Totally Share Discussion Threads

[1gw] 02/2/2024 09:41

Fascinating lack of share price reaction to the news so far. They didn't sugarcoat the departure at all - no promise to do things differently, no reassurance that it wasn't triggered by a financial issue...

So why no shareprice reaction? Presumably those 500k buys (I assume some of them were buys) are representative of some underlying support. But from whom? Insider buys? Or a shareholder who had pushed the board to change the CFO now feeling this is the start of the recovery and/or they ought to support the decision in this way?

But also strange IMO that there is not much in the way of "normal" trading. Where are the small investor reaction sells? Wouldn't you expect to see more of these, even if the shareprice is supported by the larger buys?

On one level it must be depressing for Lisa to see the lack of reaction to her departure.

Let's see if the eerie calm can last...

[sikhthetech] 01/2/2024 21:43

They currently have over 50 vacancies, 1/2 of which were advertised within the past 4 weeks.
The rest within the past 6-7 weeks.

That doesn't sound like a company in financial trouble, does it?

[supernumerary] 01/2/2024 21:41

1gw - I think we can safely rule out the 'fantastic job offer elsewhere' scenario - would anyone pay a premium for what she's achieved here?

It does seem odd about the website holdings update: maybe she sold without notifying the rest of the board, and when they found out, she had to walk the plank?

Many possible explanations for this announcement - silence will inevitably lead to speculation - but the only certain conclusion is that losing a CFO with neither clarification nor planning is a very bad sign :¬(

[sikhthetech] 01/2/2024 21:40

1gw,

All the evidence points to she resigned. You even said yourself she was reading/answering LinkedIn questions only a day or so ago, which points to her resigning. Are you now saying there's no connection between her reading/answering LinkedIn questions and resigning a day or so later??? Make your mind up.

Have you never resigned from a job or seen directors resign?

There maybe more to it than meets the eye but all the evidence points to her resigning. We are unlikely to know the reasons due to confidentiality.



"The fact that she wasn't thanked and wasn't wished well for the future is imo significant. As perhaps is the lack of commentary on current trading."

I agree about the lack of thanks and wishes, as it would have been nice. The Byot CEO resigned immediately all those months ago, was thanked. So going by your assertion was that immediate resignation not significant then???
I completely disagree with the lack of commentary on TU. If the CFO resigned immediately this afternoon, when do you think they would produce a TU. Apart from that one is probably due next month, just before yr end.


I'm sure you and your mates with the multiple ids will spin and milk this as much as you can, as you normally do.

[1gw] 01/2/2024 21:16

The RNS states that she decided to step down (i.e. resigned), so there's no argument about the formal presentation. But that doesn't tell us whether she jumped (e.g. got a fantastic job offer elsewhere) or whether she was pushed (put in what she felt was an impossible position so that her only reasonable choice was to resign).

The fact that she wasn't thanked and wasn't wished well for the future is imo significant. As perhaps is the lack of commentary on current trading.

[sikhthetech] 01/2/2024 21:02

1gw

"Has no-one else noticed the linked-in conversation on unexpected resignation? Someone put up a survey question a couple of weeks ago and Lisa commented on the subsequent thread just a day or so ago. "

There you go, I suggested all the evidence pointed to the CFO resigning and now you change your mind and agree. You have a habit of huffing and puffing and then agreeing with me. :-)


Remember rthm with their 3 CFOs resigning within a 6 month period and 3 CEOs within 18months. I warned that was red flag, whilst you and your mates continued ramping them. They crashed. Remember Byot, CEO resigned immediately last Sept and they still haven't found a replacement. Those are red flags whilst you didn't see them as such and continued to ramp them.



A director resigning after reading an article or answering a questionaire on Linkedin would be quite normal, I would have thought.


For all we know, Lisa Barter resigned as she wanted a different direction or was offered a new opportunity by others on LinkedIn, after they read her comments.

We can all speculate or spin.


"We may never know for sure, but the likely cause may become clearer with subsequent announcements."

Exactly, my point.

It's good you're agreeing more and more.

[1gw] 01/2/2024 20:19

Has no-one else noticed the linked-in conversation on unexpected resignation? Someone put up a survey question a couple of weeks ago and Lisa commented on the subsequent thread just a day or so ago. In particular in one of her comments (as I read the thread) she expressed a view on what it takes for people to get to the stage where they resign.

It's not difficult to imagine a scenario in which she felt put in an impossible position - for example being asked to restate financials, or strengthen the balance sheet through a rescue rights issue, or prepare for a major writedown of goodwill - things that she felt she had worked hard to avoid in the past and doing them now would cast a shadow over her past achievements.

We may never know for sure, but the likely cause may become clearer with subsequent announcements.

