Monday, 14th July 2008
Unicom appoints PricewaterhouseCoopers as auditors.
The move to appoint a “big four” accountancy firm comes as Unicom continues its relentless
growth having just posted 2007/2008 financial year sales of £41.6 million.
“Our customer retention level is currently running at 86% against a sector average of
around 70%. Of the 14% we lose, only a third go to competitors, the remainder being
businesses that close or move premises for one reason or another, which is obviously
beyond our control.” said Chris Earle, Operations Director of Unicom.
“By appointing PwC as our auditors, we are also sending clear signals that it is our intention
to operate to high standards, and to provide the highest-quality products, service and
support.”
Monday, 30th June 2008
Unicom launches fourth graduate training scheme.
After 3 successful schemes, Unicom has today started it’s fourth graduate training scheme.
After receiving over 100 CVs, 5 successful candidates have been successfully selected to start the
scheme today. “Previous schemes have proven hugely successful, with the first and second intake of
graduates now performing vital business functions.” said Chris Earle, Operations Director.
Previous graduates now enjoy roles tailored to their skills, including competitor investigations, data
analysis, and even developing literature to use at graduate recruitment fairs.
Monday, 2nd June 2008
Unicom reports another strong year of trading as profits continue to rise.
Unicom has reported a 13.5% increase in sales and a 23.6% rise in profits to the end of April 2008,
its ninth trading year.
The Manchester-based business saw turnover increase from £36.7 million to £41.6 million, with pre-tax
profits at £9.5 million compared to £7.7 million to the end of April 2007.
“2007/08 has been another excellent year of trading and forecasts for 2008/09 are equally positive – we’re
expecting turnover to reach £45 million and profits are projected to rise to more than £11 million,” said Tony
Eagleton, Unicom’s Finance Director.
Monday, 5th May 2008
Unicom creates 80 more jobs.
Unicom has completed the refurbishment of its headquarters enabling it to
open a new floor and create up to 80 new jobs to meet the demand for its services.
Named several times in the Fast Track 100 list of the UK’s
fastest growing companies, Unicom is bucking the current economic trend; something it says
is down to its careful pricing policy which is attracting business from its competitors.
The company now provides work for almost 600 people. It pledged to create 300
new jobs when it moved into its Northenden HQ in 2006, and achieved that figure.
The new jobs will be primarily in sales but opportunities in credit control, customer
service, IT and administration teams will follow.
Monday, 7th April 2008
Go paperless phone bill - save half the local football ground's worth of trees.
Trees covering an area half the size of the local football ground could be saved from deforestation
every year if a telecoms company succeeds in persuading its customers to switch to paperless billing.
Unicom is working on converting its 70,000 business customers to online billing. Customers can quickly and easily
make the switch by filling out the Go Green form online.
Monday, 3rd March 2008
Unicom undercuts competition with new directory service
Unicom is launching a directory enquiries product, 118 777, which
will match the service level but undercut the price of the three biggest players
in the market.
118777 from Unicom is available to both business and residential users.
Priced at 49p connection charge and 14p per minute, it will mean 118777 undercuts
the three main current directory enquiry service providers - 118118 by 28%, Yellow
Pages' 118247 by 30% and BT's 118500 by 31% - for an average duration call.
"The price may be more than competitive, but it does not mean we will be providing
a cut-price service," said Chris Earle, Operations Director of Unicom.
"118777 will provide a high level of service along with all the other types of directory
enquiry information a customer might expect. It's a notably memorable number so
we expect that if customers use it once, they will be happy with the service and
price and will use 118777 again and again."
Tuesday, 19th February 2008
Unicom launches 2008 graduate training scheme
Unicom has recruited its latest batch of University graduates to join its training
scheme.
The four; Stephen Wallwork, 27 from Whalley Range, Hayley Smith, 22 originally from
Lincolnshire, Saqib Hussain, 22 from Rusholme and Irfan Suleman, 22 from Irlam were
chosen from around 50 applicants.
The formal part of the programme will take one year to complete and graduates will
be assessed based upon their individual skill sets and recruited into the business.
We plan to recruit and train graduates on a fast track program to become our managers
of the future, as well as promoting talented employees within the company.
“It’s important that employees start at grass roots level and understand the business
from every angle - a formal graduate training programme will ensure that the successful
applicants learn every aspect of the business so they are equipped to take on managerial
roles in the future,” said Chris Earle, Unicom’s Operations Director.
