Vodafone plans restructuring: around 2300 jobs in Germany affected

The company, based in Düsseldorf, justifies this measure with the need to simplify structures and reposition the company more effectively after years of customer losses. In addition to savings in areas such as material and operating expenses, the personnel area is also expected to contribute to cost reduction, supported by increased use of artificial intelligence.

De Groot stated that previous measures were not sufficient to cope with the changing market. “What has worked so far does not automatically secure our success tomorrow,” the manager said.

Administrative areas, management levels, and duplicate structures, for example those created by previous acquisitions such as Unitymedia, are primarily affected by the changes. In the future, manual workflows and standardized processes will be increasingly automated.

Despite the personnel reductions, Vodafone plans targeted investments in growth areas such as fiber optics, cloud, and security services for business customers. The expansion of digital customer channels is intended to improve the customer experience and strengthen customer loyalty. AI is expected to both reduce costs and increase revenue in new business areas.

The background to these cost-cutting measures is the intense competition in the German telecommunications market. Vodafone had lost market share in the fixed-line and broadband business. The elimination of the incidental costs privilege for cable television has also led to increased competition for TV customers. According to information provided before the Federal Constitutional Court, Vodafone has lost half of the 8.5 million households that were supplied via the operating costs levy, resulting in a loss of revenue of 400 million euros.

Competitor O2 Telefónica had already announced a savings program in the summer. By the end of the year, 1100 jobs are expected to be cut, representing approximately one-sixth of the workforce. O2 had 6820 full-time positions at the beginning of the year. Employees are expected to voluntarily leave the company, for example through early retirement and severance packages. In addition, 60 of the approximately 800 O2 shops are to be closed.