That means necessarily reduce the wing elsewhere

Today will be as long as determinative for Ben Verwaayen. At the end of his first 100 days in Alcatel-Lucent, the new Director General today unveils its strategic plan for the company. On the morning before the European Union representatives. In the afternoon before journalists and investors. In view of the difficulties of the telecom equipment manufacturer, making word of one who succeeded Patricia Russo early September is highly anticipated and not looks easy. Because two years after the implementation of the merger between Alcatel and Lucent, the manufacturer has losses and faces tough competition in the context of investment of operators slowdown.

Among the many challenges facing the Dutch, the rationalization of the portfolio of products is prominently. Many analysts argue that the group be too diverse. The merger did nothing help, with the creation of duplicates in third generation mobile networks (3 G) including. Now, Alcatel-Lucent has decided to concentrate in the areas of the Internet Protocol (IP), the optical access fixed broadband, the heart of network, motive and submarine networks.

The choice of the mobile

Even though he is facing a decline in the CDMA standard in the United States and it failed to break into the 3 G, the manufacturer is not intention to leave the mobile. Quite the contrary. He believes it is his card to play in the future generation of mobile networks (so-called "lte") and will increase investment in R & D in this area. That means necessarily reduce the wing elsewhere. Seeking to rise in the value chain, Ben Verwaayen will also focus on the services (the operation and management of networks) and software.

Aware that Alcatel-Lucent does not have the means to do it alone, Ben Verwaayen wants to multiply partnerships. "Opening" of the Dutch strategy applies to all levels of the company. Very upstream, a reorganization of Bell Labs laboratories was decided yesterday: all departments must develop partnerships. Much closer to the client, the manufacturer has also rely on external expertise, to serve markets such as companies and Governments. For example, he has collaborate with Thales even by being more present in the capital of the advocacy group. The exclusive negotiations with Dassault end Monday. Ben Verwaayen is also highly anticipated how he plans to reduce costs. Patricia Russo had implemented a programme of savings of 2.1 billion, including the removal of 16.500 jobs. But "the company did not indicate what proportion of the plan had been carried out and remained to be done", regretted the Switzerland Credit Analyst. Ben Verwaayen has set up a new organization of the group whose objective is to simplify decision-making by eliminating duplication between the ex-Alcatel and Lucent ex. The group will be for example divided into three regions, directly responsible for the sales of all products and services for operators. While a central organization under the leadership of Michel Rahier will be responsible for tracking costs in purchasing, General and administrative costs.

The reduction in costs is even more essential that market conditions deteriorate and that the turnover of Alcatel-Lucent may still contract next year. Last week, Nokia said to expect a decline of 5 of global sales for fixed networks and mobile in 2009. The forecast that could give Ben Verwaayen will be held under a magnifying glass.