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Heidrick & Struggles Strengthens Board with Appointment of AI and Talent Leaders Aseem Datar and Leanne Wood

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4 months ago

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New Appointments Bring Strategic Expertise to Support Firm’s Next Chapter of Growth

CHICAGO, June 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Heidrick & Struggles today announced the appointments of Aseem Datar, Corporate Vice President, AI Platform and Quantum at Microsoft, and Leanne Wood, former Chief Human Resources Officer at Vodafone, to the firm’s Board of Managers, the company’s governing body. The appointments follow the recent designation of Tom Monahan, who continues to serve as Chief Executive Officer of Heidrick & Struggles, as Vice Chairman of the Board, alongside the appointment of Tom Murray, President of Heidrick & Struggles, to the Board. Together, these appointments further strengthen the Board’s expertise across technology, leadership, talent, and organizational transformation as the firm enters its next phase of growth as a private company.

Datar and Wood bring significant expertise across technology innovation, leadership, organizational transformation, and global business strategy as Heidrick & Struggles continues advancing its long-term growth strategy and leadership advisory capabilities worldwide.

“We are delighted to welcome Aseem and Leanne to our Board of Managers,” said Tom Monahan, Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman of the Board of Heidrick & Struggles. “Our Board’s expertise reflects some of the most consequential forces shaping the future of leadership and business today. Aseem’s experience at the forefront of AI innovation and enterprise technology, combined with Leanne’s distinguished leadership across talent, culture, and organizational transformation, will provide invaluable perspectives as we continue investing in innovation and helping clients navigate increasingly complex leadership challenges around the world.”

Datar is Corporate Vice President, AI Platform and Quantum at Microsoft, where he leads the company’s strategy and execution across advanced AI and next-generation computing. Over more than two decades at Microsoft, he has scaled some of its most significant businesses, holding senior leadership roles in business and product strategy, operations, and cloud and AI platform growth — including as Chief Operating Officer for Microsoft Azure. He also brings experience working with emerging technology and venture-backed companies through his time at Madrona Venture Group.

Wood is an accomplished global business and board leader with extensive experience across talent strategy, organizational transformation, and corporate governance. Most recently, she served as Chief Human Resources Officer at Vodafone, where she led global people and organizational transformation initiatives across more than 100,000 employees and operations spanning Europe and Africa. Her experience also includes global senior leadership roles at Burberry and Diageo, where she helped guide complex business transformation, leadership succession, and culture initiatives. She also brings prior board experience, having served as Chair of Vodafone Shared Operations Limited and as a Non-Executive Director at Compass Group and Vodacom Africa.

“As Heidrick & Struggles continues building on its strong market position following the recent transition to private ownership, attracting world-class leaders to our Board remains a critical priority,” said Carmine Di Sibio, Chairman of the Board of Heidrick & Struggles. “Aseem and Leanne each bring highly relevant experience across technology innovation, talent leadership, and organizational transformation that will help guide the firm as it continues investing in innovation and delivering exceptional value for clients globally.”

Following the company’s take-private transaction led by Advent International, Corvex Private Equity, and a global network of strategic investors in late 2025, Heidrick’s Board of Managers reflects a combination of firm leadership and investor representation alongside independent business leaders. The Board is chaired by Carmine Di Sibio, Operating Partner at Advent International and Former Global Chair and CEO of EY. Tom Monahan, Chief Executive Officer of Heidrick & Struggles, was recently appointed Vice Chairman of the Board, and Tom Murray, President of Heidrick & Struggles, was recently appointed to the Board. Additional Board members include Joe Costa, Managing Partner of Corvex Private Equity; John DiCola, Managing Director at Advent; Mark Dirzulaitis, Director at Advent; and Chris Satti, President of Salem Capital Management. Chris Egan, Managing Partner at Advent, and Paul Yun, Managing Director at Mousse Partners, serve as Board observers.

About Heidrick & Struggles 
Heidrick & Struggles is the world’s foremost advisor on executive leadership, driving superior client performance through premier human capital leadership advisory services. For more than 70 years, we have delivered value for our clients by leveraging unrivaled expertise to help organizations discover and enable outstanding leaders and teams. Learn more at www.heidrick.com.

Media Contact
Bianca Wilson
Global Director, Public Relations
Heidrick & Struggles 
bwilson@heidrick.com 

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Melody Party Offers Over 20,000 Songs and Adds More Than a Thousand New Tracks Monthly, Enhancing Its Online Karaoke Experience

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October 27, 2026

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SEOUL, South Korea, Oct. 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Melody Party is a music social app featuring a variety of activities, including Mic Grab, Artist Mafia, and Singing Battle. Through its online karaoke feature, SING A SONG, the app brings the traditional karaoke experience online, removing time and location constraints and offering a music experience that combines real-time singing with social interaction.

SING A SONG features an extensive library of more than 20,000 songs, with over a thousand new songs added every month. Its diverse selection includes popular K-pop tracks, classic Korean songs, and karaoke favorites. The feature offers a free-use model, allowing users to start singing their chosen songs without paying a separate fee. This helps reduce the time and cost associated with visiting traditional coin-operated karaoke venues, making it easier to enjoy singing as part of everyday life.