Wednesday, 2nd January 2008
New jobs created at Unicom
Unicom is planning to create 100 new jobs in 2008 to meet the demand for our services.
We now employ nearly 500 people. We pledged to create 300 new jobs when we moved
to our Northenden headquarters a year ago, and we achieved that figure. Our new
positions will be in sales, credit control, customer service, IT and administration.
"We seem to have a great affinity with the small business community, and I think
a great deal of the growth and success is down to nothing more complex than a no-nonsense
personal service, priced highly competitively and operated from a local base," said
Chris Earle, Unicom’s Operations Director.
"We have developed a focussed small-business telecoms product and service, and the
result has been that business seems to have embraced it."
Tuesday, 27th November 2007
Unicom provide bursary for Lake District adventure
It may only be 280 miles away, but for 44 boys and girls aged 10 and 11 from The
Ravenscroft School in Barnet, North London, the Lake District was a world away from
their usual surroundings.
The pupils attended a three-day residential course at the Outward Bound centre at
Ullswater in the Lake District to pursue their Duke of Edinburgh Awards - an opportunity
that was presented via a bursary from Unicom.
"The funding has meant that we were able to offer the trip to many students who
normally would not have been able to afford it," said Paul Wollaston, Deputy Head
at The Ravenscroft School.
"The trip was invaluable, and helped us to build an ethos that, whilst academic
achievement is important, the enrichment curriculum which the Duke of Edinburgh
Award is part of is also important. In the past we have conducted the awards closer
to the school but the opportunity that Unicom and The Outward Bound Trust provided
in the setting of the Lake District takes it to a totally different level for the
pupils - they would never have been 'wild camping' or had the experience that the
instructors provided."
Thursday, 25th October 2007
Unicom's Calendar Girls
Female staff at Unicom ditched their day jobs for the afternoon to take on the role
of calendar models to raise money for the charity, Breast Cancer Care.
Despite a few last minute nerves, everything went swimmingly for the poster girls.
Senior training manager Rachel Gryckiewicz - who is set to appear as Miss February
in the calendar - said: "None of us are professional models, so the nerves really
did start to creep up on a few people a couple of days before the shoot. But everybody
was fine and really managed to get into it."
It is expected that the calendar will be ready in the next month and it will be
on sale internally within the company and family and friends of the models will
also have the opportunity to buy the finished product.
Donations have already been made for the eagerly awaited calendar, with one person
donating £100 for a copy.
Thursday, 27th September 2007
Unicom celebrates Tech Track 100 ranking
Unicom is celebrating this week as we will be named in this weekend’s Sunday Times
list of the UK’s fastest growing tech companies by turnover growth over a three
year period.
This is our second ranking in 2007 confirming our place as the fastest growing telecom
company in the UK - having already been ranked in April this year as the 96th fastest
growing company in the UK by profit growth over a three year period in the Sunday
Times Profit Track, and appearing in both the Fast Track and Profit Track tables
for 2006.
"Some companies may enjoy growth in terms of either profit or turnover, but it is
unusual for companies to enjoy such growth in both profits and turnover at the same
time," said Chris Earle, Operations Director, Unicom.
Monday, 10th September 2007
Bullseye for Danielle as she scores top role
Danielle Henderson is targeting success as new Branch Manager at the Sheffield city
centre-based regional HQ of Unicom.
Budding archer Danielle, 24, from Rawmarsh near Rotherham, has been appointed to
head up the Carver Street office and manage its 30-plus strong workforce – a combination
of both field sales consultants and telesales executives.
Danielle has demonstrated her managerial skills both in and out of the office, having
been in the Army Cadet Force as a Second Lieutenant for a number of years – where
she first took up archery.
“I've always been competitive and love a challenge – both in and out of the
office,” said Danielle.
“In the coming months I'll be looking to grow the branch and expand the sales
team in Sheffield and make it one of Unicom's key offices in the UK. It's a completely
different set of targets, but I'll be aiming to score as highly in business as I
do at archery.”
Of course, that won't stop Danielle from her weekend pursuits.
“I'm just about to move to the level at which I can compete in archery– and
enjoy getting down to Sherwood Forest to do a bit of a 'Robin Hood' at weekends,”
she said.
