Gigabit Magazine – February 2020

Adaptive Data Centers

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FEBRUARY 2020

Digital mines of the future

CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICERS

Securing the super app CISO George Do on the methods, trends and technologies driving the cybersecurity agenda

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WELCOME

W

elcome to the February issue

future of enterprise automation and

of Gigabit magazine!

understand the need for a technologi-

Appearing on our cover this month

is Indonesian tech unicorn Gojek.

The company’s Chief Information

cal approach to food in the smart cities of the future.

Don’t miss our special report in

Security Officer, George Do, tells us

which Harry Menear looks at smart

what cybersecurity means to an app

cities and the 5G revolution powering

that provides as broad a range of

them, interviewing a number of lead-

services as Gojek’s does.

ers in the field.

“Gojek was born in the cloud, meaning

Our top 10 sees us profiling the

that much of what we do pivots around

CIOs of the world’s largest companies

that,” Do explains. “While the security

in order to find out how the CIO role

concepts remain the same, a lot of the

is necessarily evolving as IT becomes

tools and processes are different

more involved in wider strategy.

when compared to traditional organi-

Don’t forget to read our other feature

sations that have a large part of their

interviews with the likes of FICO, EY,

infrastructure still on premise. While

Daraz, Vodafone Procurement

traditional companies typically straddle

Company and many more.

on premise infrastructure applications and a hybrid cloud model, we focus

Enjoy the issue!

more on the cloud model.”

We also hear from the CEO of SnapLogic, Gaurav Dhillon, on the

William Smith william.smith@bizclikmedia.com

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03

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Our joint accomplishments include modernizing billing support systems, introducing a groundbreaking customer care system, providing cost-effective payments processing and the optimization of current and future network capabilities.

This strong Sprint-Amdocs partnership has won widespread industry recognition, including the 2017 Global Telecoms Business Award for Consumer Service Innovation.

Visit www.amdocs.com to learn more about how you can partner with Amdocs to innovate successfully.

www.amdocs.com Š 2019 Amdocs. All rights reserved.

Click the home icon (top right of page) to return to contents page at anytime EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

WILLIAM SMITH EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

MATT HIGH CREATIVE DIRECTORS

DANIEL CRAWFORD STEVE SHIPLEY

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PRESIDENT & CEO

GLEN WHITE PUBLISHED BY

w w w. g i g a b i t m a g a z i n e . c o m

CONTENTS

42

12 50

32

62

URBAN FARMING

TECHNOLOGY AND TRADITION

92 76

TOP 10 CIOs

EVENTS

96

Golden Hippo

122

LifeScan

144

Aligned

166

Brown-Forman Corporation

204 FICO

186

Belcorp

222

IBM Industry Academy

254 EY

272 240 Savills

Hindustan Zinc

294

StarHub

310

Cargo Services Far East

328 Daraz

346

Vodafone Procurement Company

132 376

Rohit Darodkar

364

390

400

426

Eramet Group

Activ Foundation

412

Racing & Wagering WA

MST Global

Social Futures

12

How cybersecurity promotes trust in the super app WRITTEN BY

WILLIAM SMITH PRODUCED BY

CRAIG KILLINGBACK

FEBRUARY 2020

13

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GOJEK

George Do, Chief Information Security at Indonesian tech unicorn Gojek, on the methods, trends and technologies driving the cybersecurity agenda

I

“ 14

t’s refreshing to work for a company that has such a positive impact on so many lives across the APAC region and across the world,” says

George Do, Chief Information Security Officer at Gojek, a company he joined in September 2019.

Gojek provides a technology platform offering a variety of services from ride-hailing to food delivery, an approach that affords the moniker of a “super app”. “My charter is to ensure the security of the company and all of our products, services, platforms, as well as all of the systems for our users,” says Do. “I would describe the role as driving the mission of the company to help improve millions of lives by reducing its daily frictions. This opportunity to make a positive social impact was such an important factor for me to make the decision to join Gojek.”

Do credits his career in cybersecurity to an early inciting incident. “I was lucky enough to be selected as an intern at NASA, which really

FEBRUARY 2020

15

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CRIT

!

23%

Overall Compliance

GOJEK

challenges, but also plenty of

“ The bad guys only have to get it right once. We have to get it right every time”

opportunities. “Gojek made it into the ground floor of the digital transformation,” says Do. “Where we’re at today is where a lot of companies around the world are trying to get to. Executing a security strategy for such a cutting edge platform is a very exciting endeavour.” The depth and breadth of services a super app like Gojek offers requires a specific

18

George Do Chief Information Security Officer, Gojek

launched my career. I wasn’t into security before then, but I was bitten by the security bug once I started the internship.” From there, Do says he was “fortunate to have faced security challenges from both within and outside the walls of organisations, having been part of internal security teams as well as serving as a consultant and as a security architect. That helped me a great deal in learning how to balance and bridge the gap between security and the business.”

Cybersecurity at a digital-native company like Gojek offers its own FEBRUARY 2020

approach. “One of the key areas of focus that we target as a super app is DevSecOps,” says Do. “That’s

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘INTRODUCING GOJEK’S NEW LOGO – SOLV’ 19 development, security, and operations, all in one within continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) environments. We really work hard to bake security into our engineering processes. Because our application is the main interface for our consumers, driver partners, and merchants, we take application security very seriously, so we employ both static and dynamic security tools.”

As Do emphasises, it is the maturity of Gojek’s cloud capabilities that offers the company enormous benefits. “Gojek was born in the w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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Gojek steps up GSuite security with YubiKey hardware-based authentication Gojek is Southeast Asia’s leading on-demand, super app provider, connecting individuals with a wide range of services including transport, payments, food delivery, logistics, and much more. Founded in 2010 with the goal to provide solutions to Jakarta’s ever-present traffic problems, Gojek started as a call center with a fleet of only 20 motorcycle-taxi drivers.

With the principle of using technology to improve the lives of people, the Gojek app was launched in January 2015 to provide users in Indonesia with motorbike ride-sharing (GoRide), delivery (GoSend), and shopping (GoMart) services.

Today, Gojek has transformed into a “Super App”. It is a one-stop platform with more than 20 services, connecting users with more than 2 million registered driver-partners, 400,000 GoFood merchants, and 60,000 GoLife service providers – with more than 130 million total downloads across the region. By providing their users with seamless access to products and services across multiple sectors, Gojek continues to improve efficiency and productivity for Indonesian citizens, as well as boost economic and financial inclusion.

With more than 5,000 internal employees, Gojek understood the necessity to secure company data, while also delivering a simple and friendly user experience. Traditional username and password-based logins aren’t secure enough in today’s world, and they’re also cumbersome for employees. Malware and phishing attacks compromise credentials daily, resulting in new reports of account takeovers every day.

As a GSuite-based infrastructure, Gojek chose to work with Yubico, the leading provider of hardware authentication security keys, to deploy YubiKeys for strong, one-touch authentication. One single YubiKey can secure a multitude of online services with no user information or private keys shared between the service providers. There is no reliance on or

requirement for mobile connectivity, cellular devices, mobile apps or manual code entry.

Gojek is looking to replicate the massive success and results that Google has seen using security keys internally for their entire workforce. Based on Google’s two year study* to measure the business impact of hardware-based authentication, several benefits can be highlighted: Heightened security: Internal accounts protected solely with a YubiKey and FIDO U2F have experienced a significant increase in the level of security with zero account takeovers.

Accelerated employee productivity: Employees saw a significant reduction—by nearly 50 percent—of the time to authenticate using a YubiKey compared with using a one-time password (OTP) via SMS. Logins were nearly four times faster when comparing the YubiKey to Google Authenticator. Time saved is primarily due to the unique, one-touch YubiKey authentication that executes in milliseconds.

Reduced support: Compared to using a phone for authentication, YubiKeys are easy to use, robust in design, waterproof and do not easily break. These attributes allowed Google to issue multiple YubiKey backups to each employee and still see cost savings. Support calls dropped, with a 92% reduction in support incidents, saving thousands of hours per year in support costs.

Source https://research.google/pubs/pub45409/

1

U2F for USB

Enter name and password

2

Insert YubiKey and tap

“With the YubiKey seamlessly integrated with GSuite, Gojek employees will be able to fortify their logins by turning on Google 2-Step Verification and self-registering their YubiKey with their accounts.

Once registered, access to accounts can only be granted with physical access to their YubiKey and touch to the device, providing the highest level of security and protection when logging into GSuite.”

—George Do, Chief Information Security Officer, Gojek

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cloud, meaning that much of what we

“ Gojek made it into the ground floor of the digital transformation”

do pivots around that,” Do explains.

“While the security concepts remain the same, a lot of the tools and processes are different when compared to traditional organisations that have a large part of their infrastructure still on premise. While traditional companies typically straddle on premise infrastructure applications and a hybrid cloud model, we focus more on the

George Do Chief Information Security Officer, Gojek

cloud model.” While the security workloads might be similar to a traditional company, Gojek approaches them in

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

George Do George has been working in the information security field for over 20 years concentrating on a wide range of areas including development and transformation of global cybersecurity programs. George has extensive experience in maturing global information security teams. This includes governance, risk, compliance (GRC), cybersecurity security frameworks, cloud security workloads, system and network security, incident response, system forensics and investigation, intrusion detection and prevention, managed penetration testing, and VPN technologies. George also serves on several customer advisory boards.

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23

GOJEK

2010

Year founded

HQ

Jakarta Indonesia

4000+ 24

Number of employees

a different manner. “A good example is encryption and logging, something that’s pretty fundamental within the security space. To try to do those things in a traditional environment is quite complex, especially for globally distributed technology stacks. When we do that in the cloud, a lot of times it’s really a checkbox or a configuration change to get things moving along faster and more efficiently.”

The goal of these technologies is to earn the trust of users. “As a super app, we provide or offer a variety of services to our consumers, partners FEBRUARY 2020

25

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GOJEK

and merchants,” Do says. “ Our num-

in order for them to do that securely,

ber one security priority comes down

their identity and how they go about

to consumer trust. We strive to provide

accessing systems to do their work is

this trust by employing a very robust

paramount. So we employ, and have a

security program that ensures security

robust roadmap to implement, a very

on both our products, services, on our

strong identity and access manage-

platform, as well as the applications

ment program here at Gojek, including

that our internal users rely on every

multi factor authentication.”

day.” That security priority must be

26

Do identifies a number of strate-

balanced with speed of access, some-

gies that he has developed over his

thing for which identity and access

career to stay on top of security in a

management is crucial. “We want to

fast-moving organisation. “Number

enable our developers and our engi-

one, leverage the cloud native tools

neers to move as fast as possible, but

that are available to you,” says Do.

FEBRUARY 2020

“Don’t try to boil the ocean and cre-

“ This opportunity to make a positive social impact was such an important factor for me to make the decision to join Gojek”

ate your own tools because some of those will already be at your fingertips. The second thing is finding a good balance between what we build internally, in-house or open-source, versus what we buy commercially.

It’s important to pragmatically select a build versus buy option based on the security use case and return on investment. Thirdly, in the course of

George Do Chief Information Security Officer, Gojek

developing applications and releases, there will be vulnerabilities that may be inside the code. We have to be

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27

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CLICK TO WATCH : ‘NEW JACKET, NEW SPIRIT!’ 29

very rigorous around the employ-

an incident does hit, we’re in a state

ment of a continuous vulnerability

where we’re able to respond in an

management program so that the

effective and meaningful way.”

vulnerabilities are detected in real

Gojek’s security ecosystem is also

time and remediated as soon as pos-

reliant on the support of partners

sible thereafter.”

such as Horangi. “Horangi is one of

Supplementing these preventative

many security firms that we use to

methods are reactive measures such

augment our security program,” says

as a bug bounty program. “For all of

Do. “With Horangi, we collaborate

the work that we do from a prevention

on areas like penetration testing and

perspective, we also need a strong

improving the maturity of our security

and robust incident response capa-

incident response capabilities. We

bility. That means building out a team

also receive support from them with

and process, a capability by which, if

response playbooks and executing w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

GOJEK

30

war game exercises.” When selecting partners and vendors, Do believes in security platforms as opposed to point solutions. “For me, unless it’s truly a critical area of need, I really steer towards a security platform versus spot solution because it reduces the number of technologies that my team has to manage.”

As for the future, Do has a clear path in mind for cybersecurity at Gojek. “First and foremost is winning consumer trust. Slowly but surely, we also need to bake security into FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘GOJEK PRESENT: CERDIKIAWAN’ 31

the culture. With any organisation,

theft, nation-state sponsored hacking,

security and the culture really is a

these are just some of the threats we

critical factor. As we grow and expand,

face. Security is an exciting field and

doing that will pay huge dividends

I would encourage young people to

for us as we scale and expand into

look at cybersecurity as a career. The

new markets and with new product

more security practitioners we have,

sets.” As for the broader industry, Do

the better the industry overall.”

emphasises that there is strength in numbers. “The threat landscape is constantly evolving. As CISOs, we have to evolve with it. The bad guys only have to get it right once. We have to get it right every time. Really, the game is stacked. Phishing, credential w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

D I G I TA L S T R AT E G Y

32

FEBRUARY 2020

THE KEY TO A SMART CITY FUTURE In this special report, Gigabit investigates the relationship between 5G and smart cities via exclusive interviews with leading experts across the sector WRITTEN BY

HARRY MENE AR 33

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D I G I TA L S T R AT E G Y

A

of human history has been defined – more than war, revolution and technological invention – by the movement and migration of populations.

From the first homo sapiens sapiens to leave Africa in

the mists of prehistory, to the influx of Europeans to the Americas, Indians to Pakistan following the fall of the Raj, the Zionist movement, and the exodus of more than a million Vietnamese citizens following the fall of Saigon.

Not all migrations are defined by wars or their ends, however. The past century has been defined by 34

sustained migration on an intense scale, driven by an arguably more powerful force: urbanisation.

In 1950, just over 751mn people lived in cities. Today, the global urban population exceeds 4.2bn. The United Nations predicts that the proportion of humanity living in and around cities will reach as high as 68% by 2050, adding a further 2.5bn people to urban environments around the globe as more than 1.5mn people move and are born into cities every day. Our cities are getting bigger, more crowded and more numerous. Right now, more than 120 new cities are under construction in over 40 countries. In previous features, we’ve spoken about the challenges facing the cities of the future: congestion, pollution, longer food supply chains, crime, climate change, income inequality, siloed and unwieldy government bureaucracy, corruption, lack of access to healthcare, housing and education.

FEBRUARY 2020

“5G HERALDS THE ARRIVAL OF ULTRA-LOW LATENCY AND ADVANCES IN MOBILE EDGE COMPUTING TO BRING CRITICAL BUSINESS AND HEALTHCARE SERVICES MUCH CLOSER TO OUR CUSTOMERS” — Scott Petty, CTO, Vodafone UK

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35

D I G I TA L S T R AT E G Y

36

“THE GOAL FOR SMART CITIES IS TO INTEGRATE MASSES OF DATA SETS FROM DIFFERENT SILOS, THEN LEVERAGE THIS INFORMATION TO MAKE A CITY MORE EFFICIENT, SUSTAINABLE AND BETTER FOR ITS RESIDENTS” — Paul Brodrick, Business Development Director – Digitalisation, Siemens

There’s no one silver bullet solution to the hulking werewolf of urban misery, but the power of breakthrough technology solutions to make cities of the future more interconnected and provide greater insight into an increasingly tangled web of public and private infrastructure may stand the best chance. Smarter cities are safer, more responsive to the needs of their citizens, and more resistant to disruption. “The development of smart cities is becoming a focus for societies across the world, from Hull (with its new operating system that centralises data management), Stockholm (dubbed the first European Green Capital thanks to developing smart solutions around sustainability), and Johannesburg (just one example includes the development of its smart security, using a centralised, highly adapted CCTV system),” says Chairman of VXFIBER Mikael Sandberg. In order for dreams of urban utopia to become a reality, however, there are some big problems to solve.

“The goal for smart cities is to integrate masses of data sets from different silos, which are gleaned from

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘CITY OF STOCKHOLM – SMART AND CONNECTED’ 37 infrastructure in the energy sector,

As cities become increasingly

buildings management, mobility and

saturated with IoT, generating vast

transport systems or air-quality

quantities of data on an hourly basis,

monitoring, then leverage this

it’s becoming clearer that 5G will play a

information to make a city more

pivotal role in handling these oceans

efficient, sustainable and better for

of information and turning them into a

its residents,” says Paul Brodrick,

shorter wait at the traffic lights, or less

Business Development Director for

water wastage. “5G heralds the arrival

Digitalisation, at Siemens. “With IoT-

of ultra-low latency – the ability for a

type sensors placed everywhere to

machine or device to respond instantly

collect useful data, the massive

with our 5G network – and advances in

amount of information generated has

mobile edge computing to bring critical

to be communicated, analysed and fed

business and healthcare services

back to the infrastructure to affect

much closer to our customers,” notes

changes in how smart cities operate.”

Scott Petty, CTO of Vodafone UK. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

D I G I TA L S T R AT E G Y

“It also opens up a whole host of new smart city applications such as drivers being guided to available parking spaces, to buildings that intelligently manage their own energy consumption, from smart street lighting to bins that report when they need emptying.”

Eric Law, Vice President, Europe, at Commscope agrees, adding: “Most people still think of 5G as a new wireless service for faster smartphones, but it is also the technology that enables a city to become smarter. In the future, 38

cities will use new applications and the IoT to enrich the lives and safety of their residents and visitors. In fact, we can expect to experience new technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and autonomous vehicles all on our doorsteps.”

The possibilities that 5G opens up for improving and introducing new services for smart city residents are numerous. According to Professor Jie Zhang, the Chair of Wireless Systems at Sheffield University and Founder, Chief Scientific Officer and Chairman of the Board at Ranplan Group, there are “three new service categories envisioned for 5G: enhanced mobile FEBRUARY 2020

“THE SUCCESSFUL DEPLOYMENT AND INTEGRATION OF 5G INTO OUR CITIES WILL NOT MATERIALISE WITHOUT FRICTIONLESS CO-OPERATION BETWEEN THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS” — Benoit Jouffrey, Vice President of 5G Expertise, Thales

broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low latency communications (URLLC) and massive machine type communications (mMTC).” Zhang notes that mMTC has the potential to support millions of IoT nodes across a city that can, as Petty said, collect and transmit data concerning temperature, pressure, humidity and pollution to control centres and authorities to make the city smarter. The applications and w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

39

D I G I TA L S T R AT E G Y

40

services range from smart homes and

says. “For example, 5G small cell base

commercial buildings for energy saving

stations and antennas can be installed

and waste monitoring for environment

on lampposts. Many smart city leaders

protection, to critical infrastructure

in Singapore, for example, have started

such as water, electricity, gas, bridges

to deploy a new type of lamppost, the

and roads. Collaboration between the

so-called smart lamppost that

public and private sectors will, Zhang

integrates 5G, Wi-Fi, video cameras for

argues, be essential. “City councils

road traffic condition monitoring and

normally own a lot of street furniture,

sensors for air quality and noise. The

some of which will be very useful for

EU also has plans to replace 10 million

5G network deployment and be used

out of some 90 million lampposts with

to provide smart city applications. In

smart lampposts.” Benoit Jouffrey,

particular, lampposts will play a central

Vice President of 5G Expertise at

role in the future of the smart city,” he

Thales, agrees. “The successful

FEBRUARY 2020

alike simply won’t have the time or resources to connect, collect, analyse and correlate network performance information. They’ll therefore need to rely on automation tools to analyse network data in real-time, and ensure they can measure the actual validity and accuracy of what they’re monitoring and how it impacts the smart cities services they deliver.”

As we enter a new decade, the services that we use on a daily basis (both in and out of cities – just look at the FCC’s $9bn rural 5G connectivity fund) are going to need faster connections to enable greater data deployment and integration of 5G into

gathering and insight generation.

our cities will not materialise without

Sarah Mills, Director for Mobile

frictionless co-operation between

Network Operators at SSE Enterprise

the public and private sectors.”

Telecoms, concludes: “At the rate cities

Analysing the data collected from

are growing, the automation of a

these massive networks of IoT nodes,

number of public services from buses,

however, will be no small feat. “The key

taxis and cars, through to traffic lights

challenge for cities will be managing

and street lighting, must occur. 5G will

the data complexity that will come with

enable those services.” Trials and large

5G, particularly when we think about

scale initiatives are already beginning

the impact of mMTC,” says Allen

to get underway around the world, but

Johnston, VP of Sales at EXFO.

2020 will be the year that adoption hits

“One influential technology will be

a critical tipping point. We’re all about

automation—cities and operators

to see just what 5G can do. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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E N T E R P R I S E S O F T WA R E

42

THE EXISTENTIAL NEED FOR ENTERPRISE AUTOMATION At last November’s Web Summit we spoke to Gaurav Dhillon, CEO of SnapLogic, who told us about the company’s technology, the imperative for automation and trends in the wider data industry WRITTEN BY

FEBRUARY 2020

WILLIA M SMITH

43

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E N T E R P R I S E S O F T WA R E

S

oftware company SnapLogic is a provider of a platform for the integration of applications and sources of data, an oft neglected task for

businesses relying on disparate systems. Gigabit

speaks to the company’s CEO, Gaurav Dhillon, in order to understand the importance of automation in an enterprise context.

GAURAV, CAN YOU DESCRIBE SNAPLOGIC FOR US? SnapLogic is in the business of connecting enter44

prise data. We help large organisations make sense of all the applications they have, all the new ones they’re bringing in and also with a variety of internet things that are going to be coming online soon.

That’s our business.

WHAT KINDS OF CAPABILITIES DOES SNAPLOGIC OFFER? Our customers use SnapLogic to, as the name implies, snap things together. It’s enormously difficult to bring together data and applications and new cloud technologies in a large enterprise. We’ve provided a very simple, beautiful user experience that visually snaps together all of the complicated things that they have. Our technology, behind the scenes, performs the magic of making it all work together.

FEBRUARY 2020

45

“ At the present course and velocity, we might have flying cars before we have a single view of the customer” — Gaurav Dhillon, CEO, SnapLogic w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

E N T E R P R I S E S O F T WA R E

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SNAPLOGIC: A MODULAR APPROACH TO ENTERPRISE AUTOMATION’

46

WHAT INSPIRED THE MODULAR APPROACH THAT SNAPLOGIC TAKES?

of self-service, then we could really

It really came out of unfinished business.

we have done so.

change the issue of integration and

I’ve been in the data business for two was very successful in the 90s and

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES TO IMPLEMENTING AUTOMATION?

helped enterprises move from the

One of the biggest challenges to

mainframe to client servers. With

implementing automation comes from

SnapLogic, we saw that there were

simply getting a hold of the end points

so many new things happening with

in an enterprise. Outside of an

browsers, with user experience and the

enterprise, it almost feels prehistoric

utility of smart phones. We thought that

that you can’t just connect things

if we could take that technology and

together, because we’re so used to

bring it to a whole new level of usability,

connecting them in the consumer

decades. My past company, Informatica,

FEBRUARY 2020

“ It almost feels prehistoric that you can’t just connect things together, because we’re so used to connecting them in the consumer world” — Gaurav Dhillon, CEO, SnapLogic

In the enterprise you have to be able to do this in an organised, well thought out way where data privacy, and the

world. It just works. But in the enter-

rights and privileges of the various

prise realm there are so many systems

owners of those data, are protected.

that are, rightfully, locked down. They

So while you might think applying

might consist of customer and employ-

automation is easy, the precursor step

ee data or proprietary information

of getting the big pieces talking to one

about people’s compensation. In the

another is monumentally difficult.

medical field, for example, there’s a lot of proprietary regulations about patient data.

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E N T E R P R I S E S O F T WA R E

48

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR COMPANIES TO AUTOMATE?

nies want to stay there, they need to

It’s one of those shocking things that

automate, because automation is a

52% of the companies that were in

superpower for the enterprise. It

the Fortune 500 in the year 2000

provides an enterprise the capability

are no longer in it. Now they haven’t

to be more operationally efficient and

all gone bust. Some have, some have

to speed things up. That’s the healthy

merged, some have been taken private

tension in the enterprise. The business

and so on. But it’s staggering that the

users, the head of sales, the head of

majority of enterprises in the Fortune

marketing, the head of commercial

500 20 years ago are no longer in

want to go faster, faster, faster. But the

that index.

person running the business doesn’t

FEBRUARY 2020

I can’t put it more bluntly. If compa-

“ Automation is a super power for the enterprise” — Gaurav Dhillon, CEO, SnapLogic

WHAT ARE SNAPLOGIC’S GOALS FOR THE FUTURE? Our role is to be the provider fluently transporting and connecting enterprise. So enterprises can attain automations, enterprises can get a single view of their customers and employees. It’s mind boggling that here we are at the end of the first two

want to go out and buy all the super-

decades of this century and it’s still

sonic technology because it costs

hard to imagine how a customer

a lot of money. Using automation is

comes into an enterprise. I despair

unique because you can do it very

that at the present course and velocity,

affordably with products like Snap-

we might have flying cars before we

Logic and others.

have a single view of the customer.

