Celtel Kenya dismisses staff exodus crisis

Faced with a financially shaky reputation and the challenge of matching Safaricom's KSh19 billion (more than US$300 million) profit, Celtel Kenya is having trouble keeping its senior managers.

Celtel has termed the recent resignations as a realignment and restructuring of the company's top hierarchy.

Last week, Claire Ruto, secretary and head of regulatory and corporate affairs, and Janet Kabue, corporate affairs manager, left the company. Marketing Director Ann Othoro had left earlier, while CEO David Murray resigned in January, barely a year after taking over. A new CEO is expected to begin work in July.

But Michael Okwiri, Celtel Kenya corporate communications director, dismissed talk of a mass exodus.

"We also do have the normal industry movements, as in all industries, where people decide to look for other career opportunities," Okwiri said. "The staff changes are part of business realignment. The staff left on [its own] will; it will ensure we are geared up for future growth."

Under the restructuring process launched this year, other top managers from Kenya have been posted to Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, Bahrain and the new Celtel International Nairobi headquarters, which will be relocated from Amsterdam, Netherlands, in two months' time.

Managers who have been relocated from Kenya include former CEO Caba Pinter, who has been replaced by Hare Krishner from Zain Sudan; Human Resource Director Geneva Musau, whose place has been taken by Pius Wakaba from Celtel Uganda; and Customer Care Director Job Njiru, who has been replaced by his Tanzania operations counterpart.

"We want to harness the rich cultural diversity and experience in our different operations to further strengthen our service delivery in Kenya," explained Okwiri.

Apart from cultural diversification, the staff movement is also motivated by the need to increase profits and strategically position Celtel ahead of the expected entry into the market of Telkom Kenya and Econet Wireless.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.