Vodafone plans Australian restructure

Cost reduction drive.

Vodafone Australia has confirmed it will embark on a restructure of the organisation in the "coming weeks" to reduce costs.

The Australian newspaper reported yesterday the contents of an email sent to staff by CEO Nigel Dews.

The email noted that the telco had "fallen short of ... growth aspirations" and had decided to "make some changes", including budget revisions and redundancies.

The extent of planned redundancies was immediately unclear.

However, a spokesman for the telco confirmed last night that changes would be made to the Vodafone's structure and to its executive team.

"While the restructure will result in changes across most functions in the company the outcome will be a Vodafone that is more responsive to customers and more cost effective in a highly competitive market," the spokesman said.

Under the initial plans, the telco's sales and marketing functions will be combined into a single group, reporting to one director, Noel Hamill.

The telco's communications and corporate affairs department will also be "decentralised".

Executives to be initially impacted by the change include chief marketing officer John Casey and communications and corporate affairs director Tanya Bowes.

"We are currently exploring other opportunities for both of them," the spokesman said.