Our ambition and our mission is to

CONSIDERING YOUR EXPERIENCE IN DATA, WHAT TRENDS ARE YOU SEEING IN THE INDUSTRY AT THE MOMENT?

what it needs to run better, to attain

One clear trend in data is that there’ll

cars show up.

change that, to give the enterprise automation, to speed up before flying

be more of it tomorrow. The other one is that unstructured data is far, far, far more numerous than all the relational rows and columns of the last century.

In the time that we’ve been speaking, there’s probably been more unstructured data produced than relational data since time began. It’s not just human data, it’s machine data and there’s going to be a lot more of it. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

49

BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

I CAN’T DO THAT, DAVE: WORKING IN HARMONY WITH AI

50

WRITTEN BY

FEBRUARY 2020

HARRY MENE AR

51

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

52

F

rom Fritz Lang’s tragic heroine,

coexists with our very own ‘clay

Maria, to the mutinous HAL

statues come to life’ is closer than

9000 and the Johnny Cab in

we may realise.

Total Recall, we’ve been thinking about

When AI started being used to

how robots would fit into our society

improve robotic process automation

since the 6th Century BC, when Homer

and otherwise take over tasks from

and his contemporaries wrote of clay

human labourers, the alarm bells were

statues come to life in Hephaestus’

sounded frantically. In 2013, the

divine forge. Unfortunately, our robot

University of Oxford predicted that

future has yet to materialise. However,

approximately 50% of jobs in the

due to advances in deep learning and

United States and about 33% in the

artificial intelligence (AI), some version

UK would be put at high risk of automa-

of a society in which humankind

tion in the following years. However,

FEBRUARY 2020

53

this figure has since been revised as

but only 5% of jobs in their entirety,

we’ve gained a better understanding

since its true purpose is to supplement

of the strengths and limitations of

human activity.”

AI-powered automation. In April the

Harvey Lewis runs an emergent

economic organisation OECD said

technology team at the global account-

the figures are more likely to be just

ing firm EY, keeping a watchful eye on

10% in the US, and 12% in the UK.

developments in academia, the startup

According to James Dening, VP and

scene and on large, established corpora-

Digital Worker Evangelist at Automa-

tions. One of his principle focuses is

tion Anywhere, “In our work with

the evolving role of AI in the modern

Goldsmiths University we found

workforce. He says he doesn’t want

automation will likely replace 58%

to burst my bubble, but that I shouldn’t

of work activities and 30% of tasks,

believe all the hype about HAL 9000 w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

“ AUTOMATION WILL LIKELY REPLACE 58% OF WORK ACTIVITIES AND 30% OF TASKS, BUT ONLY 5% OF JOBS IN THEIR ENTIRETY” James Dening, VP and Digital Worker Evangelist, Automation Anywhere coming to take away our jobs. “A general AI that ‘thinks’ and behaves like a human is almost pure fantasy if I’m completely honest,” he said over a cup of coffee at

54

Big Data LDN in November. I sat down with him in the middle of a noisy conference hall packed with data scientists to find out about the evolving relationship between human workers and the increasingly sophistical AI labour force we’ve been promised.

“The thing about neural networks in particular is that they’re very narrow in their scope, and as a consequence they’re very brittle. If you change the situation even slightly they just fall apart and they can’t produce an answer,” Lewis explains. “There are things that people can do which, to be honest, I don’t think machines will ever be able FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘HOW MICROSOFT IS ADVANCING MANUFACTURING CLICK TO WATCH : ‘XXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX’ INNOVATION WITH AI’ 55 to do: the way we are able to reason,

Lewis smiles wryly before answering:

to make inferences, the way that we’re

“I think that the existential risk to our

able to hold multiple representations

society is believing that AI is perfect,

of things in our heads and apply the

and then leaving it to take on really very

appropriate ones at different times.”

important jobs which it then does a

In an interview with the Guardian in

bad job of. There are some problems

2014, Elon Musk declared — with his

humans find really easy to solve that

characteristic flair for the dramatic — “I

machines find very difficult — and

think we should be very careful about

almost no amount of programming

artificial intelligence. If I had to guess

seems to fix that problem.”

at what our biggest existential threat

If there are some things that AI can

is, it’s probably that.” Even keeping

accomplish far better than any human,

in mind the changing predictions

and some things that leave it a gibber-

concerning automation’s threat to the

ing wreck, a collaborative relationship

job market since then, it’s a bold claim.

could prove beneficial for all. Robots w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

have already been automating

colleagues. Citing a Gallup poll in

physical tasks, particularly in the

which 87% of employees worldwide

manufacturing industry, for years

reported not being engaged in their

already. Lewis sees this translating

roles, something that means disen-

itself into increasingly complex digital

gaged employees cost the UK

tasks over the coming years that will

£52-70bn per year in lost productivity,

allow humans “working alongside

Kirkwood is confident that “not only

to fill in the gaps” in ways that play

can RPA help drive productivity, but

to their strengths.

it can also help create a happier

Guy Kirkwood, the chief evangelist

workforce. The average person

at UiPath, even believes that a world

currently works two and a half extra

with digital workers would lead

weeks a year due to the UK’s ‘long-

to happier, more engaged human

hours culture’ – and with burnout rife

56

“ I THINK WE SHOULD BE VERY CAREFUL ABOUT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE” Elon Musk, Founder and CEO, Tesla and SpaceX

FEBRUARY 2020

in today’s society, automation is key

financial benefits,” he said. “Intrigu-

to helping address the work/life

ingly, these augmented businesses

balance. In a world where everyone

were also consistently reporting an

is supported by automation (where

uptick in employee satisfaction.”

there is a robot for every person)

This added productivity, and the

employees will feel less stressed,

addition of intelligent computing to

and ultimately happier and more

incredibly complex and high-pressure

productive.” At Automation Anywhere,

tasks is why McLaren has embraced

Dening has experienced similar

Automation Anywhere as part of a

results. “We found that businesses

multi-year deal to integrate artificially

using cognitive automation bots to

intelligent bots into the team’s race

support human workers see a range

operations. “McLaren Racing oper-

of performance, productivity and

ates in a competitive environment 57

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BUSINESS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

dominated by fine margins, where seconds can have a major impact,” commented Riadh Dridi, Chief Marketing Officer at Automation Anywhere in a press release. Dening added that “McLaren will be deploying Automation Anywhere’s intelligent digital workers to improve communication and decision making between the race teams and the McLaren HQ in Woking. As part of this partnership, Automation Anywhere will be helping McLaren make faster decisions across the 58

team’s race operations as they chase marginal gains on the track. Digital workers will work side-by-side with the race operations team to complete repetitive and manual tasks, so the ultimate goal is to help McLaren create efficiencies, reduce errors and speed up decision making.”

There are problems facing the introduction of AI, though. As Lewis put it, there are already more jobs that require a knowledge of AI than there are people qualified to fill them.

“Right now, the approach is one of firefighting: small teams of experts are called in to deal with bigger issues,” he explains. It’s my hope, FEBRUARY 2020

“ THERE ARE THINGS THAT PEOPLE CAN DO WHICH I DON’T THINK MACHINES WILL EVER BE ABLE TO” Harvey Lewis, Associate Partner, EY

however, that through education, we can equip the next generation with the skills, not necessarily to build technologies, but with the kind of computational thinking, the level of detail they need to properly understand what’s going on, how the technology works, and more importantly, the way in which problems are solved.” According to the World Economic Forum, 65% of children now entering primary school will hold jobs that currently don’t exist. AI may not be coming to take our jobs away from us, but increasingly widespread integration of the technology into the workforce is going to change the nature of those jobs, forever. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

59

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SMART CITIES

62

URBAN F FEBRUARY 2020

FARMING TECHNOLOGY AND TRADITION IN ORDER TO MEET THE CHALLENGES OF THE COMING DECADE, CITY DWELLERS MAY TURN TOWARDS URBAN AND VERTICAL FARMING AS A WAY OF MARRYING HIGH AND LOW TECH SOLUTIONS TO A BREWING GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS WRITTEN BY

HARRY MENE AR

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

63

SMART CITIES

Š Brooklyn Grange

64

A

s we enter a new decade, the

the world’s population is predicted to

human race finds itself faced

live in urban areas by 2050, according

with worldwide political

to a report by the United Nations (UN)

turmoil, economic injustice, dizzying

released last year. At the start of the

technological achievements, and

1800s, more than 90% of the popula-

an existential threat in the form of a

tion (in the US) lived on farms and, on

spiralling climate crisis. In order to rise

average, a farmer grew enough each

to and overcome these challenges,

year to feed between three and five

humanity is going to need to drastically

people. Throughout the subsequent

reevaluate the way it caters to some

centuries, advances in agricultural

of its basic needs.

technology and technique meant that

The global urban population has

farms produced more food using less

grown rapidly, from 751mn people in

labour. In 1900, an acre of land used to

1950 to 4.2bn today. Almost 70% of

grow corn only produced 18% of the

FEBRUARY 2020

“ DIETS ARE CHANGING WITH RISING INCOMES AND URBANISATION” Changing diets: Urbanization and the nutrition transition, IFPRI

yield achieved on the same piece of

Massive demand for year-round,

land in 2014. Today, farmers represent

mass produced, cheap produce today

a mere 1.4% of the US population, and

is already causing problems, from the

the average size of farms has grown

incipient extinction of the honey bee to

dramatically. The ratio of people in

the wildfires and droughts exacerbat-

cities to the farmers that feed them is

ed by overfarming water-wasteful

already at a huge disparity and, as that

crops like almonds and avocados. One

relationship becomes more and more

of the most prominent issues, however,

imbalanced, the strain put upon the

is the fact that as more people move

agricultural industry has the potential

into cities, the supply chains required

to spell disaster for a global food

to feed these swelling urban popula-

supply – to say nothing of biodiversity,

tions get longer and less sustainable.

quality of diet and cultural connections

Food grown and produced to last for

to cuisine itself.

long periods of time contains more w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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SMART CITIES

“ (VERTICAL FARMING) USES 95% LESS WATER THAN TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURE, ALL WHILE REMAINING 100-PLUS TIMES MORE PRODUCTIVE ON THE SAME FOOTPRINT” 66

Irving Fain, CEO and Co-Founder, Bowery Farming

indigestible fats and sugars. “Diets are changing with rising incomes and urbanisation – people are consuming more animal-source foods, sugar, fats and oils, refined grains, and processed foods. This ‘nutrition transition’ is causing increases in overweight and obesity and diet-related diseases such as diabetes and heart disease,” noted a report on Changing diets: Urbanization and the nutrition transition by researchers at the International Food Policy Research Institute.

In the UK, despite all the advances of modern medicine, life expectancy for lower-middle class and working class males is – when adjusted for infant mortality – three years lower than it was in the mid-Victorian era. “The implications of a better understanding of mid-Victorian health are profound.

It becomes clear that, with the exception of family planning, the vast edifice of post-1948 healthcare has not so much enabled us to live longer but has merely supplied methods of controlling the symptoms of non-communicable degenerative diseases, which have become prevalent due to our failure to maintain mid-Victorian nutritional standards,” write Dr Paul Clayton, a

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘THE HIGH-TECH VERTICAL FARMER’ 67 Fellow at the Institute of Food, Brain

for. Beetroot was eaten all year round;

and Behaviour, Oxford; and Judith

Jerusalem artichokes were often

Rowbotham, a Visiting Research

home-grown. Fish such as herrings

Fellow at Plymouth University. The

and meat in some form (scraps, chops

mid-Victorian diet that Clayton and

and even joints) were common too.

Rowbotham espouse the values of

All in all, a reversion to mid-Victorian

was fairly one-note, but had spectacular

nutritional values would significantly

benefits. “The Victorian urban poor

improve health expectancy today…

consumed diets which were limited,

the current pandemics of obesity and

but contained extremely high nutrient

diabetes represent in many ways an

density,” write Clayton and Rowbotham.

acceleration of the ageing process.

“Bread could be expensive but onions,

We need to go back to the future.”

watercress, cabbage, and fruit like

The population of the UK in the

apples and cherries were all cheap and

mid-Victorian era was about 30mn

did not need to be carefully budgeted

and, despite being at the height of the w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

SMART CITIES

Industrial Revolution - was a lot less urbanised than it is today. In 2019, more than 83% of the UK’s population live in cities and towns, the country employs fewer than half a million farmers and produces less than 60% of the food it consumes.

HOW DO WE FIX IT? The key to improving nutrition and shortening the supply chains between rural farms and urban consumers may be deceptively simple. While, “just grow 68

the food in the cities,” might seem like a somewhat glib response to a nuanced issue, there are compelling cases around the world for doing just that.

In an unassuming warehouse in New Jersey, serried rows of kale, lettuce and other leafy greens are stacked in shelving units and trays that reach up into the air. The climate – light intensity, humidity, nutrient balance in the soil – is meticulously tracked by a network of sensors and cameras that feed oceans of data into a proprietary operating system that allows the facility’s operators to grow food 24 hours a day, 365 days a year in conditions that are as close to perfect FEBRUARY 2020

© Bowery Farming

to solve a number of the challenges posed by increasing populations, climate instability and food deserts (areas of rural, suburban or urban land without farms or grocery stores, making it next to impossible to obtain quality, fresh food in an affordable way and offering only convenience food chains in their place – food deserts are playing a major role in the deterioration of urban population health). The practice has its roots (again, sorry) in times of economic scarcity and turmoil - the Great Depression and the Second World War both saw a huge increase as can be found anywhere. This is

in the number of urban farms – and can

Bowery Farming, an urban agriculture

be as low-tech as growing a head of

startup founded in 2015 by Irving Fain,

lettuce on your bathroom windowsill,

David Golden and Brian Falther, backed

or as futuristic as a fully-automated,

by Google Ventures. In an interview in

end-to-end hydroponic facility

2018, Fain - who is also Bowery’s CEO

operated by artificial intelligence (but

– claimed that his company’s urban

more about Stacked in a minute). At

farming techniques use no pesticides

the moment, urban farming operations

and “95% less water than traditional

are turning to vertical farming, the

agriculture, all while remaining 100-plus

practice of using (typically) climate-

times more productive on the same

controlled environments to grow

footprint of land.”

plants across multiple levels – a

Urban and vertical farming tech-

practice that can turn a 3,000 sq ft

niques are growing (sorry) in popular-

allotment in a city centre into effective-

ity across the world as a potential way

ly a 9,000 sq ft agricultural facility. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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SMART CITIES

Regardless of the level of technol-

medium (gravel, sand, clay pellets) for

ogy employed across their operations,

support. The method can drastically

there are a few key vertical farming

reduce water usage and increase yield.

techniques that are being adopted in an effort to solve one of the key

AQUAPONICS

problems facing modern agriculture:

Adding an additional layer of sustain-

water wastage.

ability to the hydroponic technique, aquaponics uses fish as the generators

HYDROPONICS

for the nitrate-rich plant food. Fish

The practice of growing plants without

create ammonia-rich waste in their tank,

soil. Hydroponics uses a nutrient-rich

the water from which is then pumped

liquid solution to submerge the roots

into an inert medium that contains

of plants, which are placed in an inert

plants. Bacteria in the bed turns

70

“ AT THE MOMENT, URBAN FARMING OPERATIONS ARE TURNING TO VERTICAL FARMING, THE PRACTICE OF USING (TYPICALLY) CLIMATE-CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENTS TO GROW PLANTS ACROSS MULTIPLE LEVELS” FEBRUARY 2020

ammonia into nitrates which the plants

and electronics), aeroponics doesn’t

use for food, cleaning the water in the

use a liquid or solid medium to cultivate

process. Then, the clean water is cycled

crops, instead using a nutrient-rich

back into the fish tank for the symbiotic

mist. It uses 90% less water than

process to begin again. Fish like perch

conventional hydroponic techniques.

or catfish can also ensure that the method provides two sources of food.

Feeding plants using closed systems like these gives farmers an enviable amount of control over the

AEROPONICS

condition of their crops. In Bowery’s

Invented by NASA in the 1990s as a

system, a simple tweak of the lighting

way of potentially raising crops in

and nitrate levels in the soil can deliver

space (where tiny soil particles can be

a crop of kale that’s less chalky. As

a nightmare for delicate instruments

with any industry undergoing a digital transformation - and the data-driven, high-tech operations at Bowery’s three farms are certainly indicative of that - old roles and new roles are being constantly combined. Katie Morich, a Bowery farmer explained in an interview with Food & Wine that her job has become half farmer and half data scientist. The combination of traditional and tech has been yielding promising results at Bowery, which is scheduled to open its third farm (an operation some 90 times larger than the company’s first operation in New Jersey, situated in Baltimore) in 2020.

However, despite the success of startups like Bowery, and the promise of

© Square Roots

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71

SMART CITIES

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SQUARE ROOTS URBAN FARM GROWS FRESH FOOD FOR AN INNOVATIVE FARM TO FORK EXPERIENCE’ 72 urban and vertical farming techniques,

IT’S NOT ABOUT THE MONEY

the industry isn’t immune to teething

One of the major benefits of vertical

troubles. While environmentally

farming systems is that, thanks to

sustainable (although a number of

a technique like aquaponics, and

urban farms still use pesticides), vertical

increasingly cheap IoT technology,

farms have been struggling to compete

urban farming doesn’t need to be a full

financially as a combination of electric-

time job. A majority of urban farms in

ity costs, small scale operations and

the US are registered non-profits or

higher rent in urban areas conspire to

community projects. Dividing the work

make profitability a challenge. Accord-

among a neighbourhood or even a

ing to a report by Emerald Insight, less

block of flats could make for self-

than a third of urban farmers in the US

contained farming communities in

are making a living from their operations.

the city that are free from depending

There are, it would seem, two solutions

on imported, expensive produce.

to this problem: FEBRUARY 2020

Founded in 2009, Colorado-based

company The Aquaponics Source specialises in providing small scale aquaponics systems for schools, institutes and household use. Startup AquaSprouts sells self-contained home units with a focus on education and home use that cost under US$200, although the internet assures me you can build an industrial scale system to grow edible fish and leafy greens for significantly less (assuming you know a guy who’s looking to get rid of a giant rainwater barrel). Going small and cooperative may provide a look into the way urban farming can help support

“ THE GOAL IS TO MAKE THIS URBAN FARM A GLOBALLYRECOGNISED MODEL FOR RESPONSIBLE PRODUCTION, WITH NUTRIENTS USED IN ORGANIC FARMING AND QUALITY PRODUCTS GROWN IN RHYTHM WITH NATURE’S CYCLES, ALL IN THE HEART OF PARIS”

the global food supply. After all, it’s how the practice began.

Agripolis

GO BIG OR GO HOME Operations like Bowery and Brooklyn Grange (a 44,000 sq ft rooftop farm in Long Island) are significant scale operations and some of the few for-profit urban farms to have shown serious longevity in the fledgling industry.

Capitalising on the idea that bigger is better and makes more money is French urban farming startup Agripolis. In collaboration with Cultures en Ville, the company is set to open the world’s largest urban farm in Paris early this year. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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SMART CITIES

“The goal is to make this urban farm a globally-recognised model for responsible production, with nutrients used in organic farming and quality products grown in rhythm with nature’s cycles, all in the heart of Paris,” the company said in a statement. The farm will grow more than 1,000 fruits and vegetables a day when in season.

Whatever shape the future of urban agriculture takes, it may be one of humanity’s best shots at overcoming the challenges of the coming decades.

74

© Brooklyn Grange

FEBRUARY 2020

“ DIVIDING THE WORK AMONG A NEIGHBOURHOOD OR EVEN A BLOCK OF FLATS COULD MAKE FOR SELFCONTAINED FARMING COMMUNITIES IN THE CITY THAT ARE FREE FROM DEPENDING ON IMPORTED, EXPENSIVE PRODUCE. ”

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘FARMING ON A ROOFTOP – NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC’ 75

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76

FEBRUARY 2020

CIOs 77

We take a look at the CIOs from the largest companies that have such a role, in order to understand the evolving responsibilities of the traditional head of IT WRITTEN BY

WILLIAM SMITH

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

T O P 10

10

Bill Braun CHEVRON

Energy giant Chevron’s CIO is Bill Braun. A long time veteran of the firm, he started in 1991 as a programmer. He attained his current role in 2015. He has previously spoken of the evolving role of the CIO in evaluating emerging technologies. “The nimbleness and speed at which we need to be able to move is much more compressed,” Braun said. “It’s really critical that we’re able to react faster.”

78

10 FEBRUARY 2020

09 79

09

Martin Hoffman VOLKSWAGEN

Martin Hoffman serves as German automotive industry giant Volkswagen’s CIO. The University of Mannheim and ETH Zuricheducated German has been with the company since 2001, serving in his current role since December 2011. He is on record as encouraging a Silicon Valley-like IT department, establishing an innovation centre known as Digital:Lab in collaboration with American software company Pivotal. “We are creating completely new products for our customers, and are therefore turning Volkswagen from a car manufacturer into a mobility provider,” he explained.

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08 81

08

Ben Fried ALPHABET (GOOGLE)

Google’s Chief Information Officer is Ben Fried, a role he has occupied since 2008. As CIO of one of the world’s most technologically advanced companies, he has identified machine learning as the most exciting new technology, saying: “I have teams finding places where machine learning can solve problems that we didn’t think computers could solve. That’s really exciting. I didn’t even think these sorts of things were remotely possible a decade ago.” Fried studied computer science at Columbia University

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

T O P 10

07

Kurt Delbene MICROSOFT

Formerly filled by Jim DuBois up until 2017, Microsoft replaced the role of CIO with a Chief Digital Officer in the form of Kurt DelBene, the title changing suggesting an expansion of the remit away from just matters of information technology. DelBene is a Microsoft alumnus, having worked for the company for over 20 years in total, previously heading up the company’s Office suite of products. He studied industrial engineering at the University of Arizona, and also holds MBA and MSc degrees.

07 82

FEBRUARY 2020

0

06 06

83

Terry Halvorsen SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS

In 2017, Samsung Electronics hired the former CIO of the United States Department of Defense in the form of Terry Halvorsen.

Halvorsen also brings his experience as the CIO of the US Navy to his task of keeping Samsung’s IT department shipshape.

The former US Army officer has emphasised his commitment to security, having been reported as saying “the best investment anybody can make in security, has very little to do, initially, with technology. It’s making sure you have educated your workforce on IT, operations, cyber hygiene.”

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How AWS is helping create a future-ready Australia We are at a fascinating point in the history and evolution of Australian organisations, where they are using technology to transform and enhance the experiences they bring to their customers.Transformation touches everyone, from government agencies including the ATO, Australia Post, and ABC, digital natives like Atlassian and Xero, start-ups like Baraja and Whooshkaa, to established players like Qantas, Woodside Energy, NAB, Linfox, and Fonterra. Having the right skills in place to drive digital transformation is critically important, as is a willingness to embrace change and shift to a more agile, collaborative culture.AWS help organisations of all shapes and sizes with their most critical issues and opportunities. Together, we create enduring change and results.

Let AWS help create enduring change and strategies for you.

NAB’s Cloud Guild drives new tech skills NAB is watching a new approach to learning develop inside of the bank as it approaches the first anniversary of an ambitious program to train its workforce in the ways of cloud. The program, called the NAB Cloud Guild, was intended to enable “more than 2000” NAB employees to acquire or build cloud skills in support of the bank’s $1.5 billion “digital-first” transformation.Inside of the first year, the Cloud Guild is already tracking well ahead of that goal.“The results of the NAB Cloud Guild have been outstanding,” NAB’s Manager Engineer and Cloud Guild Founder Paul Silver said. “Within the first 10 months, we’ve had about 4000 people who’ve gone through the program so far in a one or three day course. “When we started, we had seven people in the whole organisation who were certified in AWS cloud. There are now over 400 people who are certified”.Silver can already see change as a result of the program.

“What we’ve found after people have done the three-day associate courses is they’re becoming self-learners, which is fantastic,” he said. “AWS has great digital content we can consume and use inside our organisation. After people get their first certification, they’re actually going off and selflearning this content with the outcome of getting more certifications, in-turn leading to better outcomes for NAB.” The learning culture is expected to have a strong impact on NAB’s project, which includes a target of moving 35 percent of its 2500 IT applications into the cloud within the next three-tofive years. “With AWS’ help we’ve been able to drive outcomes incredibly fast. This is helping us meet our customer expectations a lot faster than we have been able to in the past,”

Silver said. NAB’s Chief Technology & Operations Officer Patrick Wright said the battle for technology talent in Australia is “fierce”. Wright sees the NAB Cloud Guild not only as a way to create opportunities for employees to learn new skills and grow their career in technology, but also as a means “to attract top talent in the industry.” “We’re embarking on a transformation that we think is fundamentally changing our ompany, fundamentally changing the way we work, and launching us into a new era,” Wright said. “If you want to build a company of builders, you have to have technology career pathways.”

NAB is also taking some cues on best practices from AWS as it continues on its digital transformation journey.

The bank recently tackled the AWS 50 in 50 program, which involves getting 50 applications into the cloud in just 50 days. It was a clear signal of the speed and agility that NAB now wants to operate. “AWS’s passion for customers aligns well with what we are doing at NAB and we’re also learning from them along the way as well,” Silver said. “It’s been a really good partnership to work with them.”

