Alcatel-Alsthom SA’s Spanish arm, Alcatel Sesa, has announced changes in its organisation to meet what it describes as the new demands imposed by the telecommunications sector in Europe and the transformation of technology. The president of the Alcatel Group in Spain, Miguel Canalejo, said Commercial activities will be clearly separated from product-focused activities. The reorganisation is aimed at giving more people the power to make decisions, and posting young, dynamic individuals in key management positions to revitalise the company, Canalejo said. Alcatel Sesa’s drive towards profitability will centre on three objectives: firstly, to increase sales by capturing new clients as a result of the liberalisation of the Spanish market, particularly in cellular telephony, cable, multimedia and corporate networks; secondly, to develop a sizeable and profitable interhouse business, and; thirdly, to establish an organisational structure to operate in accordance with the concept of total quality, introduced through the Cenit programme. Canalejo said Our clients are changing, so our business has to change in response. We have no alternative but to look to the new operators, in order to grow more quickly. Alcatel Sesa is also reducing its workforce: in less than four years its staff has dropped to 7,000, from 15,000, and another 900 jobs will go this year. The latest round of job cuts has led to a series of half-day strikes being called. Canalejo is of the opinion that the company has too many factories in Spain. Two of them, Malaga and Villaverde I, are working well, but there are four others, Toledo, Arteijo, Torrejon and Villaverde II, which are not working to capacity. As a result we are closing Arteijo and transferring its production to Toledo. Villaverde II will be controlled from Villaverde I, while the future of Torrejon will really depend on the success we have in the cellular telephony market. Alcatel Sesa has realised for some time that it cannot survive on one customer – Telefonica de Espana SA – and in 1988, it began to cast its eyes overseas. Since then its export sales have multiplied sixfold and of the 1994 turnover of $1,262.6m, almost half, $615.8m, came from exports. The Spanish subsidiary is now represented in Brazil, Argentina, Poland and China, while new markets are being investigated. The overseas business has been vital in recouping the revenue Telefonica used to supply; five years ago Telefonica sales represented 70% of the company’s turnover; that figure is now 32%, or $434.1m. Alcatel Sesa is now courting Telefonica’s rival, the Airtel consortium, which was awarded the second Groupe Speciale Mobile licence. Canalejo did not rule out becoming a GSM supplier to Telefonica, but admitted Alcatel lacked experience with Telefonica in the cellular telephony arena.
