In a significant leadership reshuffle, Malaysia Airlines is delighted to announce the appointment of industry veteran Dersenish Aresandiran as its new Chief Commercial Officer. The announcement confirms Aresandiran’s remit extends across the businesses under Malaysia Airlines’ banner, including subsidiaries Firefly and MASwings.
Starting from 1st July 2023, Aresandiran will be directly reporting to the CEO, Ahmad Luqman Mohd Azmi, following a decision to transform the Chief Revenue Officer role to Chief Commercial Officer. “We embarked on a comprehensive search and finally landed the perfect candidate,” the memo quoted.
With a rich history at the airline, Aresandiran has offered his expertise to the company for nearly eight years, split between 2007-2011 and 2018-2021. His diverse roles have spanned from revenue management and advertising to global head of commercial planning and revenue management, gaining a deep understanding of the organization’s commercial operations.
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In addition to his tenure at Malaysia Airlines, Aresandiran boasts a robust resume with stints at other major airlines, such as Qatar Airways and airasia. He served in multiple strategic roles, including Vice President of Sales and Head of Commercial Innovation.
Known as an effective leader in the aviation industry, Aresandiran has a track record of driving revenue and market share growth. Notably, his successful implementation of revenue management strategies for new international hubs in Thailand and Indonesia led to significant profit gains within six months of operation.
As the airline continues to revamp its leadership team, Aresandiran’s appointment follows a series of strategic hires. This includes recent entrant Juliana Chua as Head of Brand Strategy and Creative, and the promotion of existing personnel into senior marketing roles.
These changes align with the strategic direction of the Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG), which is implementing a new operating model. This model will facilitate enhanced performance across its profit centres, including airlines, loyalty and travel solutions, and aviation services.
This news is based on information from Marketing Interactive.