Vodafone corporate organisation update — Q3/Q4 2009
October 28, 2009
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Extract from Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.10. Click through for: the Executive Brief from this month’s report; the Issue Snapshot; or to contact us for more information about the full 70 page issue, this industry standard monthly report service, and ongoing subscription access.
Vodafonewatch has updated the Vodafone Group organisational chart it maintains (see chart below) and is in the process of enhancing.
Graphic: Vodafone Group corporate organisational chart, October 2009
Key changes from the previous published orgchart include:
- Terry Kramer has swapped his Group Strategy & Business Improvement remit for the Vice-President, Americas mantle, with his previous responsibilities no longer designated a top-level corporate function.
- The Group Human Resources (HR), Marketing and Technology functions now report directly to Vittorio Colao, the Group’s Chief Executive — previously, HR was under Kramer’s wing, while the other two functions were assigned to Michel Combes, the Europe Region Chief Executive. While this development could be seen as yet further consolidation of power by Colao, it might also highlight the importance of Marketing and Technology to several strategic priorities — Total Communications (convergence), mobile data (Mobile Plus), and cost control (and efficiency). It also seems to make even more personal Colao’s recent plaintive cry that Vodafone is not crimping investment on customer acquisition and new technologies (i.e. the future) as part of his enthusiastic and seemingly accelerating cost-cutting efforts.
- Wendy Becker (ex-Carphone Warehouse/TalkTalk) and Ronald Schellekens (Royal Dutch Shell) are visible in their relatively recent appointments as Group Chief Marketing Officer and Group HR Director, respectively.
- Although not explicit on the chart, Chief Technology Officer Steve Pusey is now an executive representative on the Group’s board of directors, where his responsibilities encompass supply chain, as well as technology. However, neither of the emerging markets regional heads, Morten Lundal and Nick Read, has shown up on the board, yet.
A number of operating companies (OpCo) have seen new Chief Executives appointed since the last version of the orgchart was published in Vodafonewatch, including:
- Australia – Nigel Dews, imported from 3 Australia as part of the local OpCos’ merger.
- Egypt – Hatem Dowidar, who swapped roles with Richard Daly, who now oversees the Partner Markets‘ strategic initiative.
- Ghana – David Venn, poached from Zain Zambia.
- India – Marten Pieters, another Zain veteran and an ex-Millicom director (where, incidentally, he seems to have been replaced by Vodafone’s previous emerging markets supremo, Paul Donovan).
- The Netherlands – Jens Schulte-Bockum, previously head of Terminals.
- Qatar – Grahame Maher, a serial Vodafone OpCo chief exective, leading the startup.
- Turkey – Serpil Timuray, poached from Danone Turkey.
- New to the orgchart are Vodacom’s five southern African operating companies, which are now indirectly controlled by Vodafone, and where Lesotho recently gained a new head (Kennedy Malik Melamu).
Cenk Serdar (arriving from Turkcell’s pioneering mobile value-added services operations) gains an honourable presence on the orgchart, through Central Europe and Africa region’s Mobile Money initiative, which appears to be gearing up with M-PESA’s addition of international remittances at Kenya’s Safaricom and the anticipated imminent expansion in Egypt and elsewhere (see separate reports), and partnerships with Citibank and Western Union. This could see Vodafone burnishing its tarnished reputation as an m-money leader.
Other fairly recent changes in the next corporate tier, where Vodafonewatch is in the process of building out orgchart coverage, include:
- Peters Suh’s move to head the Joint Innovation Lab (he previously led Vodafone Ventures).
- Patrick Chomet taking the mantle at Terminals.
- David Wheldon adding a CEO hat to his Global Brand Director role (with the creation of the tax-efficient Vodafone Ireland Marketing Ltd unit).
Request orgchart copies direct, submit updates
Please contact us if you would like to be receiving copies of the orgchart direct, as it is updated (which happens more frequently than the orgcharts are published in Vodafonewatch reports). Also available are Wall Charts and other new formats and variations.
