MRC Board of Directors Appoints Global Executive as New CEO
SEATTLE, Jan. 15, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The MRC board of directors today
announced that interim CEO Tom Sullivan will be succeeded by Joe O'Konek as its
new chief executive officer.
A photo accompanying this release is available at
http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=23062
"We are excited to have Joe lead the MRC," said Rossini Zumwalt, chairwoman of
the board of directors. "Like most young and growing trade associations, our
leadership needs have evolved. Joe's more than 20 years of C-suite executive
level experience is exactly what we need to strategically position and grow the
MRC in 2014 and beyond."
Joe is an innovative leader with proven results in strategy, marketing, business
development and operations. The majority of his career has been spent in
wireless/mobility and he has worked globally from Helsinki, Finland to Taipei,
Taiwan. Most recently, Joe was the CEO of CSL, LTD., a subsidiary of Telstra, in
Hong Kong. Previously, Joe held positions as the executive vice president of
3SNetworks, vice president and global head at Nokia Siemens Networks, and COO
and interim CFO at Singlestep Technologies. Joe has also served in senior
executive positions at AT&T Wireless, Far Eastone Telecommunications, Co., Ltd.,
PrimeCo Personal Communications, L.P., and EuroTel Praha.
"We were really looking for someone to take the organization to the next level
as we expand into the mobile era," said Tom Sullivan, interim CEO and co-founder
of the MRC. "We reviewed scores of applicants and Joe's leadership profile not
only met but exceeded the board's needs far more than any other candidate."
"I am proud to join the MRC and humbled to lead a merchant community of global
leading brands," said Joe. "Our membership represents the who's who of the
ecommerce and epayments world; they securely handle billions of transactions
daily touching the lives and pocketbooks of hundreds of millions of consumers.
The rapid advancement of mobile commerce and payments along with the development
of virtual currencies places the MRC truly at the heart of commerce for
everyone, everywhere."
ABOUT THE MRC: The MRC is the foremost global not for profit organization that
fully supports and promotes operational excellence for fraud, payments and risk
professionals within ecommerce. Membership includes nearly 400 of the world's
most prominent merchants, to include 95 percent of the top 20 ecommerce
companies in the world, over 82 percent of the top 50 and over 60 percent of the
top 100, and more than 60 category leading solution providers. MRC members
report 45% less revenue loss due to fraud than non-members, experience more than
50% less manual reviews and boast 50% less fraud related chargebacks.
Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the MRC's European office is located in
Madrid, Spain. Learn more at www.merchantriskcouncil.org.
CONTACT: MEDIA CONTACT: Steven Mandurano
TELEPHONE: +1 206.364.2789 ext. 117
EMAIL: steven@merchantriskcouncil.org
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Source: Merchant Risk Council via GlobeNewswire
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