There’s a new Payne at the NBN- but he could solve all its worries.
Robin Payne has been appointed NBN Co’s top number cruncher, or Chief Financial Officer, it said today.
Payne has been acting CFO since January following the retirement of Jean-Pascal Beaufret and joined NBN Co in 2009 as General Manager of Planning & Development.
The former KPMG exec was instrumental in developing the company’s initial Corporate Plan and was appointed lead negotiator on the Definitive Agreements with Telstra that were concluded last month.
The appointment comes as NBN has comes under fire from Institute of Public Administration, which branded the $36bn NBN as a policy failure.
NBN Co CEO Mike Quigley describes Payne as “a high calibre executive who has already made an important contribution to the NBN.”
His knowledge of the business and his extensive experience in financial management will be invaluable as the project moves from the planning and design stage to the large-scale rollout of the Australia’s largest infrastructure project.”
Payne worked for a decade at KPMG and 10 years at Macquarie Bank for a ten year stint in the investment banking division.
He was also a co-founder of the Asia-Pacific digital media company, Anytime PTE.
“I’ve inherited a strong finance function and look forward to continuing to work with Mike and the team to deliver value for taxpayers on an infrastructure project that will touch the lives of every home and business in the country,”Payne said.
