Openreach CEO stands down

Olivia Garfield

BT Openreach has a new chief executive (CEO) after Steve Robertson, who led the group since its 2006 inception, decided to step down.

Olivia Garfield, currently BT director of strategy and regulatory affairs, will take over from Robertson.

Garfield will oversee BT's ambitious broadband project, which plans to deliver fibre connections to two-thirds of UK homes and businesses by the end of 2015.

"Competition in UK telecommunications has led to low prices and innovative new services, and my aim is to ensure that continues," Garfield said.

"Fibre broadband is the future and I am determined to make it available to as many homes and businesses as possible via a wide range of providers."

So far, Openreach has made fibre broadband available to four million premises.

Ian Livingston, BT CEO, said Robertson had decided "it was time to pass over to someone else to take the business on to the next stage of transformation."

"Steve Robertson became chief executive of Openreach before it was set up - he effectively created a new division of the group," Livingston added.

"His achievements at the helm of Openreach have been tremendous."

Tom Brewster

Tom Brewster is currently an associate editor at Forbes and an award-winning journalist who covers cyber security, surveillance, and privacy. Starting his career at ITPro as a staff writer and working up to a senior staff writer role, Tom has been covering the tech industry for more than ten years and is considered one of the leading journalists in his specialism.

He is a proud alum of the University of Sheffield where he secured an undergraduate degree in English Literature before undertaking a certification from General Assembly in web development.