We are always grateful for updates, additions and corrections to the orgchart, as well as feedback and direction on how to best optimise it for you and your organisation.
Orgchart (and other) requests and input can be submitted to:
- Your usual contacts at Vodafonewatch and Market Mettle.
- info@marketmettle.com.
- Other channels, including those listed online at marketmettle.com/contact.
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.10 Snapshot
October 28, 2009
.
Snapshot of Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.10. Click through for: the Executive Brief from this month’s report; an Extract from the issue; or to contact us for more information about the full 70-page issue, this industry standard monthly report service, and ongoing subscription access.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 Group
3 Financial
3 Vodafone transfers ADRs to NASDAQ
3 Operations
3 Vodafone signs roaming agreement with United Hubbing
4 Marketing
4 Vodafone to place roaming ads on in-flight tray tables
4 Fulton — digital ad spend now “wider and deeper”
4 People
4 Vodafone corporate organisation update
5 Request orgchart copies direct, submit updates
6 Graphic: Vodafone Group corporate organisational chart, October 2009
7 Products and services
7 Vodafone 360 value-added services platform revealed
8 Comment: admirable ambition, or overreach?
9 M&A
9 Vodafone steps up development partner recruitment
10 Vodafone finally ends O2 iPhone monopolies
11 Partner Markets
11 Vodafone preps location-aware ad platform — report
12 Suppliers
12 Perfecto Mobile selected for widget testing
12 Vodafone adds Warner content to DRM-free offering
12 Vodafone in back-up partnership with EMC’s Decho
13 Technology
13 Vodafone and RIM launch second Storm
15 Regulatory
15 Operators’ roaming challenge seen as likely to fail
15 Society
15 Vodafone launches World of Difference UK
16 Foundation announces Wireless Innovation Project
16 Strategy
16 Colao highlights Indian lessons
17 USA — Verizon Wireless
17 Verizon execs join VZW in restructuring exercise
17 VZW targets iPhone with Android partnership
18 VZW to shun soft-launches for LTE
18 LTE Innovation Centre opens doors
19 VZW confirms unusual form Nokia device
19 Verizon to mandate data plans for some feature phones
20 Western Europe
20 France
20 Sofialys touts SFR’s mobile marketing uptake
21 France highlights
22 Germany
22 EC criticises digital frequency plans
22 Alcatel-Lucent, Vodafone team on smart meter project
24 Greece
24 Germany highlights
24 Hellas Online investors approve tie-up…
24 …but Vodafone employees protest transfer
25 Ireland
25 Vodafone expands green initiative to call centre
26 Italy
26 Netherlands
26 Highlights
26 Augmented reality start-up wins Mobile Clicks
28 Malta
28 Highlights
29 Portugal
29 Vodafone Portugal trumpets IPTV platform
30 Spain
30 Vodafone, Spanair update mobile ticketing service
31 United Kingdom
31 Vodafone seeks to sharpen legal team structure
31 Vodafone wins fixed-line deal with Rolls-Royce
33 Mobile broadband ads draw more flak
33 Vodafone completes affiliate network selection
34 Central Europe
34 Czech Republic
34 EC pressures Czech regulator on MTRs
34 Vodafone adds five new handsets, cuts prices
35 Hungary
35 Vodafone picks WeDo for revenue assurance
36 Poland — Polkomtel
36 Orascom eyes Polkomtel stake — government
36 Polkomtel seeking takeovers — reports
37 Romania
37 Highlights
37 Turkey
37 Vodafone picks new network maintenance vendor
38 Africa
38 Ghana
38 Ghana Telecom acquisition “illegal”
38 Union deal reached on redundancies — report
39 Vodafone to scrap nearly all exchanges
41 Kenya — Safaricom
41 First tranche of bond programme goes live
41 Safaricom selects Alvarion to widen WiMAX footprint
42 Safaricom brings dynamic discounting to Kenya
43 Safaricom launches cross-border mobile money transfers
44 Mobile savings opportunity being missed — researcher
