MCN Direct Newswire

Vol. 6 No. 4, 5 March 2007

This issue is sponsored by:

Deloitte, TeleWare and NCC

This issue news

1. BearingPoint may sell EMEA business
2. John Connolly named chairman of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu
3. CSC wins $275m UK visas contract
4. Spectrum Strategy merges with Value Partners
5. LogicaCMG's profits climb 23%
6. Further information - feedback/pass on to a colleague/remove from mailing list

Sponsor

Deloitte

Deloitte Technology Consulting Careers Open Evening – 22 March, Central London

The Technology team within Deloitte Consulting continues to go from strength to strength. As a result we are currently looking for individuals at all levels with business and technology skills who are high-achieving consultants or industry-focused professionals.

To benefit from an insight into working with the team and why Deloitte is different, come along to our open evening. To find out more about the event, please click here to register.

1. BEARINGPOINT MAY SELL EMEA BUSINESS

BearingPoint is examining the possibility of selling a significant stake in its Europe, Middle East and Africa operation to employees of the business.

The consultancy emphasised that discussions are exploratory and that no specific plans or a timetable for a final decision have been approved by the board, but commented: "Through external investment and employee acquisitions, the company would expect to monetise a significant portion of its investment in its EMEA business unit."

Harry You, BearingPoint CEO, added: "We have been considering a number of strategic options to maximise value for our shareholders and make BearingPoint a stronger company, both financially and operationally. Putting additional equity in the hands of our employees is consistent with our stated objectives. We believe that exploring this option for our EMEA business unit will enable us to accelerate our vision to become the next great consultancy and springboard the company's growth."

Like CSC, BearingPoint has experienced a drag on performance caused by Europe. In 2005, its EMEA business generated 20% of global revenue, but only 13% of gross profit.

The potential sale of the EMEA business emerged as BearingPoint announced its preliminary unaudited results for fiscal 2006. Revenue is expected to be 2-5% higher than in 2005 at $3.45-3.55 billion (£1.78-1.83 billion). But net losses before tax for 2006 are predicted to be between $144 million and $214 million, as the company accounts for the costs of completing its 2006 financial statements and audit, rebuilding internal systems and settling contractual disputes.

2. JOHN CONNOLLY NAMED CHAIRMAN OF DTT

John Connolly, UK senior partner and chief executive of Deloitte, has been appointed as global chairman of the board of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. He will continue in the UK role to which he was recently re-elected until 2011 and add the chairman's title on 1 June.

Connolly, who has spent his entire working life with the firm, takes over from Piet Hoogendoorn, who commented: "John Connolly's remarkable achievements as Deloitte UK's chief executive, his role as global managing director and his leadership skills give him the right experience to take on this role. I am confident he will continue to steer Deloitte in the right direction."

Taking up the global managing director's role on 1 June, but under the title of global CEO, is James Quigley, currently CEO of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu's US firm.

• Mike Rake, chairman of KPMG International who was knighted in the New Year's honour's list, is to become chairman of BT Group in September. He will leave KPMG after 33 years with the firm and will take over responsibility for BT from Christopher Bland. KPMG is in the process of appointing a successor to Rake and will announce its decision later in the year.

Sponsor

TeleWare

Cutting the cost of mobile calls

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Businesses could save money by using fixed mobile convergence (FMC) technology using a private mobile network. This enables employees to use their mobile phones as and when they wish - while controlling the charges by routing calls cost-effectively when calls are within range of a private mobile network.

The services offered by TeleWare in this area, and others, are featured in the latest issue of Management Consultants' News. To find out more, please click here.

3. CSC WINS $275m UK VISAS CONTRACT

CSC has secured an outsourcing contract designed to transform and manage the process of administering visa applications for people wanting to enter the UK.

The contract is with UKvisas, a joint Home Office and Foreign & Commonwealth Office directorate that operates as the overseas arm of the UK's border management. CSC puts the value of the five-year agreement, plus two one-year options, at $275 million (£140 million) if both options are exercised.

CSC will establish visa application centres in three regions covering 15 countries and will provide information services via internet, email and call centres to a further 87 countries in Europe, the Americas and North Africa. As well as setting up the application centres and information channels, CSC will capture biometric details, including photographs and fingerprints, of all visa applicants.

