BAT appoints three locals to top positions

THE British American Tobacco (BAT) PNG has announced the appointment of three locals to the executive management positions within its PNG and Solomon Islands operations.
These appointments were testament to BAT’s ongoing commitment towards developing local talent and preparing them for leadership roles within the business, the company said.
BAT PNG has exported eight of its local staff to other South Pacific markets over the past three years and would continue to drive the development agenda to ensure that it had a sustainable pipeline of high quality talent to meet the growing demands of the business.
Starting April 1, George Panao will assume his role as general manager for the BAT operations in the Solomon Islands  (Solomon Islands Tobacco Co).
Panao became the second Papua New Guinean to take up the role of general manager in BAT’s operations in the South Pacific, following BAT Fiji’s Michael Penrose.
Ellenor Iutiko will assume her new role as the human resources manager (HRM) in BAT PNG upon the departure of the current HRM. 
The third appointee is Ako Toua, who replaces Panao as the corporate and regulatory affairs manager in PNG.