PeopleMover: David Morash, Harry Casari, Robert Klatell, Michael Prior, Cornelius Prior, Verizon's Restructuring

By DAVID SIMS

TMCnet CRM Alert Columnist

Axesstel, Inc., a fixed wireless voice and broadband data vendor, has announced the resignation of David Morash, president, chief financial officer and director for "personal reasons." Patrick Gray, vice president of finance and controller, will continue and supervise the financial and accounting processes while the company initiates a search for a new chief financial officer.

The company has appointed Roland A. Van der Meer and current board advisor Scott Fox to its board of directors.

In a separate and "unrelated matter," according to company officials, the board "reluctantly" accepted the resignation of Harry Casari as a director, as the chair of the audit committee, and as a member of other board committees.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO East, January 20-22, 2010. Miami, FL.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO East, January 20-22, 2010. Miami, FL.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO East, January 20-22, 2010. Miami, FL.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO East, January 20-22, 2010. Miami, FL.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO East, January 20-22, 2010. Miami, FL.

Find Solutions for Enterprises, SMBs & Service Providers at the INTERNET TELEPHONY Conference and EXPO East, January 20-22, 2010. Miami, FL.

Axesstel officials stress there were "no disagreements between Casari, Morash and Axesstel on any matter of accounting principles or practice, financial disclosure, or audit procedures."

Revenues for the fourth quarter 2005 may fall below the low end of previous guidance of $17 million, Axesstel acknowledges, and full year 2005 revenues are expected to be below its previous low end guidance of approximately $100 million. It will not provide additional financial guidance for the balance of 2005 and is suspending plans for issuing future guidance until further notice.

The company has cancelled its plans to present at the First Albany Capital Annual Growth Conference on Wednesday in New York.

DICOM Group plc, an English information capture and communications products vendor, has announced the appointment of Robert E. Klatell, a US citizen (gasp), as Chief Executive Officer.

Klatell succeeds Arnold von Bueren, the current CEO, as of 1 March 2006, following Arnold's decision to pursue opportunities outside the group.

Klatell was previously executive vice president and a board member of Arrow Electronics, Inc., a Fortune 500 company with over 11,000 employees worldwide and annual sales in excess of $10 billion, where he had worked for the previous 25 years.

Atlantic Tele-Network, Inc., a telecommunications vendor, has announced that its Board of Directors has named Michael T. Prior, currently Chief Financial Officer, as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2006.

The board also announced that Cornelius B. Prior, Jr., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (detecting a trend here?), will continue as Chairman of the Board. He has served as CEO since January 1, 1998 and previously as co-chief executive officer from the time he co-founded the company in 1987.

The company said it expects to appoint a new chief financial officer early in the new year.

Verizon Communications Inc. has announced a restructuring of retirement benefits for active management employees currently covered by a defined benefit plan. These employees will retain pension benefits they have already earned, continue to be eligible to grow into their early retirement pensions, and on June 30, 2006, receive an 18-month enhancement to the value of their pension and retiree medical benefits.

In addition, the company will increase matching dollars for its Management Savings Plan (401k) for these employees as well as for MCI managers who join Verizon after the close of the planned Verizon/MCI merger.

Under the restructured benefit plans, after June 30, 2006, Verizon management employees will no longer earn pension benefits or receive any additional service credits toward the company's subsidy of retiree medical benefits. These management employees who do not have 15 years of service, including the additional 18 months of service, will not be eligible for a company subsidy for retiree medical benefits.

Neither Verizon Wireless nor MCI management employees currently have pension or retiree medical benefits.

David Sims is contributing editor for TMCnet. For more articles please visit David Sims' columnist page.

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