Andy Penn is right when he says you don’t get to choose the time that you become chief executive, but the strong full-year numbers Telstra announced on Thursday suggest he’s picked the right moment to hand the reins to chief financial officer, Vicki Brady.

Although reported net profit was down 4.6 per cent to $1.8 billion because of a range of one-off items, Telstra’s preferred measure of profitability, underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, leapt 8.4 per cent, with underlying earnings per share soaring 48.5 per cent.