Stephen Rue, the current chief executive of Australia's National Broadband Network (NBN), has been appointed as the new CEO of Optus.

It comes more than six months after former chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin resigned from the job in November over criticism of the way she handled a national network outage last year and a cyberattack in 2022.

Rue, who will commence his new role in November, has been at the helm of the NBN since 2018. His appointment coincides with the introduction of a new governance model at Optus, aligning with the Singtel Group's decentralised, company-driven structure adopted in 2022. Under this new model, the Optus CEO and executives will report to the Optus Board. Rue will join the Board and report to the Chairman.

Optus Chairman, Paul O'Sullivan, said: "Stephen was chosen after a rigorous process that involved a slate of high-quality candidates. We're extremely pleased to have someone of his calibre to lead the next chapter at Optus. His experience in setting up the digital backbone of Australia will serve us well as we reinvigorate Optus as Australia's leading challenger telecommunications brand. We expect Stephen's operational and financial background to lift service standards significantly for the benefit of our customers."

Rue "honoured and excited" to have been given the opportunity. "Optus' continuous investments in critical infrastructure through the years has resulted in an extensive 5G network that is being strengthened in regional Australia. My job will be to take care of Optus' customers, people and business and to provide strong competition and choice. I look forward to accelerating the transformation at Optus so fellow Australians continue to have the choice of a strong alternative telecoms provider and the country as a whole can harness the power of digital connectivity to drive economic participation and social inclusion."

The Optus Board includes Paul O'Sullivan (Chair), Yuen Kuan Moon, John Arthur, Lim Cheng Cheng, and Michael Venter. Venter will continue as interim CEO until Rue assumes his role.

Singtel Group CEO, Yuen Kuan Moon, said: "Optus has been part of the Singtel stable for two decades and remains a strategic long-term commitment. We are extremely excited to have Stephen, with his deep understanding of the industry and strong operational experience to take Optus forward. In today's uncertain economic environment, businesses need greater independence and agility to better navigate the market and we believe the new governance model will set the Optus management up for success and help Optus restore and cement its position as a leading player in the Australian telecommunications market."

O'Sullivan also thanked Venter for his leadership during the interim period. "He has been unstinting in his efforts to rebuild customer trust and strengthen the business and will remain an asset to Optus going forward."

Last week, Optus signed a network sharing agreement with TPG Telecom, expecting to receive total service fees of approximately A$1.6 billion over the 11-year term of the agreement.