How AWS is helping create a future-ready Australia

Woodside Energy leveraging data to seize growth opportunities Woodside Energy is the pioneer of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry in Australia, and the largest Australian natural gas producer. Woodside’s producing LNG assets in Australia’s north-west Pilbara region are among the world’s best facilities, renowned for their safety, reliability and efficiency.

Now, Woodside is seeking to create an integrated LNG production centre – the Burrup Hub - that would see new Scarborough and Browse gas resources processed through the Woodsideoperated Pluto LNG and Karratha Gas Plant. To help realise this vision, Woodside is leveraging gains from its data science and intelligent asset work programs over weeks and days, instead of months and years, allowing the company to make decisions sooner, using richer data. Innovation has always been part of Woodside’s DNA. Applying cloud technology is helping Woodside accelerate the traditional oil and gas project innovation cycle from years, down to months. Woodside uses AWS cloud as the foundation for optimising production in real time, by running high -speed algorithms to uncover new insights and opportunities to deliver extra value. Woodside can run 10,000 algorithms per hour, taking data from over 200,000 sensors attached to its Pluto LNG plant. The company remains focused on reaching all Woodside employees with this work.

Digital at Woodside is not just about ‘gear’; it’s honing and changing the way people work, with collaborative partnerships playing a key role.

Learn more

Visit awsinsight.com.au to find out more how AWS is able to help you thrive in today’s digital economy.

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05

Saul Van Beurden WELLS FARGO

Saul Van Beurden was previously CIO at fellow financial giant JPMorgan Chase before joining Wells Fargo in April 2019. The Head of Technology position was itself created in 2018, again reflecting the movement for CIOs to also have a role in strategy. At the time of his appointment, the company’s CEO said: “Saul’s proven track record in technology and risk remediation makes him the ideal choice to lead our technology transformation efforts. We have made great strides enhancing our technology and information security capabilities over the last few years, and Saul’s leadership will accelerate that work.”

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T O P 10

04

Jay Crotts ROYAL DUTCH SHELL

0 04

Jay Crotts is a long-term employee of Oil and Gas giant Shell, having been at the company since 1986. He previously served as CIO for

various smaller constituents of Shell’s larger business, including IT

Services, Lubricants and Motiva. With a Masters in telecommunications Management, he told I-CIO “technology has never been more innovative, exciting and rapidly changing. But it is important that IT

professionals get more excited about the business outcome they deliver than the actual technology.”

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FEBRUARY 2020

03 03

BOC International (China) Limited in Shenyang

Liu Qiuwan BANK OF CHINA

Previously General Manager of Information Technology, Liu Qiuwan joined the state-owned Bank of China in 2017. Liu possesses a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering from Xi’an Mining College. Liu has made public his interest in moving the bank towards the fintech sphere, including blockchain, which it has been implementing with a focus on “data sharing, cross-border payment, digital currency, digital bills”.

1.04mn

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T O P 10

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘MIT CHINA SUMMIT: JESSICA TAN’ 88

02

Jessica Tan PING AN INSURANCE GROUP

Jessica Tan serves as CIO, COO and co-CEO at Chinese financial services organisation Ping An Insurance. One of the higher profile members of this list, she was ranked 22nd on Forbes’ 100 Most Powerful Women list in 2019. Tan was previously a partner at management consultants McKinsey and received a Masters in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She prizes an open culture, saying of Ping An: “There’s no sacred ground that you can’t touch, and that’s a philosophy that has really helped us over the years.”

FEBRUARY 2020

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02 w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

01 T O P 10

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FEBRUARY 2020

01

Lori Beer JPMORGAN CHASE

One of two women on this list, Lori Beer joined JPMorgan Chase in 2014, and served as the CIO for the company’s Corporate & Investment Bank before becoming Group CIO. With a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Dayton, Beer’s remit is described by the company as involving the management of a budget of over $11bn for the firm’s technology and infrastructure worldwide. Beer has instituted initiatives to recruit female talent, saying of one: “The program has brought some great women technologists into the firm — women who might otherwise have embarked on a completely different career path”.

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CLICK TO WATCH : ‘THE KEY TO FILLING STEM JOBS, SMARTER FASTER, JPMORGAN CHASE & CO’

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EVENTS & A S S O C I AT I O N S

We round up the biggest and best technology events and conferences from around the world‌ EDITED BY HARRY MENEAR

2-3 MAR 2020

Gartner Application Architecture, Development & Integration Summit [ MUMBAI ]

92

Industry-leading research and consulting firm, Gartner is hosting its

24-27 FEB 2020

MWC

annual application strategy summit in Mumbai this year. Business growth,

[ BARCELONA ]

digital transformation, and the

With thousands set to descend on

experiences that drive relationships

Barcelona for the event, MWC (formerly

all depend on enterprise applications.

Mobile World Congress) promises to

Therefore, by bringing together a

be an unmissable technology congress.

cadre of Gartner experts, guest speak-

Hosting groundbreaking innovations

ers and industry experts, the event will

from almost 2,500 companies and over

help tech-focused executives make the

100,000 delegates, MWC stands as one

most of the opportunities presented by

of the largest conferences in the world

an enterprise landscape defined and

centred around mobile technologies.

dominated by the application.

FEBRUARY 2020

31 MAR-2 APR 2020

24-26 MAR 2020

Money 20/20 Asia

Amazon Innovation Day and AWS Summit Sydney

[ SINGAPORE ]

[ SYDNEY ]

Asia’s famously grandiose technology

This year, at a three-day event held in

and fintech conference focuses

the International Convention Centre,

on helping entrepreneurs and large

Sydney, Amazon Web Services will be

enterprises maintain the pace of

hosting educational and inspirational

innovation and network with like-mind-

keynotes, breakout sessions, and

ed individuals and thought leaders.

customer stories about how cloud

“Complacency is the enemy,” warn

technology can help businesses lower

the organisers. Money 20/20

costs, improve efficiency and innovate

carefully curates its content each

at scale. Featured topics at the event

year in order to present the very lead-

include: AI and Machine Learning, Big

ing edge in business and financial

Data and analytics, containers, innova-

strategy to its host of attendees.

tion, serverless, migration and security.

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EVENTS & A S S O C I AT I O N S

13-15 MAY

ITB China [ SHANGHAI ] business travel trade fair that focuses

DataCloud World Congress

exclusively on the Chinese travel indus-

[ MONACO ]

try. As the largest B2B-exclusive travel

This year, Monaco will be home to the

trade show in China, ITB China brings

17th annual DataCloud World Congress,

together top and hand selected buyers

bringing together a variety of experts in

with industry professionals from all over

the cloud, data centre and IT infrastructure

the world, and provides various net-

markets. Touting itself as “the premier

working events and a unique state of

leadership summit for critical IT infra-

the art matchmaking system to

structure”, the event promises to cover

enhance networking and maximize

everything from cloud challenges to

business opportunities. ITB China 2020

edge evolution. Speakers at last year’s

will take place from Wednesday to Fri-

event included: Michel Fraisse, VP,

day, 13 to 15 May, at the Shanghai World

Europe, Huawei, Jeffrey Ferry, Director,

Expo Exhibition and Convention Centre

Goldman Sachs and Glenn Fitzgerald,

in Hall 1. The ITB China Conference will

Chief Technology Officer, Product

take place parallel with the show.

Business, Fujitsu EMEIA.

ITB China is a three-day business to 94

02-04 JUNE 2020

FEBRUARY 2020

8-12 JUN 2020

London Tech Week

1-2 JUL 2020

[ LONDON ]

AI & Big Data Expo Europe

Every year, London Tech Week brings

[ AMSTERDAM ]

together nearly 70,000 attendees to

Boasting four co-located events, over

learn, teach and network at one of the

300 speakers, more than 350 exhibitors

biggest gatherings in the industry. Held

and predicted to attract in excess of

in a range of venues across the city, and

10,000 visitors over two days, the 2020

supported by the Mayor of London, the

AI & Big Data Expo Europe is one of the

event draws the biggest names in tech

year’s biggest events in the data and

and politics – with last year’s proceed-

analytics space. Topics that are going to

ings being opened by then-Prime

be at the heart of this year’s many talks

Minister Theresa May. This year, fea-

and keynote speeches include: Business

tured events will include: the Future of

Intelligence, Deep Learning, Machine

Work Summit, Leaders In Tech Summit,

Learning, AI Algorithms, Data & Analyt-

the AI Summit and Createch 2020.

ics, Virtual Assistants and Chatbots.

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GOLDEN HIPPO

96

GOLDEN HIPPO DRIVING TOWARDS A WORLD-CLASS SUPPLY CHAIN WRITTEN BY

MATT HIGH PRODUCED BY

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FEBRUARY 2020

97

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GOLDEN HIPPO

FAREEN MEHRZAI, THE ARCHITECT BEHIND GOLDEN HIPPO’S SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSFORMATION, TELLS US HER STORY

T

he most exciting thing about a career in supply chain is that you’re never done.

You’re always striving to optimise, to

improve, to gain an advantage and understand the opportunities that are out there in order to get bet98

ter and continue learning,” says Fareen Mehrzai, Director of Supply Chain at Golden Hippo. For the past year Mehrzai, a highly experienced supply chain and operations director with a proven track record for leading integrated operations programmes for globally recognised brands, has been doing all those things at Golden Hippo.

The business is one of the United States’ leading direct response marketing organisations, building and marketing category-leading brands and unique, best-in-class products direct to consumers in three areas: supplements, beauty, and pet food.

Each of these is driven by Golden Hippo’s overarching vision of helping as many people as possible, capitalising on its unique organisational culture to provide the highest quality of service, and focusing on sustainable health and wellness.

FEBRUARY 2020

99

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All Canature products are produced and packaged in strict CFIA, GMP, HACCP, SQF, USDA, FDA and GACC audited facilities, ensuring the very highest GFSI quality standards and providing the highest quality freeze-dried pet food and treats.

GOLDEN HIPPO

“ THE MOST EXCITING THING ABOUT A CAREER IN SUPPLY CHAIN IS THAT YOU’RE NEVER DONE”

Since 2018, Golden Hippo has been on a significant supply chain transformation journey built around three key elements of people, service and cost, and driven to achieve a supremely strong and well-performing operational engine. Mehrzai, who joined the business in August 2018, has led this

Fareen Mehrzai, Director of Supply Chain, Golden Hippo

transformation, building, mentoring and leading a team that both embodies the company’s culture and is resilient and agile enough to manage the change process. “The last year has been really

102

exciting,” she states. “You never fully understand what you’re getting into when you take on a new role, but the opportunity to join Golden Hippo at this point in its evolution was an intriguing one. We’re on a strong growth trajectory, and there is an energy and synergy rooted within the company’s culture unlike any other. In many roles, you either join a business to maintain or to create – here we get to maintain the foundations we have and build for the future at the same time.”

Expanding on those foundations, there is a culture of openness, collaboration and innovation that underpins every aspect of its operations and has FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘GOLDEN HIPPO COMPANY VIDEO’

ensured an enviable level of strength

which thrives on values such as test

in depth. “We have experts in every

everything and fail fast, allowing the

field,” she affirms. “Whether that’s

best idea to win regardless of its origin,

brand ideation and creation, product

being responsible for and learning

development, copywriting, media buy-

from mistakes, and mentoring and

ing, video production and editing, right

educating others.

through to reputation management

“When I was building my team, I real-

and SEO, distribution and fulfilment.”

ised relatively quickly that I could find

The company’s founders and sen-

the best technically sound and profi-

ior management team embody the

cient individuals in whichever role I was

culture that has made this possible.

hiring for,” Mehrzai comments. “But, if

For example, Mehrzai describes an

they don’t embody and embrace those

environment that fosters ideas and a

aspects of our culture that make us so

creative approach to operations, and

strong, then it will be really difficult for w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

103

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GOLDEN HIPPO

106

them to thrive here. We’ve built a team

supply chain transformation in order

of strong supply chain professionals

to take it “from transactional to world-

who are agile and flexible, and who

class” – a task she likens to changing

consistently go above and beyond

the wheels on a car while it continues

to service our internal and external

on its journey. “We didn’t have the

customers. I attribute that in part to

luxury of stepping back, observing for

great recruiting, a strong onboarding

three months and developing a plan of

programme and a culture that strives

attack, it was all hands on deck from

to be employee-centric.”

the very start,” she explains. Initially,

A lot has changed for Mehrzai in the

Mehrzai set out the key elements of

12 months since. Principally, her role

driving towards a world-class supply

has been the driving of Golden Hippo’s

chain: people, service and cost. These

FEBRUARY 2020

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Fareen Mehrzai Fareen Mehrzai is Supply Chain leader who develops and executes integrated operations programs to expand her organisations’ footprint while optimising all aspects of commercial operations.

Mehrzai is a strong people leader with a proven track record of mentoring and developing top tier talent. In order to ensure cost reduction, she fosters an environment supportive of continuous network optimisation, maximizing vendor and co-manufacturing relationships and financial terms for mutual benefit, driving inefficiencies out of internal and external processes and challenging norms for step function cost improvements. A staunch proponent of continuous improvement, as a matter of routine Mehrzai instills a ‘Zero Waste’ mindset in individuals and teams around her.

Examples of how she has optimised costs, streamlined process flows, and led large-scale initiatives include: Strategic planning: led the re-design and re-launch of a marketing procurement operational master plan, enabling 150%+ of savings targets.

Process improvement: spearheaded the development of a framework to adopt business improvement tools and methodologies by leveraging extensive Six Sigma knowledge, leading to savings of $60M. Global team engagement: enhanced efficiency, transparency, and resources while leading a diverse team of directors, managers, associates, and direct and indirect reports including finance, and sales.

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109

factors led to the forming of defined

her team’s customers are all present

teams within the supply chain group

in the same working environment.

based around planning, procurement,

A significant part of the transforma-

analytics and more.

tion, she notes, has been around

“Supply chain, in any organisation,

changing the supply chain team’s role

is not a revenue driving function, it’s

in these relationships from one that

a support function,” she states. “Every

was defensive or reactive to being

day, the goal for my team and I is to

proactive and forward looking. “The

provide more value to the business

approach that we take with all our

and always question how we are

vendors or partners is ‘their success

servicing every brand, team and indi-

is our success’,” says Mehrzai. “As

vidual.” Golden Hippo’s ownership of

a result, many of the key milestones

its brands provides a unique supply

in our transformation journey so far

chain challenge, in that Mehrzai and

have been centered around fostering w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Focus on packaging The packaging company specialized in developing, manufacturing and delivering standard & customized primary packaging for beauty and health.

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stronger partnerships, particularly for our supplier partnerships, and setting out a framework and roadmap for progressing from a transactional relationship to being more agile and forward-looking.”

Mehrzai is a highly experienced

“ THERE’S A REALLY STRONG STRUCTURE IN PLACE, AND AN ENERGY AND SYNERGY ROOTED WITHIN THE COMPANY’S CULTURE UNLIKE ANY OTHER”

enabler of change, with a proven record of strategic planning, process management and team management at companies including Nestle,

Fareen Mehrzai, Director of Supply Chain, Golden Hippo

where, over her tenure she held various leadership roles in supply chain, 111

procurement and process improvement. Despite that experience,

Reflecting on this aspect, Mehrzai

Mehrzai concedes that embarking on

credits her varied career experience

Golden Hippo’s transformation jour-

with providing several skills that are

ney has provided a new challenge.

transferable to Golden Hippo’s working

“What it takes to be successful in a

environment. In particular, she points

150-year old organisation is very dif-

to two pivotal moments: having the

ferent to the way in which you apply

opportunity to build a strong process

yourself in a younger business,” she

improvement mindset during her early

explains. “You have to be more flex-

career, and spending the next years

ible in how you approach problems,

in “one of the best supply chains in the

but not necessarily with regards to

world” at Nestle, which she describes

what you’re trying to achieve. When

as a great training ground. On the

people join our team, for example, I tell

former, Mehrzai says that having the

them that I absolutely don’t want them

opportunity to earn Six Sigma Black

to go with the flow, I want them to

Belt certification early in her career

create their own waves.”

“forever changed how I think about and w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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“ WHEN PEOPLE JOIN OUR TEAM, FOR EXAMPLE, I TELL THEM THAT I ABSOLUTELY DON’T WANT THEM TO GO WITH THE FLOW, I WANT THEM TO CREATE THEIR OWN WAVES” Fareen Mehrzai, Director of Supply Chain, Golden Hippo

113

approach any problems I face. It’s a par-

that this kind of culture already existed

ticularly important mindset to adopt if

at Golden Hippo when I joined,” she

you work in a supply chain-related role”.

explains. “Our cross-functional collabo-

Leadership is an important skill to

ration, for example, has been one of the

Mehrzai. As a strong people leader with

key aspects of our success. There’s

a record of mentoring and developing

little bureaucracy and the timely shar-

top tier talent, she enjoys sharing those

ing of knowledge and expertise is really

skills learned over her career with oth-

important to how we operate.”

ers at Golden Hippo. When it comes

On a more personal level, Mehrzai

to team building, she is a proponent of

enjoys the opportunity to educate

continuous improvement and a ‘zero

and mentor new or younger members

waste’ mindset, and always looks to

of Golden Hippo’s team. Outside of

foster an environment that is both sup-

her role, she is a proud faculty mem-

portive and collaborative. “I’m lucky

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115 Northridge, Systems and Operations Management Department, where she

and educate us.”

Mehrzai seeks to encourage and

teaches future operations leaders.

build relationships in an organic fash-

She admits her passion for educating

ion. “Really, it should be about having

comes as a result of how much she

people in your life that you can learn

enjoys her work, explaining that “the

from, go to lunch with or reach out to

opportunity to translate even a frac-

when you have any issues. We have

tion of that energy and passion to

an amazing mentorship programme

tomorrow’s supply chain leaders is so

at Golden Hippo that I encourage

exciting to me. The best leaders I’ve

everyone to be a part of. Whether part

worked for in my career were not only

of a formal mentorship programme or

great at producing results, but also

not, sharing, encouraging and building

teaching and nurturing as they pro-

advocates around you that can ignite

gressed; we’re all capable of so much

your passion are so important, what-

if we have people around who support

ever level or role you operate in.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

QUALITY FIRST Ion Labs is a Custom Contract Manufacturing facility that is vertically integrated and located in Largo, FL with core competencies in Capsules, Tablets, Powders, Liquids, Liquid Capsules, Capsule-In-Capsules, Gummies as well as Skin Care.

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www.ionlabs.com

Lief Labs Lief Labs is a leading innovator in product ideation and formulation for the dietary supplement market. The company is driven by a passion for collaboration, maintains a drive to offer only the best ingredients and possesses an innovative and adaptable mindset. The business has formulated more than 1,000 products for a host of dietary supplement categories and worked with industry leaders across several industries.

Today, Lief ’s world class supply chain operation encompasses sourcing hundreds of ingredients from a dozen countries and a quality control system that is a standout in the industry. “The key to successful supply chain management is maintaining a consistent f low of quality ingredients without interruption that our customers can rely on,” says Jeohvan Montoya, Lief ’s Director of Supply Chain Management.

“The challenges of sourcing ingredients are numerous and include weather, crop shortages, plant shutdowns and, more recently, tariffs,” Montoya adds, “which means we have to be prepared to buy from many countries, to buy in bulk and to warehouse it in the US.” Just recently, there was a shortage of the herb rhodiola, an ingredient used in many supplements manufactured

by Lief. However, as a result of careful sourcing, none of Lief ’s customers experienced shortages.

That’s because Lief sources every ingredient from at least three approved suppliers. “Our logistics assures that our customers receive the best pricing, at the end of the day, we are value driven,” Montoya confirms.

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117

GOLDEN HIPPO

With that sentiment in mind, Mehrzai highlights how Golden Hippo’s supply chain has been driven by every individual in the organisation. Top-down leadership is naturally a key facet of any change management process, she states, but empowerment across each level of the business has been key to implementing new practices. “Every idea might not always be possible,” she adds, “but for an employee to really feel free to voice their opinion is part of what makes this organisation unique”.

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119 This sentiment is carried over in Mehrzai’s advocacy of Golden Hippo’s ‘operational engine’, as she explains.

“Often you look at businesses like ours from the outside and you see the obvious success factors, which are undoubtedly impressive. What’s not always seen is the work of those behind the scenes, which in many ways is the fundamental basis on

“ E VERY DAY, THE GOAL FOR MY TEAM AND I IS TO PROVIDE MORE VALUE TO THE BUSINESS AND ALWAYS QUESTION HOW WE ARE SERVICING EVERY BRAND, TEAM AND INDIVIDUAL”

which all other successes are built.”

Golden Hippo’s operational engine, she says, is built for B2C operation.

“When you already have an engine

Fareen Mehrzai, Director of Supply Chain, Golden Hippo

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“FOR AN EMPLOYEE TO REALLY FEEL LIKE THEIR VOICE IS HEARD IS PART OF WHAT MAKES THIS ORGANISATION FEEL TRULY SPECIAL” Fareen Mehrzai, Director of Supply Chain, Golden Hippo 121 and responsiveness that ours has,

supplier partner relationships. “We’re

you have a significant competitive

well on the path to becoming a world-

advantage when exploring new oppor-

class supply chain organisation, but

tunities. In terms of our evolution, it will

we’ve many milestones ahead. Some

play a significant contribution to our

examples include looking to continue

growth in 2020 and beyond.”

building our process for scale, further

On future growth, Mehrzai is a firm

developing and nurturing key supplier

believer that a supply chain has no

relationships and supporting the

beginning or end and, instead, contin-

organisations objectives by enabling

ues to be an evolutionary process.

cost competitiveness. There are always

There is, she confirms, still some dis-

opportunities to improve, to learn and

tance to go in Golden Hippo’s

to work more effectively. That’s what

transformational supply chain journey,

makes the job so rewarding.”

particularly in terms of improving processes, digitising more of its supply chain and continuing to nurture its key w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

122

How digital transformation is an ongoing process WRITTEN BY

SHANNON LEWIS PRODUCED BY

MIKE SADR

FEBRUARY 2020

123

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LIFESCAN

Miguel Louzan, Chief Information Officer at LifeScan, discusses how the company engages in incremental digital transformation focused on internal change by leveraging an opportunity provided through a carve-out

L 124

ifeScan is a medical device company at the cutting-edge of blood glucose monitoring. Founded over 35 years ago,

it reaches over 20mn people worldwide with products under its OneTouch brand such as personal blood glucose meters, testing strips, point of care testing systems, and integrated tech solutions.

With 2,000 employees and a reach in 90 countries, it is a truly global company. Its app is one of the top ten most downloaded diabetes management apps in the world. In 2018, it was purchased by private equity firm Platinum Equity, leading to a carve-out from its previous owner, Johnson & Johnson. This has allowed the company an opportunity to expand its digital presence. “We have terrific talent, a phenomenal brand with a wide patient base, and are now a size that allows us to be more agile in response to market forces,” says Miguel Louzan, Chief Information Officer (CIO) at LifeScan.

“This gives us a competitive edge.”

FEBRUARY 2020

125

1984

Year founded

$1.2bn Revenue in US dollars

2,000 Number of employees

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DIGITAL

TRANSFORMATION

WE

challenge the status quo to set ambitions that stretch you WE

imagine your future with both existing and new business models

We are in an age when custom engagement is expected, relat in real-time, choice is infinit on demand, change is consta technology enables everythin

Digital transformation enab businesses to thrive in this age

WE FOCUS

on humans, not technology WE HAVE

an expansive network of experts with insight into what’s possible WE ARE

adept at taking you from idea to launch, from start to finish Copyright Š 2019 Deloitte Development LLC. All rights reserved.

Our approach

Deloitte and Deloitte Digital have in-house design, human capital, research, and creative teams that a taking clients from pre-idea through market launch

IMAGINE

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Get the right focus

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A half-day showcase on digital trends, including digital transformation opportunities Subject matter experts will be present to share how the digital trends are relevant to you Includes example case studies of digital trends in action Involves developing some ambitions and high-level provocations specific to you

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A hands-on, full-day workshop dedicated to forming and fleshing out your digital ambitions using our proprietary Sense, Aspire, Decide process Involves interactive exercises to understand the environments within and outside of your organization that could and will impact your business Designed to push comfort levels and boundaries of thinking around your future Walking out of the lab, you will have a tangible plan to make progress toward your ambition within 30 days

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A full-day lab experience set specifically for an executive who is driving the digital agenda within their organization Exposes the executive to trends, technologies, and potential disruptions that could impact their business Designed to help the executive effectively fulfill the mandates of their position, leveraging resources such as time, talent, and relationships Contact us: digitaltransformation@deloitte.com

LIFESCAN

“ For me, that’s what digital transformation is about — small improvements that can start really building momentum by themselves” — Miguel Louzan, Chief Information Officer, LifeScan

Miguel Louzan has been the CIO at the company for almost two years.

With 15 years in digital and tech-based healthcare, he leverages his experience to add value. “Healthcare is a very specific industry. You have to know the exact regulation, what’s really driving the business, the value of products, digital and otherwise,” he says. The primary focus of the last 18 months for LifeScan has been ensuring it can operate as a standalone organisation.

Its established identity and strong branding mean the company isn’t

128

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘LIFESCAN CORPORATE VIDEO’ 129 starting from absolutely nothing, but it is still at the beginning of its journey.

