Yellow announces plan for 100 new jobs

Photo / Paul Estcourt

Yellow Pages Group has unveiled plans for 100 new sales jobs spread throughout the country as it faces increased competition in the local directory market.

It said the $8 million investment in the new workforce highlighted the confidence that the Yellow management team, board and financial backers had in the long-term pros-pects of the business.

Last week New Zealand Post revealed plans to go head to head with Yellow Pages Group by launching a new local information service targeting small- and medium-sized businesses.

Called "Localist", the start-up venture would target Auckland businesses where the local advertising market was worth around $600 million a year.

Yellow also has a legacy of more than $1.7 billion in debt after its shareholders Hong Kong-based Unitas Capital and Canada's Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan bought the company from Telecom for $2.24 billion in 2007.

Yellow's chief executive Bruce Cotterill said his company had a 90 per cent market share in a market dominated by small to medium enterprises.

"We expect this investment in new sales jobs will raise profitability over coming years by a decent margin," Cotterill said.

The company has already said it will spend $30 million revamping its website and print directories.

It was pulled off the market last week after a failed sales process, and will also be restructured by Christmas with a completely new board in place.

Cotterill said the 100 new staff would be in a variety of sales roles.

"We wanted to touch more customers and provide locally based sales staff with a real understanding of the local market."

Customers throughout the country would be serviced directly either face to face or via telephone from staff with fewer customers each.

"Previously we did not have the resources to do this and the sales process was ... hurried."

- Staff reporter