More jobs axed as Optus restructures
- 20 February, 2013 13:20
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Optus has confirmed it will be making further redundancies this year, following cuts totaling nearly 1000 jobs in the 12 months to 31 December, 2012.
The Australian Financial Review reported the job cuts are expected to be less than the 962 jobs it cut in 2012.
David Epstein, VP corporate and regulatory affairs, said the job cuts are a result of business changes the telco began last year.
“These changes will see Optus elevate the prominence of branded activities, increase focus on building its fixed business in an NBN environment, ensure our marketing decisions are customer led, remove duplication and streamline technology to improve efficiency of its internal IT systems and networks,” he said in a statement.
Business changes include moving mobile product and services development from marketing to the customer division.
Optus has also created a new team to focus on its fixed business to take advantage of National Broadband Network (NBN) opportunities, which will be headed up by Martin Mercer, former CEO of VividWireless.
It will also form a ‘brand and marketing communication’ group to focus on brand development and customer communication and engagement.
The telco will ‘streamline’ its IT and network functions to achieve greater efficiencies.
“Optus expects to make further consequential changes to some roles in its current organisational structure as the program is implemented,” Epstein said.
The redundancies come on the back of other telco and IT job cuts in 2012.
In November last year Vodafone reportedly cut around 500 jobs as part of a company restructure, although the company told Computerworld Australia it did not release figures on staff numbers.
In August 2012, Telstra announced it was proposing to cut 651 jobs and close two customer service centres in Lismore and Townsville following reductions in call volumes to customer service.
Optus announced for the nine months to 31 December, 2012, operating revenue dropped 4.4 per cent to $6.8 billion.
It initially announced in May this year that around 750 jobs would be cut.
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