In terms of functionality, SING A SONG supports pitch adjustment and independent volume controls for vocals and accompaniment, allowing users to customize their singing experience according to their preferences. Users can also create online karaoke rooms, invite friends to sing together in real time, and enjoy voice chat and social interaction.

By continuously expanding its song library and offering diverse music-based interactive experiences, Melody Party continues to strengthen its music ecosystem. Through SING A SONG, the platform aims to create an accessible, highly interactive online music social space.

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SOURCE Melody Party

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Drawing new strength from 20-year legacy, IAACA calls on global counterparts to join annual conference to fortify integrity

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October 27, 2026

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MARRAKECH, Morocco, Oct. 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA), an independent and non-political anti-corruption organisation with over 190 member anti-corruption authorities (ACAs) worldwide, will co-host IAACA Annual Conference 2026 in Marrakech, Morocco next month together with the Independent Commission Against Corruption of Hong Kong, China (ICAC) and the National Authority for Probity, Prevention and Fight Against Corruption of Morocco (INPPLC) to chart a path for the global graft fight and explore cutting-edge approaches to tackle emerging corruption challenges.

Themed “Building on 20 Years of Legacy: Drawing Strength from the Past, Guarding Global Integrity for the Future”, the international event will not only mark the 20th anniversary of the IAACA, but also provide a dynamic forum for IAACA members to exchange insights and enhance co-operation.

Calling on international counterparts to participate in the conference scheduled for November 25, IAACA President Mr Woo Ying-ming, who also serves as ICAC Commissioner, said that “As the IAACA marks its 20th anniversary, the conference will bring together global anti-corruption community at a pivotal moment for collective action. I anticipate that the valuable insights and new approaches generated through the international synergy will chart a resilient strategic path for us to navigate integrity risks and draw strength from our shared legacy to guard global integrity for generations to come.”

During the conference, renowned international experts from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Basel Institute on Governance, the International Anti-Corruption Academy, and global anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies and institutions will shed light on harnessing artificial intelligence in the fight against corruption, safeguarding integrity within global climate and biodiversity frameworks and analysing global corruption measurement and systemic effectiveness.

Following the conference, the ICAC, the INPPLC, the IAACA and the UNODC will co-organise a training seminar on leveraging AI in combating corruption.

While the ICAC and INPPLC will share how AI and new technology can reshape the future of anti-graft enforcement and corruption prevention, the UNODC will provide a global perspective on using AI models in financial crime investigations and addressing the operational relevance, legal robustness and adaptability across jurisdictions.

For details of the conference and training, please visit:
https://www.icac.org.hk/icac/iaaca-morocco-2026/index.html

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SOURCE International Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities (IAACA)

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Viettel moves 100 million subscribers to home-grown cloud-native charging in three months – with zero downtime

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54 minutes ago

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October 27, 2026

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HANOI, Vietnam, Oct. 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Viettel High Technology Industries Corporation (Viettel High Tech), part of Viettel Group, has migrated more than 100 million subscribers and some 5,000 tariff plans at Viettel, Vietnam’s largest mobile operator, to vOCS 4.0, its in-house cloud-native charging system. The three-month cutover ran on a live national network with no service disruption.

Replacing a charging system is one of the riskiest projects an operator can undertake, which is why many stick with legacy platforms. Viettel High Tech reduced the risk through real-time data synchronization, parallel running and a phased cutover, with instant rollback at every stage.

The project won the Telecom Review Excellence Awards 2026 prize for Best Technology Deployment in Asia, a first for a Vietnamese company.

What it means for operators:

Scale: more than 300,000 transactions per second at latency below 5 milliseconds, across 2G–5G and fixed services on one platformLower cost: up to 50% less hardware investment than the previous generation, by sharing infrastructure with the networkAgility: new tariff plans in hours instead of days, new features three times faster and deployments about 30% fasterResilience: two active data centers about 2,000 km apart and automatic recovery in under two minutes

Viettel High Tech developed every core layer in-house, from a telecom-grade cloud-native platform and NFV-MANO orchestration to real-time charging, subscriber and balance management.

“Passing rigorous tests of real-time self-diagnosis and self-recovery is what allows an operator to keep its promise of 24/7 service to customers,” said Luu Manh Ha, CEO of Viettel Networks, which operates the system on Viettel’s network in Vietnam. “Above all, owning the charging system means an operator is not dependent on foreign vendors – it safeguards digital sovereignty and preserves business flexibility.”

“The charging system is where an operator’s business strategy turns into revenue in real time,” said Nguyen Minh Quang, CEO of Viettel High Tech. “We believe vOCS 4.0 is ready to help operators worldwide capture the value of 5G and digital services.”

In 2017, vOCS 4.0’s predecessor, vOCS 3.0, replaced a foreign vendor’s platform for 90 million Viettel subscribers. Across both generations, vOCS serves more than 220 million subscribers in 11 countries. Viettel High Tech now offers vOCS 4.0 to operators worldwide.

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SOURCE Viettel Group

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