A restructuring exercise embarked upon by the management of NICON insurance Plc, has seen no fewer than twenty employees of the company have been laid-off.
The restructuring exercise, it was learnt, was an attempt by the management of the firm to re-position it , and make it more competitive among its peers in the country.
A very senior staff of the firm told New Telegraph that the restructuring exercise was designed to be implemented in phases. The first leg which, he said, entails weeding out of unproductive led to sacking of six staff at the headquarters, Abuja. Employees in the Minna branch in Niger State, Gwagwalada branch in the FCT as well as Lokojo branch in Kogi State were also affected by the sack.
The restructuring exercise which target include aggressive marketing drive , our correspondent learnt was conceived by the management to turn around the fortunes of former government underwriting firm, as well as reposition it in order regain its lost glory.
To realise the objective, the management was said to have come with a novel marketing strategy in which most staff, including very senior personnel got converted to marketers. Sale of insurance products, and target amount to be brought to the company coffer was said to be mandate to each staff to meet the form’s objectives the source told New Telegraph.
Those who were not able to meet the target set by the firm’s management felt were said to be the victims of the sack, a situation that put fear in to staff.
The exercise also saw re- deployment and movement of some managers to different locations. For instance, the former AGM Corporate Affairs, Ade Adesokan, was said to have been affected in the restructuring . He was said to have been transferred to the Lagos office, to man a marketing department carved out in the new exercise.
Though, the restructuring was being driven by the firm’s Managing Director, Bayode Samuel but the source said the owner of the company, Barrister Jimoh Ibrahim, who is also the Chairman for Global Energy group was the brain behind it.
Attempts by our correspondent to get Mr. Bayode, to speak on the restructuring exercise did not yield any results as he did not pick the calls made to his mobile phone.