to listen to employees and take sincere action on IVC results.

What a pleasure it was to be your coach, mentor and "Captain of the ship" as we steered a course through countless obstacles. I may not remember each of the achievements but I will never forget how all of you came together as ONE Team, how we did many memorable things together.

Inshallah Telenor Pakistan will continue to be successful; of this I am very sure. And though far away, I will be closely watching TP's progress, with a sense of personal pride and the mistaken belief that maybe I had something to do with it.

Allah Hafiz

Jon

[Official] PTCL Gets new Slogan: Hello to the Future!

Posted: 18 Jan 2011 02:30 AM PST

[Official] PTCL Gets new Slogan: Hello to the Future! is a post from: ProPakistani

PTCL [Official] PTCL Gets new Slogan: Hello to the Future! As we reported earlier, Pakistan Telecommunication Company LTD (PTCL) has today officially announced the new slogan or what they are calling: organization's new "Position Statement" as 'Hello to the Future'.

In a statement issued by PTCL, says that company's new positioning statement illustrates the company's aim to transform the world of telecommunication and the way its customers communicate.

"Hello to the Future" is a fusion of vision, brand philosophy, brand values and strategy.

Statement further says that the positioning statement of PTCL "Hello to the Future" joins two most significant words in the arena of communication i.e. "Hello" that provides the inward communication, a word which is related to the telecommunication history and has been used ever since and will be used in future, whereas through the use of second word "Future" PTCL promises to lead its customers, in to future with futuristic ideas and products.

The newly chosen position statement sums up the PTCL philosophy of providing planned and proactive solutions and products to its customers and holds the promise that PTCL is committed to ensure complete customer satisfaction through innovative and futuristic services and products. It outlines the brand values like evolution, innovation, humanistic trustworthiness and quality consciousness that PTCL cherish and uphold. The two main words chosen for the position statement i.e. 'Hello and Future' together depicts PTCL welcoming nature, customer centric approach and its continuous evolution and achievements to take its customers to the future.

PTCL in this region is the link that allows global communication. That lay upon the company more responsibilities and expectations from our valued customers. Thus PTCL is constantly striving and inclined towards mobilizing the world for the future as the leading Information and Communication Technology Service Provider in the region by becoming partners in innovation; we are ready to shape a future that offers telecom services to bring the world closer.

Naveed Saeed SEVP Commercial said that the new positioning statement of PTCL portrays not only its effective relationship building with its valued customers but also establishes it as a futuristic entity which is working constantly towards inventing paramount solutions for its customers.

Dawn of a New Zodiac Sign: Ophiuchus

Posted: 17 Jan 2011 11:51 PM PST

Dawn of a New Zodiac Sign: Ophiuchus is a post from: ProPakistani

Zodiac dial Dawn of a New Zodiac Sign: Ophiuchus Last night, on a dinner at Zefra while celebrating a fellow Capricorn's birthday, we talked how January is full of birthdays and felt proud that there are just so many Capricorns around.

Someone announced, 'and to continue with our Capricorn birthday celebrations, we shall celebrate Sadaf's birthday day after tomorrow!" Yaaaay! I was so excited to be the concluder of Capricornian circle being born on Jan19th.

But before I could continue doing the proud victory dance in my brains someone said, "Oh, by the way, did anyone of you hear that the Zodiac Calendar is changed as of 2011?"

In the midst of loud, extended 'Whats' and 'Whens' and 'Hows', the breaker of the news said, 'There is addition of a new sign, 'Ophiuchus' and because of that all signs have been shuffled.

So all you proud Capricorns are now the new Sagittarians!" Once again, there were long and unending shrieks but this time they were all "Nooooooooooooooo…"(Silence on the table and all the 5 Capricorns out of 8 people at the dinner were in state of shock) Just then, another friend jumped up and said, 'Oh that makes me the new Capricorn!' (Apparently the previous Aquarian) Shucks!

So, this was the prelude to the impact of the raging news about change in Zodiac Calendar with the addition of the new sign Ophiuchus which has upset every single Astrology following soul on planet Earth.

True, there are many people who do not believe in Astrology as a science or anything that has to do with the stars and what not. But at the end of the day, it all boils down to one's own perception about life and all things related to life. We cannot deny the fact that there are in fact many MANY people who do believe that stars have an impact on one's personality and life (myself being one of them).

So yeah, it did upset me a little that I am no longer representing the strong-headed, ambitious and confident Capricorns that once I was a proud owner of. But on a lighter side, we don't let these things completely rule over our life. Most of us just like to associate ourselves with a star sign because we feel they represent our personalities and in a way we get a chance to form a pseudo community among friends like all Leos always proud of being Leos and always defending each other in a group and so on so forth.

