SAP’s loss became Vodafone Business’ gain, as the operator’s enterprise unit tapped the software player’s European office to source its latest CEO, Marika Auramo (pictured).

The executive is set to take the reins at Vodafone Business on 1 July following a 25-year career spanning various positions at SAP, most recently as chief business officer for EMEA.

Auramo will also join Vodafone Business’ executive committee.

She replaces Giorgio Migliarina, Vodafone Business’ interim CEO since December 2023 when Vinod Kumar departed after four years in the position.

Vodafone Group CEO Margherita Della Valle said Auramo “brings extensive B2B experience from the IT industry” and will be heading up a unit which is a “key growth driver” for the company.

Auramo added Vodafone Business is set for further growth “as large corporates, SMEs and the public sector look to adopt more digital tools”.

Vodafone highlighted the contribution of its business unit to its fiscal Q3 2024 performance, noting it booked a 20 per cent year-on-year increase in cloud and IoT service revenue, and enjoyed a “strong performance in digital services”.