Monday, 10th September 2007
Andy Hancock puts hockey on ice
Andy Hancock has put his pursuit of ice hockey goals on hold and relocated to Milton
Keynes to take up his new role as branch manager at our offices at Sovereign Court
in central Milton Keynes.
Andy, 23, originally from York, has been promoted to head the Milton Keynes branch
and manage its 35-plus workforce – a combination of field sales consultants and
telesales representatives.
"Hockey is high on my must-do list, but business success with Unicom gives me a
completely new set of goals. I won a scholarship to attend Sheffield University
- and also the offer to play for the Sheffield Scimitars professional ice hockey
team," said Andy. "When I was playing for Sheffield, we beat the Milton Keynes Lightning
to take the EPL National Cup – I never thought then that I'd be relocating to Milton
Keynes to take up a new job."
Andy will help to grow the Milton Keynes office in the coming months and to develop
our business in the Southern region of the country.
Thursday, 2nd August 2007
Unicom appoints new financial director
The Board of Universal Utilities PLC, trading as Unicom, has appointed Tony Eagleton
as Financial Director with immediate effect.
Tony has a wide variety of experience in the professional and commercial sectors.
After graduating from Leeds University, he qualified as a Chartered Accountant during
a 10 year spell with Deloitte & Touche, before becoming the first Executive
Finance Director of the Rugby Football League.
He later spent a period of time with a PLC motor dealership, prior to taking up
a position with Parkhouse Recruitment, firstly as Finance Director and later as
Managing Director. His most recent role was that of Commercial Director with Connaught
Compliance Limited.
"I am delighted to have been invited to work with the largest independent provider
of telecommunication services, and one of the fastest growing companies in the UK,"
said Tony.
"It is a tremendous personal opportunity and I look forward to making my contribution
to the further development of the business as it continues to go from strength to
strength."
Thursday, 2nd August 2007
40 new jobs as Unicom opens in Milton Keynes
Unicom has opened a website sales office in Milton Keynes, creating 40 new jobs.
The new regional office is a response to demand from South East businesses for its
website design and hosting service.
"The vast majority of small business owners appreciate the benefits that having
an online presence will have for their business, but are usually put off by the
high design costs, and most do not have the time or skills to design and develop
them themselves," said Chris Earle, Unicom's Operations Director.
"It is becoming common practice for consumers of all goods and services to only
make a purchase or use services after viewing the seller's website – a website provides
comfort and credibility, as well as information about products and services. There
is a danger that small businesses will be left behind their larger competitors by
a lack of an online presence – at Unicom we hope that we can help reverse this trend."
Thursday, 19th July 2007
Unicom hits 500 million calls, 1 billion minutes
Unicom has hit a double milestone.
One of our 60,000 customers has made the 500 millionth call routed since we launched,
and at around about the same time we also completed 1 billion minutes of call time
sold.
"We add around 20 million calls and something like 40 million minutes of talk time
every month," said Chris Earle, Unicom's Operations Director.
"We're a relatively small business with a small, closely-knit and efficient management
team – and we are absolutely clear in our minds about what makes the difference
to our customers: a UK call centre with real people answering the telephone, 98%
of calls answered within six seconds, and managers and directors who are hands-on
and accessible."
Tuesday, 26th June 2007
Unicom appoints two new customer relations heads
Unicom has appointed Sam Sadreddini from Northenden and Lee McEvoy from Fallowfield
to the new roles of Section Manager.
Sam and Lee - both 25 - will oversee the five customer relations teams which make
up Unicom's customer relations department. The promotions come in conjunction with
the appointment of Janette Palmer to the position of Customer Relations Director
- a board level position. Both Sam and Lee will report directly to Janette on all
customer relations issues.
Sam will head up the customer contact administration, change of ownership and correspondence
teams, which together total 12 employees, while Lee will manage the retentions and
escalations teams - also totalling 12 employees.
Sam and Lee joined Unicom in 2003 and 2004 respectively after graduating from University
with BA Hons degrees. Both have steadily progressed their careers in the organisation,
working their way through sales manager roles and varying customer relations departments.
Tuesday, 19th June 2007
Unicom appoints new board director
Unicom has appointed Janette Palmer to the board as Customer Relations Director.
Janette began working for Unicom in 2002, initially as a sales manager during the
period it sold gas and electricity on behalf of British Gas. Janette was also a
sales manager during the early years of Unicom becoming an established telecoms
supplier.
