Reid was appointed interim CEO in May 2016, when Liberty Communications completed its $7.4 billion takeover of C&W. He replaced Phil Bentley, who had been appointed CEO when C&W moved from London to Miami.
Reid came into the C&W in 2015 when the Caribbean and central American operator bought Columbus Communications, of which he was president and COO.
Mike Fries, CEO of Liberty Global, welcomed the appointment. “This is a time of meaningful change and development for C&W, and I am excited for the expertise and continuity that John brings to this growing region," he said.
Reid’s job is to align the formerly UK-based C&W with Liberty’s Latin America and Caribbean division, whose shares are traded as the LiLAC Group. He will focus on triple-play, mobile data and fixed-mobile convergence, said Liberty, and on business-to-business and wholesale opportunities in the region.
Before being made interim CEO of C&W, Reid was president of its consumer division and was part of the team that achieved more than $100 million in synergies in less than 18 months following the Columbus transaction. C&W agreed to buy privately owned fibre operator Columbus in November 2014 for $1.85 billion.
Reid began his telecoms career with Canadian cable TV operator Persona Communications, of which he became vice president of sales and marketing in 1996. He is also chairman of Bahamas Telecommunications Company, 49% owned by C&W.