45 South Africa — Vodacom
45 Vodacom issues profit warning, writes down Gateway
46 Government steps up pressure over MTRs
47 Mozambique — Vodacom
47 Vodacom ties with Sierra to offer vehicle-tracking
48 Asia-Pacific
48 Australia — Vodafone Hutchison Australia
48 VHA completes first phase of operational review…
48 …outsources directory enquiry service…
48 …and begins network integration planning
50 China Mobile
50 China Mobile passes 500 million-user mark
50 Wang eyes Asian acquisitions
51 China Mobile recruits e-reader content partners
52 China Mobile, NSN, test LTE femtocells
53 Fiji
53 Highlights
54 India –Vodafone Essar
54 Operators slash tariffs as competition intensifies
56 Chart: India selected mobile network connections (million), January to September 2009
56 Chart: India selected mobile network additions, monthly (million), January to September 2009
57 Vodafone targets Indian enterprise market
59 India — Bharti Airtel
59 Airtel-MTN merger talks fizzle out
59 Saga not over
60 Japan — SoftBank Mobile
60 SoftBank top again for net adds
60 New Zealand
60 Amway deal boosts Vodafone as B2B rivalry heats up
61 Incumbents submit new termination rate offers
62 Middle East
62 Egypt
62 Vodafone Egypt plans mobile remittance revamp
63 TE “forced to withdraw” from LINKdotNET pursuit
64 Qatar
64 Overseas call promotion clogs Vodafone network
64 Vodafone gains “more than 150,000″ customers since launch
65 Index
Vodafonewatch October 2009 Executive Brief
October 28, 2009
.
Executive Brief from Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.10. Click through for: an Extract from this month’s report; the Issue Snapshot; or to contact us for more information about the full 70 page issue, this industry standard monthly report service, and ongoing subscription access.
- GROUP: Vodafone announced it will transfer the listing of its American Depositary Receipts from the New York Stock Exchange to rival exchange NASDAQ. Vodafonewatch’s updated orgchart tracks the evolution of Vodafone’s structure and leadership. [pp.3,4-6.]
- Vodafone made one of its most significant value-added service strategy changes for years with the launch of new web service platform Vodafone 360 . The offering, a replacement for the operator’s outmoded Vodafone live! portal, is geared towards building services around location, m-commerce, and social networking. The company hinted at upcoming plans around location-based marketing, and expanded its DRM-free content portfolio through a deal with Warner Music. Vodafone also announced a partnership with EMC subsidiary Decho to market a cloud-based data-recovery service, branded Vodafone PC Backup. [pp.7-9,11,12.]
- Vodafone’s UK and Ireland OpCos agreed terms with Apple to finally bring the manufacturer’s iPhones to market, taking the devices’ penetration of Vodafone territories to 13. Also on the device front, Vodafone and Research in Motion announced the launch of the second-generation BlackBerry Storm 2 , although the deal appears less wide-ranging than the partnership on the device’s predecessor. Vodafone said the Storm’s criticised touch screen has “significantly” improved. [pp.10,13.]
- Vodafone and its fellow challengers to the European Union’s roaming caps suffered a blow when the Advocate General at the European Court of Justice deemed the restrictions to be justified. [pp.15.]
- The Vodafone Foundation launched the UK tranche of its World of Difference charity secondment programme, and a new round of its Wireless Innovation Project , which seeks out mobile technologies that can be used to solve “critical problems” around the world. [pp.15,16.]
- Verizon Wireless (VZW) finally embraced Android through a strategic partnership with Google, and gave reassurances that its ongoing 4G rollout is on track. Meanwhile, a wider reorganisation by parent Verizon Communications saw the appointment of new marketing and operational chiefs at the cellco. [pp.17-19.]
