The telecommunications company's CEO Mike Zafirovski spoke of his plan to turn the struggling firm around during Nortel's first investor day since February 2004. It has been a year since Mr. Zafirovski joined the company.
"We're still not giving up on 43 per cent," said Mr. Zafirovski in a webcast of the investor day, referring to Nortel's target for gross profit as a percentage of revenue. "People could say 'you guys are na ïve.' Our opportunities to improve gross margin are more significant than other companies because our costs are not too high on direct materials and how we design products. I'm confident we'll be able to deliver."
The company also expects to profit from its doubled investments in its new WiMax technology. The new technology will allow for faster wireless Internet downloads
Nortel's revenue has risen approximately 7.5 per cent to US$8.1 billion this year.
