Newly appointed MTN SA CEO Mteto Nyati has not ruled out job losses at the mobile operator.

In an interview with ITWeb Africa Nyati said job cuts will be effected as a way to continue being profitable and competitive.

"That is something that we will always do. Today, tomorrow and forever we will always be looking at the cost structures of our business."

Nyati added that any person who can guarantee that there would not be job losses while running a business would be lying.

Nyati was appointed as CEO at MTN SA following the sudden resignation of Ahmad Farroukh, who is now chief executive of Saudi Arabia's Etihad Etisalat (Mobily). 

He confirmed that his colleagues have been excited and welcoming and that he is looking forward to external engagements with MTN SA's partners, customers, investors and the unionists in particular, whose pressure is rumoured to be the reason for his predecessor's resignation.

"I always enjoy challenging situations as a general statement...there is an area where we have a common interest. Interest around our employees from our side and their side, interest around their members. So starting from that I have no doubt that we can find common ground," said Nyati in reference to the ongoing industrial action.

Finding common ground with the unions might be harder than anticipated as Nyati said job losses at MTN SA are not out of the question. The job cuts would be as a result of what Nyati described as a decline in MTN's traditional telco business, underpined by the plunge in voice and the continuing reduction of data costs.

"Some parts of our business are getting to a level of maturity which means we need to run them differently. Other parts of this business are in the growth phase so we need be making investments in those businesses like the enterprise space. That is a growth area for the company. That is where we are hiring people, but other parts of the company we need to be trimming down."

Nyati first joined MTN as group chief enterprise officer nine months ago and is proud of how MTN SA has handled the strike to date.

"I commend the way my colleagues have been running this up to this point. It has been good. You have to be transparent and honest with your negotiation partners and that is what they have done."