£40m VAR ponders redundancies

Comms provider was voted The Sunday Times' best place to work earlier this year

£40m-revenue comms provider 4com has confirmed that a review of the business could result in a number of job cuts.

Bournemouth-based 4com - which was voted The Sunday Times' best company to work for earlier this year, ahead of Chess in second place - has doubled its workforce over the last three years, but has now confirmed the possibility of "a small number of redundancies".

While not revealing the number of jobs at risk, reports in the local press claimed unnamed sources had suggested the figure was between 45 and 50.

In a statement 4com said: "4Com can confirm that we have entered into a period of consultation with regard to a small number of redundancies.

"This consultation comes as we undertake a management restructure across the company, having conducted a complete business review. As this period of consultation is ongoing, we will not be making further comment at this time out of respect to those involved."

4com was last year named Samsung's largest business phone reseller globally and develops its own hardware and software in-house, while also maintaining a hosted telecoms service.

In its last financial report, for the year ending 30 June 2016, 4com reported a revenue increase of 22 per cent to £41m, with operating profit swinging from £1.7m to a £421,000 loss.

The report attributes the losses to the company's "inward investment in business development", as well as a new office that opened in Southampton.

A dividend of £3m was paid to the company's directors, compared with £1,898,000 a year earlier.