ANNOUNCED a month ago during an investor briefing, Manny V. Pangilinan has made good on his promise, officially stepping down from his post as president and chief executive officer of PLDT Inc.
Succeeding him is Al S. Panlilio, the telecommunications firm’s chief revenue officer. Panlilio is also concurrently the president and CEO of Smart, as well as president of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas.
The transition was made official in PLDT’s annual stockholder meeting.
"I must confess, I have big shoes to fill, as you have set the bar so high,” Panlilio said at the meeting. “And I'm honored to follow the most remarkable leader. Your leadership made PLDT what it is today.”
For his part, Pangilinan said: “This decision is made less difficult by the knowledge that Al, with his long experience with PLDT and his competent qualities, would be able to take my place forthwith without interruption or detriment to the progress PLDT has made.”
The business tycoon also expressed his full support for Panlilio.
MVP, as Pangilinan is often called, will stay on as the company’s chairman.
Pangilinan leaves behind a company positioned stronger than ever in the pandemic. In its last quarter financial results, PLDT reported a 9 percent year-on-year growth in core income.
It is also allocating a capital expenditure of up to P92 billion to sustain its network upgrades.
As part of his initiative as the new top brass at PLDT, Panlilio said that he will focus on improving the overall customer experience.
“If there is one area where we should be world-class in, it should be customer experience," said the new CEO.
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