“That’s why I refer to us as a USD $1.2bn start-up,” continues Louzan.

According to Louzan, the company is around halfway through its post carve-out digital transformation. 90% of its platforms are now cloud-based and it has majorly simplified, moving from 700 platforms to only 120. “I believe digital transformation never ends,” affirms Louzan. “It’s a continuous journey.” One of the primary goals is to move from an identity as a medical device company to one as a digital w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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LIFESCAN

132

company. “It’s a mindset change,” he

Louzan. For this reason, process sim-

explains, “if you think about building

plification is one of the main challenges

medical devices, it is a lengthy process

LifeScan grapples with. Third-party

of perfecting the product. In terms of

partners have provided the necessary

digital companies, you don’t have to

tools for LifeScan’s digital transforma-

wait to get the perfect product. That’s

tion to succeed. Influence from Google

all about continual tuning.” Although

Platform Partner CI&T, IT service

the company vehemently adheres

group FPT Software, financial ser-

to the strict regulations required to

vice company Deloitte, methodology

produce medical devices, it is taking

coordinator Globant, storage and con-

onboard a more digital mentality,

solidation consultant Data Blue, and

focusing on the features of products.

digital model-maker gA has allowed

“In a digital company, you think about

LifeScan access to skills and industry

the experience of the user,” says

expertise otherwise inaccessible.

FEBRUARY 2020

133

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Miguel Louzan As LifeScan’s CIO, Miguel leads its health technology efforts and all aspects of LifeScan’s global digital, AI, and IT programs. Miguel has more than 20 years of global IT experience leading organizational transformations that positively impacted profitability and enabled IT to become a trusted partner.

Prior to LifeScan Miguel was Global CIO at SWM International, a global manufacturing company of highly engineered and customised materials.

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137 Although technological implementation is key to LifeScan’s current strategy, its focus on people remains strong. “At the end of the day, it’s all about people,” explains Louzan. “You can have the best policy, the best tech, the best everything, but if you don’t have the right people, it doesn’t work.” Talent acquisition has been an important pillar at LifeScan, seeking employees with a willingness to learn and join a currently evolving organisation. The improved digital aspect ultimately puts the customer first. “At the end of the day, the patient

“ You can have the best policy, the best tech, the best everything, but if you don’t have the right people, it doesn’t work” — Miguel Louzan, Chief Information Officer, LifeScan w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

LIFESCAN

138

FEBRUARY 2020

CO MPAN Y FACT S

• 90% of LifeScan’s platforms are now cloudbased, significantly streamlining operations by moving from 700 platforms to just 120

should be at the centre of everything we do,” he says. “User experience drives simplification.” Adaptability is important not only at LifeScan, but in the wider industry. It is an industry rife with disruptors, meaning LifeScan needs to move quickly if it wants to keep up. “Constant vigilance towards the market is key to avoid being blindsided,” says Louzan. Regulations around data privacy are also constantly changing in different ways around the world, making it difficult to manage as a global company. Local companies might see the rise of GDPR or specific state regulations, but LifeScan has to contend with it all. To ensure it remains up to standard, it implements a programme around data privacy and data security. “It’s a strong concern in w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

139

what we do,” affirms Louzan. “We have

needs, but for healthcare providers,

a group of people in the organisation

it also allows companies to add value

who are tasked with anticipating what

for patients and personalise patient

we might need around data protection

interactions. LifeScan has been invest-

in the future. Operating with a global

ing in the personalisation space for

footprint, this is at the front and centre

several months, focused on artificial

of everything we do.”

intelligence (AI) and machine learn-

The value of data within the health-

ing (ML). “The goal of getting to that

care sphere is only increasing. From a

personalised point of interaction with

market perspective, data helps compa-

our patient is being able to really target

nies better understand its customers

our actions and help them through

141

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LIFESCAN

142

“ If you think about digital companies, you don’t have to wait to get the perfect product.

That’s all about continual tuning” — Miguel Louzan, Chief Information Officer, LifeScan FEBRUARY 2020

their diabetes journey,” he explains.

On a macro-economic level, it also allows the company to understand the financial needs of patients surrounding insurance and contracts. “I would say the future of the industry is personalisation,” continues Louzan. “However, at the same time, it’s about how we can adapt to the different ecosystem.”

The next three to five years at LifeScan will see it continuing along the path of its transformational journey.

143

The main shift in the next five years,

It’s about small wins. Implement, learn

according to Louzan, will be as the

fast, and move onto the next one,” con-

company evolves from a medical

cludes Louzan. “For me, that’s what

device company that has a digital pres-

digital transformation is about — small

ence to being a truly digital company

improvements that can start really

with an associated product. The shift

building momentum by themselves.”

should allow LifeScan to stay competitive in a market of disruptors. “Overall, digital transformation can be a bit of a buzzword. I don’t believe it needs to be complicated. It doesn’t have to be about changing the world. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Adaptive Data Centers

144

WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY

TOM VENTURO

FEBRUARY 2020

145

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ALIGNED

Aligned is focused on designing and delivering dynamic solutions with industry-leading technology and adaptive infrastructure that align with customers’ needs and requirements

“ 146

O

ften when a large hyperscale provider is looking for a space, it has an internal plan for the year for capacity and compute

- typically based on the individual business being able to support projected growth and requirements for the year. That need for sophisticated capacity planning in the data centre industry is often due to sector volatility or how fluid the business requirements for individual applications are…”

Mike Coleman, Global Head of Design & Delivery at Aligned, leads the company’s clients through the minefields of mission-critical; a solution provider able to react quickly to changing needs. “A customer may have planned for 10MW of space, but the business might realise it needs 15MW, and right now,” he says. “At Aligned, we have the capability to help them through that and ensure they have the space they need, where and when they need it.”

FEBRUARY 2020

147

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Current portfolio under development

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CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ALIGNED – BUILD-TO-SCALE’ 149 Aligned’s approach is to design

down to as little as 750KW of cooling

a physical, electrical, and mechani-

capacity in an individual increment.

cal infrastructure that is very quickly

Allied to this, our electrical topology

deployable, but also deployable in

is extremely flexible, allowing us to

the right-sized increments to meet

make adjustments towards a specific

customers’ unique capacity needs and

customer.”

requirements – now and in the future.

Coleman highlights that this flexibility

“Instead of building a 50MW data

allows Aligned to deploy incrementally

centre and having it sit there waiting

across a building in two ways. “We

for it to be fully utilised, we’re able to

can add to the planned capacity for

build the physical structure, whether

the building, but also if the customer

it’s a cold or a warm shell, and then

decides that they’re going to grow in

incrementally deploy infrastructure at

place,” he explains. “From a density

pace,” assures Coleman. “For example,

perspective, we can add that capacity

we can get the mechanical backplane

in their current physical footprint and w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

ALIGNED

150

not require additional square footage

our suppliers, with incremental release

or a lift-and-shift of equipment into a

dates that allows us to keep them up

different space. That’s the philosophy

and running.”

behind the design and the way that

Aligned has commoditised its pro-

we’re able to meet those commitments.

cesses allowing it to deploy mechanical

Once we have the cold channel, we

and electrical equipment in modules.

make the space ready maintaining

This reduces onsite construction and

approximately 50MW of our mechani-

the labour required while also minimis-

cal and electrical infrastructure rolling

ing disruption for any tenants using

through the supply chain. We manage

the facility. “We aim for our work to be

that very closely between the sites. By

seamless and the process to go almost

standardising that infrastructure from

unnoticed,” adds Coleman.

site to site, we’re able to make delivery commitments with our vendors, with FEBRUARY 2020

Future-proofing its infrastructure solutions is critical for Aligned when

contemplating the overall design of a project. “Future-proofing is typically focused on increased density; with CPUs getting increasingly powerful, they draw more and more power,” notes Coleman. “Historically, what happens in the data centre when you look at the retail or wholesale environment, is that a company with a traditional 15-year lease for a larger deployment will start to see a lot of empty space in the room because as they go through a tech refresh cycle, the equipment they’re installing is getting smaller, while requiring an equal amount of

“ Aligned’s approach is to design a physical, electrical, and mechanical infrastructure that is very quickly deployable, but also deployable in the right-sized increments to meet customers’ unique capacity needs and requirements – now and in the future” — Mike Coleman, Global Head of Design & Delivery, Aligned w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

151

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E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Mike Coleman A former head of global data center operations at Google and Yahoo, Mike Coleman has spent 15 years on the electrical engineering design side for data centers and mission critical, working almost entirely on design-build.

“I’ve worked on buildings for Microsoft, Adobe, VMware, Intel, Facebook, Apple… You name it,” he says. “I have a very strong understanding of the overall cost, construction, scheduling and value engineering needs to help end users, owners and operators focus on their original requirements while ensuring the associated costs and benefits are achieved.”

153

Coleman offers a unique perspective on the process to plan for yearly deployment by individual business units across large global infrastructure and the challenges that need to be overcome. “I appreciate the complexity of their software platforms and how that translates into what our physical infrastructure needs to be able to accommodate,” he confirms.

“Being able to meet their needs with overall business and capacity planning helps me provide f lexible solutions and overcome challenges for our customers at Aligned.”

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ALIGNED

cooling. When Aligned started in 2013, our goal was to drive a more sustainable approach to providing a physical structure in a number of ways. Today, we match 100% of our IT load with renewable energy sources.”

Aligned saw that with traditional cooling systems, faults would occur and this became the driving force behind the push for future-proofing.

“With our Delta Cube arrays, we’re able to start off with a customer at a low density, which today averages about 154

five to 10 kW per rack. However, the way that our mechanical structure is deployed enables that customer to then scale up, or in place, without having to maneuver or adjust their infrastructure. They then typically scale to anywhere from the 10kW up to 50 kW a rack. We can incrementally add capacity quickly, and our customers never have to worry about looking for a new space. We call this capability Expand on Demand.”

At the core of Aligned’s bespoke approach is its proprietary cooling technology – Delta CubeTM and CACTUS®. “It could not be any more flexible,” confirms Coleman. “For higher FEBRUARY 2020

155

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densities than 50 kW per rack, it is also easily integrated with liquid-cooled solutions. The industry really hasn’t standardised around anything, so whatever we do right now will not be a catch all. It would be a unique deployment for an individual customer, which we could accommodate.”

Aligned’s electrical topology, and how it deploys power, is based around a standard offering which is also incredibly flexible. “Many of our customers might have some core systems

“ We can incrementally add capacity quickly, and our customers never have to worry about looking for a new space. We call this capability Expand on Demand” — Mike Coleman, Global Head of Design & Delivery, Aligned 157

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ALIGNED – DELTA CUBE TECHNOLOGY, DESIGNED FOR SCALABILITY’

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

ALIGNED

C O M PA N Y FACT S

• Aligned matches 100% of its IT load with renewable energy sources.

• Aligned’s cooling system is capable of operating using 80% less energy and 85% less water than traditional cooling systems.

158

FEBRUARY 2020

that require more robust electrical reliability. They might have an N+1 environment for the production equipment and network gear, or more critical systems that are usually deployed in a smaller footprint. These might need to be more robust, whether it’s twoline or double-corded, even with our standardisation around our design, we can easily accommodate those adjustments because of the way that we designed the physical infrastructure.”

Aligned has the ability to offer any type of renewable energy to its customers. In the U.S., more often than not, this green energy is brought in via the utility, but Coleman notes that some of Aligned’s customers are investing directly into wind farms and solar that support their local grid. “Taking this approach, you’re shaping and leading the power. We have experience doing this and are happy to work with them.”

The company’s green approach extends to its cooling system, which is capable of operating using 80% less energy and 85% less water than traditional cooling systems. “There’s the Delta Cube, and we also have a proprietary chiller that we develop and w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

159

Data Center Trends “When you look at the large hyperscalers, the appetite right now to take down space is tremendous,” says Aligned’s Global Head of Design & Delivery, Mike Coleman. “The pace that they need to fill to try to keep up with the demand is unattainable. Hence, innovation has become secondary to iteration just so they can meet the demand, because every time you add some new technology, it slows the build process down. You have to vet it, there’s more testing, you’re not exactly sure how well it’s going to work, and the business simply cannot tolerance any delay or misses on delivering capacity.”

Coleman sees less innovation right now, simply because of the sheer build volumes. “However, it’s also allowing the overf low to drive growth in businesses like ours,” he says. “Providers are becoming much more strategic partners so that they can meet demand.

Therefore, our capital, infrastructure and people provide a great recipe for them to reach out to us for support.”

Coleman also highlights the significance of what he calls “the return to the metro” of the early 2000s. “In the past, data center construction was almost entirely in a metro area, close to the customer due to latency, with content stores closest to the user.

Then, we saw the trend of everybody moving out of the metro to massive campuses in remote locations. But now, the tremendous growth in cloud is leaving the majority of the large cloud users in a hybrid environment. We’ve gone back to that latency requirement where large cloud deployments need to be close to the metro because very often, they’re providing services to an on-prem IT infrastructure, so you need close proximity to that. We’re starting to see 30-50MW deployments between these large hyperscalers in areas where they wouldn’t look to be building data centers because their sites are typically 200-500MW. The growth in this area is going to be immense.”

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161

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cooling system that can kick in as well, so we really have all conditions covered.” He maintains the system is designed to run on 100% outside air as much as possible and that reduced energy and water consumption is driving the industry-leading 1.15 PUE that Aligned operates at.

Aligned typically partners with the top five contractors in the U.S. data centre market, drawing on the technical expertise of those who have heavily invested in the talent needed to support mission-critical projects. “Very often, we’re partnered with a large manufacturer – the CACTUS,” reveals

general contractor to establish the

Coleman. “The chiller itself runs pre-

original building,” confirms Coleman.

dominantly on 100% outside air when

“The other reason is the pace that we

conditions allow (when dewpoint is low

build at, nine or even six months in

and temperature is in the right range).

some cases, requires enormous cash-

It’s not until we see adverse conditions,

flow efforts, and a very large workforce.

which are not consistent annually, that

We have a handful of both capital

we activate the adiabatic cooling in the

and construction partners capable

chiller, which does not run all the time.”

of supporting that. Once the site is

Coleman notes that adiabatic cooling

established and you’ve got iterative

runs for a fractional number of hours

work, whether it’s multiple additional

a year compared to the outside air.

buildings on the site or additional build

“When dewpoint becomes an issue or

down to the shell, we’ve developed

humidity is a little higher and adiabatic

partnerships locally. The local MEP

isn’t effective, we do have a traditional

contractors and subcontractors are w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

163

ALIGNED

critical alliances for us moving forward to continue the expansion of our operations and be good partners to the communities we work in.”

Aligned’s recipe has resulted in some notable successes. “I’m very impressed with our first building in Salt Lake City.

That was a brownfield conversion of a chip plant where we were able to purchase and retrofit the building, as well as get customers deployed there in under a year; that’s almost unheard of in our industry,” says Coleman. “Similarly, 164

based on the way that our infrastructure is designed, we were able to complete our first phase of capacity in

“ I’m very impressed with our first building in Salt Lake City. That was a brownfield conversion of a chip plant where we were able to purchase and retrofit the building, as well as get customers deployed there in under a year; that’s almost unheard of in our industry” — Mike Coleman, Global Head of Design & Delivery, Aligned FEBRUARY 2020

165

Ashburn in about six months, which is

infrastructure funds are not looking for

the fastest I think I’ve ever seen. Both

quarterly earning updates and require-

amazing accomplishments for us.”

ments back on their investment. We

Aligned recently secured a $575mm

have the ability to accomplish anything

credit facility, which will further support

our clients need, which makes the road

its goals for 2020 with expansion of

ahead truly exciting.”

its adaptable colocation and build-toscale solutions at current campuses; Salt Lake City and Phoenix expansions are already underway. “We can achieve

Adaptive Data Centers

whatever our customers need. We’re not capital constrained, our partners’ w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

166

Partnerships, teamwork and the right goal WRITTEN BY

RACHAEL DAVIS

FEBRUARY 2020

PRODUCED BY

MIKE SADR

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BROWN-FORMAN

Data is at the core of Brown-Forman Corporation’s digital transformation.

From partnerships to the right team, we discussed Brown-Forman’s strategy and how it navigates the road to success

F

ounded in 1870, Kentucky-based BrownForman Corporation has a long history of producing quality spirits and wines

- manufacturing well-known brands such as Jack 168

Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve, Finlandia, Chambord and Old Forester. As times change and technology advances, the company’s growth strategy has adapted to take full advantage. We spoke to Tim Nall, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer; Dan Muraski, Global Director of Business Intelligence, Data Management and Analytics Capability; and Sam Sorsa, Director of Advanced Analytics, to find out more about their data-driven strategy and use of innovative technologies at Brown-Forman.

Data science initiatives at Brown-Forman are backed by a talented team, with wide areas of expertise and a strong bank of knowledge. From data visualisation experts to “translators who can connect our team to the business,” making data “easy, available and user friendly while getting the FEBRUARY 2020

169

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5 Keys to Creating a Data Culture Learn more at tableau.com/data-culture

Organizations are investing trillions of dollars to become more data-driven, but only 8% successfully scale analytics to get value out of their data. What separates the top performers from the rest?

Bisson, Peter, Bryce Hall, Brian McCarthy, and Khaled Rifai. “Breaking Away: The Secrets to Scaling Analytics.�

McKinsey Analytics. McKinsey & Company, May 2018.

Trust Trust is at the root of a strong Data Culture. Leaders trust their people, people trust the data, and people trust each other.

Commitment Successful Data Cultures don’t just pay lip service to the importance of data and analytics. They commit to realizing the value of their data and their people.

Talent Even with the best technology, you need people to get value out of data. Data Cultures prioritize data skills in recruiting, developing, and retaining talent.

Sharing Most problems worth solving aren’t limited to a single team. In a Data Culture, people support each other to develop a sense of belonging and purpose.

Mindset Developing a data-first mindset is just as important as developing data skills. Data Cultures encourage exploration and prioritize data over intuition.

Learn more at tableau.com/data-culture

We help people see and understand data. Learn how at tableau.com. © 2020 Tableau Software, Inc.

BROWN-FORMAN

traditional data analysts out into the

Additionally, data accessibility and

business,” is essential to the integra-

visibility has allowed it to permeate the

tion of analytics into all aspects of the

company so colleagues from all depart-

business, explains Sorsa.

ments have the opportunity to utilise

Self-service data analytics, through tools like Tableau, is a key aspect of

are “40 to 50 sources of information

the strategy. “Bringing the data in-

that are available to a Brown-Forman

house and having it available for us to

colleague for self-service analytics pur-

use in creative ways is great,” Sorsa

poses,” says Muraski.

says. Modernising technology in all

172

data analysis effectively. Now, there

The information that Brown-Forman’s

aspects of the business has allowed

data analysts utilise and make acces-

the data managers to reconcile

sible is wide-ranging across all aspects

internal data and maximise the self-

of the business, both internal and exter-

service approach.

nal, and includes data from distribution

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘WHO IS BROWN-FORMAN?’ 173

“ Our employees are independently willing to give 110%, and have passion about the success of the business” ­­— Sam Sorsa, Director of Advanced Analytics, Brown-Forman

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Whatever you’re trying to solve, we want to solve it with you.

g.co/cloud/solving

partners, consumer demographic

Utilising tools and partnerships is

information, internal financials, yield

integral to Brown-Forman’s success

information, Google search trend data,

in internal data distribution. The data

and more. Access to this breadth of

movement tool Talend is one of the

information allows the data manage-

essential aspects of the company’s

ment and analytics teams to assess

strategy. It allows data to be moved

whichever data is important to them

between layers in a logical way, and

and to the business at any given time.

also has a data management function

“We’ve had success in stopping

which, in combination with data analyt-

colleagues from across the business

ics platform Tableau, helps colleagues

having to ask for specific data require-

see and understand their data.

ments,” praises Nall. “We’ve helped

Artificial intelligence (AI) can be

them understand what we have avail-

incredibly useful for Brown-Forman,

able to answer those questions, and

though the company’s Director of

then if we have to go and get some

Advanced Analytics emphasises the

more data, we can.”

importance of education not only on

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Sam Sorsa Sam Sorsa is Director of Advanced Analytics at Brown-Forman Corporation, where he is responsible for developing, implementing, and managing the company’s strategy for advanced analytics and data science throughout all regions and functions of the business. Prior to establishing the advanced analytics team, Sam held several leadership positions within finance during his 14 years at Brown-Forman. Prior to Brown-Forman, he spent five years in finance roles across various divisions of GE.

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175

BROWN-FORMAN

176

the capabilities of AI, but on what it needs to make it work and the impor-

“ We really leverage our partners to help us understand what’s new and what’s out there” ­­— Tim Nall, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Brown Forman

tance of the human touch.

“It’s something that’s not really new; if you played chess against your computer in the Eighties, that’s AI,” Sorsa qualifies. “But in terms of the practical applications, so far we use AI to identify our competitors, to organise our data into a useable format, and probability algorithms which help the end user with data harmonisation.”

The role of education in AI at BrownForman is definitive. Through education

FEBRUARY 2020

for partners, whether that is within the

AI and machine learning can change

brand or with commercial partners,

those processes,” Muraski says.

the data teams can be “judicious with

As its major vendors bring AI into their

how we bring it in, making sure it is

everyday operations, Brown-Forman

not just a fad, that it really matters,”

has to develop an understanding of

explains Muraski.

what the application looks like and what

Brown-Forman is partnering with

the impact might be; whether it is in

external companies to see what

human resources, customer relation-

insights can be gleaned within its pro-

ship management, enterprise resource

duction forecasting operations. “We

planning, or elsewhere. Again, the data

have had a fairly traditional forecasting

team at Brown-Forman insists that it all

methodology over the years, but we

comes down to education and making

are seeing, with all the information that

sure any new technologies are adopted

is now at our fingertips, how leveraging

smartly. The right partnerships

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Tim Nall Tim Nall is Senior Vice President, Chief Information and Advanced Analytics Officer at Brown-Forman where he has overall global responsibility for technology, data, and analytics. Tim is passionate about employing technology to solve complex business challenges in the highly competitive, constantly evolving consumer products sector. His diverse background across operations and technology allow him to view technology, not as a singular solution, but as an enabler for continuous improvement.

Prior to his current role, he held senior roles within BF’s wine and spirits operations and led their technical service organisation.

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177

BROWN-FORMAN

1870

Year founded

$3.32bn Revenue in US dollars

178

are, therefore, essential to Brown-

others, to help us understand what’s

Forman’s data strategy. Trace3, which

new and what’s out there,” says Nall.

provides advanced IT consulting to

“In the last six months, our col-

help integrate, automate and innovate

leagues have gone to New York for

businesses, assists Brown-Forman

day-long executive briefings at Google,

in reaching its constituents, engaging

where they’ve shown us, for example,

with its infrastructure, and ensuring

how Google Ads can help us measure

connectivity. Meanwhile, utilising the

differently. We’ve also held sessions

open source statistical language R

with Salesforce and our brand

through the medium of RStudio helps

leadership, both US-based and inter-

the teams to make sense of data, as

nationally,” he explains.

well as to scale and share work.

“We really leverage our partners, whether it’s Salesforce, Google, or FEBRUARY 2020

The team at Brown-Forman intelligently relies on its partners - “they’re the ones doing a lot of the development

179

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Dan Murasaki Dan Muraski is Vice President, Global Enterprise Applications and PMO at Brown-Forman. Dan has spent three decades in the technology organisations of over two dozen companies leveraging the evolution of enterprise technology. Prior to Brown-Forman Dan worked in the software industry with SAP as a Platinum level consultant helping clients adopt process and strategies necessary to optimise value from substantial technology and data investments. He has consulted regarding the application of technology to business processes in the CPG, chemical, oil and gas, steel, utility, pharmaceutical, airline, and financial services sectors.

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“ We are judicious with how we bring AI in, making sure it is not just a fad, that it really matters” ­­— Dan Muraski, Global Director of Business Intelligence, Brown-Forman 180

FEBRUARY 2020

181

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LIFTING

TECHNOLOGY LEADERS THROUGH

ADVANCED ANALYTICS Data used intelligently drives competitive advantage, invigorates growth, speeds decisioning, and facilitates business outcomes.

Connect with us at www.trace3.com © 2020 Trace3. All rights reserved.

ONTAPAI@TRACE3.COM

183

in this space, and a lot of the techno-

is all about having the right goal to

logical advancement that we’re going

work towards, and the right leadership

to use,” said Nall.

to guide the way. “The goal was to

While having great partnerships is

become a data-driven organisation, so

essential, so is having the right team

when I look back, I realise if there were

to implement the strategy. At Brown-

no goal, there would be no impetus to

Forman, employees across all areas of

do any of the things we have achieved,”

the business are knowledgeable about

Nall explains.

their fields, receptive to new initiatives, and embrace change.

“It all starts with leadership, and

“I can unequivocally say we would not have made, and will not continue to make the advances we have without

having a fantastic CIO,” says Nall, in

the skills and the knowledge of the

mock egotism. But there is truth in his

leadership on the team,” he enthuses.

witticism: building a dedicated team

Colleagues at Brown-Forman have w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

BROWN-FORMAN

184

embraced the changes being made, and use their skills and knowledge of both their field and of the business to make the changes truly worthwhile and effective.