In 2004, Janette was appointed as Head of Credit Control and has subsequently taken
responsibility for retentions, escalations, correspondence and the administration
work involved in servicing customers.
"The past five years have been an exciting and challenging time and I'm so proud
to be part of Unicom's growth and success. I take great pride in looking after our
customers - all of them small business owners who expect a high level of service
from us," said Janette.
Tuesday, 14th June 2007
Unicom appoints Singularity for WLR3 Migration
Unicom has appointed Singularity as its WLR3 integrator as part of Ofcom's stipulation
that BT Retail and third party Communication Providers (CPs) should use the same
mechanisms to access the OpenReach network to ensure 'equivalence of input'.
BT must provide equal market conditions for line switching for all CPs, including
BT Retail and from 30th June, BT Retail will be obligated to process all new orders
through WLR3.
Currently CPs interact with the BT wholesale network using the WLR2 platform. From
2007, as part of BT's undertakings to Ofcom, OpenReach will be asking all CPs to
migrate to the WLR3 platform as part of its restructuring, while continuing to support
WLR2 for a period.
"Unicom chose Singularity to develop its WLR3 Solution because of its extensive
expertise within the area - it demonstrated that it is clear leader in WLR3 integration
with work it has already completed for the UK's largest telecom provider," said
Chris Earle, Operations Director, Unicom.
Tuesday, 5th June 2007
Unicom donates £13,000 bursary to the Outward Bound Trust
Unicom has donated £13,000 to The Outward Bound Trust to allow disadvantaged children
in the North West and London to attend Outward Bound courses - something they would
otherwise be unable to experience.
The schools to benefit from the donation are Flixton Girls High School, Manchester,
and Ravenscroft School in Barnet, North London.
Flixton Girls High School, Manchester, has a mixed range of pupils, some who can
afford to attend the Outward Bound courses and others who cannot, due to severe
financial restrictions. Seventy pupils between the ages of 14 and 15 are booked
on a course in November at Ullswater in the Lake District, and the bursary will
enable those who would not normally be able to afford a course to attend along with
their peers who can.
Ravenscroft School in Barnet, North London is one of the most disadvantaged schools
in its area. Of a school population of 900, around 40% of pupils are entitled to
free school meals and wouldn't normally be able to consider participating on a residential
Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme. The bursary will provide 45 pupils between the ages
of 15 and 17 to attend a course at Ullswater.
Monday, 21st May 2007
Unicom launches second graduate training scheme
Unicom has launched its second graduate recruitment scheme, with the interview process
starting in June.
We plans to recruit and train graduates on a fast track program to become our managers
of the future, as well as promoting talented employees within the company.
"It is a graduates' employment market, and while for many it is all about finding
the best package, for some it is about finding the best employer - it is the latter
we hope to find, attract and develop." said Chris Earle, Operations Director, Unicom.
Wednesday, 9th May 2007
Unicom grows in Sheffield
Unicom is planning further development following ahead-of-plan growth in the region.
The business has moved to new offices in Carver Street, Sheffield to accommodate
the current team and allow for further expansion of current and planned services
following a strong take-up of our products in South Yorkshire.
"We anticipate creating a number of new roles in the Sheffield office to cope with
growing demand," said Chris Earle, Unicom's Operations Director.
"We seem to have clicked with the South Yorkshire small business community, and
I think a great deal of the growth and success is down to nothing more complex than
a no-nonsense service, priced highly competitively and operated from a local base."
Friday, 20th April 2007
Unicom in Sunday Times Top 100 UK companies for third time
Unicom has been named in the Sunday Times list of the UK's fastest growing companies
for the third time.
Profit Track charts Britain's fastest-growing companies by profit growth - and Unicom
is rated at 96th place in the Sunday Times PricewaterhouseCoopers Profit Track 100
league table of Britain's private companies.
Profit Track measured the growth in profit between the year ending April 2003 and
2006. During that time, profits have risen from £1.7 million in 2003 to £5.2 million
in 2006 - an average growth of 44% each year.
Monday, 16th April 2007
Five-fold growth as Unicom hits 100,000 business customer landmark
Unicom has signed up its 100,000th small business, a five-fold increase in 36 months.
Our 100,000th customer is Browntex Limited of Steeple Road Industrial Estate, Antrim,
County Antrim, in Northern Ireland.
