[kictanet] M-Kopa Solar fires 18% of its staff including all developers, outsources work to a foreign company

Brian Munyao Longwe blongwe at gmail.com
Mon Mar 12 13:56:46 EAT 2018


True Ali, but I get the impression that there is a lot more of this going
in corporate Kenya - just that this one caught the media's eye and
therefore has been publicized. Methinks there is a lot of hidden rot behind
many of our seemingly successful startups.

As with any hidden disease - denial only makes the problem worse, sooner or
later we must face the monster.

Best regards,

Brian

On Mon, Mar 12, 2018 at 12:39 PM, Ali Hussein <ali at hussein.me.ke> wrote:

> Brian
>
> Exactly! In one sentence you have hit the nail on the head. The new game
> in town is P2P (and here I mean Path 2 Profitability not Peer2Peer) :-)
>
> Regards
>
> *Ali Hussein*
>
> *Principal*
>
> *AHK & Associates*
>
>
>
> Tel: +254 713 601113
>
> Twitter: @AliHKassim
>
> Skype: abu-jomo
>
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> <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim>
>
>
> 13th Floor , Delta Towers, Oracle Wing,
>
> Chiromo Road, Westlands,
>
> Nairobi, Kenya.
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> Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely
> mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the
> organizations that I work with.
>
> On Mon, Mar 12, 2018 at 1:30 PM, Brian Munyao Longwe via kictanet <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
>> Hmm, they've burnt through US$ 152 million in less than 7 years... and
>> are downsizing instead of scaling up...I'd be a very worried investor if I
>> had skin in *that* game....
>>
>> My two cents,
>>
>> Mblayo
>>
>> On Mon, Mar 12, 2018 at 11:14 AM, anyega jefferson via kictanet <
>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>
>>> Follow the money, chief, which strategy creates the lowest operating
>>> costs?
>>>
>>>
>>> And we kinda can't begrudge anyone , for seeking profit maximization,
>>> though i'd think Kenyan developers are the most affordable
>>>
>>> On Mon, Mar 12, 2018 at 12:04 PM, Watila Alex via kictanet <
>>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Good Afternoon,
>>>> Are kenyan developers to expensive or unable to meet the grade. or is
>>>> something else happening here
>>>>
>>>> Article from M-Kopa Solar fires 18% of its staff including all
>>>> developers, outsources work to a foreign company
>>>> <http://kenyanwallstreet.com/m-kopa-solar-fires-18-of-its-staff-including-all-developers-outsources-work-to-a-foreign-company-linked-to-new-cto>
>>>>
>>>> M-Kopa Solar fires 18% of its staff including all developers,
>>>> outsources...
>>>>
>>>> Kenya based pay-as-you-go solar provider M-KOPA Solar has fired
>>>> undisclosed number of staff including most of it...
>>>>
>>>> <http://kenyanwallstreet.com/m-kopa-solar-fires-18-of-its-staff-including-all-developers-outsources-work-to-a-foreign-company-linked-to-new-cto>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Kenya based pay-as-you-go solar provider M-KOPA Solar has fired
>>>> undisclosed number of staff including most of its developers. According to
>>>> people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity, the developers
>>>> work has now been outsourced to a foreign company that is linked to the
>>>> company’s new CTO.
>>>> The exercise, which was completed in December last year affected a
>>>> number of employees and some of whom were absorbed by Safaricom
>>>> according to the source.
>>>> We sought comments from the company’s CEO and Co-Founder Jesse Moore,
>>>> who confirmed the layoffs and explained that they were necessary due
>>>> to rising costs of technology and there was need to generate profits and
>>>> give returns to investors.
>>>> “I can confirm that we completed a restructuring process in December
>>>> 2017. This was done to reduce fixed costs and keep us on the path to
>>>> profitability. Overall, the company reduced headcount by 18% covering all
>>>> departments and all levels in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and UK. We are
>>>> outsourcing more of our technology work, maintaining a smaller in-house
>>>> team to work directly with outsourcing partners in Kenya and overseas.” he
>>>> noted.
>>>> He went on to say that this was the right thing for the company’s
>>>> long-term sustainability, “This means building a sustainable, profitable
>>>> company that offers impact for customers and returns for investors.”
>>>> On whether the company had outsourced the IT services to a company that
>>>> is linked to the new CTO, this is what he said.
>>>> “In mid-2017 our Acting CTO was seconded to us from one of our
>>>> outsourcing partners, when our previous CTO left the company. Our board
>>>> approved this and the individual is strictly recused on procurement
>>>> decisions with companies where could be a potential conflict of interest.”
>>>> The company was started by Nick Hughes, an Englishman, and his Canadian
>>>> co-founder, Jesse Moore. Hughes is a former executive at Vodafone, while
>>>> Moore was working for the GSMA Development Fund, a mobile
>>>> telecommunications industry group, where he was in charge of identifying
>>>> opportunities to make mobile services available to people in developing
>>>> countries. M-kopa is one of the best-funded startups in Africa having
>>>> raised more than $152 Million since inception in 2011. However, a big chunk
>>>> of this financing is in form of debt.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Regards,
>>>>
>>>> Alex
>>>>
>>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Anyega M Jefferson
>>>
>>> jeffersonanyega at gmail.com
>>>
>>> 0703824326
>>>
>>> Start where you are,use what you have and do what you can.
>>>
>>>
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>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
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