“Our employees are independently willing to give 110%, and have passion about the success of the business,” echoes Sorsa. Giving team members the space and freedom to tackle challenges in their own way, but also providing strong training and FEBRUARY 2020

“ Bringing the data in-house and having it available for us to use in creative ways is great” ­­— Sam Sorsa, Director of Advanced Analytics, Brown-Forman

guidance, creates a dynamic of trust, faith and support in which new strategies can thrive.

With the assistance of partnerships, a dedicated, knowledgeable and dynamic workforce, and an agile management team, BrownForman is rationally and effectively developing its data-driven strategy.

Understanding the reach and limitations of AI, the power of education, and the importance of accessible data across business ventures, the data science and analytics teams can leverage technology from a range of partners to assist in Brown-Forman’s enterprising application of data.

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185

186

BELCORP: TECHNOLOGY AS AN ENABLER WRITTEN BY

SHANNON LEWIS PRODUCED BY

MIKE SADR

FEBRUARY 2020

187

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BELCORP

We speak to Venkat Gopalan, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Technology Officer at Belcorp, about the company’s major transformation over the last few years and how technology has enabled it

F

ounded in 1968, Belcorp is a leading Latin American beauty and cosmetics company.

Based in Peru, its presence spans 14

countries across the Americas. Currently a direct188

selling company representing three brands, L’Bel, Ésika, and Cyzone, Belcorp has been undertaking a company-wide transformation over the past few years. Its development has been phenomenal, with continual double-digit growth leading to a revenue of over US$1.16 bn. The changes are aimed at both the consumer and Belcorp’s vast network of over 800,000 independent beauty consultants.

Technology plays an important role in Belcorp’s expansion. Venkat Gopalan, Chief Digital and Technology Officer, is responsible for driving the organisation’s digital transformation. Gopalan joined Belcorp in May 2019 following a long history of working in retail tech. So far, Belcorp has explored multiple different avenues: ecommerce, B2B and B2C models. “For over 40 years, we had never been in e-commerce or retail,” Gopalan FEBRUARY 2020

189

1968

Year founded

$1.16bn Revenue in US dollars

6,280 Number of employees

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

INNOVATING EXPERIENCES As a consultant Tech company and software factory, supporting 15 years of experience, developing web and mobile applications , our high level team has been able to serve in Peru, France and Canada.

TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION

INNOVATION

WHAT IS OUR PURPOSE? Being a tech digital consultant, our primary purpose/mission is to co-create innovative experiences for our clients.

WHAT DOES CO-CREATE INNOVATIVE EXPERIENCES MEANS?

BUSINESS

PEOPLE

INNOVATION

As the main technological ally of our clients, our mission is to make their dreams and needs come true through teamwork. Working closely with our allies enables us to become forgers of an innovation, implementing a cultural change that goes hand in hand with the ďŹ nal product we develop.

LEARN MORE

EXPERIENCE

LEAN UX

altimea.com

Sprint

1. Research

2. Analize

3. Ideation

4. Design and Test

5. Implement

The 4 key points to achieve success as a Tech Digital consultant 1 — Technology Today’s digital transformation is not an option, but a necessity. Companies that adopt it and can develop it in their environment will have a competitive advantage over their rivals within an already saturated market. In that sense, it is necessary that from the company there is a vision of business systems with projection towards the future, which is supported by a technological innovation, is able to develop modular and uncoupled applications with the ability to scale and launch the market in short or medium term autonomous and independent digital products that add value to the business.

Waterfall Months long wait before delivery

Agile Minimum Viable Product in just a few weeks

2 — Agile Frame In our ever changing and challenging world, businesses need agility to respond to the competition with quick change. The impact of agility on digital initiatives is important, as it allows teams to deliver value to the business in a short time, usually 2 weeks, leading up to fast innovation and feedback from the customer. Agility is a culture, which involves people and processes, it is how we do things differently to obtain individual outcomes that translates into satisfied customers and a very good return on investment.

3 — Good Resources At Altimea, it is essential that our human talent is trained in two crucial areas of today’s digital world: technical knowledge with constant updates on new technologies and soft skills (emotional intelligence). We feel these factors are necessary due to the constant daily teamwork with our clients. We have a multidisciplinary workforce that thrives to creative beautiful designs focused on user experience which then our developers implements to our high quality standards under the guidance of both our project and tech leaders. Our most differentiator, among other agencies, is the values that govern the work of our team: commitment, responsibility and constant innovation, all adding to the crucial variable for the success of our partners.

4 — Product quality In addition to having a good team of professionals, we use a wide range of tools that help us ensure quality, maintainable and secure code. Using our Continuous Integration tool and Quality Assurance team we can guarantee that issues are taken care of before reaching our codebase and the end user by automatically warning developers about the compliance of their code with the industry’s best practices and security-related matters.

Agile table with average compliance of 94% of user stories.

User stories completed in an average of 3.75 days.

Agile table at Belcorp considered as high performance by a Agile top consultant.

LEARN MORE

BELCORP

“ Technology disrupts.

The number one priority for us as a tech organisation is moving with speed and agility” — Venkat Gopalan, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Technology Officer, Belcorp

says, “so we are expanding into other channels because we aim to create the best brand experiences for our customers and, by doing so, strengthen our independent consultant´s businesses.” Currently, its e-commerce offering is available in four countries - Peru, Colombia, Chile and Mexico - with plans to expand as consumers demand it. Belcorp’s new business models are aimed at increasing delivery immediacy and reducing payment friction. “Part of it is that we want to be known as the best technology

192

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘INTRODUCING BELCORP’S TECHNOLOGY DIVISION’ 193 organisation in Latin America,” says Gopalan. Belcorp’s expansion turns both internally and externally. Belcorp Ventures, an offshoot of Belcorp that invests in and partners with companies that can benefit from the multinational’s industry experience and market access, and, in turn, provides Belcorp a fresh perspective on the future of beauty. So far, it has invested in four beauty startups. “Investing in an early stage company gains us global access to today’s beauty status, as well as to new technology and business models,” Gopalan explains. “We can look at the w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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cultural change and get inspired by

is a key element; moving to an Agile

new products to inform and streamline

enterprise allows Belcorp to launch

our company’s transformation. It’s

initiatives such as e-commerce quickly

about partnership and knowledge.”

and efficiently. Salesforce, which has

Belcorp’s digital transformation

previously been a key element in the

began two-and-a-half years ago as an

company’s growth, is equipped with

effort to shift its own view of technology

digital tools, which enables consultants

to understanding it as an enabler rather

to learn about product, better interaction

than just support. Belcorp’s expansion

with consumers and enable friction-

centres on reinventing direct selling,

free selling. Consumers also benefit

becoming an omnichannel provider,

from the tech transformation, with aug-

providing an exceptional consumer

mented reality that allows them to try

experience, and focusing on internal

on virtual makeup and virtual portraits

talent. Digital transformation touches

that give them the opportunity to learn

on all four. Technology organisation

about products.

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Venkat Gopalan Venkat Gopalan is Chief Technology and Digital Officer at Belcorp, where he is responsible for leading the beauty multinational’s digital transformation and enabling the company’s corporate and sustainability strategy through technology. Venkat has over 20 years of experience leading transformation initiatives for Fortune 100 companies.

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BELCORP

196

FEBRUARY 2020

“Digital transformation is about how we reinvent things,” Gopalan states.

“At the same time, it’s about enabling the workforce to drive the cultural aspect.” Projects that used to take many months are now completed in a few weeks, freeing up employees to think creatively rather than focus on manual tasks. A new personalisationbased commercial tactic using artificial intelligence and machine learning benefits both consumers and consultants. Internally, Belcorp has introduced a new engineering career path, the first of its kind in Peru. “Talent development is what will allow us to become leaders in the space,” Gopalan says.

Talent development initiatives include LinkedIn Learning, Tech Training, Agile Academy and Tech Academy.

“We want to be a continuous learning organisation,” Gopalan continues.

Belcorp runs Open Tec, a tech conference for employees, bringing in organisations like Amazon, SAP and Valtech to talk about the importance of innovation, data culture, and the cloud.

It also brought in six startups to talk about their offerings, and CEOs from across Latin American tech companies w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

197

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘BELCORP’S CORPORATE COMMITMENT TO SUSTAINABILITY:’ 199

“ Investing in an early stage company gains us global access to today’s beauty status, as well as to new technology and business models” — Venkat Gopalan, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Technology Officer, Belcorp

to promote data culture. “It’s about bringing the community across Latin America together to share, learn and transform,” Gopalan explains.

Partnerships are highly valued at Belcorp. Relationships with universities function symbiotically, providing interns and innovation partnership for Belcorp and real-world challenges for the students. Partnerships with other companies have allowed Belcorp to further its tech understanding. Altimea, one of the leading digital consulting and transformation providers in Peru and Latin America, has been a key partner w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

BELCORP

New challenges, New ideas Gfi Group, present in 22 countries, is a leading provider of value-added IT services and software with a unique combination of proximity, sector-based organization and industrial-quality solutions. The Group generated revenue of â‚Ź1395 million in 2018.

Learn more

201 on Belcorp’s business end. Its focus is on using technology to help push and manage content. Belcorp’s interest in data analytics sees it turning to Sigmoid, which has spent the last year and a half advising on AI and machine learning models, as well as looking at population logistics and forecast planning. As heavy cloud users, Belcorp relies on CenturyLink for infrastructure, a key strategic and social partner.

Meanwhile, Hundred Group, a part

“ We have to continue to innovate, to bring new products to the market, to reinvent the direct selling” — Venkat Gopalan, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Technology Officer, Belcorp

of GFI, has been with Belcorp for the last 15 years, providing solutions for digital tools and helping Belcorp with w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

BELCORP

202

its mobile application development.

and centred on five pillars: women’s

These strategic partnerships bring

empowerment, extraordinary talent,

specialised technology expertise into

care for the planet, integrity and trans-

Belcorp, allowing it to continue along

parency, and responsible products.

its digital transformation journey.

The company has goals set for each

Transformation at Belcorp is always

of these pillars over the next five years.

done in alignment with its purpose,

“If you look at the pillars of sustainability,”

core values and commitment to sus-

Gopalan says, “each is helped by our

tainability. Sustainability is a focal point

digital transformation. Digitisation helps

of the corporation, aimed at creating a

us reduce waste and carbon footprint

future full of possibilities for everyone,

while increasing transparency.”

FEBRUARY 2020

203

Looking ahead, Belcorp plans on

The number one priority for us as

continuing to expand and transform.

a tech organisation is moving with

“In five years’ time, we want to be rec-

speed and agility.”

ognized as the best place to work and the definition of talent and innovation across the board”, Gopalan says. For this, having committed and creative people is key. “We have to continue to innovate, to bring new products to the market, to reinvent the direct selling,” Gopalan says. “Technology disrupts. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

204

Faster, smarter and more profitable decision making WRITTEN BY

MATT HIGH PRODUCED BY

SHIRIN SADR

FEBRUARY 2020

205

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FICO

How FICO’s innovative decisioning technology is driving financial services’ digital transformation

A

ccording to market surveys, close to 90% of businesses in financial-intensive industries – banking, insurance, credit cards,

payments, etc. – see digital disruption as a looming threat. Conversely, and with somewhat staggering 206

disparity, only a fraction of those companies – for example, just 3% of banks –consider their organisations to be ‘extremely’ disruption proof. The first statistic should come as little surprise - the ongoing proliferation of innovative digital technologies is, after all, seeing every industry worldwide facing its own transformation. The second should cause more concern for those operating in the global financial services sector.

The breadth of the challenge that the sector faces from digitally disruptive technologies was set out in a research paper created by Arizent, a B2B business information firm; the paper was sponsored

by FICO, a leading analytics organisation that uses advanced analytics and optimisation to improve business decision making and drive growth, profitability and customer engagement. The purpose FEBRUARY 2020

207

1956

Year founded

$1.16bn Revenue in US dollars

5,000 Number of employees

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FICO

of the research, focused on digital disruption, digital transformation and customer-centricity, was to learn about the perceptions of senior executives regarding the core advantages, disadvantages, opportunities and threats posed by such disruption. It found that digital disruption is “mercilessly changing the competitive landscape in the financial services industry” and that those companies that thrive will embrace change through a dedicated focus on making smarter, faster and more profitable decisions.

208

“What’s holding many banks back from truly embracing digital transformation is their starting from a siloed set of systems that don’t view you as a customer, but rather, view you as an account” — Bill Waid, General Manager of FICO Decision Management, FICO

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘THE HISTORY OF FICO’ 209 FICO can inform those decisions.

and 24% of fintechs, for example, are

The business is a leading proponent

not confident in their ability to antici-

of digital decisioning through its

pate customer needs and proactively

Centralized Decisioning solution, a

offer ideal products and services, as

unifying infrastructure that enables

stated in the aforementioned research.

businesses to use raw data to better

According to FICO, this shortfall in

inform decision making and greatly

achieving customer centricity is a result

improve the customer centricity of

of many businesses’ operational frame-

products and services or, as FICO

works relying on siloed, on-premises

suggests, “to take the offensive and be

systems, data and processes. “Typically,

a disruptor, not a disruptee”. Customer-

in financial services, there are multiple

centric services are a key driver of

disconnected ways in which companies

change in all industry sectors, and yet

interact with customers; you can bank

many are seeing difficulty in becoming

with one institution but have savings

more customer-centric – 44% of banks

or checking accounts, credit cards, w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

FICO

mortgages and investments. What’s holding many banks back from truly embracing digital transformation is their starting from a siloed set of systems that don’t view you as a customer, but rather, view you as an account,” explains Bill Waid, General Manager of FICO Decision Management.

For Waid, the provision of a true digital experience that breaks down the siloed approach in order to focus on the individual is driving digital disruption across many industry sectors 210

worldwide. He references, for example, Amazon’s digital retail experience, which has revolutionised the traditional consumer dynamic. Although not at this level yet, the financial services sector, he concedes, is on the brink of

E X ECU T I VE P RO FI LE

Bill Waid As GM, FICO Decision Management Software, Bill is responsible for FICO’s cloud-based Decision Management Software (DMS) business, delivering innovative analytics and decision management for better business outcomes.

FEBRUARY 2020

such a transformation. “From a digital experience perspective,” he says, “the risk of being disrupted comes from the connection and the experience that the consumer has on a very individual level – does the bank or insurance company understand me? Is it offering me the right products and the right level of engagement for my specific needs, and does it give me optionality and anticipate what I may need before I have to ask? These are essential questions to answer and the challenge is that, when you move to something like the financial services sector, the depth of that experience becomes even more complicated because there are multiple ways in which companies can interact with the consumer.”

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Kevin Deveau A senior executive with over 30 years’ international experience. Kevin is Vice President & Managing Director for FICO’s operations in Canada, as well as heading the company’s North American Insurance business segment.

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If you’re not disrupting, you’re being disrupted.

Let FICO help you flip the switch.

Digitization is disrupting the very fabric of business. New entrants are displacing incumbents.

Omni-channel models are replacing brick and mortars. Speed, precision, and innovation are survival imperatives.

To monetize your digital infrastructure, you need to liberate big data insights from business siloes.

Unleash explainable, AI-powered decisions across your enterprise. Instinctively sense and respond to customer and economic shifts. Deploy new solutions in a snap.

FICO can help. For more than 60 years, we’ve empowered banks, insurers, retailers, and others to build more profitable and sustainable customer engagements through decision management.

Better Business Decisions © 2020 Fair Isaac Corporation. All rights reserved.

Learn how our flexible, scalable approach can help you be a disruptor—not the disrupted.

VISIT US AT fico.com/CentralizedDecisioning

FICO

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘FICO ® DECISION MANAGEMENT SUITE’ 214 Although FICO is best known for

already begun their digital transforma-

working with many of the world’s lead-

tion journey and made some progress

ing financial services organisations,

are relatively small; it’s a much larger

the company also works closely with

number of those that will ‘go next’,

some of the largest names across

from our perspective.”

several other sectors. According to

Alongside banking, FICO rec-

Waid, the company has seen and

ognises growing interest from the

worked with some early adopters of

insurance sector - another industry

this customer-centric mindset that are

that has historically engaged with

taking efforts to drive their digital strat-

customers in a disparate, siloed man-

egy and improve consumer experience.

ner. Kevin Deveau, Vice President &

“Alongside that, you have several

Managing Director, FICO Canada

followers but also, unfortunately,

elaborates: “In insurance in particular,

many laggards across the sector,” he

companies across the board are rap-

adds. “The numbers of those that have

idly realising that keeping pace with

FEBRUARY 2020

this digital transformation of the

engagement and involvement with

sector really comes down to defin-

the customer; they want to be closely

ing that customer journey - or the

aligned with them throughout all the

‘customer 360’. The businesses that

relevant life events. We view the insur-

are on the wrong side of that are

ance sector in particular as shifting

losing out and paying a price, but

from a state of detect and repair to

that’s rapidly becoming true for any

predict and prevent, and this is where

customer-facing business.”

a digital, decision-first platform such

Insurers have, says Deveau, made

as ours comes in, being able to gather,

steps in areas such as claims handling,

analyse and connect siloed data in a

which has seen a redefining of the

real-time environment. This enables

journey from accident to resolving,

companies in any sector to be more

for example. “But, increasingly we’re

nimble, to be proactive rather than

seeing insurers building out their

reactive and to provide that level of

“Companies across the board are rapidly realising that keeping pace with this digital transformation of the sector really comes down to defining that customer journey” — Kevin Deveau, Vice President & Managing Director, FICO Canada w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

215

FICO

customer experience that they need to in order to be successful.”

The challenge for both insurers and banks, concedes Deveau, is that while most are now actively seeking to engage their experience offering, a large majority are still embedded in legacy systems and technologies.

FICO’s Centralized Decisioning, for example, connects all business-critical insights across an enterprise, enabling that decision making process to be optimised across an entire customer 216

lifecycle. FICO recognises several traits of a ‘best-in-class’ decisioning process, including a unified, scalable decision platform that optimises and monetises the use of people, data and analytics; the ability to create personalised customer treatments at scale; the ability to validate and simulate decisions before they are put into production; and the creation and management of the strategies, rules and analytics that drive decision and actions.

To give some perspective on these being put into practice, FICO and Arizent’s research revealed that just 5% of banks are using all of the data at their disposal, only a third (37%) are FEBRUARY 2020

confident in their ability to make accurate decisions in real time and 38% are very confident that their customers receive consistent service across all channels. Notably these figures are significantly higher across the board for fintech companies.

On customer centricity, for example, it was found that fintechs are three times more ‘extremely confident’ that their customers receive personalised treatment. Similarly, business users in fintechs are more than twice as empowered to manage analytics strategies than their counterparts in banks; they are also noticeably more confident in their ability to make accurate decisions in real time.

“The initial perception, quite often, is ‘we are interested, we wish to improve, but how do we take all of our systems we have used for years - often decades - and make them talk to one another,” Bill states. “The short answer is, you can’t. It’s too complicated and too difficult. The fintechs have a leg up on those incumbent institutions because they started with the premise of having all their data and systems connected. Banks should understand w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

217

FICO

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘JOIN THE DANCE WITH AI’ 218 that getting all their data into a decisioning process doesn’t require the moving of that data, it’s about ensuring that they can consume that data in real time.”

Waid affirms that this is where technologies such as machine learning and advanced analytics play a key role, enabling a rapid assessment and decisioning process based on the information presented in the data.

“Customers of ours that adopt this approach tend to start with the limited data they have, deploy these advanced machine learning models and FEBRUARY 2020

strategies, understand the data and

data together, building the models and

the build in rapid succession,” he notes.

technology as rapidly as possible, and

“Once you begin on such a journey, you

move to making decisions and acting

then have the flexibility to pull in even

in real time. It’s that approach that will

more data, further enrich your process

bring the financial institutions and

and continue to build. It’s an incremen-

insurers to the levels of success seen

tal change that works at ‘digital pace’

by retail companies.”

rather than IT pace, and it’s working

In order to achieve this ‘holy grail’,

very well in financial services and also

FICO works with clients on three pil-

increasingly in insurance.”

lars. The first of these is the ability to

Such a system, according to Deveau,

attach data and data sources, stream

is one that FICO offers and something

that data in real time and apply analyt-

that those in the industry should con-

ics and strategies to understand it at

sider “the holy grail: bringing all of your

a customer level. Secondly, organisations should use the rich/enriched data to make better decisions about a consumer and improve the level of user experience. Lastly, understand the impacts of how data is applied and the decisions that it leads to in terms of the wider business outcomes.

“We refer to this as business simulation,” says Waid, “and it’s all about the ability to make comparisons, to understand the outcome should you make changes, take more risks with a certain customer profile and so on. Some of our customers refer to this aspect as ‘the brain’, as it’s specifically focused on the wider intelligence around their business.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

219

FICO

220

FEBRUARY 2020

Understandably, as is the case with businesses in many sectors that are wedded to legacy systems or a particular company culture, FICO sees some hesitancy to fully adopt these three pillars in too quick a success. Waid states his belief that, if you are to make changes you must do so with confidence, understand the process and embark on a true digital transformation journey, while Deveau notes that, while many of FICO’s customers begin with small steps, once they see the potential offered by its services growth follows in rapid succession.

For any business, what moves the dial is results,” Waid adds. “Most of our clients see results when their first use case goes live. They see material impacts to their business very quickly and that commitment to change, that desire to take the organisation forward, means that they want more to follow.”

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221

222

CHANGING THE GAME FOR ENERGY AND RESOURCES WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY

RICHARD DEANE

FEBRUARY 2020

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IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

IBM is helping mining companies solve problems from connectivity through to autonomous solutions, as well as harnessing data to drive the industry towards the digital mines of the future

“

echnology, in its various stages of evolution, is our business at IBM,” reflects Manish Chawla, Global Managing Director for Energy & Natural Resources. “We’ve been involved in mining for decades, and just like in any other industry

224

we’ve re-invented our offerings to add services, software, data handling, cloud and AI capabilities. Our focus has progressed from IT and core functions to meet the needs of business transformation projects such as SAP implementations or process outsourcing, to support the mining industry in managing data as a strategic asset; helping the industry to capture, monetise and secure it.”

IBM’s portfolio features a set of offerings targeting enterprise & operations transformation, outsourcing, SAP implementations, and helping clients use their data to their specific strategic advantage. “Look at technologies such as blockchain for traceability in the supply chain,” Chawla adds. “Today, we are a full-service partner focused on the employee experience, while using technology for transforming various functions across a mining organisation.”

FEBRUARY 2020

225

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IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

Chawla notes a recognition from the mining industry that technology can now solve specific problems from

226

make the industry attractive to a new generation? Technology holds the key.”

A recent study by the World

connectivity through to autonomous

Economic Forum forecast that over

solutions. “Now we’re able to har-

the next decade the mining industry

ness the data, the C-suite can see the

will create further value of $190bn

importance of digitisation and how it

from additional transformational

will drive the business in the future,” he

measures. “When these strategies are

says. “A technology-savvy and enabled

executed in a more integrated fashion,

mining enterprise is critical for attract-

inside-out and outside-in transforma-

ing and supporting the workforce of

tion, we believe businesses will be at

the future. How do you get people

a great advantage from humans and

out of the unsafe conditions of under-

machines working together,” explains

ground mines in remote areas and

Maxelino Nelson, Senior Executive for

“ A technologysavvy and enabled mining enterprise is critical for attracting and supporting the workforce of the future” — Manish Chawla, Global Managing Director for Energy & Natural Resources, IBM FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SANDVIK: PUTTING I OT TO WORK FOR THE MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY’ 227

Industry Innovation, Global Solutions, & Business Strategy at IBM. “This will outperform humans or machines working on their own. It’s a great opportunity for us and our mining clients to solve some of the societal challenges relating to sustainability while developing the mining sector’s ecosystem to partner with IBM to truly transform the business in a more holistic way.”

Nelson notes that over the past 5-10 years the digital transformation journeys IBM’s clients have taken have been characterised by AI and w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

228

experimentation with customer-facing

With the initial trends of the first

apps; activities that have been driving

chapter maturing, Nelson maintains

the cloud during chapter one of a digi-

we’re on the cusp of the next big shift

tal reinvention.

in the business architecture. It will

What will chapter two hold? “We

be driven by the pervasive applica-

believe industrial businesses are ready

tion of AI and cognitive technologies,

to move towards business reinvention:

combined with data, to the core pro-

scaling digital and AI and embedding it

cesses and workflows across mining

in the business. It’s about hybrid cloud,

organisations alongside important

moving mission critical applications

functional areas such as finance,

from experimentation to true end-to-

procurement, talent and supply

end transformation. The key to winning

chain. The results of this revolution-

is centred around what we at IBM call

ary change will be defined as the

the ‘Cognitive Enterprise’.”

Cognitive Enterprise.

