Business process outsourcing industry stalwart Dialogue Group is all but an empty shell, after shareholders voted in favour of selling the ContinuitySA stake.
Dialogue has only two business units in its stable, after selling two subsidiaries and liquidating another in the past year. However, both of the remaining businesses are likely to be wound up, as major contracts at each have been canned.
A year ago, the company had five business units, including three call centre businesses - Dialogue SA, Sibize and Interaction. It also owned a majority stake in ContinuitySA and 51% in CallForce, a recruitment company focused on the call centre industry.
Dialogue has since sold ContinuitySA and CallForce, liquidated Dialogue SA, and is likely to close down Sibize and Interaction. CEO Alan Farthing says: “There is not much left.”
The only entities the company still owns are Sibize and Interaction, but “both businesses have come to an end”, says Farthing. Interaction's major contact has been canned.
Sibize's contract with the Gauteng government ended early, and now the company is waiting to be paid, says Farthing. Gauteng finance spokesman Emmanuel Mdawu previously said the R105 million owed to the company will be paid in May.
Farthing cannot comment on what the company's future plans are, or whether a de-listing is on the cards, as Dialogue is in a closed period. Its results, for the year to December, should be released in March.
The proceeds of the ContinuitySA transaction will be distributed to shareholders at the end of February. Each shareholder will gain 12.38c. Dialogue's shares closed unchanged at 19c yesterday.
Dialogue has also announced that FD Terence Kretzmann will leave the company at the end of March, after its annual financial statements are released. Dialogue “is in the process of appointing a successor and an announcement will be made in due course”, it says.
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