Alibaba names Michael Evans as president

Alibaba Group has appointed Michael Evans as president with immediate effect.In this new role, Evans will be responsible for leading and executing Alibaba Group’s international growth strategy to globalize the company and grow the business outside of China.Reporting to Alibaba Group CEO Daniel Zhang, he will harness Alibaba Group’s leading platforms with direct access to 350 million Chinese consumers to drive increased levels of cross border commerce between China and the world.Meanwhile, Evans will continue his service as a management member of the Alibaba Group Board, having previously served as an independent director since the company’s initial public offering in September 2014.The appointment highlights Alibaba Group’s strong commitment to globalising its business. The company has made growing its business outside of China a top priority, and is also committed to significantly increasing cross-border trade between China and key markets.Evans’ early focus will be on forging close partnerships with key brands, retailers and product owners in Europe, the Americas and Asia to help these important players swiftly and efficiently connect to the large China consumer market.He will bring a strong emphasis on customer service, efficiency and productivity and, working closely with his colleagues in China, ensure that Alibaba will deliver a high quality experience to international merchants and consumers in China.“Michael has been a close advisor to Alibaba Group for many years, and we greatly value his deep knowledge of our business, his experience as a proven business builder and leader globally, and his more than 20 years of experience in China,” said Alibaba Group CEO Daniel Zhang.He added globalisation is Alibaba Group’s most important strategy for the coming decades."Our goal is to help 10 million global businesses and serve two billion consumers around the world. We have been laying the foundation for many years and now we need a global team in place with best-in-class talent to bring our vision to fruition."To that end, I can think of no one better than Michael to help Alibaba become a truly global company.”Jack Ma, executive chairman of Alibaba Group, commented: “As we connect Alibaba and the rest of the world, we are turning to a proven international leader who has been connecting China and the rest of the world for most of his career."Through his work on our board, he has built the trust and respect of our management team, and I have no doubt that he will make a significant contribution to our business.”Prior to joining Alibaba, Evans spent 30 years in global finance, including the last 20 years as a Partner of Goldman Sachs, where he served as Vice Chairman, head of Global Growth Markets, and Chairman of Asia, in addition to leadership positions in the Securities and Investment Banking Divisions before leaving the firm in 2014.