The restructuring includes new leadership and also provides cost savings and the centralisation of support services. In support of this new structure, ScanSource has named Rudy De Meirsman as Managing Director for ScanSource Europe Communications, a newly-created position. Mr. De Meirsman is responsible for implementing a pan-European strategy for the Communications business unit and leading a focused, dynamic team. He reports to Buck Baker, Interim President of ScanSource Europe. Rudy De Meirsman brings over 20 years of IT channel leadership experience to his new role and commented, “Our Sales teams will be led by Kim Jennings, Sales Director for the UK and Barbara Klein, recently promoted to Sales Director for Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands and France. Kim and Barbara each have over 11 years of experience with ScanSource. Gregory Genart is Merchandising Director, now leading the teams that support all of our relationships with our manufacturer partners. Gregory has been with ScanSource for over 10 years.
Paul Emery has been promoted to Technical Director, utilising his 7 years of experience with ScanSource to manage the pre- and post-sales technical support teams. Kim, Barbara, Gregory and Paul will all report directly to myself.” A spokesperson for ScanSource confirmed that no management positions in the UK were being lost as a result of the re-organisation. De Meirsman joined ScanSource in 2010 and previously served as the Senior Director of Merchandising for ScanSource’s Communications business unit in Europe. He has over 20 years of experience in technology distribution, including sales and marketing leadership positions with Plextor Europe and distributor Tech Data. “Rudy has proven himself as a leader with the experience we need to take the next step in our Communications business in Europe. These moves will provide focused leadership and operational efficiencies, as we continue to implement our pan-European strategy to serve our key partners, including Avaya, Extreme, LifeSize, and ShoreTel,” said Buck Baker. The restructuring includes the elimination of positions to set the cost structure in line with current operations and move to more global shared support services. The organizational structure provides focused business unit leadership, as well as dedicated merchandising, sales and technical support teams, at a scale for profitable growth. In addition, ScanSource will move certain European support functions to centralized global teams in the United States to gain efficiencies. The annualised cost savings in connection with the restructuring, principally associated with the elimination of positions, are estimated to be approximately $3.1 million. The Company expects to incur approximately $1.2 million in associated one-time costs, which include related severance expenses, during the quarter ending March 31, 2013. “ScanSource continues to adapt our business model to better address the changing demands of the global marketplace. The new scale of our operations fits with our present vendor and sales opportunities, while positioning us for future expansion as we add to our vendor portfolio and pan-European geographic reach,” said Mike Baur, Chief Executive Officer of ScanSource, Inc. “This strategy will allow us to be more efficient, while positioning our Communications business unit in Europe for profitable growth.”