FEBRUARY 2020

“Companies that get this journey right

How is IBM helping companies

are on the way to being a Cognitive

embrace Mining 4.0 and support the

Enterprise,” affirms Nelson. “In our

move towards the digital mine of the

experience, critical areas for natural

future? “We’ve developed a data-driven

resources industries to get right on this

productivity platform with Sandvik, a

journey are openness and collabora-

leading supplier of underground min-

tion, integration, intelligent workflows

ing equipment. This partnership has

and cultural skills. In a time of continued

seen us connect their assets, their

volatility and disruption, open innova-

equipment, to our cloud to be able to

tion and co-creation are vital to be able

pull data off. The value proposition to

to partner across ecosystems and

a mining company is not only to get

learn from other industries to achieve

data from the Sandvik equipment, but

fundamental transformation as 90% of

also from other vendor feeds,” explains

the jobs in mining are changed, not nec-

Chawla. “Interoperability as well as

essarily replaced, through technology.”

the open data standard is critical for

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Manish Chawla An ecosystem thinker, Chawla is an experienced Global Manager with a demonstrated history of leading and scaling technology-driven businesses in the energy & resources, industrial and construction, sectors.

His passion is helping companies leverage exponential technologies (AI, IoT, Blockchain, Industry 4.0, AR/VR, 5G etc) to fundamentally re-imagine their enterprises in the platform economy to survive (and thrive) in the face of the three climate changes - environment, globalisation and technology

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229

Change is hard. The truth is that many mining companies are still very hesitant about furthering their digital mining transformations in fear of cost of implementation, risk and uncertainty.

However, digital solutions from AVEVA can help mining companies reduce complexity and optimize business and operational performance. aveva.com @avevagroup linkedin.com/company/aveva

For more information, read our free E-Book on Digital Mining Transformation.

a mine operator. They get visibility

safety use cases and optimisation

to production information, help with

of smelters.” IBM is also working with

equipment, maintenance analytics and

Newmont Goldcorp to help them

improved uptime.”

better understand their ore body,

Built on IBM technologies, Sandvik

allowing them to reduce the time

offers a platform for underground mine

spent by geologists in analysis |and

optimisation, both for production and

data collection to determine where

data/maintenance related aspects.

to guide the next drilling campaign.

“We’re also the primary data analyt-

“We’ve reduced inaccuracy by 95%

ics platform and AI software services

with the geology data platform that

partner for Vale for where they have

we call ‘cognitive ore body discovery’,”

an AI centre of competence,” Chawla

says Chawla.

reveals. “We’re doing an extensive set

IBM is committed to supporting

of use cases with them, including

the sustainability efforts of mining

route optimisation for trucks, testing

operations across the globe. “By using

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Maxelino Nelson “As a global industrial leader for mining I’m part of IBM’s leadership committee that oversees the strategy and development of worldwide mining industry practice and other natural resources industries.” An entrepreneurial business leader with two decades’ multinational experience, including the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa, China, India, Russia, and Australia, Nelson is a leader in the global industry for manufacturing and resources and leverages industry ecosystem partnerships to help clients take solutions from idea to reality.

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IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

intelligent workflows on the blockchain to address social sustainability in the context of the entire supply chain, miners can demonstrate social responsibility and also begin to build a culture of innovation,” believes Chawla. “The work we are doing on the Responsible Sourcing Blockchain Network (RSBN) with RCS Global allows businesses to track cobalt from industrial and mining companies to ensure that they are working responsibly, whether it’s in the Congo or other parts of the world, 232

across the supply chain from mine to smelter to battery manufacturers and to automotive OEMs.” IBM are seeing many automotive OEMs joining the platform along with key industrial scale miners operating cobalt mines in Congo who wish to augment their use of OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) responsible supply chain guidelines.

The company is looking to extend the network to other metals such as tin, tantalum, and gold, which are all important to the new economy emerging for minerals associated with electronics and EVs. FEBRUARY 2020

Chawla notes the demand, driven by the rise of EVs and electronic brands, for an active, working and open democratic network to ascertain responsible sourcing and support artisanal miners to be able to operate safely in a fairtrade manner.

IBM is also working with Minehub – a mining and metals trading platform – helping it streamline operations with various business partners across the mining ecosystem. “The MineHub platform is not a market-maker; it allows buyers and sellers to agree on trade. It comes to play once the trade has been set and the terms have been agreed,” explains Chawla. “This helps to improve the operational efficiencies, logistics and financing, while concentrating the supply chain from the mine to the buyer.”

MineHub has been working in collaboration with IBM and other industry participants across a value chain that includes the likes of ING Bank, leading precious metals firm Ocean Partners and Capstone Mining. Minehub also features clearing houses, refiners, smelters, financiers and other providers like Kimura joining along with w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

233

IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

FACTS

IBM on mining trends

234

“Sustainability has become a crucially important vector,” asserts Manish Chawla, Global Managing Director for Energy & Natural Resources at IBM. “This is allied to a bigger focus on mixing the recovery of the minerals and metals that will support the technology of the mines of the future.

Meanwhile, operating them in a remote and autonomous manner will force mining companies to develop network connectivity with the ability to manage assets and equipment to move the needle, leveraging AI and data analytics in a much more profound and highly integrated way.”

Chawla adds that similar efforts must be made to support the culture change required to drive the benefits of innovation.

IBM are keen for mining companies to learn from the construction sector and implement digital twins. “It allows you to investigate how a mine asset is performing and functioning at any given moment,” explains Chawla.

“Monitoring via a digital twin ref lects not only the way the mine was designed with autonomous equipment

FEBRUARY 2020

but also how it’s being operated.

Technology starts to guide action, and can intervene so that safe and reliable operations can continue. The expectation is that data and connectivity become ever-present and omnipresent, guiding autonomous agents to perform functions rather than humans.”

Maxelino Nelson, Senior Executive for Industry Innovation, Global Solutions, & Business Strategy at IBM, sees an increased urgency from mining companies to establish an integrated road map as an important step in bringing strategy operations and IT together. “They use a road map to understand business drivers with technology requirements, all incorporated, so the entire enterprise will be moving forward in an integrated manner. It’s more common now to see business and IT coming together in collaboration, trying to determine which projects can deliver the most value and can easily be scaled from the pilot site.”

IBM — Cognitive Mining Solutions Geological Intelligence

Equipment Intelligence

Improve Orebody discovery and geological activities to ultimately recover more ore, deliver accurate ore budgets and support rapid mine planning to optimise drill, block and blast activities for consistent fragmentation and recovery.

Improve maintenance planning, efficiency, and effectiveness to reduce time, effort, and cost of both scheduled and unscheduled work (e.g. implement to advanced predictive condition-based maintenance models).

HSSE & Worker Safety Intelligence

Supply Chain Intelligence Mine-to-Port supply chain delivery and rapid mine planning improved plant operations can better connect the demands of the market to your suppl.y Optimise supply chain and resupply operations by predicting and consolidating requirements across multiple locations and driving down facility operation and sustainment costs.

Production Intelligence To improve production via managed and optimised mobile f leet operations; optimise control processes; predict and avoid process interruptions, slowdowns, stopwpages and under or overruns; and accelerate operator issue-resolution to sustain higher uptime levels of normal operations.

Analyse historical incident data, workforce data (qualifications, experience, performance, etc), environmental data, and work conditions to identify changes in risk profile or potential issues before they become incidents.

Optimise emergency response to mitigate risk, enhance outcomes, and accelerate return to normal operations Enterprise Intelligence Risk mitigation and resource allocation in capital projects, aimed at minimising impacts to production plan commitments.

Push greater efficiencies in legal and procurement functions and sure compliance to core polices, commercial practices, and legal & regulatory obligations.

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IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

royalty holders and streamers such as Lincoln. A tier one miner is also set to trial the platform. Chawla notes they are all benefiting from the efficiencies of the platform, all providing key pieces of information to these transactions.

When it comes to digital innovation across the mining panorama, Chawla says it’s still a challenge to ensure all parties are aligned so that everyone benefits. “It’s important to get centreled IT and overall C-suite leadership both working towards the improve236

ment of operating assets,” he says.

“With much of the work we do, we also think hard about the experience of

“ We believe industrial businesses are ready to move towards business reinvention: scaling digital and AI and embedding it in the business” — Maxelino Nelson, Senior Executive for Industry Innovation, Global Solutions & Business Strategy, IBM

FEBRUARY 2020

frontline employees and incorporate this into the design of the solutions to ease adoption. We’ve taken this approach with Sandvik where we’ve done design sessions at the mine site with shift supervisors, truck drivers and mine managers.”

A key obstacle to overcome in order to successfully integrate digital innovation is access from a network perspective and being able to capture the data. “Many companies are upgrading their networks and 5G is

237

exploding,” notes Chawla. Allied to this

challenge. If it’s approached in col-

he believes measured interoperability

laboration with interoperability in mind,

is vital. “Mining companies operate

then you can accelerate. But that is a

differing fleets from a range of vendors

continued two steps forward, three

with equipment right across the value

steps back kind of situation.”

chain. Each vendor is pitching their

IBM is pushing forward in 2020 to

own solutions. Do they go with one of

meet its goals around driving inno-

the vendors? Or do they go with devel-

vative solutions for the energy and

oping their own platform? And then,

natural resources industries. “We want

will the vendors open up and share

to infuse more data and AI capabilities

the data that the mine operators and

into their operations to take them live,”

ourselves can leverage in partnership?

pledges Chawla. “We will be continuing

This complex ecosystem becomes a

our work on three specific new platforms w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

IBM INDUSTRY ACADEMY

1911

Year founded

$79.59bn+ Revenue in US dollars

350,000 238

Number of employees

FEBRUARY 2020

to further enhance the idea of ecosystems coming together to drive tangible outcomes for our clients in all the vectors of mining.” Chawla’s team also plan to nurture and scale IBM’s cybersecurity offering to secure operating technology and systems. “As more plants, more mines, and more equipment get connected, the cyber threat increases, so we’re pleased with the tremendous progress we’re already making to secure operations as they grow.”

Nelson confirms IBM is currently working with a large oil and gas supermajor for potential partnership to co-create a digital mining services integrated platform. “This platform is tendered around developing a different model for how mining companies consume digital solutions and services, and how mining providers and solutions developers can make them available to the industry. It is a game changer and it shows how upbeat and interesting the mining industry has become to wider industries.”

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240

Savills Critical Facilities Group: how knowledge builds trust WRITTEN BY

SHANNON LEWIS PRODUCED BY

TOM VENTURO

FEBRUARY 2020

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S AV I L L S

Rick Drescher, Corporate Managing Director of Technical Services, and Ian Zilla, Executive Managing Director, discuss Savills Critical Facilities and building client trust through IT expertise

W

hile Savills was founded in 1855, Critical Facilities Services only became a part of its brand in the mid-2010s, when it

purchased American-based tenant representation specialist, Studley Inc. The Critical Facilities 242

team has served clients since 2000, when it began working as a consultancy focused on helping companies define strategy around its data center needs, whether that meant building a facility or leasing space from a provider. “Our core focus,” Rick Drescher, Corporate Managing Director of Technical Services, says, “is representing users of space and services. Across all business lines, we focus on user representation.” In the late 2000s, cloud service providers rapidly gained popularity, which led to an increased client demand for analysis and discussion of outsourced infrastructure alternatives. Ian Zilla, Executive Managing Director, adds that “it became clear that, to really engage with customers appropriately, we needed to understand their entire infrastructure stack from a detailed technology perspective, starting with FEBRUARY 2020

243

1855

Year founded

39,000 Number of employees

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S AV I L L S

“ We’ve talked about opensource software, but now there’s open-source infrastructure. People are contributing for the greater good of the industry, trying to lessen the impact on the planet as data center growth continues”

244

— Rick Drescher, Corporate Managing Director of Technical Services, Savills

FEBRUARY 2020

applications and moving deeper into systems and network requirements, as well as legacy platforms.”

According to Zilla, in the early 2010s, the team was looking to expand its IT expertise to engage clients on a more technical level. In came Drescher, a 20-year IT professional with a focus on network engineering and large-scale infrastructure project experience.

Drescher notes that he and Zilla pair in two fundamentally connected areas: the technical aspect, helping clients analyse their current and future

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SAVILLS CULTURE COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE’ 245 technical requirements and develop-

According to Zilla, this allows them to

ing strategies to get them there based

connect to IT clients as they are knowl-

on what is important to them; and

edgeable about both their experiences

the financial analytics and structure

and the subject matter. Drescher

aspect, which focuses on strategic

notes, “we’ve been in the trenches

acquisition planning and identifying

of IT and understand the challenges

financial structures that best suit each

those professionals face. Our goals

client and project. Critical Facilities

are to reduce friction by educating vari-

works with a wide array of clients at

ous organisational stakeholders, and

different stages of their company life

move digital initiatives forward to help

cycle, from startups to Fortune 100

empower our clients’ businesses.”

businesses, meaning customisation

A point of pride for Savills is its hir-

and specialisation are key elements

ing strategy that seeks out-of-the-box

of its client dynamic. Both Zilla and

problem solvers with diverse back-

Drescher have IT backgrounds.

grounds and varied expertise. “We look w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

S AV I L L S

246

at what a project is likely to need from a

“The real value of having a multidis-

skillset perspective. While many of the

ciplinary team is being able to meet

engagements brought to the company

our customer where their need is,” Zilla

have common elements, each client

says. The team is analytical, with a

has access to our full team to provide

consulting-focused planning process.

the best possible advisement for their

It provides advisory, strategic and trans-

specific situation,” Drescher says. This

actional services, as well as real estate

can mean anything from bringing on an

and financial planning from the begin-

additional IT specialist to analyse chal-

ning of any project. This allows clients to

lenging network connectivity needs in

know from the start what their require-

a particular geography, to consulting

ments are and what decisions lie ahead.

with an engineer to review technical

“We are continuously keeping updated

drawings and ensure the client is being

on the latest developments in the data

delivered what they are expecting.

center industry, and, just as importantly,

FEBRUARY 2020

on what technology trends are shaping

which choices are correct but rarely is

infrastructure moving forward,”

the best decision to do nothing.” This

Drescher says. “We’re a nimble firm that

is where Savills comes in, as a trusted

gets creative with client solutions.”

advisor. A proven track record of

With how quickly technology solu-

experience in the field, as well as its

tions change, it is difficult for users

exposure to the marketplace, allows

to discern between options. “The

the firm to be a knowledgeable partner

speed at which new technologies are

in a constantly changing industry with

being released is a constant chal-

an overwhelming amount of options

lenge,” Drescher says. “People are

for end users. As a firm that believes

apprehensive about making decisions

in providing clients an objective view

on something that they could change

of their best options, Savills Critical

their mind on in 12 months’ time. There

Facilities Services values partners

is a lot of analysis paralysis around

with the same priorities. “We’ve been

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Ian Zilla Zilla joined Studley (now Savills) in 2005 as a member of the Corporate Services Group (CSG). His background in computer science, technology and finance complements his team’s quantitative strategic planning approach and financial consulting services, and contributes to clients’ mission-critical facilities and complex headquarters transactions. Zilla’s experience with critical power acquisition, as well as his expertise with scenario modeling and financial analysis, has positioned him as one of the practice leaders of the Savills Critical Facilities Group (CFG), working on the largest and most complex transactions and gained national experience implementing portfolio-wide strategies focused on data center and headquarters transactions.

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S AV I L L S

HYBRID & HYPERSCALE BUILT ON INTELLIGENT INFRASTRUCTURE QTS is a leading provider of hybrid colocation and hyperscale data center solutions, throughout North America and Europe.

We are partner-focused, with an innovative, real-time Service Delivery Platform, and industry-leading customer satisfaction.

LEARN MORE

fortunate enough to partner with firms that have the same user-first belief system we do,” Zilla says.

“Ultimately, it comes down to ensuring the customer feels comfortable with their final decision. Clients often face a lack of transparency from service providers. Different service providers don’t always provide services, such as colocation, in the same way,” Drescher explains. “We understand the provider landscape and the areas where they excel. We are able to engage the right potential partners for our clients.

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Rick Drescher Drescher is recognised for unparalleled technical expertise and creative solutions at the intersection of real estate and technology analytics. His over 20 years’ IT experience in the financial services, technology and global telecommunications industries and extensive knowledge of enterprise IT systems has been leveraged to successfully design, plan and execute the fit-out and migration of more than 30 data centers and trading f loors, totaling more than one million square feet. As a founding partner of the firm’s Critical Facilities Group, Drescher provides strategic planning and advisory services pertaining to data centers, interconnection, cloud infrastructures and other technology-intensive real estate transactions.

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S AV I L L S

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“ D uring a recent facility expansion project, the Savills team combined a diligent analytical approach — backed by significant market research — with a strong dose of tenacity. Working with them has been a pleasure, and the results create significant new opportunities for our business going into 2020” — Zac Smith, CEO, Packet

FEBRUARY 2020

It takes a solid understanding of each client’s technical, financial and operational goals to dig into the details of what’s being offered from various proposals. It’s about making sure our client is entering into a partnership with a service provider that meets their current and future needs most closely.”

This wide base of knowledge allows Savills to build client trust. IT knowledge is increasingly important; real estate and IT are now interwoven thanks to phone systems, cloud computing and network services. An often-overlooked element of cloud migration, for instance, is the effect it will have on network connectivity. By providing a strategic planning process that does a full technical and operational assessment, the company mitigates these challenges.

Zilla notes: “It creates trust and a partnership. Decisions are made by the entire organisation, which helps solve problems as they come up through objective, data driven analysis. The need for deep IT and financial knowledge is a must.” Client trust is important as many transactions between Critical Facilities and clients are long term, lasting 12-24 months. “There is nothing w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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S AV I L L S

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“ The real value of having a multidiscipline team is being able to meet our customer where their need is” — Ian Zilla, Executive Managing Director, Technical Services, Savills FEBRUARY 2020

more important than building a trusting relationship,” he adds.

Savills’ involvement in the Asian and European data center markets has been expanding rapidly, a trend that will continue based on demand from the cloud technology industry, as well as expanding end user needs. As a result, sustainability is increasingly becoming a priority for tech companies, with users driving the change by demanding greener alternatives. “The good news,” Drescher says, “is that the industry is addressing it. Energy

253

efficiency continues to improve across

the impact on the planet as data center

several key areas. Utility providers are

growth continues.” According to Zilla,

providing more access to renewables,

there is also an economic incentive to go

equipment manufacturers continue to

green. “People feel more of a responsi-

develop more efficient MEP systems

bility to the planet, and tech innovators

for data centers, and most importantly,

and markets are responding to that feel-

service providers and end users are

ing with services that align with client’s

incorporating these advancements

corporate sustainability initiatives.”

into their designs.

“We’ve talked about open-source software,” Drescher continues, “but now there’s open-source infrastructure.

People are contributing for the greater good of the industry, trying to lessen w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Helping accelerate China’s transformation journey

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WRITTEN BY

SEAN GALEA-PACE

FEBRUARY 2020

PRODUCED BY

CAROLINE WHITELEY

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EY

Rodrigo Cambiaghi, EY Asia-Pacific and Greater China Supply Chain and Operations Leader, discusses the EY acceleration in China and how the firm helps reshape supply chain strategies

C

onsidered one of the “Big Four” consultancy companies worldwide, EY is certainly well renowned in the

supply chain and manufacturing space.

Offering guidance on best-practice supply chain strategies, EY has grown significantly over the past decade. Rodrigo Cambiaghi, 256

Asia-Pacific & Greater China Supply Chain and Operations Leader of EY, has been with the company since 2012 in several different roles and has experienced the firm’s growth first-hand. “11 years ago, we weren’t operating a consulting arm so we decided to rebuild it,” he explains. “Since then, it’s been an incredible journey — we grew $11bn in 11 years.”

Born in Brazil before moving to Germany after college, Cambiaghi’s career path has taken him worldwide. “Germany was where my supply chain career started and I worked for large automotive OEMs to define their global manufacturing strategy. After a few years, I moved into consulting,” he says. From there, Cambiaghi’s career took him further into Europe and then onto Canada. “Together FEBRUARY 2020

257

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EY

258

“

Since then, it’s been an incredible journey — we grew $11bn in 11 years — Rodrigo Cambiaghi, EY Asia-Pacific & Greater China Supply Chain and Operations Leader, EY

with some friends, I started a boutique consulting firm that had a client portfolio of fast-growing global corporations.

The reach and complexity of our clients forced us to scale quickly and to branch into different markets, one of those being the United States,” explains Cambiaghi.

“My role was to establish and grow the business in the North American market and we became successful quite quickly. In 2012, we got an offer to sell the business to EY so I initially joined the organisation through acquisition and I’ve been here ever since.”

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘EY SMART FACTORY’

With such a diverse background,

have always been important in China

Cambiaghi now operates in China as

but the complexity of the environment

well as across all regions in Asia-Pacific

has changed. China has become a

and possesses a deep understand-

vast market with high growth and a lot

ing of what it means to be successful

of emerging technology at its disposal.

in different markets. He points to the

It’s clear that speed is the greatest dif-

several differences across main global

ferentiator in China; starting with the

markets and the uniqueness of running

speed to serve consumers and clients all

supply chains in China. “China offers a

the way to how it transforms its partners

vibrant and diverse consumer market

landscape and internal operations with

that requires strong customer-centricity

technology.” Due to the acceleration

and innovative business models that

of new technologies and the existing

now can be enabled by advanced

global economic and political landscape,

technologies,” he says. “Supply chains

an increasing number of companies w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

259

EY

Adv

260

FEBRUARY 2020

vert

261

a si a .busi ne ssc h ief. com

EY

262

are turning to consultancies like EY for

by technology and will continue to do so

advice on how to set up a successful

for the foreseeable future. The end-to-

transformation agenda for the years to

end supply chain is where most of the

come. Cambiaghi affirms technology

companies generate their competitive

has become paramount to success

advantage through new technologies

industry-wide and beyond. “Technology

available today that we didn’t have a few

is reshaping every business in all indus-

years ago.”

tries,” he says. “From how you establish

With customer requirements subject

your sourcing and manufacturing

to frequent change, consultancies

platforms, to driving efficiency from

such as EY must remain prepared to

manufacturing sites through automa-

respond. “What consultancies like us

tion or harnessing data, all the way to

bring is the ability to work with com-

distribution connectivity and real-time

panies to reshape their strategy and

visibility. Everything has been impacted

then successfully transform their

FEBRUARY 2020

263

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Rodrigo Cambiaghi Rodrigo Cambiaghi is EY’s Asia-Pacific & Greater China Supply Chain and Operations Leader. In his role, Cambiaghi advises senior executives on supply chain and manufacturing strategies and acts as EY’s leader in complex transformational projects. Currently based in Shanghai, he has lived and worked in several countries across North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America. At work, he is widely known by his strong client centricity and his passion for talent development. He is married to his wife Anja and has three kids: Annie, Junior and Julie.

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Leading supply chain solutions powered by AI & ML JDA Software provides the leading AI-driven supply chain management (SCM) platform. Our end-to-end solutions span supply chain and retail planning, execution, delivery and workforce management. Our mission is to empower companies to better predict, make and deliver exactly what their customers want – when, where and how they want it. JDA delivers Autonomous Supply ChainTM for 4,000 of the world’s leading companies.

Running JDA, you can plan to deliver.

TALK TO US TO LEARN MORE info.china@jda.com / Greater China infoap@jda.com / Asia Pacific info@jda.com / Worldwide VISIT US www.jda.com

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

READ OUR BLOG blog.jda.com

“

The main difference is speed because China is undergoing a significant transformation at the moment

— Rodrigo Cambiaghi, EY Asia-Pacific & Greater China Supply Chain and Operations Leader, EY

With the importance of retaining the right staff just as crucial as recruiting, EY has around 270,000 employees globally and Cambiaghi believes that talent management is at the heart of EY. “We have a large talent pool and people are at the core of our business. You’re only as successful as the people who work for you and we’re extremely proud that we’re recognised as a top employer in all the markets,” he says. “Our values are aligned to the market and our brand not

operations for today’s business needs,”

only showcases a trusted organisation

says Cambiaghi. “We have been invest-

but also innovation. We’re able to attract

ing heavily on the development of digital

the best talent because of the opportuni-

assets that speed up the transformation

ties we have for our people to grow.” The

process for our clients. Those assets

size of EY’s supply chain talent work-

can leverage advanced technology to

force doubles every eight to nine months

quickly analyse the client’s data and

in countries like China, a statistic that

therefore provide more granular and

Cambiaghi is delighted with. “Today’s

specific feedback in early stage of the

market conditions are perfect because

transformation journey. Companies turn

there’s a lot of room for growth in our

to us to provide that market perspective

business,” affirms Cambiaghi. “Talent is

and see what’s going on in the industry

what we’re looking for and it’s everyone’s

and beyond, but they also want things

job. In China, I’m pleased how quickly

that can be fixed today without waiting

we’ve built such a strong reputation and

for a broader transformation to happen.

brand in the market because it allows us

For this challenge, we have highly expe-

to attract and retain top talent. It’s part of

rienced people with industry knowledge

our DNA.”

working for us. Having the right balance is the secret.”

Having formed key strategic business relationships with Microsoft, Stratasys, w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

265

EY

266

FEBRUARY 2020

1989

Year founded

$36.4bn+ Revenue in USD dollars

270,000

267

Number of employees

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A global leader in applied additive technology solutions Mass customization that redefines customer expectations and experiences. Low-volume production that creates extraordinary efficiencies. Redesigned production parts that transform supply chain dynamics. Prototypes that actualize your vision more rapidly and accurately than ever before. The 3D printing revolution sparked these possibilities. Now they have become a reality.

