Suphachai Chearavanont

Suphachai Chearavanont

Born	(1967-03-24)March 24, 1967 Bangkok, Thailand
Nationality	Thai
Occupation	President and CEO of True Corporation Plc

Suphachai Chearavanont (Thai:ศุภชัย เจียรวนนท์) (Chinese:謝榕仁) President and CEO of True Corporation Plc, one of Asia's leading telecommunications groups. He is also Vice Chairman of Charoen Pokphand (CP) Group and oversees CP Group's Sustainability, Good Governance and Corporate Communication (SGC) office. Born on March 24, 1967, Suphachai is the fourth child of Dhanin Chearavanont, Thailand's wealthiest billionaire, CEO and chairman of CP Group, one of the world's largest agro-industrial conglomerates, and Khunying Tawee Chearavanont. Suphachai Chearavanont graduated from Boston University, United States with a bachelor of business administration in financial management. He is married to Busadee Chearavanont (Mahapan) and the couple has two sons and a daughter.

Under Suphachai's leadership, True Corporation grew 1,000% from sales of less than $300 million to over $3 billion within less than 10 years. Since founding the wireless carrier arm in 2003, True saw its subscribers increase from 0 to 24 million under Suphachai's leadership. It also saw subscribers for Pay TV, True Visions, increase from less than 200,000 households, to some 1.6 million households.

Early career

While in the US after graduating, Suphachai was an intern at a petrochemical factory in Houston Texas. On his return to Thailand he gained work experience at Siam Makro, a company in which CP Group was then a shareholder. He also gained financial experience by working with Soltext Federal Credit Union in the US and Vinylthai, one of Thailand’s leading petrochemical companies. He joined TelecomAsia Corporation, Thailand’s largest telecommunication company, in 1992 and worked his way up from a Senior Officer to senior management where his positions included chief operations and planning officer, executive vice-president for business, and senior vice-president for planning, project coordination and support.^[1]^[2]

He also served as chief operations officer of UTV Cable Television and founded a number of subsidiaries for the TelecomAsia Group, such as Asia Wireless Communication Company Limited, a PCT (Person Communication Telephone) operator; Asia Infonet Company Limited, which operates internet businesses; Asia Multimedia Company Limited, a broadband operator; and Wire and Wireless Company Limited, a construction and distribution business.

Professional career

Starting the telecommunications business

The years 1992 to 1996 were a boom era for the Thai telecommunications industry. The government had granted concessions to allow the private sector to invest in fixed-line, mobile and other new telecom services. Many private companies received both domestic and overseas loans to invest in the Thai telecom business. CP Group was one of the few privately owned Thai companies with the potential to operate such a business and it was invited to compete with foreign companies in a bid for concessions, which CP Group won.^[1]

Suphachai first worked in the company’s operations room and gradually gained knowledge about the fixed-line business where he worked as the senior officer for the president’s office. He was promoted until he was responsible for managing network rollout, being responsible for the overview of the business and for leading the installation of a network of 2.6 million fixed-line phones. The network was successfully installed within two years.^[2]

As with most Thai companies, TelecomAsia was affected by the 1997 Asian financial crisis which saw the Thai Baht collapse from 25 Baht/USD to 55 Baht/USD. The company’s debt almost doubled to around 90 billion Baht and it was unable to repay its obligations within the due date and had to negotiate delayed repayment and enter a restructuring process.

Suphachai explained to creditors that the fixed-line business was still growing and that evolving technology would lead to the development of data services which TelecomAsia would be able to commercially exploit. The creditors approved TelecomAsia’s restructured debt-repayment program.

Once the economy had recovered from the Asian financial crisis, the company developed a diverse range of new marketing activities which helped improve its financial position and revenue base. In 1999 Suphachai was promoted to the position of President and CEO.

Recovery and consolidation

In 2003, Suphachai and then TelecomAsia invested heavily in building up the country's third national wireless carrier, over a decade behind competitors. TA Orange grew rapidly during its first years under heavy and innovative marketing campaign.

Suphachai and TA Orange soon ran into trouble when France Telecom acquired Orange (UK) and France Telecom refused to increase capital and funding into the TA Orange joint venture. TA Orange, thus, was unable to keep up with competitor investments and expand its network fast enough.

In 2005, TelecomAsia finally struck a deal to buyout France Telecom's stake in TA Orange for 1 Thai Baht. Upon the buyback of TA Orange, TelecomAsia transformed itself into "True Corporation". It rebranded under a fresh and modern logo. It consolidated into True Mobile, which evolved from TA Orange, and True Online, which evolved from TelecomAsia's internet broadband business. Suphachai soon also took a controlling stake in UBC, then the country's leading independent pay TV provider, and transformed it into True Visions.

