UK mobile operator Vodafone has announced the appointment of Simon Holmyard to lead a new division that will specifically target the public sector.
Holmyard, previously part of Vodafone’s public sector sales and management team, will head the…
UK mobile operator Vodafone has announced the appointment of Simon Holmyard to lead a new division that will specifically target the public sector.
Holmyard, previously part of Vodafone’s public sector sales and management team, will head the group’s newly established Public Services Network (PSN) unit.
The company is aiming to compete with traditional public sector telcos, such as local fixed-line firms BT and Cable Wireless, to win contracts worth millions of pounds as the government seeks to cut costs on how it procures voice and data services.
The government has been working with the telecoms sector to create a so-called ‘network of networks’, which would standardise its infrastructure costs. Through this cooperation it hopes to eventually make savings of around £500m a year on its annual £16.5bn ICT spend. By the end of 2014, the government expects that 80% of the UK’s public sector, or four million users, will be using its PSN marketplace.
In addition to being a key supplier to the public sector, Vodafone is seeking an active role in the development of this new network. The company said Holmyard “will work closely with the Cabinet Office and other key areas that are tasked with the PSN’s development and delivery”.
