Asia Pacific & Japan (APJ) hyperscale data centre specialist, AirTrunk today announced the executive appointment of Laura Coad as Chief Data Centre Officer, responsible for the operations of AirTrunk’s rapidly growing data centre portfolio across the region.
As one of its first employees, Laura joined AirTrunk from Digital Realty in 2016 and has played an integral role in the growth of the business to become one of the largest data centre operators in APJ, with currently 11 facilities and over 1.4 gigawatts (GW) of total platform capacity.
Since 2016, in her role as General Manager – Operations, Laura established the AirTrunk data centre operating model and mobilised operations in multiple new markets, ensuring both operational and customer service excellence across all of the company’s data centres.
In her role as CDCO, Laura will report to AirTrunk founder and chief executive officer Robin Khuda and is responsible for the company’s asset management, facility operations, service delivery and security across Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.
Robin Khuda, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of AirTrunk, said: “Laura began with AirTrunk during the start-up phase as our fifth employee, and has been instrumental in our rapid expansion across APJ. With a focus on operating excellence and resilience, in her role as Chief Data Centre Officer, she will lead one of the region’s largest data centre operating platforms and play a key role in supporting the operations of our global technology customers.
“Laura’s appointment exemplifies AirTrunk’s employee value proposition, Grow@Hyperscale, as she has progressed to our executive team through a development pathway that built on her strong leadership skills, a relentless customer focus and drive for empowering teams and delivering results.”
Laura commenced her role as Chief Data Centre Officer in late 2023 and was named on Capacity Media’s 20 Women to Watch Power List for 2024.