- WESTERN EUROPE: SFR partner Sofialys trumpeted user participation in the operator’s permission-marketing platform, while, in Germany, Vodafone is said to be working with Alcatel-Lucent on a smart-metering project for municipal utility Stadtwerke Pasewalk. In Greece, Vodafone’s strategic partnership with Hellas Online (HOL) gained backing from HOL shareholders, but not from some Vodafone employees. Vodafone Ireland highlighted environmental initiatives at its call centre. [pp.20-22,24,25.]
- Augmented reality start-up Layar won Vodafone Netherlands and Vodafone UK’s Mobile Clicks application development contest, while Vodafone Spain and local airline Spanair updated their mobile boarding pass system. [pp.26,30.]
- Vodafone UK announced a restructuring of its legal team, appointed Affiliate Window and TradeDoubler to handle its online affiliate marketing account, and, unusually, secured an all-fixed-line enterprise deal with Rolls-Royce. The operator’s mobile broadband advertising practices came in for criticism, however. [pp.31,33.]
- CENTRAL EUROPE: Vodafone Czech Republic continued to refreshen its handset portfolio, with five new devices, while the local telecoms regulator came under European pressure on mobile termination rates. [p.34.]
- Vodafone maintained silence over plans for its stake in Polkomtel as speculation mounted around co investors’ holdings. A bid from Egypt’s Orascom for a stake in the operator was mooted, while further reports suggest Polkomtel itself may be hunting acquisitions. [p.36.]
- Vodafone Hungary selected Portugal’s WeDo to update its revenue-assurance system, while Vodafone Turkey handed Anel Telekomunikasyon Elektronik Sistemleri a network-maintenance contract. [pp.35,37.]
- AFRICA: Controversy continues to dog Vodafone over the 2008 acquisition of Ghana Telecom, with the release of details from a government investigation into the deal. Nevertheless, the operator pushed forward its modernisation plans, reportedly reaching a union agreement over its redundancy programme, and revealing that it will decommission nearly all exchanges to improve network efficiency. [pp.38,39.]
- Safaricom’s expansion plans continue in earnest, with: the launch of the first tranche of its bond programme; a deal with vendor Alvarion to expand its WiMAX infrastructure; and the long awaited introduction of cross border mobile money transfers following trials initiated with Vodafone and Western Union in 2008. Vodacom continues to suffer from both the economic downturn, writing down a significant chunk of late-2008 acquisition Gateway, and government pressure on mobile termination rates. The operator launched a new mobile tracking system in partnership with stolen vehicle recovery specialist Tracker. [pp.41-47.]
- ASIA-PACIFIC: Vodafone Hutchison Australia made further progress in its post-merger rationalisation, reportedly completing the reselection process of head and state office employees. The company also distributed request for proposals on the integration of its two constituent firms’ networks. [p.48.]
- China Mobile passed the 500 million customer-milestone, albeit at a much-decelerated rate of growth from recent years, and progressed preparations for both its upcoming e-reader launch and longer term 4G rollout. Chief Executive Wang Jianzhou reiterated ambitions to expand internationally, with an eye specifically on Asia. [pp.50-52.]
- Concerns over growth prospects were also in focus in India, following domino-like tariff cuts from the major players, triggered by aggressive pricing by new entrants. Vodafone Essar targeted a new avenue for expansion by forming a division to focus on the business market. Rival and Vodafone investment Bharti Airtel had disappointing news on overseas growth prospects, announcing that merger talks with South Africa’s MTN had hit the buffers for the second time in as many years, thanks to regulatory barriers. [pp.54-59.]
- Vodafone New Zealand proposed new concessions on MTRs, following pressure from the country’s Commerce Commission, but announced a major win in the enterprise segment. [pp.60,61.]
