Voda-Three Name Post-merger Top Team, Keep Schtum On Layoffs

Vodafone and Three have detailed the exec line-up taking the reins of post-merger UK biz, yet there is no word on when the deal will close, what name it will take, or how many staff face the chop to cut role duplication.

The proposed amalgamation of Britain's third and fourth biggest mobile networks was given the all-clear by regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in December, with some strings attached.

Those conditions were that both telcos sign binding commitments to invest £11 billion ($13.7 billion) in their combined network, provide protection for customers on price rises, and offer preset contractual terms for mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) for three years.

Now, the newly formed general management team for the future company has been disclosed, with Max Taylor, CEO Vodafone UK, set to become CEO of the conjoined entity, still known as MergeCo at this point.

The chief financial officer (CFO) is Darren Purkis, who has been CFO at Three since June 2018. However, apart from Purkis and Stephen Reidy, who will be head of IT, the bulk of the appointees appear to be from the Vodafone side of the operation, which is a sign of which company has the upper hand in this transaction.

Andrea Dona, appointed head of networks, is currently chief network officer and network director at Vodafone; Nick Gliddon, who will be head of business is Vodafone's UK dusiness director; and Jon Shaw, who is to become head of Consumer Operations, is commercial operations director for Vodafone… you get the picture.

With this in mind, the fact that Vodafone will own a 51 percent controlling stake in the new company, and have the option to buy the remaining 49 percent stake from Three's parent, CK Hutchison after 3 years, points to the power balance at the post-merger operation being in Vodafone's favor.

A spokesperson for Voda told us there is no information on the future brand strategy at this stage, nor any hint of a completion date for the merger and the new company to be formed.

Nor is there commentary on plans for the wider workforce. Fears will no doubt be growing among staff in Vodafone and Three's UK operations over how many of them are set to be shown the door following the merger.

Layoffs are commonplace when two companies combine their operations, partly because of duplication of some roles, but also as a way of cutting costs.

In 2023, Virgin Media O2 announced it was doing away with 2,000 UK jobs, or 12 percent of its total workforce, following the assimilation of mobile operator O2 by broadband giant Virgin Media.

BT also slashed 4,000 jobs in 2017 as part of a restructuring plan the year after merging with cell network EE, claiming it was looking to rationalize managerial and back-office roles.

The Register asked Three and Vodafone if there were any such layoffs in the pipeline. A spokesperson for Vodafone said: "The business is working through integration plans but has no announcements as of today."

The Unite trade union, which previously expressed its opposition to the corporate alliance, believes that there will be price hikes and job losses resulting from it.

"In addition to boosting profits and driving up prices for consumers, a merger would mean big job cuts. Up to 1,600 jobs could be lost if the merger goes through in addition to the brutal 11,000 global job cuts Vodafone have recently announced," it states on its website.

• Vodafone aims to offer satellite-to-phone connectivity starting later this year
• Vodafone and Three permitted to tie the knot – if they promise to behave
• Three, Voda promise £10-a-month or below mobile tariffs in bid to sway CMA on merger
• UK comms watchdog banning inflation-linked mid-contract price rises
• UK may not hit goal of 95% mobile coverage, commons committee warns

One of the main claims advanced by Vodafone and Three to support their merger plan is that individually, they just lack the resources to be able to compete on a level playing field with the two giants of the Brit telco scene, VMO2 and BT/EE.

However, Vodafone Group recently reported its Q3 trading update for the 2025 financial year, boasting of revenue up by 5.6 percent to €7.9 billion ($8.2 billion), driven by a "step-up in the UK" where revenue increased by 7.2 percent to €1.9 billion ($2 billion).

"When the UK merger completes in the next few months, we will have fully executed Vodafone's reshaping for growth," said group chief exec Margherita Della Valle. "We are on track to grow in line with our full year guidance for this year, which we reiterate today, and are looking forward to a stronger Vodafone in the years ahead." ®