Mark Sedwell, director of UKvisas, said: "With its strong record of delivery and innovation, CSC will be crucial to UKvisas achieving its key objectives over the next five years. I look forward to a productive alliance."

• UK outsourcing specialist Xchanging is sponsoring the 2007 Oxford and Cambridge University Boat Race. The 153rd race will be held on Saturday 7 April, with Oxford challenging Cambridge's series lead of 78 wins against 73 to lift the Xchanging trophy.

4. SPECTRUM STRATEGY MERGES WITH VALUE PARTNERS

Spectrum Strategy Consultants, a UK strategy house specialising in publishing, broadcast, entertainment, sports and new media, is merging with Milan-based Value Partners to build its business across Europe, Asia and Asia-Pacific.

Founded in 1994 by Janice Hughes, Spectrum has 100 consultants worldwide and includes Lord Puttnam among its non-executive directors - he was the company's original chairman. Clients include large media organisations, many of Europe's top football clubs, sports federations, private equity funds and telecoms firms worldwide.

Value Partners, founded in 1993, has about 3,000 staff in sister companies Value Partners Management Consulting and Value Team IT Consulting and Solutions. The company has hubs in Europe, Latin America, China and India, with the consulting arm offering strategy, change management and performance improvement services. Revenues for 2006 exceeded E€370 million (£251 million).

Following the merger of Spectrum and Value, both companies will maintain their own brands, but will look to each other for specialist help to build geographic strength and take advantage of opportunities in new sectors.

Commenting on the merger, Lord Puttnam said: "The combined entity offers a creative force able to give valuable support to those companies around the world that are facing the increasing challenge of shifting revenues and rapidly changing technologies in the new digital ecosystem." Hughes added: "Together, we hope to turn this into a billion pound entity very soon."

Sponsor

NCC

IT governance conference - Delivering a successful governance strategy

For organisational investment in IT to deliver full value, it is widely recognised that IT has to be fully aligned to business strategies, key risks have to be identified and controlled, and legislative and regulatory compliance demonstrated. IT governance covers all of this and more and, in light of recent corporate failures and scandals, enjoys a higher profile today than ever before. Key speakers at this 15 March event include: Alan Calder, the Director at IT Governance, plus KPMG, HBOS, Mantix Ltd and Bird & Bird.

For full details of all the speakers and the programme, visit the conference website: conference website.

5. LOGICACMG'S PROFITS CLIMB 23%

LogicaCMG has reported a gain in its full-year 2006 financial results and has divested its telecoms products business to focus on IT and business services.

The company said its pre-tax profit for 2006 rose 23% to £129.4 million, on revenue up 45% at £2.7 billion. IT services revenue, 91% of group total, grew 5% on a pro forma basis as previously expected (MCND 6-2). LogicaCMG increased or maintained its IT services margins in all major geographies to reach a final operating margin of 8.4%, up from 6.8% in the previous year.

As well as benefiting from the acquisitions of Unilog in France and WM-data in Scandinavia, LogicaCMG said its business in Germany returned to profit in the second half of the year.

Chief executive Martin Read said: "2006 was an important year in the strategic development of our business. We have made good progress in integrating our acquisitions. In addition to the expected cost savings, we achieved €100 million (£68 million) of cross-selling orders in the former Unilog businesses. WM-data finished the year with a strong fourth quarter and we see good early cross-selling opportunities. We expect 2007 to be a year of sustained growth, in line with our expectations."

LogicaCMG is selling its telecoms products business, which provides mobile messaging and payments solutions to telecoms companies worldwide, to a consortium led by private equity fund Atlantic Bridge Ventures. LogicaCMG will receive £265 million in cash when the transaction completes and is expected to return about £130 million of the proceeds to shareholders via a share buyback programme and use the rest to reduce debt and buy out existing minority interests.

• Atos Origin has reported a 2006 net loss of €264 million (£179 million) as a result of poor performance in the UK and Italy. The company confirmed that major reorganisation programmes are underway in both countries with a view to returning to "good profitability" and also confirmed previously stated group revenue of €5.4 billion and operating profit of €247 million (MCND 6-3).

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Written by Sarah Underwood. Copyright 2012 PMP (UK) Ltd.