Australian telecoms Optus head resigns

SYDNEY: The boss of Australian telecoms provider Optus has resigned following a mass outage that cut communications to more than 10 million people, its parent group said on Monday.

Chief Executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin is being replaced three days after she was grilled by Australia’s Senate over a technical glitch in the early hours of November 8 that halted Optus’ mobile and internet systems for nearly 12 hours.

CONSEQUENCES This picture taken on Nov. 9, 2023 shows pedestrians walking past a security guard outside an outlet for the Australian communications company Optus. The chief executive of Optus has resigned following a mass outage that cut communications to more than 10 million people, its parent group said on Nov. 20, 2023. AFP PHOTO

“Having now had time for some personal reflection, I have come to the decision that my resignation is in the best interest of Optus moving forward,” she said in a statement released by parent company Singtel.

Singtel Chief Executive Yuen Kuan Moon said the outgoing Optus chief had led the company through a “challenging period,” including the Covid-19 pandemic, managing to improve the company’s financial performance.

“We understand her decision and wish her the very best in her future endeavors,” Yuen said.

Optus appointed Chief Financial Officer Michael Venter as interim chief executive, in addition to his existing role, while it seeks a permanent replacement.

Optus said the nationwide outage was caused when its routers automatically disconnected after becoming overloaded during a scheduled software upgrade.

Unable to pinpoint the exact cause more than six hours after the outage began, Optus had to perform a hard reset of its systems.