Annual Report 2020

SANTISUK KLONGCHAIYA CEO, AirAsia Thailand Thai Santisuk Klongchaiya, male, 55, served as Head of Commercial & Ancillary and Director at Thai AirAsia Co, Ltd from 2007 before succeeding Tassapon Bijleveld as the CEO in May 2018. He has also been promoted to the CEO of Asia Aviation Company Limited – a holding company which owns a majority stake in AirAsia Thailand – after having been its Director since 2011. Santisuk is entrusted with the responsibility of superintending all operational aspects of the company, contributing his vision and management and marketing acumen to steer the airline toward stable and sustainable growth. He has ingrained strong rapport and AirAsia’s can-do spirit into the company, driving its strategic and commercial successes. Having played a pivotal role in the airline’s growth since its inception when low-cost airlines were still a novelty, Santisuk has applied his creativity and keen eye for opportunities to strengthen AirAsia as an eminent and trusted brand, eventually standing out from its peers in the aviation industry. He conceptualised the Truly Low Fares, Trusted Quality campaign to establish AirAsia Thailand as a carrier that offers quality service including punctuality, attention to safety and an extensive network of destinations. The campaign established AirAsia Thailand as an airline of value, growing its loyalty, market share and maintaining it as a leader. Prior to joining AirAsia Thailand, Santisuk was a Marketing Manager at Reebok Wongpaitoon Footwear Plc from 1996-2000. In 2001, he was appointed the Marketing Director at Warner Music (Thailand) Co, Ltd and he eventually became Managing Director in 2003. Mr Santisuk received a Master of Science in Marketing from Thammasat University, and prior to that, graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration with a Marketing Major from Assumption University (ABAC). VERANITA YOSEPHINE CEO, AirAsia Indonesia Indonesian Veranita Yosephine Sinaga (Vera), female, 43, joined AirAsia Indonesia as its CEO in 2019. Under her leadership, the airline has enjoyed exceptional growth in both the domestic and international segments, and within the first year itself achieved superior operational performance and customer satisfaction. The only female airline CEO in Indonesia, Vera also chairs the Scheduled Airlines at Indonesia National Air Carrier Association (INACA) and is driving collaboration with government and private partners in Indonesia and beyond to accelerate the recovery of the travel and tourism sectors along with that of Indonesia’s economy in general. In her role as CEO, she is responsible for delivering the company’s mission to keep flying affordable in Asean’s largest market while playing an integral role in leading local transformation efforts in Indonesia as the company expands beyond air transport to offer travel, lifestyle and financial services. Vera holds an MBA from INSEAD, and a Bachelor of Industrial Engineering from Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Indonesia. She is a strong people, diversity and inclusion leader, and in 2016 was recognised by UN Women with the HeForShe award for her contributions towards a more gender-equal world. Vera joined AirAsia after spending more than 18 years in the fast- moving consumer goods (FMCG) sales industry. She served as Sales Director at Kraft Heinz Indonesia, where she led company growth and market penetration in top categories; and also spent a number of years with Danone Waters Indonesia as well as British American Tobacco Indonesia. 45 ANNUAL REPORT 2020