According to The Star, Rogers has begun to implement new CEO Guy Laurence’s new Rogers 3.0 plan he told us about back in May by ridding itself of about 15-percent of its upper management positions and several hundred middle management positions in an effort to reconstruct the more than 10,000 employees across Canada. A Rogers’ spokesperson, Patricia Trott wrote in an email to The Star:
“As part of the restructuring we have reduced the number of vice president and above positions by 15 per cent and several hundred middle management positions have also been eliminated across the company…These decisions are never easy. The goal is to become a more nimble, agile organization with much clearer accountabilities. Savings will be reinvested in areas like training and systems to better serve our customers”…This will help Rogers, “overhaul the customer experience and re-accelerate our growth relative to our peers.”
Back in May, CEO Laurence, former head of Vodafone UK Ltd, was brought in to shake things up at Rogers, where he said that they had ‘neglected’ their customers and had allowed their ‘legacy of growth and innovation slip’ and the latest J.D. Power’s survey had Rogers at the bottom of the customer satisfaction list among carriers. He has a tough road ahead as they face increasing competition as well as the Federal Government’s insistence on bringing in a new national wireless provider to increase competition and lower prices.
Roger is more than just a wireless carrier – they have assets is many different areas, such as media, publishing, radio, home services, entertainment, and sports franchises – and Laurence wants them all under one roof…”One Rogers.” He will be implementing his seven point plan, shown below: Be a strong Canadian growth company – Overhaul the Customer Experience – Drive meaningful growth in the business market – Invest in and develop our people – Deliver compelling content anywhere – Focus on innovation and network leadership – Go to market as One Rogers.
Rogers recently signed a landmark $5.2 billion, 12-year deal securing the national broadcast and digital rights to the NHL games – it will be up to Laurence to take and make maximum advantage of that deal, and start to show a profit. The company has had rather flat revenue growth and a declining profit the first quarter of this year. The second quarter numbers, which will be released this Thursday, are expected to be weak, as well. Down 14-percent since January 2, the stock price of $41.17 is at a year-to-date low.
It will certainly take some time for Laurence’s plans to really have any impact on the bottom line of the company’s profits. Please let us know on our Google+ Page if you are in favor of what the new CEO is doing and have you noticed any improvements in their Customer Service…as always, we would love to hear from you.