Head of Vodafone Spain steps down

The chief executive of Vodafone Spain has stepped down in the latest shake-up of senior management at the telecoms giant.

The London-listed firm said on Thursday that Colman Deegan would step down on 31 March, although he will continue to work with interim group chief executive Margherita Della Valle until the end of July. Vodafone Spain will also be joining the Europe Cluster, reporting to the cluster’s overall head, Serpil Timuray.

In addition, Vodafone said that current Italy chief executive, Aldo Bisio, would take on the role of group chief commercial officer alongside his current position, with immediate effect. Bisio has been chief executive of Vodafone Italy since 2014.

In December, Vodafone announced that group chief executive Nick Read was leaving the company after four years by mutual consent. He was replaced by chief financial officer Della Valle on a temporary basis.

The executive shake-up follows a difficult period for Vodafone, which in November warned on profits. It cited higher energy costs, intense competition in Spain and Italy and a weak performance in Germany, its biggest market accounting for around 30% of group revenues.

Its share price has also struggled. It is currently down 22% on January 2022, and has lost more than 60% over the last five years.

Della Valle said: "I want to thank Colman for his leadership of Vodafone Spain and congratulate Aldo and Serpil on their new responsibilities as we work together to accelerate our commercial performance and drive shareholder value."

As at 0945 GMT, shares in the blue chip were ahead 4% at 91.05p.