By Corinne Reichert
January 15, 2018
Vocus has announced that it will be separating its wholesale and enterprise arms as part of what it called its accelerated transformation program.
As a result, Vocus will now have four operating segments: Enterprise and Government; Wholesale and International; Consumer; and New Zealand.
In a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), Vocus CEO Geoff Horth said the restructure follows its AU$861 million acquisition of Nextgen Networks in July 2016, which “opened new markets and presented significant growth opportunities”.
“The opportunities available in Vocus' domestic wholesale business, combined with our investment in the Australia Singapore Cable, warrants the creation of a dedicated Wholesale and International division and will ensure that we have the focus, products, and service proposition to be the provider of choice to customers in this important market,” Horth said.
The current CEO of Enterprise and Wholesale, Michael Simmons, will run the Wholesale and International division; the current CEO of Consumer, Scott Carter, will now lead the Enterprise and Government arm; and Sandra de Castro will run Vocus Australia's Consumer portfolio.
According to Horth, de Castro will bring digital transformation and innovation expertise from her previous strategy and marketing roles at AGL and the National Australia Bank (NAB). She will “help to drive the next phase of growth and customer centricity in our consumer division”, he added.
Vocus also announced its intention to release interim results on February 20, though this will be in its current structure of three divisions.
The company had in October announced its decision to sell off the New Zealand arm of its business, with a proposed completion date by the end of FY18.
“The board has now determined that the Vocus New Zealand (VNZ) business will be prepared for sale finalising appointment of advisors,” Vocus said at the time.
“The board has also progressed its review of the non-core Australian assets: Advisors appointed to the sale of the Australian datacentre assets [and] other non-core Australian assets will continue to be evaluated with regard to potential divestment or closure.”
