LogicaCMG set to hire hundreds

LogicaCMG is to hire hundreds in the UK and Benelux but it has warned of a 10 per cent drop in revenues in its wireless revenues.

A company spokesman said: "We're looking for people across the range - project managers, service managers, SAP consultants, systems integrators - and experienced people in our key verticals, [such as] finance, government, distribution and transport, defence, etc."

At its AGM, the company stated that it was making solid progress in the UK, with public sector and telecommunications being the main drivers. But the company warned that new contracts had a longer delivery time and that this would mean that new revenues would not balance out the gradual tapering off of its SMS revenues.

The company's wireless division accounts for only 15 per cent of its turnover, but attracts the most press and City attention and comment.

LogicaCMG has been hampered by the failure of MMS to take off and by the fact that erstwhile customers Nokia and Ericsson have moved into its core software for mobiles market. This has meant that it has had to concentrate on mobile add-ons with a high hardware content.

These take longer to develop and roll out and, of course, the customers take longer to pay and thus the figures take longer to show up in the balance sheet. Revenue booking for software is quick and has the promise of bringing in a train of royalties.

Richard Holway of Holway/Ovum said: "I have just spoken to LogicCMG CEO Martin Read. If I took away one impression from our conversation it was of frustration. Frustration that the industry outlook was not better by now.

"Frustration that even when it won the business, it couldn't book the revenue. Frustration that, having come so close to regaining that FTSE100 place in the last quarterly review, the share price dive will put paid to that ambition for a considerable period."

The company's share place has been on the slide over the last seven days, dropping from 205p to around 185p today.

The company earlier announced plans to boost its offshoring capacity by increasing staff numbers in Bangalore from 500 to 1,200.