Harmeen Mehta, Chief Digital and Innovation Office is leaving, Howard Watson to pick up the slack until a permanent replacement is found
BT Group has announced changes to its Strategy and Change, and Digital units. Harmeen Mehta, Chief Digital and Innovation Officer, will leave BT Group. Howard Watson, will step into the breach. He is Chief Networks and Security Officer and will lead Digital in the interim, alongside his current role, while BT recruits a permanent successor.
Tom Meakin, whom CEO Allison Kirkby (pictured) appointed in April as interim Chief Strategy and Change Officer, will be appointed to the role permanently from 1 November. This was just two months after Kirkby stepped into her role. Meakin joined from McKinsey & Company, where he was a senior partner leading its Consumer Tech and Media industry practice. He will also be responsibility for innovation and strategic partnerships, which at the moment sit within the Digital unit.
As a result of these changes, Digital’s focus will be on BT Group’s digital transformation.
Kirkby said, “These changes are important steps towards simplifying BT Group and in providing more focus on our digital transformation. Tom has been a hugely valued member of my team since he joined earlier this year, and I am thrilled that he’s joining us permanently.
“Harmeen was instrumental in creating and running Digital and has built some great digital foundations which will accelerate BT’s modernisation. I’d like to thank Harmeen for her energy and passion as leader of our Digital unit over the last three and a half years, and I wish her every future success for her next digital chapter.”
Meakin added, “By bringing together strategy, change, innovation and partnerships in one place we will ensure everything we do helps us to deliver on our ambitions and work more effectively as one company. I’m excited to be joining BT Group on a permanent basis, and I’m looking forward to being a part of this brilliant team.”
“Building Digital at BT has been an inspirational journey and I have enjoyed every moment of it. I wish the incredible team here continued success in their digital journey at BT Group,” Mehta said. She joined BT with much fanfare from Bharti Airtel in India three and a half years ago.