CIMA SCS Pre-seen: Vennlisk (November 2026 and February 2027)

Vennlisk at a glance

• Industry: outsourced inbound call centre services.
• Home country: Westland, a developed country (currency W$, reports under IFRS).
• Services: dedicated inbound centres (most clients) and shared inbound centres.
• Clients: utilities, healthcare, banking, insurance, online retail, public sector, travel and hospitality.
• Size: 5,000 agents across five owned call centres in major Westland cities.
• History: founded 1994, listed on the Westland stock exchange in 2002.
• Growth route: acquisitions plus organic growth.
• Key people: Chen Yue (CEO), Tshepo Batane (CFO), Dr Maria Chandler (Operations Director), Murat Mutlu (Non-Executive Chair).
• Closest rival: Ringcoll, another quoted Westland inbound specialist.

Your role

You are a senior manager in Vennlisk's finance function, reporting directly to the Board. You advise on special projects and strategic matters. So expect to write for directors, who want clear judgements and recommendations, not textbook theory.

The industry

Westland has seven major inbound call centre providers, which together earned W$38 billion in 2025. The pre-seen sets out several pressures and trends:

• Offshore competition. Fast telecoms links let call centres operate almost anywhere, and overseas providers pay staff far less than Westland rates.
• Pricing models. Shared centres charge per minute of agent time. Dedicated centres charge hourly rates for agents, busy or not. Each shifts risk between provider and client differently.
• Performance metrics. First call resolution, customer satisfaction, average handle time, service level and call abandonment, which pull against each other.
• Technology. AI could support agents, monitor calls and spot patterns in the metrics. Chatbots run around the clock but struggle with emotion and complex queries.
• People. The work is tiring and repetitive, with few promotion routes. Keeping trained agents is listed as a principal risk.

The numbers

Figures for the years ended 30 September, in W$ million, from the pre-seen. Ratios are our own calculations.

• Revenue: Vennlisk 12,370.0 in 2026 (11,627.8 in 2025); Ringcoll 10,514.5 in 2026.
• Operating profit: Vennlisk 1,451.0 (1,254.7); Ringcoll 1,449.5.
• Operating margin: Vennlisk 11.7% (10.8%); Ringcoll 13.8%.
• Profit for the year: Vennlisk 770.8 (621.6); Ringcoll 1,005.2.
• Borrowings: Vennlisk 5,460.0 in both years; Ringcoll 1,800.0.

What stands out:

• Growth. Vennlisk's revenue rose about 6.4% and profit for the year about 24%. Ringcoll grew revenue faster, by about 9.9%, but its operating margin fell from about 16.6% to 13.8%.
• Debt. Vennlisk's borrowings are about 66% of its equity, against about 24% for Ringcoll. Its operating profit covers finance costs about 3.3 times, against about 10 times for Ringcoll.
• Goodwill. Goodwill of W$6,274 million is about 44% of total assets, reflecting its history of acquisitions.
• Market view. The share price peaked above W$500 in 2022 and was around W$100 at 30 September 2026. The dividend was about 66% of the year's profit.

Areas to prepare

These are areas worth preparing. They are not predictions of exam questions.

• Strategic position. Can a high-cost, quality-led provider defend its market against offshore rivals? Think about what clients value and why they outsource.
• Strategic options. Growth by acquisition, new client sectors, pricing model changes or technology, each weighed against Vennlisk's existing debt.
• Implementing change. Introducing AI would affect 5,000 agents. Prepare to discuss change management, staff reactions and communication.
• Performance management. Know the call centre metrics well, and why chasing one, such as handle time, can damage another.
• Risk and governance. Data privacy, telecoms failure, staff welfare and AI errors all appear. The board structure, committees and sustainability targets give material on governance and reporting.
• Ethics. The blog extracts raise questions about workload, pressure to rush callers and agent wellbeing, against the company's stated values.

How to use the time before your exam

November candidates sit from 18 to 20 November 2026, about two weeks away. Focus on the essentials: read the pre-seen twice, learn the key numbers and practise timed answers.

February candidates sit from 17 to 19 February 2027, with booking closing on 2 February. You have about three months. Use the first month to analyse the pre-seen in depth, then build up to full mocks with feedback on your writing.

Either way, practise writing to the Board as a senior adviser, with clear recommendations backed by points specific to Vennlisk.

Prepare with VIVA

Our SCS course works through the Vennlisk pre-seen in detail and builds your exam technique step by step. The Marked Mock Exam Pack lets you sit realistic mocks and get your scripts marked against our grid. Check the deadlines on our CIMA case study exam dates page.