Welsh broadband provider appoints CTO and CDO

03 February 2021 | Melanie Mingas

Welsh broadband provider Spectrum has added two new execs to its C-suite leadership team.

Justin Leese (pictured right) joins Spectrum as chief technical operations officer, bringing 30 years of experience from ScottishTelecom (Thus plc), NTL (Virgin Media), mBlox, Ericsson and Openreach.  

Most recently, Leese held the role of programme director at Building Digital UK, part of the UK Government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, where he oversaw a multi-million pound portfolio of digital infrastructure programmes.

Steve Cooper (left), who recently joined as chief delivery officer, joined the firm from WightFibre where he led the delivery of fibre to the premises.

Before that he held the position of executive vice president, Europe, and a member of the global development executive group at Skanska Infrastructure Development. There he headed the company’s European investment business, responsible for an investment portfolio of €600m.

Spectrum said the appointments are part of its ongoing growth, which has seen the firm double in size since last October. It is engaged in a recruitment drive to fill more than 100 newly created senior or specialised roles in the business, with many key positions currently being advertised.

Recent appointments have included that of CEO Ben Allwright, chief revenue officer Sally-Ann Skinner, chief marketing officer Mari Stevens, and chief financial officer Wyn Innes. Spectrum founder Giles Phelps currently serves as the company’s chief strategy officer.