Phoenix IT Services sheds more than 100 techies in FY10

Rumours mount of more engineering cuts after 100-plus purge in recently concluded fiscal year

Phoenix's technical staff numbers declined by 132 in FY10

Phoenix IT Services lost well over 100 technical staff over the course of its 2010 fiscal year, documents recently filed with Companies House reveal.

Channel rumours surfacing this week suggest the firm is currently looking to shed more engineers as part of a move away from break-fix services towards a model centred on technical couriers. Phoenix was not available for comment as ChannelWeb went to press.

During the 12 months to 31 March, the third-party services specialist had an average monthly total of 1,676 technical staff. This is 132 less than the FY09 figure.

Despite the decline in techie headcount, Phoenix IT Services grew sales 1.6 per cent annually in FY10 to £108.4m. Post-tax profit more than tripled to £9.7m. The firm's order book value as of 31 March stood at £191.8m – a rise of almost £60m on the previous year.

The directors' report for the year said: "Pressures in the market presented increased opportunities in the second half of the year for outsourcing as companies looked to reduce their overhead base. We won several large outsourcing contracts during the second half of the year, which has significantly increased the order book."

Phoenix IT Group's other trading arms – Servo and ICM Business Continuity Services – also filed results last month. ICM grew annual sales by more than a quarter to £53.2m. The growth was chiefly fuelled by its acquisition of Network Disaster Recovery in October 2008. Post-tax profit was up 148 per cent to £11.1m.

Mid-market services outfit Servo grew FY10 revenue 24 per cent to £88.8m. The company's increased post-tax profit by 73 per cent year on year to £5.6m