John Brumby
John Brumby has announced that he will retire from the Huawei board in Australia after eight years of service.
Former Premier of Victoria, Brumby said the announcement is completely unrelated to any recent commentary regarding China and Huawei and that his retirement was planned more than a year ago.
“The timing of my retirement from the Board is completely unrelated to any recent commentary regarding China and Huawei," Brumby said. "More than a year ago, I advised the board and Huawei HQ of my intention to retire to make time for new commitments I was taking on in early 2019.
"I remain a strong supporter of closer ties between Australia and China, particularly in the fields of investment, trade, education and R&D."
Brumby joined the company's board in Australia in 2011 and will step down as of 1 March 2019.
“Since we established the board in 2011, our revenue has increased from $229 million in 2011 to $623 million in 2017, a cumulative annual growth rate of 18 per cent per annum," Brumby said. “I have particularly enjoyed being part of a global company leading the world in innovation and technology advancement.
"While we have had some challenging times over the years, Huawei Australia has continued to go from strength to strength, becoming Australia’s largest provider of wireless technology and serving more than half the Australian population."
He also said that Huawei's equipment has supported Optus and Vodafone to drive improvements in service performance.
During his time in the board, Huawei employee numbers in Australia went from 300 to 700. He also served on the company’s Risk and Compliance committee.
