Mr Sol Trujillo
Chief Executive Officer, Telstra Corporation Limited
Solomon (“Sol”) Trujillo joined Australia’s leading telecommunications company, Telstra Corporation Limited (Telstra) as its Chief Executive Officer on 1 July 2005.
On 15 November 2005 Mr Trujillo unveiled a five-year strategy to transform Telstra into an integrated, fully converged media-comms company centred on the customer. The end to end transformation affects networks, products, IT systems, customer relationships and workplace culture based on a vision of a new customer experience which is simple, integrated and intuitive - 1-click, 1-command, any-screen, real-time.
Transformation milestones include launching the nationwide wireless broadband Next G™ network on 6 October 2006, the Next IP™ network on 26 April 2007 and the restructure of the business based upon Market Based Management. Telstra has acquired majority holdings in three Chinese internet companies including SouFun, the number one real estate portal, and merged Telstra’s CSL business with New World PCS to create the leading mobile operator in Hong Kong.
On 28 February 2007 the Australian Government divested its remaining 51 per cent stake in Telstra, ending its majority ownership. Investor faith in Telstra’s transformation strategy was recognised by then Finance Minister Nick Minchin, who said: “The switching on of Telstra’s Next G™ network, three months ahead of schedule, was a powerful demonstration of the management’s ability to implement their vision for the company.”
By 2008, Telstra’s transformation had produced world-leading performance among incumbent telco peers in many key metrics including domestic revenue growth, slowing fixed line losses, 3G mobile subscriber penetration and growth in both broadband market share and average revenue per user.
Mr Trujillo has demonstrated his commitment to increasing the breadth and depth of management experience in all companies he has led by raising the levels of ethnic, gender and industry diversity. At Telstra he quadrupled the number of women Group Managing Directors.
In 2008 Mr Trujillo was invited to be a member of the World Economic Forum's steering committee on climate change. This followed Telstra's industry leadership in 2007 in releasing a report titled Towards a High-Bandwidth Low-Carbon Future – Telecommunications-based Opportunities to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions. He was also was elected a member of the GSMA board in 2008 reflecting Telstra's leadership and innovation in wireless broadband development through its nationwide Next G™ 3GSM network.
Mr Trujillo is among the few business leaders who have served as a major-company CEO on three continents
At the age of 32, Mr Trujillo was the youngest Officer in the history of AT&T. From 1992-95 Mr Trujillo was President and CEO of US West Dex Inc. From 1995-1998 Mr Trujillo was President and CEO of US West Communications. From 1999-2000 Mr Trujillo was CEO and Chairman of US West Inc. At US West Mr Trujillo led the deployment of a series of innovative telecommunications products for US West's 30 million customers including affordable high-speed digital access to Internet for business and consumers, incorporating the first “plug and play” DSL; the first “one number” voicemail for home, mobile and office lines; and digital video over copper wires. At the end of his time at US West, these combined achievements led to the former US Presidential Science Advisor, Jay Keyworth, to term Mr Trujillo, “the nation’s first digital telecom CEO”.
Mr Trujillo was the first native born Hispanic-American to serve as CEO of a Fortune 150 company.
Following his role at US West Mr Trujillo was CEO of the hi-tech company Graviton.
In 2001 Mr Trujillo joined the Board of Orange SA, the London-based multinational wireless company with 50 million customers in 19 countries in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Two years later, at the request of the Board, Mr Trujillo was appointed CEO of Orange, becoming the first American to lead a CAC-40 company.
Mr Trujillo has held board memberships in a number of global companies including: PepsiCo, Target, EDS, Gannett, and the Bank of America. Mr Trujillo was also a member of the Chairman’s Advisory Council of Alcatel between 2000 and 2003.
Mr Trujillo has provided policy, trade and economic advice to international and domestic governments, academic institutions and think-tanks including as a: Governor of the World Economic Forum, trustee of Boston College and UCLA’s School of Public Policy, director of the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute, and trade policy advisor to the Clinton and Bush administrations.
Mr Trujillo graduated from the University of Wyoming with a Bachelor of Science (Business) and later an MBA in finance. Mr Trujillo was granted honorary doctorates from both the University of Wyoming and the University of Colorado.