Just in case if you want to learn on how this has happened, BBC notes that Parke Kunkle, an astronomy instructor has pointed out that a wobble in the Earth’s rotation meant that the stars were in a different position – as viewed from Earth – than they were 2,000 years ago when the Zodiac was drawn up. You can follow the complete article here.

Anyways, for those of you who are, like me, followers of Astrology and proud of their previous Zodiac signs, here is where you fall after the addition of the new star, Ophiuchus. On a brighter side, If it can help a little, there are many reports that consider this Zodiac addition as inaccurate. What's your say?

New Zodiac Calendar 2011:

Capricorn: Jan 20 – Feb 16
Aquarius: Feb 16 – March 11
Pisces: March 11 – April 18
Aries: April 18 – May 13
Taurus: May 13 – June 21
Gemini: June 21 – July 20
Cancer: July 20 – Aug 10
Leo: Aug 10 – Sept 16
Virgo: Sept 16 – Oct 30
Libra: Oct 30 – Nov 23
Scorpio: Nov 23 – Nov 29
Ophiuchus: Nov 29 – Dec 17
Sagittarius: Dec 17 – Jan 20.

PTA Continues its Quest of 3G in Pakistan

Posted: 17 Jan 2011 08:15 PM PST

PTA Continues its Quest of 3G in Pakistan is a post from: ProPakistani

Pakistan; a simple nation of 170 million and a bit more, completed a decade of telecommunication change last year.

From the days of landlines and costly cellular services, we are now apparently a mass of 100 million mobile users, connected to our friends, family and the wider world through the power of 5 operators. However, stagnation has begun to infect this process of change as the focus remains limited to the primary purpose of mobile communication: voice, with a hefty sprinkling of SMS.

Over the last few years, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has periodically released statements on the introduction of 3G services within the country. Their initiative towards this upgrade in technology is two-pronged: maintaining parity with the options that are available internationally and enhancing the investment into the telecommunication sector of the country. While the goals are admirable, the PTA's blind chase for short-term benefit continues to push away the mobile operators from any commitment on this project.

3G represents a spectrum allowing for higher speeds of data transmission. On the international front, Hutchison Telecom was synonymous with the technology at the turn of the century, creating the operator 3, with the key facet of video calling. With the advent of mobile internet and smartphones, the need for quick access to information and the ability to use multimedia on devices prompted for further adoption of this technology.

In the first instance for Pakistan, the multi-million dollar license fees that were planned by the PTA have not won them any support from the industry till date. After all, each operator is a business entity that needs to provide a return to its stakeholders on the investment, and PTA's vision does not have the backing of any market analysis at this stage.

A quick scan over the alleged 100 million mobile subscribers reveals the large hindering blocks to any immediate 3G implementation in the country. Only 4% or so are GPRS/EDGE users; that means approximate 4 to 5 million mobile users have access to internet over their devices. This would include the Blackberry service users, who form only a speck in the entire mobile subscriber base. However, the push towards more incorporation of data services has shown an upward trend in the last year or so, with the service operators keen on hooking more users to internet applications and services.

But there is a large gap to cover and it will take time. A major chunk of mobile users are not as tech-savvy or resourceful to purchase and utilize the added services on offer. This has prompted mobile operators to customize their extra services to SMS usage, instead of pure data or internet sessions, and the consistent reluctance to sign up for 3G investment, which is unlikely to be widely adopted by the consumer.

With a new entrant to Pakistan's cellular market extremely unlikely for 3G, the PTA should look into prompting for an improvement to current services, and encouraging operators to increase the bandwidth and coverage of current data services, allowing for better speeds and more consumer access. Jumping stones simply to show the world that we are as advanced as the rest is of no interest to any business entity, least of all, mobile operators.

Time the PTA came out of their glass dome and understood that with a 40% poverty rate, the number of G is far from the mind of the average consumer at this stage.

Zong’s M9 In The Spotlight

Posted: 17 Jan 2011 08:14 PM PST

Zong’s M9 In The Spotlight is a post from: ProPakistani

M9 Zongs M9 In The Spotlight TV screens flashed repeatedly with a strange and appealing ad ahead of New Year. The TVC got aired countlessly with the tagline comment "The life does not sail smoothly as you planned and finally referred to a solution, that is, M9- What is your plan?"

The Campaign:

A different concept and strategy in the cellular world that literally touched the perfectness as the success has become inevitable in few days to attract a huge section of customers.

Zong's brand "M9 – What is your plan?" has been successful in creating its niche space in the immensely saturated market, magnetizing hundreds thousands of customers on its network with its unique offer that provide customers a freedom to plan their own packages.