Under Suphachai's leadership, TelecomAsia transformed from a fix line phone provider to Thailand's leading telecommunications conglomerate, being Thailand's largest internet service provider, cable/pay TV provider, and the country's third largest wireless carrier with some 24 million subscribers. Under his leadership, True Corporation grew 1,000% from sales of less than $300 million to over $3 billion within less than 10 years.

In June 2015 Suphachai was presented with the “2015 Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Telecom CEO of the Year” award at The Asia Pacific ICT Awards in Singapore for his leadership and outstanding achievements in developing the telecommunications industry within the Asia Pacific region. He was selected as the award recipient by a panel of judges comprising top executives from leading telecommunications companies across the region as well as analysts from Frost & Sullivan.^[3] In the same month, Suphachai was elected President of The Telecommunications Association of Thailand under The Royal Patronage.

Work experience

2015: Vice Chairman, Charoen Pokphand Group
1999–Present: President & CEO, True Corporation Plc.
2006–Present: Chief Executive Officer, True Visions Plc.
2002–Present: Chief Executive Officer, True Move Co., Ltd.
2011–Present: President & Chief Executive Officer, Real Move Co., Ltd.
2001–Present: Chairman, Pantavanij Co., Ltd.
2000-2005: Chairman, Freewill Solutions Co., Ltd.
1999–Present: Chairman, Wire & Wireless Co., Ltd.
1997: Senior Executive Vice President, TelecomAsia Plc.
1996:
- Executive Vice President, Business Operations, TelecomAsia Plc.
- President, Asia Multimedia Co., Ltd.
1995:
- General Manager, East Region, TelecomAsia Plc.
- Chief Operating Officer, UTV Cable Network Plc.
- Managing Director, Wire & Wireless Co., Ltd.
1994: Senior Vice President, Planning and Project Coordination & Support TelecomAsia Plc.
1993: Vice President, Operations Room, TelecomAsia Plc.
1992: Senior Officer, President’s Office, TelecomAsia Plc.
1991: 2 years with Vinythai Co., Ltd.
1990: 1 year with Soltex Federal Credit Union, USA
1989: 1 year with Siam Makro Co., Ltd.

Directorships

True Corporation Plc
True Move Co., Ltd.
True Visions Plc.
and other subsidiaries of True Corporation Plc.
Pantavanij Co., Ltd.
Asia Freewill Co., Ltd.
CPPC Plc.
Freewill Solutions Co., Ltd.
C.P.Pokphand Co., Ltd.

Other memberships and positions

2015–present: Counselor and Advisory Board Member for One Young World Summit 2015
2015–present: President of The Telecommunications Association of Thailand under The Royal Patronage
2010–Present: Advisor to Executive Chairman of Rajaprajanugroh Foundation
2010–Present: Committee of Ramathibodi Foundation
2010–Present: Committee of Bangkok Art and Culture Centre
2009–Present: Board Member of Board of Trustees, Bangkok University
2008–Present: Member of Fund Raising and Public Relations Committee for the Construction of a Medical Facility in Honor of HM The King and the Purchase of Medical Equipments
2008–Present: Member of Management Committee on Nation-Wide Strategic Approach Eye Provisioning Project
2006–Present: Chairman of the Sub Committee for Fund Raising, Thai Red Cross Eye Bank
2006–Present: Member of the Thai Red Cross Eye bank Committee
1999–Present: Director & Advisor of the Telecommunications Association of Thailand under the Royal Patronage (TCT)
2005-2007: Member of the Listed Companies Association (LCA)
1996 to 2000: Advisor to the President of the House of Representatives (Wan Mohamad Noor Matha)

Honors and awards

2016 : Honorary Doctorate degree in Mass Communications from Ramkhamhaeng University
2015 : Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Telecom CEO of the Year at The Asia Pacific ICT Awards in Singapore.
2013 : Asia Brand Management Innovation Personality Award from the 8th Asia Brand Award held in Hong Kong.
2012 : Thailand's Best Human Resources Practitioner Award 2012 under the category of CEO and HR professionals from Human Resources Institute, Thammasat University
2011 : Role Model 2011 by 360ํ Manager Magazine.
2008 : Top 10 Role Model 2008 by the readers of Manager Magazine.
2006 : Telecom Man of the Year from the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology of Thailand
2006 : Priew Award (Business & Marketing)” from Priew Magazine

Awards and recognitions received by True Corporation Plc.

