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Voxpro
Under the Hammer
'An extremely special day for us': Cork outsourcing giant Voxpro has been sold
Canadian group Telus International snapped up a majority stake in the company.
2.29pm, 17 Aug 2017
576
CORK-BASED OUTSOURCING FIRM Voxpro has been sold to Canadian group Telus International.
It was announced this week that the Toronto-headquartered company acquired a majority stake in the Irish firm for an undisclosed sum.
Co-founded by husband and wife Dan and Linda Kiely, Voxpro provides multilingual call centres and tech support for businesses. It counts Google, Airbnb and Stripe as customers.
Telus International is a subsidiary of New York Stock Exchange-listed telco provider Telus Corporation. Similar to Voxpro, it provides outsourcing services like IT and call centre support.
The deal represents a major payday for the Kielys, who largely bootstrapped the business during its growth stages. They hold the vast majority of the firm’s shares, with Enterprise Ireland also owning a small stake.
Around 2,700 Voxpro employees and senior managers will migrate to Telus International as part of the deal, bringing the group’s overall workforce to 28,000 people.
Voxpro chief executive Dan Kiely will join Telus’s senior team under its president and CEO Jeffrey Puritt.
Commenting on the sale, Kiely said: “It’s an extremely special day for us and for all of our partners, team members, and indeed, everyone in the Voxpro community.”
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Linda and Dan Kiely Sasko Lazarov / Photocall Ireland
Sasko Lazarov / Photocall Ireland / Photocall Ireland
‘Thriving culture’
He heaped praise on the new owner, which he said shares the Cork firm’s “entrepreneurial spirit and relentless desire to redefine and disrupt the outsourcing industry”.
Kiely added that being part of the Canadian group will help the company to “build our thriving culture”.
According to the most recent accounts, Voxpro nearly doubled its sales in 2015 to €33 million. It reported an operating profit of over €1.7 million for the financial year ended 31 December 2015.
As well as its facilities in Dublin and Cork, Voxpro has operations in California, Romania and the Philippines.
Co-founded “above a pub in Cork city” nearly two decades ago by Linda and Dan Kiely, Voxpro was originally set up as a small paging company. Today, it provides customer services in over a dozen languages across four continents.
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Luke, in case you didn’t know? Governments have power, they are lobbied and influenced by Business connections and they put them first before the citizens they are paid to protect. That education, was free and no need to thank me!
ive never cringed so much. Luke clearly sees the usual “has there ever been a comment section with the government not mention” phrase and tries to use it first here himself. cringe.
Who is to blame? Fact is this is government driven, and of course the company’s will take advantage. Who do you blame? The people who brought these schemes are the same people that run the country. These schemes are to fluff up the unemployment figures so they can say that these people are in training and not unemployed and after 9 months when they don’t get job they are forced back onto another job scheme. For more slave labour wages
This was one of the first things that this government introduced after taking over. Joan Burton had an American internee helping her during the election campaign and liked the idea. The difference being that the American girl came from a wealrhy family and didn’t mind not being paid to gain the work experience in Ireland.
I’m in the same boat. Searching desperately for work. Sending a million job applications (and some of them really make you jump through hoops) and I got one phone interview. One. For a job in the UK.
It was for a job that had been advertised as a full time retail job and when I spoke to them I was told it was for between 12 and 27 hours per week, with no guarantee I’d ever get 27. Simply not enough to live on with rent/food/bills being non-negotiable. I wasn’t offered the job but I wouldn’t have been able to take it even if I had been.
A cousin of mine in the same boat was offered a retail job at maximum of 20 hours a week, spread over five days. And they’d have to drive to the airport each day to do the job. Not feasible at all.
I really hope that people who spout the rubbish that “there a loads of jobs out there for those that want them” read this article and learn and understand what the jobs market is actually like rather than what they imagine it to be like.
