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Costa Group hires chief digital officer with BBC pedigree

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Rahul Chakkara - tasked with putting digital communications at the heart of customer engagement, operations and service
UK telecom veteran Rahul Chakkara is joining the recently formed Costa Group Digital Unit in Hamburg as chief digital officer, reporting to Costa Group ceo Michael Thamm.

Chakkara is a top leader with international experience who will drive Costa's growth by putting digital communications at the heart of customer engagement, operations and service, and employee experience, according to Thamm.

Chakkara was at TalkTalk PLC, a telecom company in the UK, where he led the digital transformation in the consumer division. Previously he was gm, future media at the BBC and played a leading role in the development of BBC iPlayer and Youview.

The Costa Group Digital Unit was founded in the spring to support Costa Cruises, Costa Asia and AIDA Cruises by using digital innovation, products and technologies to improve customer engagement and satisfaction. The unit also is intended to support environmental, safety and security processes within the Costa Group.