Under the leadership of Suphachai Chearavanont as President and CEO since 1999, True Corporation Plc has won many awards and recognitions from various local and international organizations:

2014

Thailand ICT Excellence Awards from the Thailand Management Association
- "Problem Notification via GIS" project by True Information Technology Co., Ltd. won Best Award in the Internal Process Development category.
- "True HR Mobile Application" project by True Corporation Plc won an Honorable Award in the Innovation category.
The 42nd International Exhibition of Inventions 2014 Innovation Awards
- True's Autistic Application was awarded the Gold Medal for Software and Communication Technology at the 42nd International Exhibition of Invention 2014 in Geneva organized by the Swiss Government and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). True was the only telecommunications company from Thailand that received a gold medal.
Frost & Sullivan Thailand Excellence Awards for Business Operations Excellence
- TrueOnline was awarded “Thailand Broadband Service Provider of the Year” for outstanding broadband services
- True Internet Data Center (True IDC) was awarded “Thailand Infrastructure Service Provider of the Year” for cloud computing excellence.
HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn’s Award for Marketing Excellence at the Thailand Corporate Excellence Awards.

2013

2013 Frost and Sullivan Thailand Excellence Awards
"ICT Tam Dee Pue Sangkom" Awards for Plookpanya Media and Autistic Application under the Plookpanya Project from Thailand ICT Management Forum & Thailand ICT Excellence Awards held by the Thailand Management Association (TMA).
TrueMove H Call Center and TrueOnline Call Center received COPC Customer Service Provider (CSP) Standard 2012 as the first contact centers in Thailand.
Trusted Brand Platinum Award 2013 in the Internet service provider category for TrueOnline and Trusted Brand Gold Award 2013 in the phone service category for TrueMove H. The award was held by Reader’s Digest and the survey was conducted to consumers from 8 countries in Asia.
Thailand Corporate Excellence Awards 2012 (Marketing Excellence) for five consecutive years and Thailand Corporate Excellence Awards 2012 (Corporate Improvement Excellence)
“Top 500 Asia Brand” awarded to True Group by the Asia Brand Association in China. True Corporation is the only Thai telecommunication company to achieve the set standards.
“The Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards 2013” for “Novice Monks Cultivate Dharma Wisdom Year 2”. This was the sole outstanding program from Thailand and the Asian region qualified for the TV Documentaries and Reports category, Education Branch, which was a testimonial on a global scale of quality content and received a lot of interest from international media present at the event.

2012

“Marketing Excellent Award” awarded to True Group by the Thailand Management Association and Sasin Graduate Institute of Business Administration. True Group is the only Thai telecommunications company to win this award for 4 consecutive years.
“Occupational Health and Work Environment Award” in the safety category awarded to True Corporation Plc by the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare of Thailand. True has won this award for 7 consecutive years.
“ICT Good for Society Award” awarded to True Corporation Plc at the ICT Excellence Awards for its WhiteNet project which helps filter out offensive websites and is continuously updated. The ICT Excellence Awards is organized by the Thailand Management Association (TMA), the National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC), Software Park Thailand, and Thammasat University.
“Trusted Brand 2011 Platinum Award” in the Internet service provider category awarded to True Corporation Plc and “Trusted Brand 2012 Gold Award” in the phone service category (fixed line or mobile) awarded to TrueMove by Reader’s Digest Thailand.
“Thailand Data Center Services Provider of the Year” awarded to True Internet Data Center by Frost & Sullivan.
WBA WiFi Industry Award “Best Next Generation Hotspot (NGH) Initiative” category awarded to TrueMove H by the Wireless Broadband Association (WBA)

2010

“Business Excellence Enabler Utilizing Communications Technology” in the service category awarded to True Group at the ICT Excellence Awards. The ICT Excellence Awards is organized by the Thailand Management Association (TMA), the National Electronics and Computer Technology Center (NECTEC), Software Park Thailand, and Thammasat University.
“Contact Center Best Practices (Outsourced) – Large Call Center” bronze medal awarded to True Touch, a subsidiary of True Corporation Plc, by The Global Association for Contact Center Best Practices & Networking.
“Best Overall Call Center” awarded to TrueMove iPhone Care Center by the Call Center Industry Association of Thailand.

2009

“Sama Kunupakarn Award” awarded to True Corporation Plc by the Ministry of Education of Thailand for promoting a knowledge-based society.
True Corporation Plc was ranked first in “Thailand’s Most Innovative Companies” organized by Chulalongkorn University and Krungthep Thurakij newspaper.

2008

“Thailand’s Most Innovative Company” awarded to True Corporation Plc by The Wall Street Journal Asia. True was also ranked as the country’s 7th most admired company.
“Best Contact Center (Thailand)” awarded to TrueMove Assistant 2222 by the Asia Pacific Contact Center Association Leaders (APCCAL)
First runner up in “Best Outsourcing Partnership” awarded to True Touch, a subsidiary of True Corporation Plc, at the Top Ranking Performers in the Contact Center Industry, Asia Pacific Region.

