BT Announces Philip Jansen as Chief Executive

BT Group has announced the appointment of Philip Jansen as chief executive.

Jansen will be appointed to the board as an executive director on January 1, and following a handover period will take over from Gavin Patterson as chief executive.

Philip joins BT Group from Worldpay, the global payments services group, where he will be stepping down as co-chief executive at the end of the year. Philip has been chief executive of Worldpay since 2013, leading it through its flotation in 2015, until its combination with Vantiv in 2018. He previously served as CEO and then chairman of Brakes Group and has held a variety of senior roles in Sodexo Group, latterly as chief operating officer and CEO for Europe, South Africa and India. Earlier in his career Philip was chief operating officer of MyTravel PLC and managing director of Telewest Communications PLC’s Consumer Division. He started his career with Procter and Gamble.

“The Board is delighted to have appointed Philip as our new Chief Executive,” said Jan du Plessis, chairman of BT Group. “He is a proven leader with outstanding experience in managing large complex businesses. Philip’s strong leadership has inspired his teams, successfully transformed businesses across multiple industries and created significant value for shareholders. His most recent success at Worldpay, a technology-led business, means he is well suited to build on the solid foundations that are in place at BT. I look forward to working with him to position BT at the heart of the UK’s digital economy.”

“I’m honored to be appointed as the next Chief Executive of BT Group,” Jansen added. “BT is a special company with a wonderful history and a very exciting future. It has built a leading position across fixed and mobile networks, creating an opportunity to deliver increasing benefits for our customers, the UK economy and our shareholders. In a competitive market we will need to be absolutely focused on our customers’ needs and pursue the right technology investments to help grow the business. I’m excited to get to know all the people at BT and work together to take the business forward.”

Gavin Patterson will continue to serve as chief executive until January 31, 2019.