We are in an employers’ economy. They can exploit workers desperate even for a few hours and everyone is left scrabbling around for the spoils while the workers that do have full-time jobs are finding their workload ever increasing as they are forced to pick up the shortfall.
very well said Florence. Its a living nightmare. I left the UK because I couldn’t live on the wage I was finally being offered, since returning? Biggest mistake ever, nothing but old fashioned folk buying into government propaganda, people hardly even bother to send you their rejection email, even more people seemingly agree with exploitative schemes.
At this stage, Hope is very fleeting indeed.
…….and trying to find employment after being self employed is akin to approaching a prospective employer and telling them you have an incurable disease. ….
Or be over 50 years old or Ever have earned more than the employer is offering or Ever held a more senior position to the one being offered and any amount of other ‘reasons’ or Excuses.
Welcome to Ireland, a great place to do business. Corporate tax levels are low and big business can have what it wants. If you are a young person looking for work, you can take the scraps offered or p### off somewhere else, please. We have employment figures to massage don’t you know.
Thank you.
Inda, Eamon and friends.
@seanieryan, what has the failure of the Irish government to introduce employment legislation guaranteeing minimum working hours an wages, got to do with European governments, many of which has such laws, like the Scandinavian countries.
I wouldn’t be so quick to exonerate our legislatures Michael, I think Seanie has a very valid point there one which it seems is by-passed and ignored due to it’s whiff of conspiracy. However at the EU level, belonging to various ‘groupings’ is not all fun and games (is it the European Peoples Party that Fine Gael are members of?) lobbyists from industry and Trans National Corporations work very hard to influence national legislation in their favour through these groupings. Indeed an example might be the trebling of corporate lawyers in Brussels lobbying hard for the Bio-Tech industry in recent months due to EU wide resistance to GM foods/feeds and chemical sprays. As Seanie states the trends across Europe and North America/Canada are there to be seen in plain English, it is just not being collected and viewed as a trend with intent. And the least discussed or talked about is the further discomfiture of 100,000 indigenous Irish nationals between 18 and 50 emigrating annually, while over 50,000 non EU nationals enter the country seeking work annually? whats that about?
ITS only Treason ,the sellout of our country ,these politicians have abandoned our people and betrayed our country,they should be arrested ,no bail revoke their 30 pieces of silver lottery judas pensions,thats just for starters .Ihave a new 5 point plan for Ireland 1 Default ,Depart 3Devalue 4 Deport 5 Detain all of these political traiters,bankers ,senior civil servants,planners,the list is long ,if any of you care about your country then BOYCOTT these EU elections on may23
Now guys will you all call for this utter invasion of our country to Stop ,Ireland must leave this monster European Disunion and REVERSE this utter invasion of our country,i fully expect to be barred from commenting ,Free speech is the new racist activity ,watch this space
The day is getting closer where the message will be delivered to these turncoats, that said the Labour traitors at the top will be too busy with their pension investments.
I was recently on a similar scheme in the North. Not only did the employer use me for tasks that were unrelated to the job, but I was also doing a 45 hour week for £65.
And this lying government are constantly bragging unemployment is down , kenny and company the worst shower of gangsters in the history of the state with their constant lying and spin, and with dreaded water rates still to come
If you have a vacancy..you have a vacancy ..fill it..pay the going rate..jobsbridge should only be used by people who want to get a foot on the ladder in their chosen career..or somebody who wants to change career ..and get some revelant experience..as it was originally intended
Who changed the structure to what it is now..who benefits?from what is basically social welfare for employers
I completed a 9 month jobbridge internship a few weeks ago for an office job. Kept my head down and was made permanent at the end.
My personal circumstances at the time (health/lack of experience) meant that I stood little or no chance of gaining employment in that field or any other for that matter! Job-bridge helped me back into the world of work and yes it has been exploited by some but I think if you choose the correct employer & conditions then it can be a help to you.
