Telstra names new chief information officer

Telstra has named Patrick Eltridge as its new CIO following the departure of John McInerney in June.

Telstra chief operations officer, Michael Rocca, said Eltridge would bring strong IT experience the banking sector with a focus on customer service, reliable online operations and simple processes to Australia’s largest telco.

“I am pleased to announce that Patrick Eltridge joins us from Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore, starting as CIO on 22 November 2010,” he said in a message to Telstra employees.

“Patrick is ideally suited for Telstra’s CIO role as his wide experience in the banking sector includes managing significant system changes, performing in a global architectural role and operating in a customer facing business unit. Patrick’s deep knowledge and support of a customer led business with a particular focus on online customer experiences and workforce productivity will add significant value to the position.”

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Eltridge will join the Telstra operations leadership team, which was recently reorganised to better integrate its network and information technology services to meet customer demand. The telco recently established two new lines of business — architecture, online and media, and networks and access technologies.

The end-to-end accountability for the design and delivery of IT infrastructure and datacentres will now sit with IT to make the most of virtualisation and cloud services, Rocca said.

“Our focus in Telstra operations is to deliver the IT, architecture, technologies and access that help deliver products and services like the T-Hub and T-Box to consumers; T-Suite to business; and IP and cloud to enterprise and government.”

Eltridge will play a key role in enabling the transition to more customer-centric services. Rocca also thanked acting CIO, Ashley Lazaro, who moves to the position of eExecutive director, IT Infrastructure and Services.

Eltridge has more than 20 years experience in financial services and technology. He has previously held roles at the Standard Chartered Bank with responsibility for strategy, architecture and design for consumer Banking and as Group Chief Architect, from 2008 – 2010. He spent four years as the CIO for business and consumer banking at Westpac and four years as CIO at Seek.

John McInerney quit the role of CIO at Telstra in June, less than two years after being appointed to the position by then-CEO, Sol Trujillo.