Qinetiq cuts down the 'Q' factor
QINETIQ is set to cut 400 jobs in the UK as it continues to shift business from developing gadgets for spies and towards long-term service contracts that utilise its technology, writes Nic Fildes.
The £950million FTSE 250 firm still counts the Ministry of Defence as its largest customer but the days when the company’s operations seemed akin to James Bond character Q’s laboratory of boffins appear to be numbered as it continues to cut its research staff to reflect lower spending on military gadgets.
The job cuts will anger unions, which have threatened strike action, however chief executive Graham Love dismissed protests. “We have a lot of intelligent people here, most of whom are shareholders who understand we have to do the responsible thing,” he said.
The company has appointed Mark Elliot, former head of IBM’s European business, as its new chairman. He will replace Sir John Chisholm, who led Qinetiq’s controversial privatisation three years ago.
Qinetiq more than doubled pre-tax profit last year to £114million with revenue rising 18 per cent to £1.6billion, driven by the growth of its North American business and sales of bomb-detecting robots. Shares rose ¼p to 144p.