Etisalat Group has announced the appointment of Dr. Daniel Ritz as its Group Chief Strategy Officer (CSO). This appointment came as a result of the new phase the company was pursuing to strengthen its position regionally and globally.

Ritz is an expert in international telecoms, IT and media. He was employed byEtisalat from SwissCom, enriched with 20 years of professional experience engaged with leading international organisations with experience in driving new business development through multibillion mergers and acquisition and joint ventures.

Dr. Ritz served as chief strategy officer at SwissCom and led an effort to reorganise group strategy and corporate venturing. During his previous engagements with SwissCom, he was also entrusted with the job of Chief Executive Officer of SwissCom Slovakia, where he initiated and led turnaround of underperforming businesses.

Commenting on the appointment, Ahmad Abdulkarim Julfar, Etisalat’s group chief executive officer said: “The appointment of Daniel Ritz as group chief strategy officer is at the heart of Etisalat’s strategy to attract the best talent, and will bring further impetus to the realisation of the Etisalat Group strategy as it aims to become one of the world’s leading telecommunications companies.

“With the wealth of experience Ritz has, we are confident that Ritz will be a great value to help lead the company to the next phase ahead. Daniel will help Etisalat to focus on optimisation and value creation from its operations in the existing markets, grow in adjacent opportunities and selectively expand beyond the 18 countries,” Julfar added.

In his first statement following the appointment, Daniel said: “I’m pleased to be selected by Etisalat Group as a chief strategy officer and the entrusted confidence in me by the company to lead the group strategy to the next phase.” Ritz added “It is a pretty big responsibility yet I’m glad to have the chance to be part of it and excited as it’s going to be an interesting journey. I look forward to it.”

Dr. Daniel has studied at the University of St. Gallen and graduated with a degree in Information Management and a Doctorate in Business Economics.