BT bolsters its Global Services management team

Four new sector leaders appointed to restructured services business

BT's IT services division, BT Global Services, has seen four new appointments to its leadership team following a significant restructure.

BT Global Services has a high profile due to a turbulent couple of years marked by disappointingly low profits, a £336m hit due to contract reviews, and the resignation of its chief executive.

It has since formed four strategic sector teams in the hope of turning things around.

The sectors comprise banking and financial markets, government and health, consumer packaged goods and manufacturing, and logistics and pharmaceuticals.

Heading up these teams, and reporting to CEO Jeff Kelly, will be:

• Andy Nicholson (banking and financial market), who had previously been leading BT's activities in this sector since April 2009.

• Kim McMann (consumer packaged goods), joining BT from HP, where she led the company's technology outsourcing business in Asia Pacific.

• Bas Burger (manufacturing, logistics and pharmaceuticals), who joined BT in 2008, and has prior to this been leading the Benelux region, where he focused on operations and performance.

• Andy Nicholson (banking and financial markets), who has been leading BT's activities in this area since April 2009.

"BT Global Services operates globally and delivers locally for our customers, and our diverse global leadership team reflects our commitment to the industries in which our customers operate," said Jeff Kelley, CEO BT Global Services.

"This is much more than a layer of sales activity, this is about specialist people, portfolio and intellectual property, embedded throughout our business".

Scott Morrison, BT analyst for Gartner, highlights that this restructure is a good thing for the division, but more work needs to be done for it to succeed.

"What we have seen since Kelley took over is a refocus. I have been pleasantly surprised," said Morrison.

"We have seen an improvement over the past 12 months or so," he added.

"BT's problem in the past was that it was trying to be all things to all people, and this is difficult to do on an industrial scale. BT can only develop deep relationships with customers if it sharpens its focus."

"The critical thing for BT is that it doesn't change its mind again. There has been a lot of chopping and changing over the past few years and it needs a period of stability and sustained focus."

"Is it completely out of the woods yet? No. It needs ongoing effort to make this strategy work".