Lazarus appointed chief officer for sales at Cell C

Cell C has snapped another former Vodacom executive, adding to its already extensive list of new hires in the past nine months as the mobile operator positions itself beyond a debt-ridden past. 

On Monday, SA’s fourth largest mobile operator announced the appointment of Chris Lazarus as chief officer for sales, distribution and regions, reporting directly to its CEO.

Lazarus is a 30-year veteran of financial services and telecommunications, with his most recent role being chief enterprise officer at Safaricom Ethiopia. He played a key role in establishing Safaricom’s telecom business in that country in 2022 as part of Vodacom’s expansion into Ethiopia, a market of 120-million people.

Before Safaricom, he was with Vodacom overseeing corporate sales, going on to lead regions such as Gauteng, Limpopo and eventually KZN as managing executive.

“Under his leadership, these regions experienced exceptional growth, maintaining robust market shares, and fostering unwavering customer loyalty. Particularly noteworthy was his impact in KZN, where Chris spearheaded the expansion of network infrastructure, achieving an impressive 98% 4G population coverage and pioneering the launch of 5G in 2020,” Cell C said. 

The mobile provider’s leadership has undergone a shake-up in the past year. 

A year ago, CEO Jorge Mendes left Vodacom after 23 years, taking over at Cell C in June after the sudden exit of Douglas Craigie Stevenson in March. Mendes’s appointment at Cell C was followed by the exit of Lerato Pule. 

Former MTN SA CEO Godfrey Motsa and Maya Makanjee, the former group chief officer for corporate affairs at Vodacom, recently joined the Cell C board as the operator seeks to increase growth and steady investor confidence.

The mobile provider also recently appointed El Kope as its CFO. 

Mendes said Lazarus’s “extensive experience and proven leadership will be instrumental in driving our sales, distribution, and regional strategies forward, ultimately delivering exceptional value to our customers and stakeholders”.

Lazarus’s qualifications include an MBA from Henley Business School in the UK and completion of the advanced executive programme at Unisa. 

All this comes as Cell C’s largest shareholder, Blue Label Telecoms, gets ready to take control of the mobile operator. The group has applied to SA’s telecom regulator to raise its 49.53% stake to about 53%.

The group, run by brothers Mark and Brett Levy, completed the long-awaited recapitalisation of the troubled mobile company in September 2022. The mobile network operator has struggled to make a profit since it opened for business in 2001.

gavazam@businesslive.co.za