The Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price is edging lower today.
Shares in the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) telco closed Friday trading for $4.61. In morning trade on Monday, shares are changing hands for $4.60 apiece, down 0.2%.
For some context, the ASX 200 is up 0.4% at this same time.
This comes amid news of a major leadership change at the company's digital infrastructure solutions business, Telstra InfraCo.
Here's what's happening.
Telstra share price slips despite Microsoft leadership score
The Telstra share price is slipping after the company announced (in a release labelled non-price sensitive) that Telstra InfraCo CEO Brendon Riley will retire on 30 September.
Steven Worrall will replace Riley and commence on 1 September. Worrall is currently the managing director of Australia and New Zealand Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ: MSFT).
"Under Brendon, Telstra InfraCo was launched and is now a strong digital infrastructure business. I'm looking forward to Steven building on this to further develop Telstra InfraCo's leadership and credentials," Telstra Group CEO Vicki Brady said.
And the Telstra share price could get some ongoing support from Worrall's extensive experience.
Brady added:
Steven's approach to partnerships, such as Microsoft's $5 billion Australian investment in cloud computing and AI infrastructure, coupled with his experience leading and growing technology and software businesses are great fits for our ambitions for Telstra InfraCo.
She noted that Worrall's current team at Microsoft consists of more than 3,000 people who support 10,000 partners and software vendors building or selling on Microsoft's platform in Australia and New Zealand. Prior to this, Worrall held a number of senior roles at IBM (NYSE: IBM).
In farewelling Riley, Brady pointed to his "significant contributions" to Telstra over his 13-year tenure.
That included Riley's leadership in building Telstra InfraCo's portfolio, capabilities, and credentials as a leading investor and operator of Australia's digital infrastructure.
Brady said:
We will miss his passion for the company, commitment to the development of its talent, his advocacy for customers and regional Australia, and the important role he has played as a senior leader.
We all wish Brendon the very best as he moves to the next stage of his career as a non-executive director and advisor.
What's the latest from the ASX 200 telco?
The Telstra share price closed up 5.6% when the telco reported its half-year results on 20 February.
Highlights included a 0.9% year-over-year increase in total income to $11.8 billion. And with operating expenses falling, underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) were up 6% to $4.25 billion.
On the bottom line, net profit after tax (NPAT) was up 7.1% year over year to $1.1 billion.
With today's intraday dip factored in, the Telstra share price is up 25% over 12 months.
