Just a month after leaving the firm as a non-executive on Telstra’s board of directors, Timothy Chen has joined Telstra International in the role of president and group managing director at the firm.

Chen’s brief stint on Telstra’s board of directors began in March 2012. He stayed for six months and attended five board meetings before leaving to take a chief executive position with a company in China.

“We are delighted that Tim is returning to Telstra. He was a strong contributor to the board during his short time as a director and we know he will identify new opportunities for Telstra in China and across Asia,” said Telstra International CEO David Thodey.

Chen replaces Tarek Robbiati, who recently became CEO of Australian financial services firm Flexigroup, and will focus on building the firm’s Asian and trans-continental business.

He was previously a partner with international private equity firm GL Capital Group and held senior executive roles for international firms including Microsoft, Motorola and AT&T Bell Laboratories. Chen also held the role of CEO for the National Basketball Association China from 2007 to 2010

According to Telstra, Chen is the first Chinese person to hold a CEO leadership team position at the firm. He will be based in offices in Hong Kong and Beijing.