We credit our success to a call centre with a difference - a 'normal' 0161 phone
number, and UK-based people answering incoming calls in around six seconds.
Monday, 2nd April 2007
Unicom grows in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
Having opened a website design and hosting centre in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in December,
Unicom are planning further growth following ahead-of-plan development in the region.
We had originally planned for 40 roles to be created, but have moved to new offices
in the centre of Newcastle to allow growth - and potentially 20 further jobs.
Unicom has seen a strong take-up of its website design and hosting service - but
a newer version of the product has driven demand even higher. Customers are now
able to develop a presence on the internet for their businesses for less than £1
per day.
Wednesday, 6th December 2006
Unicom becomes Public Limited Company
On 6th December 2006, Universal Utilities Limited, trading as Unicom, became a Public
Limited Company (PLC).
Universal Utilities will remain privately owned and at present has no plans to be
listed on the London Stock Exchange, the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) or
any other stock market.
The change from a Limited Company to a PLC does not mean that the ownership or control
of the company has changed in anyway, but does reflect the growth of the company
over the past few years and the status we have now achieved.
Friday, 1st December 2006
Double Fast Track success for Unicom
Unicom has been named in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100, to add to its Sunday
Times Profit Track 100 success earlier in the year.
We are one of only three businesses nationwide, and the only one outside London,
that appeared in both the Profit Track and Fast track top 100 for 2006.
Fast Track charts Britain's fastest-growing companies by turnover growth over a
three year period – and Unicom is rated as the 89th fastest growing private company
in the UK, in the table published by the Sunday Times on Sunday 3rd December 2006,
with Unicom's turnover rising by 65.3% each year.
Profit Track measures Britain's fastest growing companies by profit growth over
3 years, and Unicom's annual profit growth of 85.6% each year led to it being ranked
26th in the Sunday Times PriceWaterhouseCoopers Profit Track table, which was published
on 2nd April 2006.
These two prestigious awards make us one of only three companies nationwide which
have managed to achieve the magical combination of both rapid sales growth and accelerating
profits. Two other companies featured in both tables for 2006 - Central London based
Barchester Healthcare (70th and 16th), and Gladedale, from South London (35th and
40th).
Monday, 27th November 2006
Unicom Launches Graduate Training Scheme
Unicom has started the interview process to recruit up to eight graduate trainees
to start with the company on January 3rd, 2007.
The formal part of the programme will take one year to complete and graduates will
be assessed based upon their individual skill sets and recruited into the business.
We plan to recruit and train graduates on a fast track program to become our managers
of the future, as well as promoting talented employees within the company.
"It's important that employees start at grass roots level and understand the business
from every angle - a formal graduate training programme will ensure that the successful
applicants learn every aspect of the business so they are equipped to take on managerial
roles in the future," said Chris Earle, Operations Director, Unicom.
Monday, 6th November 2006
Newcastle office opened
As part of our nation-wide expansion program we have opened a new sales office in
Newcastle. This office has been specifically opened to support the growing interest
in our website package which offers domain registration, website design and hosting,
and personalised email addresses all for £19.99 per month.
Market research shows there is significant demand for affordable websites for small
businesses. It is envisaged that the Newcastle office will be the first regional
office opened in a series, which will provide Unicom with a network of offices so
that they can supply small businesses throughout the UK.
Due to this expansion we are currently seeking telesales and fieldsales operatives.
To see how you could work for Unicom or to see any of our other exciting vacancies
please visit our Recruitment page for a list of currently available positions.
Monday, 6th November 2006
Ford Ka winner announced
All customers entering into an agreement during September, and commencing supply
during October, were entered into the prize draw, with the winners being chosen
at random on 6th November 2006.
The winner of the recent prize draw for a Ford Ka has been chosen. Mr Barnard, of
Sigman AV Ltd, in Bourne, Lincolnshire, is now the proud owner of a new Ford Ka!
MR Barnard was stunned to have won a prize for the first time in his life, and was
clearly delighted with his prize.
Mr Barnard was not the only customer to benefit from the prize draw, as Mrs Abiona,
of Lazy Daze Ltd, in Cheltenham, has won free calls for a year up to the value of
£1000! Our third prizewinner, Mrs Lynch, of Auto Solutions, in Newport, has won
free line rental for an entire year for up to 3 lines.
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