Vodafone Group begins marketing restructuring activity
Vodafone is undertaking a corporate review of its group marketing team following the departure of global brand director David Wheldon (pictured) and global director of customer insight Andy Moore.
The company has placed its entire group marketing personnel in consultation in a bid to restructure its global marketing arm. Country specific marketing directors will not be affected.
Staff at Vodafone’s headquarters were informed of the review before Easter. Vodafone says it is working to try to find new roles for some staff, but admits that redundancies are inevitable.
Group chief marketing officer Wendy Becker is spearheading the changes. Becker is a former managing director of TalkTalk and joined the company last September. She is a member of the company’s executive board and has been tasked with renewing the company’s brand strategy.
The operator’s move follows similar changes in rival telecoms firms. Over the past year, Marketing Week has reported how O2 and T-Mobile have also conducted internal marketing reviews, resulting in the loss of some senior marketing roles.
Vodafone has recently signed deals to sell the latest smartphones in a bid to broaden its offering. The network will be the launch partner for the Microsoft KIN handset in Europe and Google’s Nexus One phone. It has also recently added the Apple iPhone to its portfolio.
Harit Nagpal, formerly chief marketing officer of Vodafone Essar, is overseeing the roles of both Wheldon and Moore while the review takes place.