As per official data, made exclusively available to ProPakistani, the new brand has witnessed the requests of more than 0.3 million online number registrations in just 15 days since it opened booking of numbers on December 30. This showed the average booking rate 2,000 per day in the period.

The brand's catchy advertisements have created persuasive hype among the masses, who click the web-portal as its address was made public in the full commercial advert.

The M9 web-portal, which was exclusively developed for numbers' booking, received overwhelming response and was visited by 275,000 users on the first day, which actually chocked the web server.

The capacity of the portal was enhanced subsequently to facilitate huge number of expected visitors.

The facebook fan page of the brand had garnered more than 5,000 people in first two days. No, the number of fans have now reached 17,500 mark.

Facebook fan page of M9 is holding different competitions for its members. The winners will be receiving scratch cards, iPod Nano and other giveaways.

In contrast, M9 received lukewarm response on Twitter as it has only 505 followers so far.

Zong's officials are very confident over the success of M9 as the customers responses towards service have been increasing with each passing days.

The M9 brand will enhance the subscribers' base of Zong as every customers have to buy a new SIM in order to get self-designed tariff plan.

What is new in M9?

Majority of the people assumed that it is Zong's exclusive brand for youth as if rest of the market players. Though, as saying by officials, it targets "young and energetic customers" who have been looking for affordable tariff plan to meet their daily needs of communication and fun with.

You have to book your number first through web-portal where you first enter your name and given numbers' image into form.

Mr. Waseen Jaffry, a numerologist, will decide your M9 number, which will be lucky for you in the daily life, company claims.

According to him, "Numbers play a vital role in your life, can you imagine forecasting the future on the basis of Numbers, or know about the ups and downs that will come your way."

This is one of the unique techniques to attract a large number of customers particularly those who have a firm believe in horoscopes and the moments of stars.

Though you need to consume few minutes to choose your desired number but you can book five SIMs' numbers at a time.

You can also design your desired number, which could be

Names – e.g. Rehman (this will book the number ’2627336′, if available)
Golden Numbers – e.g. 6667770, 2233445
Important Dates – e.g. Birthdays (this will book the number ’0909830′, if available)
Shorts Phrases – e.g. I Luv U (this will book the number ’4058808′, if available)
Zodiac Signs – e.g. Scorpio (this will book the number ’7267746′, if available)

This is exactly the same concept Zong introduced earlier at its launch.

You need to be patient to get your lucky number's SIM in your hands or you can collect it from nearest franchise.

Customer without connections can not avail lucky number on the advice of numerologist, Waseem Jaffry. Besides, customers can switch over their network and number through MNP.

M9's cross-examination

When you enter the website, a dialer welcomes you with tantalizing green colored images.

The dialer offers customers 12 packages that include voice, SMS, internet and free-minutes options that suit to its daily life needs. Packages are ranged from Rs 0.90 to Rs 2.20/ min. on the top of this, customers will receive daily free minutes based on the usage of previous day.

These 12 packages have been further categorized for customers to choice of free minutes and SMSes as per their convenience.

For instance, An M9 package offers

Call Rate: Rs. 2.20 plus tax per min
SMS: Rs. 1 plus tax per SMS
GPRS: 11 Paisas per 8 KB
Daily Benefit: One free min on using 1 min (Daily benefit is for on net use only and has a validity of 1 calendar day)

This plan comes with following free monthly SMS and minutes, you can choose any one out of following options:

31 Free Minutes
23 Free Minutes + 23 Free SMS
16 Free Minutes + 45 Free SMS
8 Free Minutes + 68 Free SMS
90 Free SMS

The free-minute formula is also the same that the Zong introduced with the voice packages.

However, M9 offers voice bundle for the first time for pre-paid customers as if tariff of post-paid connection. It includes packages with fortnight and monthly validity, which the customer's could avail on the recharge of Rs 200 to Rs1,000.

A subscriber also plan his or her tariff as per limits defined by the company.

M9's Advertisements

The success of the package refers to its different marketing strategy and captivating advertisement campaign.

Starting from December 20, a viral activity was initiated across the country through websites and blogs. Mr Waseem Jaffry portrait was every where in the place of Zong's advertisement without any sign or company's brand name.

The adverts' viral campaign was appealing but a bit confusing as audience had no clue about the product in the face of Waseem Jafrfry.

The teaser's campaign started appearing on the screen with incomplete ads, which was first leaked and then on aired on TV channels.

On January 2, the brand "M9" was revealed completely to the masses with full ads on print and electronic media. Besides, the brand's new ads followed the same trend