Ralph Yirikian (; born November 16, 1967) is an Armenian businessman who is the current General Director of

Ucom Ucom is a mobile network operator and internet service provider. History Ucom was founded in 2009. Ucom provides its Internet services through its own fiber-optic channel connecting Armenia with Georgia. This allows the company to provide transit ...

, and was formerly the General Director of VivaCell-MTS (MTS Armenia CJSC), a 2005 startup company which became

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

's leading telecommunications operator and one of the top taxpayers. As reported, he left the company in 2022 to concentrate on his own business.

Early life and education

Ralph Yirikian was born on November 16, 1967, in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

. With his younger twin brothers and sister, he grew up in Beirut. He grew up during the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

. Yirikian graduated from the

American University of Beirut The American University of Beirut (AUB; ) is a private, non-sectarian, and independent university chartered in New York with its main campus in Beirut, Lebanon. AUB is governed by a private, autonomous board of trustees and offers programs le ...

with a bachelor's degree in economics in 1991. In 1992, he received a second bachelor's degree from the university, this time in business administration.

Business career

From 1991 to 1992, Yirikian worked at AUB's Jafet Library as an assistant in the Archiving and Documentation Department, and later as a computer operator at the Lebanese George Matta Establishment. In 1993, he worked as an executive secretary of Al Maha Group Holdings in

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

, and as an assistant management consultant at Nasser, Ghattas and Co, in

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

. From 1994 to 1996, Yirikian was the Head of the Administration and Personnel Department at Al Maha Group Holdings. From 1997 to 1999, he was the head of the Administration and Customer Service Department at Nasser, Ghattas and Co. Between 1999 and 2001, Yirikian was the head of the Administrative Unit at the Lebanese telecommunications company LibanCell. From February 2002 till July 2004, he was the General Manager of Karabakh Telecom.

General Director at VivaCell-MTS

Ralph Yirikian was the VivaCell-MTS General Manager, from November 2004 to June 2022. VivaCell grew quickly and in 2007, the company's only shareholder, Fattouch Group, agreed to sell 80% of its shares to Mobile TeleSystems PJSC (MTS), the largest mobile operator in the

Commonwealth of Independent States The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional organization, regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an ar ...

and the

Russian Federation Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. As of today, VivaCell-MTS (MTS Armenia CJSC) shareholders are 80% MTS Group (Mobile TeleSystems PJSC) and 20% - Lebanese Fattouche Group. Yirikian stayed as the General Manager of VivaCell-MTS after the acquisition by MTS. He oversaw the company's rollout of the country's first 3G network based on UMTS/HSPA (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System / High Speed Packet Access) technology in Armenia. On December 20, 2010, VivaCell-MTS launched the first 4G/LTE network in Armenia.

New culture of management

Yirikian described his management style as one in which he urged his employees to take responsibility and make their own decisions.

General Director of Ucom

In March 2023, Yirikian was appointed the General Director of Ucom.

Family

Ralph Yirikian is married and has one daughter and one son.

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yirikian, Ralph 1967 births 20th-century businesspeople 21st-century businesspeople American University of Beirut alumni Armenian businesspeople Businesspeople from Beirut Lebanese people of Armenian descent Living people