Telstra's Pretty good for Fujitsu

Pretty will replace Alan Baxter, who hardware and services giant Fujitsu said in a statement this morning had resigned. Baxter had served on Fujitu's local board since March 2004.

In the statement, Pretty said he had known Fujitsu for many years and had "always admired its focus on innovation and technology leadership."

Pretty said he looked forward to working with local Fujitsu chief executive Rod Vawdrey and other board members. "Locally, Fujitsu is a company on the ascendancy," he said.

Pretty retired from Telstra in August 2005, just two months after denying reports he had resigned.

The departure comes in the wake of Telstra's new management, which is headed by CEO Sol Trujillo, who came on board last July.

During Pretty's eight years at Telstra he held various senior roles, with the most recent being group managing director of the telco's Technology, Innovation and Products division.

He was also chairman of Telstra's media and directories business, Sensis.

This morning's statement said Pretty would continue to maintain his existing roles as a consultant to Macquarie Bank and chairman of real estate information business RP Data.