Former chief financial officer and head of Benelux operations Seamus Keating is leaving outsourcing giant Logica with immediate effect. The troubled Benelux region, which reported losses of £72m for 2011, on the back of a 3.6 per cent contraction in sales, is still expected to return to profits this year.
Mr Keating's departure follows the completion of a £93m restructuring effort to turn the region around. As Logica's bosses noted earlier this year, there had been further deterioration among financial services clients (which account for about a third of Benelux revenues) and, accordingly, sales in the fourth quarter were down 20 per cent. Logica has announced its intentions to hire a local head, and this process is now under way. However, with Mr Keating initially re-deployed to head and turn around the region, the lack of a successor is certainly a concern.
Meanwhile, Logica still looks vulnerable, while its management works to reposition the group's outsourcing model so that it can successfully compete with rivals like Capgemini.
