Barny Mills, currently CFO of Sky Deutschland, will become the German pay-TV operator’s new CEO.
Mills succeeds Devesh Raj who, after five years as CEO of Sky Deutschland, will move to the UK with his family to take on the role of COO at Sky UK. Mills takes up his new position immediately, but will work closely with Raj to ensure a smooth transition.
Prior to moving to Germany, Mills held various commercial finance, transformation and integration roles at Sky in the UK for over 14 years. He initially took on the role of deputy CFO at Sky Deutschland five years ago, before being appointed CFO three years ago.
“Barny has extensive commercial skills, a deep understanding of the business – particularly in Germany – and a proven track record in developing and optimising our business. He has already made an essential contribution to the planning and implementation of Sky Deutschland’s transformation. I am confident that he will continue Devesh’s successful work,” said Dana Strong, CEO of Sky Group.
“Devesh has led our business in Germany through a significant transformation that has enabled us to make great progress. From the renewal of our partnership with the Bundesliga in 2020, to a significant expansion of our TV content and entertainment offering and the launch of the new streaming service WOW, to a greatly improved customer experience in the service, Devesh has achieved a great deal to be proud of,” added Strong.
Mills said: “I am delighted and honoured to be given the opportunity to lead our business into the future. Having worked at Sky Deutschland for the past five years, I am very familiar with the opportunities and challenges ahead – and I am confident that we have the right strategy in place for the future. Thanks to Devesh’s excellent leadership, I am taking over a strong executive team and a business that is doing well. Together, we will focus on maintaining our top position in sports, strengthening our strategic content partnerships, delivering best-in-class innovative TV products and further enhancing our customer service through digital solutions.”
The successor for the CFO position at Sky Deutschland will be announced in due course.