Nation Media Group (NMG) has formally announced the exit of Chief Executive Officer Joe Muganda, who is set to become Vivo Energy Managing Director from 1st February. In a communication at an ad hoc staff meeting held on Monday afternoon, NMG Group Chairman Wilfred Kiboro said Muganda, who joined the media house in July 2015, will officially depart on January 31.
As predicted by Business Today, Kiboro said Group Finance Director Stephen Gitagama will act as CEO as the board seeks Mr Muganda’s substantive replacement. Group Editor-in-Chief Tom Mshindi, a former Standard Group CEO, is among those tipped to replace Muganda.
Mr Kiboro said during his tenure, the outgoing CEO presided over a business re-engineering strategy to position the company firmly on a digital growth path.
“Mr Muganda has aggressively driven our product portfolio review, presided over a general restructuring and re-oriented the business to seize the opportunities presented by the digital disruption in the media sector,” said Mr Kiboro in a statement read on his behalf by Group Human Resources Director David Kiambi during a seven minute-staff meeting.
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“He will leave a leaner, nimbler organisation whose future commercial success is already evident in the positive trajectory of returns from the investments in digital initiatives. We wish him well in his future pursuits,” he added.
Mr Kiboro assured all NMG shareholders, stakeholders and the public that corporate leadership changes are normal and that the transition will be seamless and expeditious. “We wish to reassure our stakeholders that we continue to be committed to delivering value in line with their expectations,” he added.
As NMG CEO, Muganda presided over a radical restructuring programme that saw the closure of three radio stations -Nation FM and QFM in Kenya, Rwanda’s KFM – and hybrid television channel, QTV resulting in the redundancy of over 100 journalists. More than 30 journalists were laid off in another rationalisation programme effected in November last year.
Mr Muganda also implemented a newsroom convergence project that saw various desks merged to serve its print, electronic and digital outlets pushing out more staffers.
Employees at Nation Centre are said to be elated over the bean-counter’s impending departure. One of the employees asked Muganda whether he had been fired to which he said he had resigned.
Meanwhile, Muganda will take over at Vivo Energy on February 1, as managing director. In a statement, Vivo Energy noted that Mr Muganda brings a wealth of experience from this and various other roles, primarily within the FMCG sector.
These include Kenya Breweries Ltd. where he was the Managing Director and British American Tobacco (BAT) where he held a number of different roles including General Manager for the Southern Africa Markets, Head of Corporate Affairs, Regional Manager – Africa and the Middle East, and senior marketing and brand roles. Before BAT, he previously worked in Barclays and Unilever.
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Mr Muganda holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Financial Management from the University of Buckingham and an MBA from the University of Leicester, both in the UK.
Commenting on the appointment, David Mureithi, Executive Vice President, Vivo Energy East and South Region, said: “I am delighted to welcome Mr Muganda as the new Managing Director of Vivo Energy Kenya. When he joins in February his vast experience will bring great added value to Vivo Energy Kenya, allowing the company to build on its previous success, as he steers the company to meet its ambitious goals.”