- MIDDLE EAST: Vodafone Egypt said it will launch a new mobile money transfer service by the end of the year, as part of the promised revamp of its existing Vodafone Cash offering. Vodafone Qatar claimed to be taken by surprise by the popularity of an overseas call promotion, forcing the new entrant to double its international voice capacity. [pp.62,64.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.08-09 snapshot
September 24, 2009
GROUP: Vodafone poached Cenk Serdar, Turkcell’s value-added service chief, to drive the roll out of its mobile money-transfer platform internationally, and is said to have appointed an unnamed multinational IT group to support the expansion. [p.3.]
Speaking at a Goldman Sachs conference, Vittorio Colao, Chief Executive of Vodafone Group, talked up the prospective spin-off benefits of Orange and T-Mobile’s proposed UK merger, but caused a few ripples by saying Vodafone is “re-looking” at its stake in Verizon Wireless. Also regarding mergers and acquisitions, Vodafone’s enthusiasm to increase its stake in Polkomtel was said to have cooled somewhat, possibly because of economic and regulatory conditions that saw the Polish operator’s net profit dip 9% in Q2 FY09. It was also suggested that Vodafone had not, despite previously reported interest, made a competitive bid for Telecom Italia’s German broadband arm, HanseNet. [pp.4-6,8,46.]
Also at the conference, Colao gave further indications that the company is planning to announce cost-cutting measures above and beyond its existing efficiency programme. [p.9.]
Vodafone was said to have secured a mobile licence in French Polynesia, following recent government negotiations, although the award was not confirmed. [p.7.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.07 snapshot
August 6, 2009
GROUP: Vodafone reported a 9.3%-rise in Group revenue for Q1 FY09-10, helped, again, by currency trends and, to a lesser extent, M&A activity. However, the Group’s Western Europe decline continued, and the Africa & Central Europe division saw its organic revenue drop, raising concerns over subsequent quarters should exchange rate trends worsen. Vodafone’s decision not to provide an update on its cost-cutting programme was seen as a sign that it could be storing up “good news” on savings for later in the financial year. [pp.3-11,12-17.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.06 snapshot
July 3, 2009
GROUP: Vodafone UK was again linked with a takeover of T-Mobile UK, offering the two troubled operating companies prospective market leadership, and partial solace from the country’s highly competitive environment, if Vodafone is able to surmount rival interest, regulatory hurdles, and weighty operational challenges. The UK unit will see greater separation from the Group’s senior management, following a decision to move external-facing global staff to London. Chairman Sir John Bond warned of a “descent into protectionism and national preference” , in the Group’s FY08-09 Annual Report. [pp.3,6-9.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.05 snapshot
June 16, 2009
GROUP: Vodafone’s annual results indicated overall resilience in the face of adverse economic conditions, despite accentuation of challenges in core Western European markets and declining voice income, and hampering of data- and emerging market-led efforts to tackle the difficulties. Currency movements helped, but, with macro-economic uncertainties remaining, the company sought to gain additional breathing room through accelerated cost-cutting, and new write-downs (in Ghana, Spain, and Turkey). [pp.3-29.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.04 snapshot
May 4, 2009
GROUP: Richard Daly and Hatem Dowidar — Chief Executives of Vodafone Egypt and the Group’s Partner Markets programme, respectively — are to swap roles. [p.3.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.03 snapshot
April 9, 2009
Vodafone continued to refresh its advertising agency line up, shifting responsibility for its global media strategy back to WPP’s ‘Team Vodafone’ operation. The operator also completed reviews in Germany and Portugal, and said it will spend less on outdoor advertising, but more on digital media, in the UK. [pp.4,23,26,35.]
Vodafonewatch, issue 2009.02 snapshot
March 10, 2009
GROUP: Vodafone was again linked to a bid for a strategic stake in MobiFone, Vietnam’s second-largest mobile operator, but reports suggested that France Télécom may hold the upper hand among a number of international players that are said to be interested in the company. [pp.3.]
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Vodafone corporate organisation update
— Q3/Q4 2009
