Contact Center Solutions Featured Article

O2 and Capita Announce Ten-Year Partnership

May 28, 2013

O2 and Capita recently announced a partnership, worth approximately $1.5 billion, hat will see U.K.-based Capita run and manage O2's customer service centers as well as supporting and enhancing O2's digital offering to its customers for the next decade.


The news helped London's FTSE 100 build on its highest close since 2000 while shares in Capita reached an all-time high when the deal was announced earlier this week.

Paul Pindar, chief executive officer of Capita, said the partnership demonstrates the added value it can deliver to clients.

"Close partnership working with O2 will enable us to adapt our customer management services to seamlessly match developments in O2's service offering,” said Pindar.The firm plans on building "best of breed" technology that will support service flexibility, efficiency and quality.

The O2 contract managed to cause tension in the unions, which slammed O2 for transferring thousands of local call center jobs to the outsourcer. When rumors of the partnership started in late April, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) began to call for a strike if the rumors proved true. The union passed an emergency motion to oppose any move by O2 to outsource the majority of call center work as it is not in the interests of its members.

“We can reassure members that as far as the CWU is concerned, we will strongly defend any attack to directly employed jobs in O2,” said CWU assistant secretary Sally Bridge.

According to The Telegraph, the cost-cutting effort will also raise further speculation that parent company Telefonica is preparing to spin off O2 in a flotation or private equity sale. The Spanish group is saddled with a $66-billion debt burden after a decade-long buying spree. It completed a $1.9 billion initial public offering of its German mobile operator, O2 Deutschland, last year.

The transition will begin on July 1, 2013.




Edited by Rachel Ramsey



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