Stratasys is advancing our customers and their industries through complete 3D printing expertise and solutions.

S T R ATA SYS .C O M

269 JDA and SAP, partnerships are a key

perspective because they’re well aligned

focus area for Cambiaghi. “A company

to meet our culture, values and how we

such as EY, which has the ambition to

drive relationships in the market to deliver

not only serve leading companies but

better value to our clients.”

also transform them too, we understand

“Stratasys is a leading company in 3D

that we can only do this by having an eco-

printing and their solutions and ability to

system of good partners. Our strategy

transform companies through additive

is to find partners that can complement

manufacturing is outstanding. We don’t

our services and way of doing business,”

just advise companies on what exists in

he explains. “We’re a trusted advisor for

the market today, but we also consider

large organisations’ transformations and

what comes next. Stratasys has been an

are taking them on a journey to transform

important part of driving differentiation

and upscale their strategy and business

in areas like product development and

model with technology at the forefront.

manufacturing,” affirms Cambiaghi. “JDA

Our relationship with Microsoft provides

and SAP are also both key components

that level of trust from a technology

of our ecosystem because they allow w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

EY

our clients to leverage leading solu-

connected worldwide and that allowed

tions in the most effective way possible.

us to come up with such an impactful

Partnerships are crucial to us but it

value proposition. It not only brings

needs to be right. There needs to be

leading practices by sectors, but also

that alignment of value and how we see

real solutions that can be a differentiator

the market in order to establish a recipe

on how transformations are strategised

for mutual long-term success.”

and executed. As we bring these solu-

Looking to the future, EY has con-

tions to our global cloud platform it

solidated its global knowledge and

enables every local market to use it

experience into a supply chain rein-

consistently unleashing a vast oppor-

vention framework which Cambiaghi

tunity for benchmarks and insights for

affirms is becoming a global standard

our clients” he explains. “Our Supply

for companies looking to transform

Chain Reinvention framework is also

their supply chain. “We’re extremely

very comprehensive. It covers aspects

FEBRUARY 2020

“

Our strategy is to find partners that can complement our services and way of doing business

— Rodrigo Cambiaghi, EY Asia-Pacific & Greater China Supply Chain and Operations Leader, EY

With a drive to maintaining its position at the fore of the consulting space, Cambiaghi understands the necessity of continuing to thrive in the supply chain space long-term through collaboof value chain intelligence and how

ration with clients. “It’s clear there’s lots

to obtain and leverage data from the

happening in all industries and having

extended value chain; through the

a trusted and experienced partner to

strategic architecture of the entire

rely on when needed is paramount

supply chain in areas like supply chain

for all senior executives today,” adds

segmentation and strategy, integrated

Cambiaghi. “That’s why our strategy is

operating model and supply chain

to continue to be the most trusted and

network and trade flow optimisation.

distinctive professional service organi-

It also goes all the way to the core of

sation in order to support our clients

supply chain operations excellence

to achieve their strategic objectives for

and aspects related to the supply chain

their supply chains in Asia and across

resilience like circular economy, sup-

the globe.”

ply chain risks and sustainability. It’s extremely comprehensive.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

271

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Aiming for zero waste and maximum metal recovery WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY

RICHARD DEANE

FEBRUARY 2020

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H I N D U S TA N Z I N C

How Hindustan Zinc, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources, is aiming to make its flagship Sindesar Khurd and Rampura Agucha operations the most advanced digital mines in the world

H

industan Zinc is India’s only zinc producer and among the world’s top three zinc producers today. A subsidiary of Vedanta

Resources, the company’s flagship operation, Rampura Agucha (Agucha) in Rajasthan, is the 274

world’s largest mine for industrial metal. Allied to this, and strategic to the company’s growth, is the Sindesar Khurd (SK) mine offering a rich source of silver along with zinc and lead. Hindustan Zinc also runs three large smelting operations at Chanderiya, Dariba and Debari in north west India and 10 milling facilities across the country.

“How do we drive efficiency to support future growth across our operations?” asks Barun Gorain, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer at Hindustan Zinc, Vedanta Resources. “The whole point of our digital transformation is to build a foundation to prepare ourselves for the next phase of growth to support key outcomes of enhanced safety, improved productivity and reduced costs with true technology innovation.”

FEBRUARY 2020

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H I N D U S TA N Z I N C

“The whole point of our digital transformation is to build a foundation to prepare ourselves for the next phase of growth to support key outcomes of enhanced safety, improved productivity and reduced costs with true technology innovation” — Barun Gorain, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer, Vedanta Resources

278

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘CORPORATE FILM HINDUSTAN ZINC DIRECTED BY MANEESH JOSHI’ 279 Gorain points out that few mining

business operation models for each

companies work in this way: “We

and every part of a unit operation so

take a very holistic view of this digital

that we can go beyond data analysis

innovation with a portfolio focused on

with a system based approach and

three areas to build that foundation.

official automation.

Critically, the first step is to integrate

“This leads us into the third area.

all of our operating data into one

Digital alone is not going to help us so

platform so it can enable the digital

we must support our subject matter

enterprise with all of the financial,

expertise. Many companies across the

commercial and HR systems.

globe go digital but without strength-

“Secondly, with all the data on a sin-

ening their core know-how, which for

gle platform, we have begun a deeper

us is mining, milling and smelting. The

analytics drive where we’re looking

idea is to leverage digital, which is just

not just at predictive and prescrip-

the enabler to help us in optimising all

tive controls, but also at developing

of our individual operations. Now this w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Cisco enables digitization of India’s largest underground mine, Hindustan Zinc Limited As the digital transformation technology partner of Hindustan Zinc, Cisco deployed a scalable and secure underground mine network to improve the efficiency of the mine’s operations, extend the life of its assets, and control costs while supporting its present and future demands.

In association with Cisco, Hindustan Zinc aims to develop a fully connected, efficient, safe and collaborative mining system.

CLICK TO WATCH: HZL’s mining 4.0 journey powered by Cisco

Welcome to the future of connected mining!

“Digitization is the future and our partnership with Cisco is going to help us move in that direction.”

- Barun Gorain Chief Technology and Innovation Officer, Hindustan Zinc

281

approach is actually quite deep, com-

asset tracking, people tracking, asset

pared to most companies, and this is

management, short interval controls,

where we see the benefits.”

automated scheduling & task manage-

In embracing Mining 4.0 Gorain’s

ment management,” he says. “We are

team is using the OSI-PI system to

doing this at a scale not seen before in

bring all operating data – mining, mill-

any underground mining scenario, it’s

ing, smelting and power plant – into

a game changer.”

one platform which will eventually be

To change the game, Vedanta has

integrated with SAP. “We are looking

recently inaugurated their Hindustan

to digitally integrate 1,500 people, over

Zinc Collaboration Centre based at

200 pieces of equipment and several

the company’s head office in part-

different outsourced business part-

nership with OSIsoft and ABB to

ners at our flagship SK and Agucha

improve efficiency, safety and sustain-

mines. It allows us to do real-time

ability while enhancing value across w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

The cutting edge of underground productivity and safety True digitalization of underground mines with double digit productivity increase, unparalleled efficiency and increased safety in modern mines.

The undisputed leading product portfolio Mobilaris Mining Intelligence™ features: - Real-time Situational Awareness with 3D visualization opens the lid and enables transparency. Everyone, everywhere will know what is going on down below.

- Emergency support. Unique functions that dramatically increase mining safety.

- Ventilation on demand. Let the presence of machines control the ventilation.

- Complete suite for Short Interval Control including shift-planning and work task dispatch.

- Traffic Awareness and Vehicle Navigation solutions minimizing traffic congestions.

- In-shift Production Monitoring features that shows the true real-time status about the shift.

- Totally technology and vendor agnostic.

Our unique agnostic approach allows realtime location, tracking and monitoring of vehicles, personnel and any equipment using a mixture of technologies (e.g. LTE, WiFi, UWB, RFID) from various vendors.

LEARN MORE

True digitalization of underground mining With new innovative technology Mobilaris Mining & Civil Engineering takes digitalization of mining operations to the next level. So far, the result has been double digit productivity increases, higher efficiency and increased safety for the mining industry.

Many mining companies around the world are facing daily challenges that make the mining operations unpredictable, resulting in a waste of valuable time and inefficient use of machines, assets and equipment. During a normal shift, there are many obstacles that can cause differences between planning and reality, for example machine breakdowns and people taking the wrong decisions due to lack of information.

both empower people by increased transparency, increase productivity by less traffic congestions and a safer work environment”, says Hans Wahlquist, VP Business Development and Strategic Product Management at Mobilaris.”

When every second counts

In the case of a stressful situation like a fire or a collapse that requires evacuation of the mine, time is of essence.

Rescue personnel and evacuation leaders need to have the best tools available to ensure that the evacuation is done as quickly as possible and according to defined procedures. With Mobilaris Emergency Support, rescue personnel have access to real-time information on “We help mining companies to become aware where in the mine people are located – knowing who is safe and who is not. Studies show that with these of what is going on in the mine, right tools in hand, the time to evacuate people in danger here and now. Every day, all the time. is dramatically reduced.

This information makes it possible to take control over the operations and the resources. With our digital In partnership with Hindustan Zinc Ltd solutions people can act upon what Hindustan Zinc Ltd has partnered up with Mobilaris is happening in real-time and make Mining & Civil Engineering to digitalize the Rampura the right decision faster. We offer Agucha mine, their flagship of mining operations. tools for new, more efficient, ways of working”, says Mikael “We feel honored that Hindustan Zinc has chosen us Nyström, CEO Mobilaris Mining as a partner for modernizing their mine operation & Civil Engineering. even further. We will provide solutions for smooth and seamless operations that defines new, more efficient, ways of working“, Says Mikael Nyström, Mobilaris Onboard ™ CEO Mobilaris Mining & Civil Engineering.

A disruptive innovation

The latest product from the Swedish company is Mobilaris Onboard, a unique product that runs on a standard tablet mounted in a vehicle.

Just like with a GPS car navigator, Mobilaris Onboard™ makes it easy for anyone underground to navigate to a location or to a moving asset without any specific knowledge about the mine. Without any dedicated infrastructure for positioning needed.

“We are confident that Mobilaris Onboard™ will cause a paradigm shift in the underground mining industry. It makes every miner aware of the whole real-time situation in the mine and enables a set of unique tools that will

The partnership includes solutions for situational awareness designed to visualize and support the mining operations in all its complexity, in real-time.

By implementing superior real-time 3D visualization with information from various systems and sensors, Hindustan Zinc will have the tools for superior control and planning of their mining operations.

Hindustan Zinc Ltd will also be among the first customers worldwide to implement the new disruptive product Mobilaris Onboard™, for navigation underground and a smoother traffic flow.

EXPLORE OUR WORLD

H I N D U S TA N Z I N C

284

Hindustan Zinc’s operations. “The

operations. ABB, as one of the world’s

unique thing here is that we’re con-

top experts in control innovation, is sup-

necting all our operating people with

porting us on this quest.”

OEMs, subject matter expertise and

Looking long-term, the company

our data scientists,” explains Gorain.

vision is moving towards converting all

“OSIsoft and ABB are helping us to con-

of its underground mining operations

nect our operating data across all of our

from batch to continuous with the

mines, mills, smelters and power plants.

support of next generation technolo-

It’s a crucial initiative because, along

gies, including underground hydraulic

with insights, we’ll be able to predict

ored pumping solutions to enable

things in real-time and collaborate in

mining with minimal or no tailings or

a way that allows us to maximise the

waste. “From an extraction or recov-

benefit that digital solutions from SMEs

ery point of view, we’re looking at

can have in helping us to optimise our

completely digitised equipment to aid

FEBRUARY 2020

the recovery of minor, major and pre-

improvement from 81% up to 92%,” he

cious metals,” adds Gorain. “In parallel,

adds. “Silver recovery is forecasted

greater efficiency will come from fine

to rise from 57% to 70% leading to an

tuning via digital means.”

additional 70,000 tons of lead-zinc

Gorain’s team is targeting benefits

metals.” Gorain stresses that enhanc-

on the mining side to improve effi-

ing safety is a key aspect and one

ciency by 15% which translates to

of the major reasons why SK mine is

74,000 tons of extra metal by 2021

considered one of the most digitally

– a huge gain. “Meanwhile, on the

advanced mines in the world. “With

milling side we’re looking at recovery

safety as a top priority, continuous

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Barun Gorain Barun Gorain has more than 25 years of experience in metallurgical plant operations, plant optimisation, capital (growth) projects, technology development, metallurgical consulting and also in technical advisory and board roles. Focused on operational excellence, technology innovation, as well as technology transfer with demonstrated benefits and breakthroughs for projects and operations, before returning to Hindustan Zinc he worked for Barrick Gold and Teck Resources. “I’m a metallurgist by background and combined with my experience with digital innovation I’m in a unique position to be able to understand both worlds so we can take Hindustan Zinc to the next level,” pledges Gorain. “When we look at our business needs for future growth it’s vital to bring these two strands together to make our mining, milling and smelting more efficient to meet our long-term goals and vision.”

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The PI System

The Foundation for Digital Transformation in Mining, Metals and Materials The PI System™ provides a data infrastructure that enables digital transformation. It captures data from sensors, control systems, industrial gateways and other devices and transforms it into rich, real-time insights that local operators, process and maintenance engineers, executives, suppliers and vendors can use to reduce costs, increase asset reliability, improve overall productivity, environment health and safety and create new smart devices.

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Rich visual interfaces and cloud connectivity for better data sharing.

Learn more about what the PI System can do.

Contact miningmetalsmaterials @ osisoft.com or visit www.osisoft.com.

“We are looking to digitally integrate 1,500 people, over 200 pieces of equipment and several different outsourced business partners at each of our flagship mines. It allows us to do real-time asset tracking, people tracking, peak management, internal controls, automated schedule link up management, you name it” — Barun Gorain, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer, Vedanta Resources mining, automation, digitisation, less

have to lay out the cables and the

man-machine interaction, remote

network on a daily basis. As we go

monitoring and real-time visualisation

deeper underground, the challenges

of people will be a tremendous leap

keep evolving, so these partners make

forward which will also lower the cost

sure we have the best of the best with

of production.”

mobile networking and LTE to access

Underground wireless communications are vital to be able to integrate

all of our data in real time.”

Sandvik has been instrumental

new solutions. “It is the foundation,

at the SK mine, where it provides

along with the sensor technology, on

Hindustan Zinc with around 90% of

which everything else is built,” con-

its equipment. “The first phase of this

firms Gorain. “To achieve this, we’ve

digitisation through our collaboration

partnered with Cisco at the SK mine

with Sandvik has now been com-

and with Israeli company Eurotech

pleted focusing on driving efficiency,”

at the Agucha mine. The whole idea

confirms Gorain. Meanwhile, at the

is that networking is something that

Agucha mine, the company is also

doesn’t really finish anytime soon, we

partnering with Mobilaris who are w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

287

H I N D U S TA N Z I N C

A New Mining Paradigm

288

“The existing mining paradigm is not sustainable in the long-term,” argues Barun Gorain, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer at Vedanta. “Much of the material generated from mining is waste. For example, with base metals typically 90% is waste.

This increases our footprint, heightens risk and can trigger environmental hazards within our communities. We need to ask ourselves why we generate waste in the first place. It’s why we’re pushing towards a new mining paradigm through automation, electrification and digital solutions to help us deliver the extraction of metals with minimum waste. Governments, NGOs and communities are asking the same question: ‘Why can’t we develop a better way of mining?’ We’re committed to delivering the innovation to achieve that goal.”

Barun Gorain, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer, Hindustan Zinc, Vedanta Resources

FEBRUARY 2020

Inside Hindustan Zinc “We are leveraging digital solutions to improve our availability, utilization and productivity at the Sindesar Khurd (SK) Mine,” says Sunil Duggal, CEO at Hindustan Zinc Limited. “With OptiMine® we will be able to plan, schedule and monitor overall operations in real time. This will add major value and increase our productivity, eliminating bottlenecks, and allowing us to measure and monitor our key performance indicators in real time, proactively addressing problems before they occur.”

Sunil Duggal, CEO at Hindustan Zinc Limited

“SK Mine has embarked on a major digital transformation journey in partnership with Sandvik and Cisco. We are now considered the most digitally advanced mine in India, but we aspire to be the world’s most advanced digital mine by 2022,” pledges Rajeev Bora, SBU Head SK Mines.

“We have our unique set of complexities but the ongoing digital program will allow us a step change in safety and productivity.”

289

Rajeev Bora, SBU Head SK Mines “Digitalisation is becoming the new way of working at Rampura Agucha,” agrees Sujal Shah, Director Agucha SBU. “Let us all become the agents for change in t ransforming our mines to become Sujal Shah, digitally advanced Director Agucha operations.”

SBU

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H I N D U S TA N Z I N C

Advert

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FEBRUARY 2020

10.5%

Average zinc-lead grade

Zinc

Reserve base of 105.7mn MT

78%

Share in India’s primary zinc industry

291

providing connections for visualisa-

he concedes. “We want to make peo-

tion and equipment tracking. “They’re

ple think more about how we plan for

helping us to leverage digital to com-

the future across such a large work-

municate in a way that keeps all of our

force. Change management is always

teams aligned,” he adds. “We’re reduc-

an issue, so we are educating employ-

ing the time of the track operations,

ees about how digital is not going to

improving the asset optimisation, and

take jobs away but create new ones

it’s helping us better predict our main-

in safer areas of the business with

tenance needs.”

less physical labour requirements in

Continuous alignment is a challenge that Gorain believes must be met to ensure all teams are looking at one

different roles where technology can support them.”

The benefits of new technologies

truth with minimal manual intervention.

are evident with Gorain’s team’s

“There’s always resistance to change,”

recent initiatives on advanced w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

H I N D U S TA N Z I N C

292

“With safety as a top priority, continuous mining, automation, digitisation, less manmachine interaction, remote monitoring and real-time visualisation of people will be a tremendous leap forward which will also lower the cost of production” — Barun Gorain, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer, Vedanta Resources

FEBRUARY 2020

for one shared truth. Second, we deploy the right analytics solutions to enhance the working environment of everybody across the company. Third, we have to integrate the subject matter teams into the digital way of doing things. These three areas combine to help us identify the right technologies for the right purpose so that our guiding principles - in terms of enhancing safety, productivity, and reduced costs - are in alignment with our vision.”

Vedanta and Hindustan Zinc’s vision is to make the SK and Agucha operations one of the most advanced digital mines in the world. “Our goal is to achieve the highest benchmark process controls. “We’ve had great

of recovery and metal extraction in

success at Zawar,” he says. “We

the zinc industry,” says Gorain. “Not

have experienced a 10% increase in

just lead-zinc major metals, but also

crusher throughput, and around a

the minor and precious metals such

3 - 5% increase in recovery, which is

as germanium, cobalt, and silver.” The

really quite remarkable.”

vision for mining in India and a move

Gorain notes that with so many technologies to choose from the problem

towards zero waste looks set to welcome a new mining paradigm.

can be selecting the right one. “To meet this challenge, our three-stage approach has been very useful,” he explains. “First, we must make sure to integrate all the data into one platform w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

293

ADOPTING I TECHN 294

WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON PRODUCED BY

SCOTT GEORGE

FEBRUARY 2020

NNOVATIVE NOLOGY 295

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S TA R H U B

Sebastian Tan, Head of the 5G Centre Of Excellence (COE) Unit, StarHub, discusses digital transformation and innovative technology

W 296

ith the imminent arrival of 5G technology, Sebastian Tan, Head of the 5G Centre Of Excellence

(COE) Unit at StarHub, sees industry trends accelerating towards the convergence of mobility first with cloud technology and artificial intelligence (AI). “With mobile edge computing and campus networks coming into fruition with 5G, these will enable mobile operators to offer an expanded set of integrated end-to-end capabilities beyond the telecommunication and connectivity services. I believe the industry will see the telecommunication sector transforming to play a more critical role in integrating the ICT space in the future,� says Tan, who ultimately believes 5G will provide a near seamless and digitally-enabled mobility experience.

FEBRUARY 2020

297

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S TA R H U B

298

“ WE ARE CONSTANTLY LOOKING INTO NEW AREAS TO GROW AND PREEMPT NEW ENTRANTS” — Sebastian Tan, Head of the 5G Centre Of Excellence (COE) Unit, StarHub FEBRUARY 2020

In order to stay ahead of global business trends, StarHub – a leading telecommunications company based in Singapore and founded in 2000 – embraces the challenger mentality. “We are constantly looking into new areas to grow and preempt new entrants. This is achieved through regular strategy and business reviews to develop and transform our business models as necessary to maintain the challenger position,” comments Tan. “Digital transformation does not simply equate to automation of processes”

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘#HELLOCHANGEPROMISE – STARHUB’

he continues. “We looked at digital

service subscriptions.

first strategy from a 360-degree per-

To date, StarHub has implemented

spective, from people, process and

robotic process automation (RPA) to

tools.” Fundamentally, the first step

help the company to streamline and

to digitally evolve StarHub includes

serve its customers more effectively.

the establishment of a transformation

“The RPA platform has built in AI

office to spearhead strategy execution,

capabilities to analyse the services

together with the appointment of

we provide with recommendations

a digital officer to charter the course

in areas to improve on. We are also

forward. StarHub aims to enhance and

utilising RPA to support our customers,

onboard most of its’ existing services

helping to simplify first call resolution

into its digital platform, allowing

in a timely manner,” Tan adds.

customers to easily access inquiries as well as procure or upgrade their

In addition, StarHub has been transforming its billing system with w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

299

S TA R H U B

“ WHILE WE CONTINUE TO OPERATE AND INVEST IN KEY ASSETS, WE WILL ALSO CONTINUE TO ESTABLISH NEW PARTNERSHIP ECOSYSTEMS TO SUPPORT US ON OUR GROWTH JOURNEY TOWARDS 5G” 300

— Sebastian Tan, Head of the 5G Centre Of Excellence (COE) Unit, StarHub

FEBRUARY 2020

301

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S TA R H U B

302

2000

Year founded

agile framework applications to support new business requirements.

“We have successfully transformed and consolidated many of our net-

$2.4bn+ Revenue in Singapore dollars

3,000 Number of employees

FEBRUARY 2020

works into a new software-defined virtual network function platform, allowing us to provision and manage our services cost-effectively.”

However, with these new innovations comes the challenge of security compliance. “All of our digital initiatives will require security reinforcement, which we are continuing to build upon our telco-grade cyber

303

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Sebastian Tan With over 20 years of management experience in both the end-user and technology provider space, Sebastian has successfully managed different stages of the IT life-cycle, from providing thought leadership in visioning to driving transformational IT initiatives. Sebastian believes in building “esprit de corp� within the team and leads by example. An all round achiever, Sebastian has received multiple awards in and outside his professional career and represented Singapore in competitive cycling in the 1990s. One of his many wins was first in the Overseas Bank Corporation Cycle Singapore 2010 edition.

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305

analytics framework, in partnership

we have also established a partner-

with our independent cyber security

ship to build a new multi-million dollar

unit called Ensign.” This security

hyperscale green data centre campus

transformation is not the first of its kind

and are starting industry trials for

which StarHub has invested in.

pioneering 5G,” explains Tan. Within

“In Singapore, we have undertaken

its digital strategy, StarHub has been

many initiatives to support our policy

incorporating these initiatives. “We

makers in developing our country to

are participating and supporting the

be a smart nation. In our recent initiatives,

policy makers in the industry on six w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

FEBRUARY 2020

307 strategic focus areas, mainly around urban mobility, smart estates, maritime operations, smart airports and consumer and government application development. Our continuous rationalisation of our infrastructure has given us the ability to support such initiatives in a more efficient manner, keeping pace with the market demands. “Being in the service industry, where customer experience comes first, w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

S TA R H U B

“ IN SINGAPORE, WE HAVE UNDERTAKEN MANY INITIATIVES TO SUPPORT OUR POLICY MAKERS IN DEVELOPING OUR COUNTRY TO BE A SMART NATION” — Sebastian Tan, Head of the 5G Centre Of Excellence (COE) Unit, StarHub

Security-Driven Networking for a Hyperconnected World Fortinet provides top-rated network and content security, as well as secure access products that share intelligence and work together to form a cooperative fabric. Our unique Security Fabric combines Security Processors, an intuitive operating system, and applied threat intelligence to give you proven security, exceptional performance, better visibility and control.

LEARN MORE

FORTIGATE

309 StarHub has always adopted a partner-

being the challenger, StarHub will con-

centric approach so as to enable us to

tinue to transform to stay lean and agile

deliver our commitments jointly,” says

so as to be quick to respond. “While

Tan. ”While we continue to operate

we may be locally established, we are

and invest in key assets, we will also

constantly staying engaged globally.

continue to establish new partner-

This approach has allowed us to ser-

ship ecosystems to support us on our

vice our customers in the best possible

growth journey towards 5G.”

way, which we will continue to embrace

Reflecting on StarHub’s journey,

to ensure a win-win business outcome

Tan believes that “over the years

for both our customers and our share-

StarHub has transformed from a local

holders,” concludes Tan.

pay TV company into a quo-play service provider which has established both consumer and enterprise businesses.” With its strategy fixed at w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

310

Cargo Services Group: digitally transforming logistics operations FEBRUARY 2020

311

WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON PRODUCED BY

KRISTOFER PALMER

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CARGO SERVICES GROUP

Glen Seto, Chief Process & IT Officer at Cargo Services Group, discusses the company’s digital transformation alongside its plans for the future

312

G

len Seto, Chief Process & IT Officer has only been with Cargo Services Group (CSG) for seven months (CSG includes

major companies such as: Cargo Services Far East, CN Logistics Ltd, and more). He states: “e-commerce has grown so much in the past few years, which has caused considerable disruption to our customers in the manufacturing and retail industries. Currently we are in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) business era, in which many corporations have created complex and competitive markets. Through digital transformation and optimisation, logistics operations can be developed to be more efficient and innovative. It was this mindset that piqued my interest to be involved back in the industry.”