Awards summary 2000-2007

“Best Competitive Carrier” awarded to True Corporation Plc by Telecom Asia Magazine for 3 consecutive years (2004–2006)
“Most Promising Service Provider” awarded to True Corporation Plc by Frost & Sullivan at the Frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific Technology Awards 2005
“Disclosure Award for Good Corporate Governance” awarded to True Corporation Plc by the Thai Institute of Directors with the support of the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) and the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). True has won this award for 3 consecutive years (2002–2004).
True Corporation Plc was listed among Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu’s “Technology Fast 500 Asia Pacific” ranking for the fastest growing companies for 3 consecutive years (2002–2004).
True Corporation Plc was voted by consumers as one of Thailand’s Superbrands in the Reader’s Digest Asia Superbrands Survey 2004.
True Corporation Plc won the award for Good Cooperate Governance in 2002 from Euromoney magazine.
True Corporation Plc was ranked among the top 10 leading Thai companies by Far Eastern Economic Review magazine in 2000.

Keynote addresses and distinguished lectures

Keynote address on "Leading the Leaders" at CP ALL Academy Conference Center on January 23, 2016

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vrZbKKzWc8

Keynote address on "Modern Agriculture and Developing Sustainable Agriculture at CP ALL Academy Conference Center on January 22, 2016

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ou5oWUm5qrg

Special Session: True Connectivity at the One Young World Summit 2015 held in Bangkok, November 18–21, 2015

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MhqMbSFmVk&index=24&list=PLp7iueYZU6DxUeguFfJWcdT4aNxPpettv

Speech given on 5-04-2012 Subject: Innovation for Thai Business Survival Seminar: Business Innovation and Strategy for Future Venue: Siam Boromrajakumari Building, National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA) Host: National Institute of Development Administration (NIDA)

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AfQU2ByanY&list=PLOihEINzqHlnnLzwa-w1bKb588vmUMdTX

Speech given on 5-10-2011 Subject: Opportunities for Thai Businesses under the New Government Seminar: “Thailand: Moving forward with the New Government” Venue: Plaza Athénée, A Royal Méridien Hotel Host: Siam Commercial Bank

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYEuISUBCdA&list=PLOihEINzqHlmI0rGzLDXB7YYi-YkybWgk

Speech given on 14-05-2011 Subject: “Tribute to the King of Thailand” Seminar: Day of Vesak Celebrations & Buddhist Conference Venue: The United Nations Conference Centre Hall Host: Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYbj98O8Mzs&list=PLOihEINzqHlmTcHyg-HV3JywHJqaj0CFl

Speech given on 02-04-2011 Subject: “Leader” Seminar: “Management for the Change in Private Sector” Venue: Conference Room, Kaosod Building Host: Right Livelihood Foundation and Matichon Group

Link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=deKeaszKWWA&list=PLOihEINzqHlk7BaxhJlpEsa1EfuOKMs52

References

1 2 Supattha Sukchoo and Napaporn Chaikhankaew, May 3, 2012. http://www.gotomanager.com/news/printnews.aspx?id=94068
1 2 Pattanapan Wongpan and Disanee Nakcharoen., Suphachai Chearavanont: Dream Catcher CEO Making of True.
↑ "Frost & Sullivan Award 2015".

External links

Interview

Translated from

สัมภาษณ์พิเศษ. "ศุภชัย เจียรวนนท์" กลุ่มทรู บทเรียนและสิ่งที่ได้เรียนรู้จากวิกฤต ธุรกิจปรับแผนกระจายความเสี่ยง. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.prachachat.net/news_detail.php?newsid=1321066936&grpid=no&catid=06 (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

สุภัทธา สุขชู และ นภาพร ไชยขันแก้ว. Right Man?. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.gotomanager.com/news/details.aspx?id=94068 (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

สุภัทธา สุขชู และ นภาพร ไชยขันแก้ว. ROLE MODEL 2011 ศุภชัย เจียรวนนท์. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.gotomanager.com/news/details.aspx?id=94067 (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

สุภัทธา สุขชู และ นภาพร ไชยขันแก้ว. มุมเล็กๆ กับชีวิตในแบบ “ศุภชัย”. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.gotomanager.com/news/details.aspx?id=94070 (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

ศรินทร เอี่ยมแฟง. ศุภชัย เจียรวนนท์ ซีอีโอนักปลูกปัญญา. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.trueplookpanya.com/true/guidance_detail.php?cms_id=9748 (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

Articles

รายงานพิเศษ. นิตยสารผู้จัดการ360องศายกย่องคุณศุภชัยเป็นRole Modelแห่งปี2554. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.wearecp.com/tabid/233/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/23044/language/en-US/360Role-Model2554.aspx (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

เกี่ยวกับผู้บริหาร คุณศุภชัย เจียรวนนท์. [ออนไลน์].

เข้าถึงได้จาก: http://www.wearecp.com/tabid/280/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/1195/-.aspx (วันที่ค้นข้อมูล: 3 พฤษภาคม 2555).

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