The appointment coincides with the re-election of Chairman Steffen Roehn, and a rapid period of growth for TM Forum including over 100 new members
London, United Kingdom — July 20, 2021 — TM Forum, the industry association driving digital transformation through collaboration, announces Koen Vermeulen, Orange Chief Information Officer, and Senior Vice President of Orange Innovation IT and Services, to its Board of Directors. The appointment of Koen Vermeulen comes as part of a period of momentum at TM Forum including a recent partnership with the Tech Talent Charter to help drive inclusivity and diversity in the telco industry, the addition of over 100 new members during 2020_21, increased high-impact co-innovation through its global Catalyst program and industry defining advancements to achieve its zero-touch objectives through its Open Digital Architecture (ODA).
Koen Vermeulen brings a wealth of experience spanning 20+ years in telco and the internet industries, alongside innovation and digital transformation, to TM Forum’s Board of Directors. Specifically, he expands on the Board’s knowledge of delivering innovative B2C and B2B communication services. Under his leadership as CIO at Orange in France, he has accelerated the implementation of a digital and information strategy that is transformative in its ambition to deliver cutting-edge solutions for global customers.
The Board, which also includes senior executives from Axiata, BT, China Mobile, Deloitte, Deutsche Telekom, Ericsson, Huawei, Microsoft, Nokia, Oracle, Telenor and Verizon, has overall responsibility for TM Forum on behalf of its more than 850 members. Its key responsibilities are to determine how the Forum will serve the industry, set strategy, direction, and priorities, and guide strategic initiatives. Of the now 15 board members with the appointment of Koen Vermeulen, 10 have recently been reappointed to a further two-year term with four members at the mid-term stage. The continued terms of the senior executives already on the Board shows the strength of the various trustees and their commitment to continue bringing value and innovation to the industry.
On his appointment, Koen Vermeulen comments: “The worldwide telco movement for digital transformation will require companies to evolve, rethink traditional models and adopt new activities. We need open innovation and collaboration to drive industry transformation, which is exactly what TM Forum is doing. I am honoured to join the Board and share my ambition for the industry and contribute to the work the Forum is achieving.”
Alongside continuing vice chairs, Harmeen Mehta, Chief Digital and Innovation Officer, BT and Michael Lawrey, Former TM Forum Chairman, the board chairman is Steffen Roehn, Partner of Bain & Company, a top management consulting firm. Steffen Roehn was first appointed Chairman in 2019 and has also been re-elected by unanimous vote until 2023. Under Steffen Roehn’s leadership, the Board has increased membership growth and satisfaction, and collaboration across many initiatives, including Diversity and Inclusion, ODA, an annual Digital Transformation World Series event and the high-impact co-innovation global Catalyst program, contributing to TM Forum’s growth and success.
“Telco operators are the backbone of digital society, but they often struggle to change course rapidly, innovate effectively and scale fast. The initiatives and frameworks we are building at TM Forum offer a smart way out. Communication Service Providers can leverage all the new software capabilities out there across our telco and solution provider members. This vision for industry-wide co-innovation – made by our members for our members and beyond – is at the heart of what TM Forum and the Board of Directors are trying to achieve. Both the Board of Trustees, and I, are very pleased to welcome Koen to join the movement and assist us in achieving our goal of industry-driven digital transformation”, remarks Roehn.
TM Forum is due to release further announcements about the progression of ODA, its growing manifesto signatories and how it’s becoming a driving force in enabling the competitive agility, innovation and growth our industry so desperately needs. An ODA business value co-written whitepaper with Accenture launches later this month.
About TM Forum
TM Forum is an association of over 850 member companies, which include 10 of the world’s top 10 network and communications providers and stretch across 180 countries. Our members tap into each other’s collective experiences and abilities to collaboratively solve complex industry-wide challenges, deploy new services and create technology breakthroughs to accelerate change.
We help communications service providers (CSPs) and their suppliers to digitally transform and thrive in the digital era. We do this by providing an open, collaborative environment and practical support which enables CSPs and suppliers to rapidly transform their business operations, IT systems and ecosystems to capitalize on the opportunities presented in a rapidly evolving digital world. Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Learn more at www.tmforum.org.
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About TM Forum’s Open Digital Architecture (ODA)
TM Forum’s ODA is a blueprint for modular, cloud-based, open digital platforms that can be orchestrated using AI. ODA replaces traditional operational and business support systems with an innovative approach to building software for the telecoms industry, opening a market for standardised, cloud-native software components, and enabling communication service providers and suppliers to invest in IT for new and differentiated services instead of maintenance and integration.