Avaya Continues Leadership Team Transformation with the Appointment of a Chief People Officer

Rhea-AI Summary

Avaya has announced the appointment of Kamilah Thomas as the new Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer (CPO), effective June 3. Based in Morristown, New Jersey, Thomas will lead Avaya's global human resources and culture transformation efforts, directly reporting to CEO Alan Masarek. Thomas, who brings over 20 years of global HR leadership experience, will focus on advancing the company's culture and DEI&B initiatives. Her previous roles include SVP, People and Workplace Experience at Roku and Chief People Officer at Dow Jones & Company. This leadership change is a part of Avaya's ongoing efforts to evolve its workplace into a dynamic and inclusive environment.

Positive

• Appointment of Kamilah Thomas as CPO, bringing over 20 years of HR leadership experience.
• Thomas' leadership in DEI&B efforts aims to create a more inclusive work environment.

Negative

• Potential concerns about continuity and experience gaps during the leadership transition.

Kamilah Thomas Brings a Wealth of Experience to Avaya by Continuing to Evolve the Company’s Culture while Better Aligning People and Processes

MORRISTOWN, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Avaya, a leader in enterprise CX, announced the continuation of its leadership transformation with the appointment of Kamilah Thomas who joined the company on June 3 as Senior Vice President and Chief People Officer (CPO). Based in Avaya’s corporate headquarters office in Morristown, New Jersey, she will report directly to Avaya CEO Alan Masarek.

Thomas brings more than 20 years of global human resources leadership and organization transformation expertise. She oversees Avaya’s global human resources organization and culture transformation to advance the company’s Destination Place to Work journey, which marks another step in the company’s ongoing mission to continue to deliver high-performance culture. As part of her role, she leads the company’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEI&B) efforts including Avaya United employee resource group communities to create an equitable and inclusive work environment and culture.

“Kamilah’s extensive experience in transforming organizations and building inclusive cultures is the right fit for Avaya,” said Alan Masarek, CEO of Avaya. “Her leadership will be instrumental in advancing Avaya’s efforts as we accelerate the evolution of our workplace into a more dynamic environment where every employee can thrive.”

Before joining Avaya, Thomas was SVP, People and Workplace Experience at Roku. She delivered organizational scale growing Roku’s workforce by 56 percent while contributing to profitable growth. Prior to Roku, she served as Chief People Officer at Dow Jones & Company, who along with the C-suite, played an integral role in transforming the organization into a digital-first/forward enterprise while supporting over 7,000 employees across 50 markets. At A+E Networks, she was the Co-head of the People & Culture department, where she facilitated a CEO transition, and led the transformation of HR for more than 2,000 employees.

Thomas serves on the Boards of Directors for MasterCraft Boat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: MCFT) on its Compensation & Corporate Governance and Nominating committees.

She joins Avaya on the heels of Avaya ENGAGE® ─ the premier event where CX-savvy customers converge, reinforcing the company’s unwavering commitment to shaping the future of Enterprise CX through not only its solutions, but its people, as well.

About Avaya

Businesses are built by the experiences they provide, and every day, millions of those experiences are delivered by Avaya. Avaya is shaping the future of customer experiences, with innovation and partnerships that deliver game-changing business benefits. Our communications solutions power immersive, personalized, and memorable customer experiences to help organizations achieve their strategic ambitions and desired outcomes. Together, we are committed to helping grow your business by delivering Experiences That Matter. Learn more at http://www.avaya.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements discussed in this release as well as in other reports, materials and oral statements that the Company releases from time to time to the public constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the “PSLRA”). Generally, words such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “could,” “intend,” “believe,” “plan,” “target,” “forecast” and similar expressions or the negative thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements reflect management’s current expectations, strategic objectives, business prospects, anticipated economic performance and financial condition and other similar matters. Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or expected by the management of the Company. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual events or results may differ significantly from these statements. Actual events or results are subject to significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the Company’s control. It should be understood that it is not possible to predict or identify all such factors. Given these risks, investors and analysts should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of the document in which they are made. The Company disclaims any obligation or undertaking to provide any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law. These statements constitute the Company’s cautionary statements under the PSLRA.

All trademarks identified by ®, TM, or SM are registered marks, trademarks, and service marks, respectively, of Avaya, LLC. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Source: Avaya Newsroom

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240702867435/en/

Avaya Corporate PR:

corpcommsteam@avaya.com

Source: Avaya

FAQ

Who is the new Chief People Officer of Avaya?

Kamilah Thomas has been appointed as the new Chief People Officer of Avaya, effective June 3.

What experience does Kamilah Thomas bring to Avaya?

Kamilah Thomas brings over 20 years of global human resources leadership experience to Avaya.

What will Kamilah Thomas focus on at Avaya?

Kamilah Thomas will focus on advancing Avaya's culture and leading DEI&B initiatives.

How might the appointment of Kamilah Thomas impact Avaya?

The appointment of Kamilah Thomas is expected to positively impact Avaya by enhancing its workplace culture and inclusivity.

Why is Kamilah Thomas' appointment significant for Avaya?

Kamilah Thomas' appointment is significant because her extensive HR leadership experience will aid in transforming Avaya's workplace into a more dynamic and inclusive environment.