Telkom's recent executive management 'shuffle' is more than a little distressing as it is the country's most dominant and most strategically important telecommunications utility, even though it is the one that most love to hate.
Speculation surrounding the sudden dismissal of Telkom's chief of operations, Motlatsi Nzeku, two weeks ago, can only be the result of a number of issues that are coming to a head within the company as it moves through its painful restructuring.
Talking to a number of current and past Telkom employees, it can be seen that emotions are running high. For those who are there, it is the uncertainty of what this restructuring will hold, as it has not been fully articulated yet.
For those who have sought employment elsewhere, there is still the strong emotional binds created by having spent most of their formative years in what was one of SA's biggest and probably best telecoms training institutions.
Distilling the conversations I have had with these people, it appears most of the issues boil down to indistinct lines of responsibility, forceful and ambitious personalities, together with weak board oversight and little or no direction from the major shareholder, namely government, and more specifically, the Department of Communications.
Two centres of power
The position of COO was created at Telkom almost 10 years ago when SBC (now AT&T) took over strategic management of the company in order to modernise it and prepare it for becoming a privately-listed entity.
The difference between the position of COO and that of CEO was that the COO would be responsible for all customer-facing operational matters, such as line installations and technology, while the CEO looked after support services.
If the two people occupying these positions understood their respective roles and co-operated, things were dandy. However, if there was some kind of breakdown in trust or communication, then the CEO would find that the COO had the ability to block from him the workings of a large part of the company, and then we'd have the makings of a difficult situation.
If the two people occupying these positions understood their respective roles and co-operated, things were dandy.
Paul Vecchiatto, Cape Town Correspondent, ITWeb
That is why, when Telkom began mooting its restructuring almost four years ago, it was decided to scrap the COO position and remodel the company along the lines of BT. This would entail a number of divisions all headed by their own CEOs reporting to one CEO, who would head the holding company.
As originally envisaged, Telkom would become a group of companies with each line subsidiary taking care of certain core businesses such as wholesale, retail, technology services, etc. Whether this will still be the case is uncertain, as there has been talk that Telkom will be separated into a South African business, and then another for the rest of Africa.
Alike personalities
Then there are the personalities involved. Many with whom I have spoken are amazed at how alike the personalities of Telkom CEO Reuben September and Nzeku are.
Both men are not considered natural leaders, as they are not people-oriented personalities. Both are considered to be hardworking, highly intelligent, but they naturally shy away from the limelight, and struggle to articulate what they want to do and achieve and get people to buy into it.
September is considered a brilliant technologist. However, as one former colleague said to me: “Reuben can put the fear of God into people. However, if a person gets his 'story', then he will get on with him.”
Nzeku is said to be a person who meticulously prepares himself for any issue or task. Apparently, he did a fantastic job when placed in charge of Telkom's credit control, but there were questions around decisions made when he was head of procurement.
Both are said to be technocrats in the truest sense of the word. They understand the technology and the issues and prefer to be backroom operators. Unfortunately, this will lead to all sorts of speculation about what their real intentions are and, therefore, what the future direction of the company will be.
Telkom needs to sort out its restructuring and executive management issues soon. The company is in danger of becoming a minnow in a pond where larger fish are coming out to play.
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