Kcom to split its chief executive and chair roles
COMMUNICATIONS and IT services provider Kcom Group will split the roles of chairman and chief executive, it revealed alongside hints of a significant upcoming government contract win.
From 1 April next year Graham Holden will assume the role of chairman and Bill Halbert will keep the role of chief executive, as the company completes its transformation process that started in 2008.
Halbert told City A.M. that every year the company reviewed the roles, but this year they decided it was time to split the responsibilities. “It is the right time for this change, the business is in very good shape, all of the strategic repositioning has largely been done. It’s now a matter of executing on our plan,” he said.
The company also said that executive director Kevin Walsh is to retire after 14 years with the business.
The Yorkshire-based telecoms business also reported a 1.5 per cent fall in earnings to £25.8m during the six months to 30 September, from £26.2m during the same period last year. Group revenue fell two per cent year-on-year in the period to £185.5m.
In its results Kcom hinted at a substantial contract with a government department that Halbert said would be seen as a significant win by the market once it is made public.
“It’s really important, it will be a significant part of our order backlog, I think that when the market sees it, it’ll be seen as a signal contract – both in terms of its scale and in terms of its strategic relevance,” he said.
Kcom’s shares fell 2.8 per cent.