[sikhthetech] 01/2/2024 19:27

The fact the CFO left immediately and there was no TU tells me she resigned and was not pushed.
I doubt any company would prepare and issue a TU immediately upon receiving a CFO's resignation.

If they were planning to sack the CFO then they would have planned a replacement.

So I think she resigned and being a CFO, left immediately. Do CFO's have handover periods?

Companies have other team members who are able to work whilst staff are away. After all, the company wouldn't have stopped working if the CFO had gone on a year's maternity leave or a long holiday.

The shares being removed immediately from the website is surprising. It would have happened eventually, so not too concerning. Although 1gw would have highlighted it as poor management, sackable offence, had it remained on the website beyond today.

The question is why she resigned?

[gbcol] 01/2/2024 19:01

It was more the speed of updating the website that I found surprising. Sometimes it is weeks out of date, but they updated it in minutes today.

Was probably joining dots unnecessarily on the shares but thought it may explain the 500k and/or 200k sales this afternoon.

[grahamburn] 01/2/2024 18:10

GBCol

The website list of directors' shareholdings does it was last updated today which means that it won't list Barter's holdings - not a director.

Don't understand your comment "she may have sold them as part of the pay off" as that seems off the wall. Yes, any options would be forfeited but they won't as of now be part of her previous listing.

[fenners66] 01/2/2024 17:40

Announced the news at 3.00pm not first thing this morning - more evidence its an unplanned shambles !

[gbcol] 01/2/2024 17:40

Interestingly her 688k shares are no longer showing on the updated list of shareholdings (updated today), so they/she may have sold them as part of the pay off - although it is possible that she still holds and was just taken off the list as no longer a director. All rather speedy and appear to be looking for a clean break but I am sure she was asked to resign and that would be perfectly understandable IMO. We may or may not ever find out the reasons, depending on whether it’s general incompetence rather than a specific accounting faux pas or the less likely option that she wanted to leave (but that doesn’t stack up to me as why no notice??)

[fenners66] 01/2/2024 17:37

Well she declined to give a full year forecast - and she's not going to be giving one now !

[fenners66] 01/2/2024 17:32

Remember this post ?

"fenners66
8 Dec '23 - 09:43 - 1113 of 1173 Edit

Maybe the other directors "know" they are going to be getting shares for free...

When someone leaves a scheme as a result of leaving a company not of their volition
they are often considered to be "good leavers" - don't know if this applies to the bonus
scheme here etc. but if it does...."


Looks like that could be very pertinent !

[fenners66] 01/2/2024 17:31

1gw on the other thread ... now the skeletons can be let out of the cupboard - she's gone so she will get the blame.
How much is she getting paid off for this ?
Year end 31-March so this looks like a disaster inbound.
No one to do the accounts - means expensive auditors appointing someone to help - who can lift all the stones - unlike when they are appointed to "check " a few things and give themselves the out that any errors not found will be not within their materiality bounds and despite that they report to the directors not the world...

[fenners66] 01/2/2024 17:23

Resigns ... from this exact moment... no handover ... no plan ... no future?

[pierre oreilly] 01/2/2024 16:17

Rats deserting the sinking ship.

[1gw] 01/2/2024 16:17

Bit of a mess isn't it?

Lisa finally goes (jumped or pushed), but no-one is lined up to take her place. No TU issued alongside the announcement - surely this was an opportunity to commit to big goodwill write-downs and to more diligent preparation of future financial reports? If they're really only starting a CFO search process today, are they going to be able to get someone of the necessary quality in place in good time for the end-year reporting?

Is it enough to save Wendy's job? I think it might have been had it been done much earlier, but now I suspect not, unless there's a dramatic turnround in business performance. Wendy has been there alongside Lisa as all the questionable financial reporting (questioned by me at least) came out. Is Wendy now going to be seen as a lame duck and what does that do for senior management focus?

Perhaps there's some choreography in place and they needed to get today's announcement out of the way before moving on to other material announcements in the near future?

[beckers2008] 01/2/2024 16:10

"Totally plc (AIM: TLY), a leading provider of frontline healthcare services, corporate fitness and wellbeing services across the UK and Ireland, announces that the Company's Chief Financial Officer, Lisa Barter, has decided to step down from her role with effect from 1st February 2024"

She's resigned with immediate effect!
No other way to put it... looks like TLY are in a whole lot of trouble.

[dr biotech] 01/2/2024 15:42

Sounds like a boardroom row and sudden resignation - no thanks given. Hopefully wasn't over some accounting issues..

[grahame888] 01/2/2024 15:35

Correct that CFO has gone. Need CEO to follow.

[johndoe23] 01/2/2024 15:27

The CEO and ex CFO are/were completely incompetent anyway