That’s great to hear Andy, glad you benefited from the jobsbridge scheme. I thought it was a good idea at the time and it has led to permanent employment in some cases. Unfortunately it was exploited by many employers and wasn’t regulated to any extent
LP /FG Councillors voted down SF motion condemning mandatory Gateway yesterday at Council meeting. . ” at least it gets them out of bed” jaysus- how patronising . FFers absent. Gateway a misnomer – doesn’t open any for a potential future job. Manipulation of unemployment figures. Cynical and nauseating treatment of the people of no property. Shame on you all. #LE14
“…at least it gets them out of bed” jaysus- how patronising .”
Completely patronising. I have no idea where this notion that people who lose their job take permanently to their beds has come from.
Work is not the only thing that people do. We are not automatons that switch off when we clock off. People still have lives outside work. We have children/parents/grandparents/pets to care for. Meals to cook. Laundry to do. Hobbies to engage in. Exercise to do. Books to read. Internet to search on. Cars to drive in. Shopping to buy. Friends to see.
The vast majority of people who are unemployed don’t stay in bed all day. They don’t have the luxury.
The fact that government members and politician consistently define people’s worth by their job just shows how narrow minded they are and how utterly incapable they are of seeing taxpayers as anything but a cash cow with no life or meaning beyond what they can suck out of them.
I’m a small business owner (I’m actually quite tall!) in West Waterford looking for a training and development specialist who has a training qualification. Send your CV and positive attitude to info@moneredevelopmentservices.com we all hear about the employers who don’t get back to people but what about the employees who don’t apply with genuine effort and energy?
At the grand old age of 54,I’ve now been out of work for a year!
Have tried relentlessly to try and find work, but to no avail.
Jobs that I would normally apply for, offer internships, job bridge or ridiculous hours for a minimum wage!
I like many over 50′s are as far as I can see the forgotten unemployed, if there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, someone’s switched it off!
I’m doing an online course through Solas,on networking fundamentals, does this guarantee me a job,no,because I won’t have the prequisites that employers are looking for.
So,over 50, employable, maybe not!
You talk as if SMEs are creaming it in on the back of cheap labour. In reality most are running at breakeven. I’d wager there wasn’t massive profit taking in your business John or it would still be open.
People have to remember that it was FF and calamity cock up coughlan that started this off via FAS,Also since the start of the recession the amount of agencies that have popped up is unreal,
With the majority of them given people zero hour contracts with a flat rate of pay with no o/t premium or shift allowance paid for nights weekends etc.
Women I know in her 50s worked all her life till made redundant in a matter of months was told she had to do a Tus scheme (cheap labour) or lose job she was put in Charity shop were she was treated like dirt by manager who is only on CE herself left in shop on own , spoke to like dirt expected to work every weekend after been told one in 3 she reported this but stuck it out as she knew or thought she knew it would end in March so pf she went to sign on again when nightmare ended to be told she had to go back there as the manager rang to say they had ce place and wants her to do it so this women given no choice but to go back now bullying in workplace against the law but if i means live register looks good who cares and all for extra €20
Sure they’ll all lap this nonsense here… 3 kids I’m assuming the author made it to his 40′s with evidently few employable skills and was counting on an ever booming economy to live comfortably.
Fact is job markets on the up… I’m looking and many of the other skilled and talented people I know are in the same boat and after putting themselves out there are weighing up multiple offers, and when they turn down their 2nd and 3rd choice. They are being asked do they know anyone of similar standing they could recommend.
When you ask them why their experience differs from dismal internet stories and bylines in the media about total hopelessness, jobsbridge and generation emigration… You get the same reply. Of course, what kind of people do you expect spend their days wallowing in misery, self pity, blaming the government and everyone else for their personal situation on the internet.
Neato kid, you sound like a swell guy. And what a novel idea to be out there looking for a job, unlike the other 400,000 of your co-unemployed who sit around all day with buckets over their heads. How odd though that you, of all people, are still looking for a job, especially considering this great upsurge in the employment market, which seems to have unfortunately slipped passed those bumbling fools at the CSO and other market watchers..
