Jabbor Kayumov is to depart as CEO of Digicel Jamaica, just over two years after taking up the post.

In a release, Digicel said Kayumov had decided to step down “having played a pivotal role in positioning Jamaica to take advantage of opportunities in the booming digital economy, while setting new standards in service innovation and delivery”.

He will hand the reins over to long-time Digicel leader, Stephen Murad.

Jabbor joined Digicel in June 2018 as CEO of Digicel Trinidad & Tobago.

“His two-and-a-half-year tenure there, followed by two plus years leading Digicel Jamaica, saw him turning his customer obsession into tangible benefits for consumer and business customers in the form of new products and services. Jabbor placed an even greater focus on value and significant network expansions and service improvements – all of which translated into better performance and a better experience for customers,” Digicel said.

“Since taking the role of CEO of Digicel Jamaica in November 2020, Jabbor has made a similarly positive impact. With the recent Christmas trading period success testament to his dedication and focus, he previously delivered on reaching 99 per cent population coverage for superfast LTE mobile data service, and further expansion of the true Fibre-to-the-Home Digicel+ service to over 100,000 households, especially in rural communities. Throughout, he made time to give back to the community serving as a very active member of the Digicel Jamaica Foundation board.”

Murad has held a a number of senior commercial roles for Digicel Group, based in Jamaica, and has served in CEO roles for Digicel at the regional level and in the Turks & Caicos Islands and, most recently, Bermuda.

He has been with the Digicel family in the Caribbean for eight years, having previously spent nearly a decade with O2 in the UK in a variety of senior commercial roles.

In bidding farewell to Digicel, Jabbor commented: “My five years in Digicel have been the most exciting and rewarding in my professional life, to date. From the opportunity to experience the vibrant cultures of the Caribbean, to serve and delight customers in an ever-more complex digital world and to find new and innovative ways for us truly to connect with each other, the journey has been a memorable one. I’m proud of what I managed to accomplish in T&T and Jamaica during my years as CEO. I’m especially pleased with what the Digicel Jamaica team has achieved in the last few years and I know that they will be in great hands with Stephen at the helm.”

Commenting on the transition, Digicel Group CEO Oliver Coughlan, said: “With the Digicel Jamaica business going from strength to strength and our highly skilled teams dedicated, motivated and delivering excellent outcomes for our customers and our communities, Jabbor has much to be proud of. As we say farewell to him and wish him well in his new adventure with his family in Dubai, I would like to thank him most sincerely.”

And, in welcoming Murad, he said: “I am confident that Stephen will build on the great work that Jabbor has done and that customers will continue to enjoy and benefit from the best service, network and value promise that we are always laser focused on delivering for them. Stephen is an engaged and empathetic leader and a standout performer – and even better, he loves Jamaica. He is raring to go and we are excited to welcome him to the Jamaica team.”