Mahesh Sharma | December 01, 2007 THE managers of troubled telco Commander are unlikely to have a merry Christmas, with the company's chairman indicating that the company is in line for a shake-up.
Speaking at the annual meeting in Sydney yesterday, chairman Elizabeth Nosworthy said Commander would be bringing new management into the company after it had failed to correctly execute its business plan.
"While management shares the board's concern at the poor performance in the past year, and have worked diligently to fix the problems, they must also accept that they have made errors.
"It is the board's view that over time we must add to management strength by bringing new talent into the company."
However, she said this would be a gradual process.
"Our existing management has strong and durable relationships with our customers and we will not be making any changes at a pace that damages the company's relationships and prospects."
The comments are an ominous sign for Commander's besieged management, following moves by investment management business Hunter Hall to become a major shareholder.
It has a track record for turning around failing businesses by installing new management.
And the news gets worse for the senior management team, who won't be receiving any bonuses this year.
Since January, Commander's share price has plummeted from $2.29 to 24c, as it struggled to bed down its acquisition of technology company Volante, roll out a new franchise operating model, and migrate to a new transaction processing system.
Ms Nosworthy also denied reports that Commander was planning a $150 million fire sale of its assets amid pressure to pay back $70 million to its banks.
Commander shares had their best day this year, rising 7.5c or 30 per cent to 32c.
CDR Price at posting:
0.0¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