Job market is probably on the up..but..only in the likes of IT ans related requiring in most cases a second language..the grim truth is that for most of the current 40 yr, s old plus plus jobseekers..with a backround in trades /construction..who are not IT professionals and even with retraining never will be….they are probably surplus to requirements in the current labour market..and are doomed to stay that way..
It’s an easy mistake to make to assume that everyone’s circumstances match one’s own. But it takes a human being of empathy, knowledge, experience and basic humanity to understand that this is not the case.
Anecdotal experiences are not evidence. Yes, SOME people are finding work. This is not in dispute. But you appear to be implying that 400,000 people are out of work because they are “wallowing in misery, self pity, etc”. This sort of proves my point. You’re applying your own world view to a situation you clearly do not have all the facts about and making the (erroneous) assumption that everyone is like you and everyone’s experience must be like yours and if it’s not, then they are somehow completely wrong.
There are a myriad number of reasons why someone might be out of work. There are also a myriad number of reasons why they can’t get a job. And I’d like to once and for all put paid to the notion that all a jobseeker has to do is click their fingers and they are magically handed a job.
The way you’re putting it, you appear to be saying that people must retrain in order to find work. Well, I’ve retrained three times and I still can’t find work. What would you have me do? Retrain a fourth time? Add yet more diversity and range to and already brimming CV? Make myself even more unemployable to a particular sector?
You are forming an opinion without considering ALL the factors at work. The economic situation is still very dicey. The global economy continues to stagnate. Big corporations continue to slash jobs while maximising profits (not a problem until we get to the situation we’re in now) which means that low end jobs for people with fewer or no qualifications are not as plentiful as they once were.
But then, perhaps we should all just retrain and become IT specialists with second languages. Because that’s as simple as clicking your fingers, right?
At the bottom of it all, you are showing breathtaking arrogance because of your position and incredibly worrying hubris.
Some valid points on internships such as Jobbridge.You mention employers getting something from the state if they take on employees. There is such a scheme already called Jobsplus. Not sure how you could prevent companies who were going to hire anyway from getting the cash incentive but it could be a worthwhile scheme.
Jobsplus was set up for those who had already completed a jobsbridge scheme and still were unemployed at the end of it.
Same scheme with a different name. It’s targeted at long term unemployment and is just as useless as jobsbridge.
Jobsplus is an incentive paid to an Employer to employ someone off the Live Register who is on JA or JB for one or two years. You don’t have to be on Jobbridge to qualify but time spent on it can be counted if you have done an Internship. The grant is 7.5 k or 10 k to Employers spread over 2 years. http://Www.jobsplus.ie
can you show us all that link for these jobs of employment, the links on there lead to same old internships bs, €50 a week extra for 9 months etc. whats the difference? where is the difference? wheres their incentive and where are these jobs they’re offering for the 7.5k grant? are the offering internships for that grant or a job? can’t find that info over there but scambridge under a different name.
Educate yourself here, get a little bit of experience for the cv then emigrate out of this hell hole and get proper wages away, sad but that’s how it’s looking.
I have had a position advertised locally and nationally for over a month. The quality of replies beggars belief in relation to the requirements. I have had one Irish application and five non-Irish applications. The Irish application is the only one that even remotely met the required criteria. I was offering a full time position with €400 to the person who ticks the boxes properly. It’s a deli job in a supermarket… I have a job to give, I don’t want an “intern” or a “trainee”. Maybe in the grand scheme of things, the auld Dole is too handy for too many? Money for old rope mar a deireann síad..
I can empathise with job seekers from personal experience. Ive been unemployed despite having a good education & lucky to have qualifications. I would simply go where I can get experience & start at the bottom if necessary. Applying for jobs is really tough & getting no response is just cruel. My advice is to use any personal connection you can or try to meet the hirer as makes a big difference. When you send a cv follow up with phone call as Ive looked at CVs in a HR capacity & it shows interest & gives you a better chance. Blaming non Irish who come here to work is incorrect as they are filling positions thst Irish cant or won’t do like that Deli job? Good luck & chin up.
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