Prior to being Chief Process & IT Officer at Cargo Services Group, Seto held various positions within FedEx, UHN, Katalogic, SML, Adidas FEBRUARY 2020

17

Offices in China

600,000 Containers handled per year

40+

Countries of operations

9,000 Number of employees

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CARGO SERVICES GROUP

“Big Data is definitely the foundation for the future of software automation” — Glen Seto, Chief Process & IT Officer, Cargo Services Group 314

and Kiabi. As part of his current role he has four core priorities that the company focuses on both internally and externally in order to maintain its competitive edge within the industry: transformation, commercialisation, visualisation and innovation.

“For us, transformation is looking at opportunities within the company to improve and transform our systems and processes,” he explains.

“Recently, we have been looking to optimise our ways of managing freight information.” Alongside the company’s internal transformation, Seto highlights that it also looks to commercialise new software and technology to improve the services it provides to its logistics customers. “Commercialisation is part of our drive to share with our customers the benefits of what we have learnt; visualisation and innovation is our continuous process,” he notes.

“Technology changes very quickly so we are constantly looking at new entrants and technologies that can be applied to the business.”

Seto believes that connectivity is a core trend for the logistics industry.

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘DEMONSTRATING THE DRIVERLESS TOYOTA FORKLIFT’ 315 “In logistics, we are behind in terms of

traditional methods. “For our opera-

connectivity technology. However, it

tions and processes we came up with

is much easier now with fast-devel-

a circular feedback loop, where we

oping innovations with API software

are constantly defining, measuring,

architectures,” he says. In addition

proof of concepting, operating and

to connectivity, he highlights that

then redefining,” says Seto. “We are

ever increasing detail in end-to-end

very pragmatic about our innovation.

visibility is an emerging trend, along

It’s about finding value and assessing

with automation, saying that “there is

which implementations make good

more and more happening in terms of

business sense, as opposed to just

robotics, such as driverless forklifts

innovating for the sake of it.” In order

and robotic arms.”

to achieve its transformation strat-

When it comes to CSG’s digital

egy, the company works closely with

transformation, the company is driv-

its ecosystem of partners including

ing innovation into the heart of its

Chinese Telco, Microsoft and CS-PAC. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Becoming Digital The purpose of digital transformation is very simply a process to help your organization find new ways of generating value.

Successful organizations make the most of their transformation journey by focusing on empowering people to achieve more with the right technology.

Learn more

Enabling unified customer experiences, agile operations, and accelerating innovation and growth For the last two years Microsoft has been a proud partner and advisor to Cargo Services Far East, one of its key corporate customers in Hong Kong. During this partnership, Microsoft has been empowering the company on cost optimisation, operational efficiency and productivity.

"Our partnership with Microsoft started with implementing productivity suite Office 365 and business applications Dynamics 365 for our call center," comments Glen Seto, Chief Technology Officer of Cargo Services Far East. "When we began the transformation journey, we looked at how we could enable the mobility of end users to increase productivity with a unified platform, while maintaining the security."

To optimise call center processes and reduce overheads within the business, Microsoft has implemented Dynamics 365 solution for Cargo Services Far East. "The solution gives Cargo Services Far East the ability to provide its customers with a unified experience and timely responses, as well as reducing the need for manual work to be completed," adds Lee. In addition, Microsoft has been working with Cargo Services Far East to drive cost optimisation through providing intelligent cloud and data centre modernization services on Azure. "Currently we have started to move the company's call centers and data centers to cloud, says Lee, "afterwards, we will modernise the company's reporting architecture within its data warehouses which will allow the company to receive real time data analytics."

Ensuring a good partnership comes down to one crucial thing: "knowing the customer's environment and understanding the company's challenges," says Lee. As a trusted advisor of Cargo Services Far East, Microsoft provides modern workplace and cloud databases solutions to solve the company's business challenges. "At Microsoft we have multiple cloud solutions, three of which Cargo Services Far East is currently leveraging - modern workplace, business applications and intelligent cloud - to achieve their digital transformation journey."

"This is not the end of our partnership with Cargo Services Far East," says Lee. "We are continuously working with the company on this particular journey. These are just some of the company's developments that we are working on. We believe this partnership will keep on growing and benefiting both parties in the future."

Learn more

CARGO SERVICES GROUP

318

More than five million pieces per month processed in eCWMS

INCREASINGLY SMART WAREHOUSES

platform offering that will be sold as

When it comes to its warehousing

just software. The commercialisation

operations, CSG is moving its infra-

of this software allows us to focus on

structure over to the cloud. Seto

going beyond our current logistics

elaborates: “this is something I am

customers’ needs to create a product

carefully focusing on. eCWMS is

for anyone that has a warehouse.”

predominantly a system we use to

The new version of eCWMS will be

manage our warehouse operations

a cloud-based platform designed to

for our customers. It helps us to add

be simple and easy to use, stand-

efficiency to our operations whilst

ardised but rich with features for

sharing information with our custom-

fast-deployment; it will also be

ers for collaboration and visibility.

modular. Seto also shares that the

However, I’m sharing our expertise

company is working on some new

and knowledge, fused into a software

modules such as an algorithmic pick

FEBRUARY 2020

routing tool, warehouse layout design

the different parties that operate in

simulation tools and automated data

today’s complex supply chains. As

entry functions. In addition, it is look-

a result, his strategy for eCWMS is

ing at IOT components and people

to ensure the platform is modular,

movement flow tracking - this is cur-

easy to configure and simple to inte-

rently in the R&D phase.

grate. Because of this, he’s already

Above all, Seto understands that the richness of the features are useless if the platform isn’t easily integratable and connected to all of

launched this new version this year, which has seen rapid adoption.

In addition to the new offerings on the warehouse side, eCoreOS® is

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Glen Seto Glen Seto is the current Chief Process & IT Officer (CPO) at Cargo Services Group. In his current portfolio he manages, Process Improvement Division, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Division, Internal Audit & CSR Department, Global IT operations, security, and software development. Seto has a broad range of industry experience when it comes to process and IT leadership, holding several positions within FedEx, UHN (healthcare), Katalogic (management & IT consulting), SML (apparel manufacturing), Adidas and Kiabi, to develop new business operations, e-commerce platforms, web and cloud systems, software robots, AI automation and business innovations.

Seto’s qualifications include a degree from the University of Toronto (Canada) and an executive MBA from the Ivey Business School at the University of Western Canada.

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319

Accelerate logistics enterprise’s digital transformation journey with full-fledged managed ICT solutions Amidst today’s digital globalization, embracing new technologies is inevitable to stay competitive.

Emerging technologies such as cloud computing, the Internet of Things (IoT), and e-commerce are rapidly changing global trading and logistics models, opening up a new era of global supply chains.

Logistics can be said to be one of the first industries to consider digital transformation, because logistics involves supply chains, the amount of data is very large, and most of them need to operate across regions, and apply a large number of IoT and monitoring technologies, so there is an absolute need for digital transformation. However, logistics enterprises may encounter many potential challenges along their digital transformation journey that a right ICT service partner is crucial to the success.

CITIC Telecom CPC, as a global local ICT service enabler, has accumulated ample industry and service management experience that helps many logistics enterprises to transform by offering a holistic managed solution based on their business models and needs.

Going global: the rise of digital globalization The strength of CITIC Telecom CPC‘s offerings is underpinned by three key areas of excellence: The company’s comprehensive portfolio of innovative ICT solutions, its extensive self-owned and selfoperated global infrastructure of network linkages and world-class ICT facilities, and the company’s staff who possess deep expertise in crucial areas of both technology and business, particularly native business culture and localized language presence across the world, plus strong vertical industry sector expertise.

To propel the development of smart logistics nowadays, logistics and transportation companies must be closely connected with partners and stakeholders in different regions. Hence a reliable and flexible network infrastructure is the foundation of successful digital transformation. Leveraging the latest SD-WAN technology and its global network coverage with over 140 PoPs in 130 countries, CITIC Telecom CPC has recently helped a global logistics and transportation customer with 70 offices worldwide to design a managed TrueCONNECT™ Hybrid SD-WAN solution to

connect their global branch offices, users and applications with high efficiency and optimized performance. Despite of the network complexity, the customer is now able to gain better visibility of their over network with simplified network management and better level of security so as to align with their corporate’s global expansion and digitalization strategy.

Stay local: ample customer and service management experience In addition to incorporating the best technologies into its solutions, CITIC Telecom CPC is able to leverage its world-connected industry experience and knowledge, as well as managed services to maximize customer benefits.

With the open up of the enterprise network to cloud and IoT devices, rising severity of cybersecurity threats as well as vast amount of data being processed and analyzed over the network across regions, logistics enterprises may not have sufficient IT staff with all-round technology knowhow to ensure the data and network security at all times. CITIC Telecom CPC’s team of certified professionals across 26 offices worldwide, with mindful of native cultures and local business conditions, is able to provide 24x7 monitoring service and ensure enterprise’s data is always be complied with local data regulations, including EU GDPR and China MLPS 2.0 etc for maximum data protection.

As CITIC Telecom CPC has been very accurate at envisioning the continued digital transformation of logistics enterprises, and serving their “Go Global” need, the company can continue to truly embrace its motto that “Innovation Never Stops”, competently anticipating and addressing emerging market demands with creative solutions that deliver products and services enterprises need.

LEARN MORE

CARGO SERVICES GROUP

another foundational software that

and has the ability to integrate with

CSG uses to capture e-commerce

couriers of your choice and being

order management operations for

able to create invoices for any of the

its customers. eCoreOS® currently

parties in the supply chain. “VUCA

has interfaces built with e-commerce

is pushing us in many different ways,

shopping platforms such as ebay,

but I’m doing the same to CSG, to be

shopify, Taobao, TMALL and so on,

faster, smarter, and more efficient in

and is able to take these shopping

areas that we’ve never considered

carts and create orders to eCWMS

before,” Seto enthuses.

(or any other warehouse system)

322

for the pick, pack, and delivery

VISIBILITY AND SIMPLICITY

operations. It is currently being

Seto believes that “cargo and product

used by more than 50 retail custom-

tracking is the most valuable piece

ers in Hong Kong, China, Australia,

of information we can provide to

Singapore, Bangladesh and the UK,

customers, and even ourselves. It can

Over 100,000+ e-commerce orders processed in 1 day in eCoreOS® FEBRUARY 2020

“ In order to have true digital twins we need to drive further connectivity between the physical and digital worlds” — Glen Seto, Chief Process & IT Officer, Cargo Services Group

all data upstream and downstream, including all the freight movement after the product has been produced.

The new release of CargoTrack is built on the newest technologies, and it has API capabilities for all other systems to connect and flow data into it seamlessly. The centralising of data in this way creates simplicity for the company’s customers.

AUTONOMOUS ROBOTS When speaking with Seto, he highlights how CSG is joining with others in the industry to develop autonomous robots for its warehouses. provide better and informed decision

“We have been testing out these

making, and the improved visibility of

types of robotics in the warehouse

real time tracking allows us to make

and are seeing, in certain scenar-

decisions at exactly the right time.”

ios, increased efficiency. However,

CSG’s technologies have allowed

we are still currently in the proof

it to integrate and gather upstream

of concept stage,” he states. As in

visibility during product development

other areas, CSG always looks to

stages through the PO visibility sys-

increase the breadth of capabilities

tems that its customers employ (such

and services that it can provide to

as LIMA, InforNexus, etc.) - this has

e-commerce B2C customers, par-

always provided adequate informa-

ticularly in scenarios where this type

tion. However, to advance further, the

of automation and quick turn-around

company has its CargoTrack platform,

time is what the “want it now” con-

which allows for the centralising of

sumers demand. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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CARGO SERVICES GROUP

324

FEBRUARY 2020

ARTIFICIAL SOFTWARE INTELLIGENCE In addition to the aforementioned technology advancements for CSG, AI and software robot automation (RPA) are also part of its innovation portfolio.

When it comes to AI, Seto sees great potential, particularly for applications such as forecasting costs and market stability within logistics. “At the moment, I would say the AI we are using is on an operational level. For example, we have RPA systems that use AI and machine learning to process, data enter, and validate invoices and the key is that it continues to learn each time they carry out a task, increasing accuracy every time.”

Seto acknowledges that with innovation comes challenges, and in particular, he views education as a significant factor. “Explaining the opportunities and abilities of innovative technology, creating a cultural shift from ‘that technology has nothing to do with me’ to ‘how could I use that technology to help with what I am doing?’ has been a big challenge.”

Since joining the company, he has worked to kickstart an innovation lab concept. “I think one of the biggest w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

325

CARGO SERVICES GROUP

problems that organisations are facing is not only new technology, but the skill set and mindset of their people. The innovation labs are designed for brainstorming innovations that can enhance our operations.”

Looking to the future of logistics, Seto wants to see digital twins and Big Data being implemented within the company. “We haven’t got there yet, but we are certainly laying down the foundations,” he says. “We have been upgrading our warehouse man326

agement systems and implementing different types of IoT systems, such as sensors for monitoring warehouse operations. Ultimately we want to be smarter, but in order to have true

“We are very pragmatic about our innovation. It’s about finding value and assessing which implementations make good business sense as opposed to innovating for the sake of it” — Glen Seto, Chief Process & IT Officer, Cargo Services Group FEBRUARY 2020

327

digital twins we need to drive further

Reflecting on digital transformation

connectivity between the physical and

as a whole, Seto’s favourite aspect of

digital worlds.” Seto also adds that

the process is “trialing new technol-

“Big Data is definitely the foundation

ogy to drive business value, as well as

for the future of software automation.“

increasing energy and engagement

Currently, we are laying the founda-

from the company’s workforce.”

tions for a lot of this kind of work, and most are in the proof of concept phase.

I am driven that within a year a lot of these technologies will be up and running, providing value to the business.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

328

FEBRUARY 2020

329

Building South Asia’s leading ecommerce platform WRITTEN BY

MARCUS LAWRENCE PRODUCED BY

SCOTT GEORGE w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

DARAZ

As South Asian ecommerce leader Daraz continues to consolidate its position, Founder and CEO Bjarke Mikkelsen discusses the strategies and ethos driving its success

W

hen it comes to opportunities in the ecommerce space, South Asia represents some of the world’s most fertile ground.

With the barrier to entry for technology’s capabilities dropping lower all the time, emerging markets such as Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal 330

and Myanmar - the territories where fast-growing retailer Daraz lays its cap - offer huge potential for enterprising tech leaders seeking to break new frontiers. Nevertheless, many are unaware of the untapped potential of the 500mn+ population in those markets and their desire to become part of a global economy through technology.

In 2015, Bjarke Mikkelsen, CEO at Daraz, made the bold leap from investment banking to the ecommerce space, targeting the as yet underserved South Asian region with great success. “I decided to do something different,” Mikkelsen explains.

“I wanted to be in the right industry, at the right time, in the right markets for the first time, to take the advantage and do something cutting edge.” He is frequently asked how he managed to make a success of the shift between such different industries, FEBRUARY 2020

331

“ Today, we have been given the title of DEX Hero.

I have a very big job of making sure people receive their packages,” says Sajid Ali of Daraz’s logistics arm, DEX. “ The most important thing for Daraz is the customer and we are the ones dealing with the customers.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

DARAZ

“ We want to capture as big a market as possible, but we want to make sure that we scale in a healthy way. This means a strong focus on organic growth and making sure that the users that come on the platform remain engaged.

If users stop coming back then we need to improve 332 our service, find ways of being more relevant, or simply being more fun to enrich people in their daily lives” — Bjarke Mikkelsen, Founder and CEO, Daraz

but Mikkelsen asserts that the skills he has brought from his previous career have served him well in ecommerce.

“It’s actually not that different because, in banking, my job was to make big things happen for people who were very ambitious and had the funds to follow through.

In this case it’s more operational, but the principle is not that different.”

For Mikkelsen, a more significant difference is the territory itself.

Shifting from his career in London’s corporate sphere to the developing markets of South Asia presented the need for a shift in perspective.

Keen to foster an understanding of how best to operate an ecommerce firm in such environments, he spent time in the rural areas of Pakistan and Bangladesh. “Apart from the business opportunity and incredible talent in our markets, most people fail to appreciate the natural beauty of these countries. It’s like nothing I have ever seen before,” he says, adding that the experience made it clear that Daraz would require a highly tailored approach to best penetrate these markets; a local business for local people.

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘DARAZ SELLER STORIES – ZAID’ 333 Having constructed a team with

re-platformed its systems to align

the market and sector knowledge to

with Alibaba’s global framework and

augment his acumen, the risk has cer-

resultantly unlocked reams of poten-

tainly been rewarded. Considerable

tial in the process. “It took about a

growth across its South Asian opera-

year to finish, and it was not without

tions resulted in an acquisition from

pain or impacts to the business,

Asia’s pre-eminent ecommerce leader,

but in the end the product we have

Alibaba Group, in 2018, and the firm’s

today is ten times stronger and more

capabilities have since expanded expo-

advanced than anything we could

nentially. With the acquisition, Daraz has

have built ourselves in the next five

become an important piece of Alibaba’s

years,” Mikkelsen enthuses. “The new

global strategy to target 2bn consum-

technology infrastructure has been

ers in its ecosystem by 2036.

a huge win for the business. Alibaba

During the transition of its IT systems from Portugal to Pakistan, Daraz

has always taken our requests seriously and given us the flexibility to w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

DARAZ

334

“ I wanted to be in the right industry, Focusing on the wants and needs of local customers has formed the backat the right time, in bone of Daraz’s operations and growth. the right markets The expectations of consumers in these emerging markets go deeper for the first time, to than simple functionality, Mikkelsen take the advantage says, referring to the results of a recent study that Daraz conducted with market and do something research leader Nielsen. “There were a cutting edge” localise how we implement the prod-

uct in our markets.”

couple of things that surprised me,” he

says. “The most important thing from a user interface (UI) perspective is that FEBRUARY 2020

— Bjarke Mikkelsen, Founder and CEO, Daraz

it’s a fun experience.” The assump-

platform has also been a major element of

tion that convenience is king is more

the ecommerce platform’s development.

applicable to more developed markets

“We apply a lot of focus to user-generated

where entertainment is ubiquitous to

content, reviews and ratings, then using

the point of being all-consuming - in

data and algorithms to ensure the sellers

South Asia, those facilities for diver-

of good products get more exposure

sion are not so common.

than sellers with lower quality offerings.”

Quality was also earmarked by the

These factors have been embedded in the

study as being of particular importance,

design of Daraz’s platform and accompa-

especially in terms of offering comparison

nying mobile app, while the infrastructure

tools between non-branded products.

surrounding its service continues to be

Differentiating user journeys through seg-

developed in line with the third leading

mentation of entry points and UX on the

consumer expectation: rapid delivery.

335

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Bjarke Mikkelsen Bjarke Mikkelsen is the Founder and CEO of Daraz and has built the company from a small startup in Pakistan to an important part of Alibaba’s global ecosystem. He started his career in A.P. Moller - Maersk and then worked his way to Vice President at Goldman Sachs in London before making the jump to become an ecommerce entrepreneur. His career is characterised by adaptability and transformation management. Applying structure in a chaotic environment and building a company culture where the best talent and ideas can f lourish has been the key to Daraz’ success. His motivation is to create equal opportunity for the 500 million people living in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Nepal.

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Serving the fast, reliable and secure international service since 1997 Learn more

PENTA Supply Chain Solutions PVT Limited

www.pentascs.com info@pentascs.com

The journey of penta is one of expansion and innovation In just over twenty years the company has become a trusted name in the courier and cross border e-commerce market. The first Company to start Cross Border E-Commerce in Pakistan. Our growth has been gradual yet organic; from 5 employees and 4 courier flights at the start in 1997, to 50+ employees and 24 flights a week in 2020. Our hard work and determination has allowed us to foster lasting partnerships and customer relationships within Pakistan and abroad. The PENTA network is constantly growing, and cross border e-commerce is our newest venture. Our latest facility is our fulfilment centre in Karachi, Islamabad & Shenzhen that has already handled enormous volumes for various marketplaces and brands. It is a source of great pride that a local company has become global in its outreach and our e-commerce network spanning Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Myanmar and Bangladesh is just the beginning.

DARAZ

“ We apply a lot of focus to user-generated content, reviews and ratings, then using data and algorithms to ensure the sellers of good products get more exposure than sellers with lower quality offerings” — Bjarke Mikkelsen, Founder and CEO, Daraz

Compared with the proximity of Mikkelsen’s native Denmark to its European neighbours, there is considerably more complexity and cost associated with international logistics in South Asia. “Because a large proportion of the population in our markets have a very low income, customers will not spend a lot of money on products in one go,” says Mikkelsen, noting that it therefore does not make sense to import low-cost items when the price of shipping will vastly outweigh the value of the product. As part of its Daraz

338

University programme, which offers best practice advice and education for the platform’s sellers, the firm is looking to establish “hyper-localised ecosystems” through offering products to customers based not only on price and quality, but also on proximity.

This strategy is consolidated by Daraz’s hands-on approach to logistics, borne of the desire to expand its seller base as optimally as possible, regardless of the scope of individual merchants’ operations. Having established its own logistics company, Daraz Express (DEX), which, as a digitised and fully integrated firm, represents FEBRUARY 2020

339

a first for the region, Daraz “wants

process parts, along with the value

hundreds of thousands of sellers on the

proposition to sellers,” he says.

platform; small and large distributors,

If an order is made for a product that

individual retailers and manufacturers.

isn’t distributed by Daraz’s own fulfil-

Some of them have the capacity to

ment centres, the merchant receives a

operate their logistics independently,

sale notification via the seller app. From

with their own ecommerce setup and

there, they can prepare the package,

their own people to prepare the pack-

print an airway bill, and send the pack-

ages along with shipping and delivery.

age via one of two options. In some

Some of them don’t have that capacity

areas, Daraz provides a local pickup

and would rather that Daraz man-

service while, failing that, the seller can

age the logistical processes. That’s

alternatively drop the package at one of

something we have spent a lot of time

the firm’s distribution hubs to be fulfilled

building in terms of the system and

by Daraz’s logistics network. “As long as w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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we control the package on our systems,

online marketing, are one of the ways

it’s not a problem. The challenge is that,

to build trust in our brand.” The gravitas

once we hand over the package to a

that comes through such partnerships

third party, such as a delivery partner,

clarifies that the company “is not just

what happens? Is that third party inte-

kids in a garage posting online adverts

grated with our systems? What is their

and sending out products”, he says.

service level? Are they living up to our

“If you have a good, loyal customer

standards of good customer service?

base, then you have a strong foundation

That’s the main challenge.”

to grow from. If we cannot retain the

Daraz is demonstrably unafraid

customers we acquired, it doesn’t matter

to take responsibility for the quality

if we have 200mn potential customers

of the service its customers receive,

in Pakistan or 160mn in Bangladesh

with Mikkelsen pledging that, should

because we can’t just acquire custom-

any complications arise, the firm will

ers without retaining them. In the end,

do its utmost to take care of the customer. This, however, is not the only manner in which Daraz is working to develop its brand as a trustworthy platform for consumers who are cautious of technology and the intentions of companies that provide it. “Trust is a gigantic challenge,” acknowledges Mikkelsen, noting that partnering with trusted brands has been a major factor in its strategy. “We did an integration with a Friday night game show in Pakistan which can attract around 10mn live viewers. That’s almost twice the population of Denmark. Paid partnerships like these, as opposed to w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

341

DARAZ

342

Playing football with the local kids in Hunza Valley, Northern Pakistan

“ Apart from the business opportunity and incredible talent in our markets, most people fail to appreciate the natural beauty of these countries. Its like nothing I have ever seen before” — Bjarke Mikkelsen, Founder and CEO, Daraz FEBRUARY 2020

we have to deliver a service level and an experience that makes our customers happy. We want to capture as big a market as possible, but we want to make sure that we scale in a healthy way. This means a strong focus on organic growth and making sure that the users that come on the platform remain engaged. If users stop coming back then we need to improve our service, find ways of being more relevant, or simply being more fun to enrich people in their daily lives.”

Considering Daraz’s considerable growth and continuingly ascendant market penetration across South Asia, the strategy is certainly yielding success. Looking forward, Mikkelsen is enthusiastic about the potential for yet further expansions of Daraz’s capabilities and offering. “In the past, we’ve focused on building the categories we offer and developing a good standard of service across our operations, and that’s taken a lot of time and effort,” he says. “Now that we have a very strong base, we want to make sure that there’s something for everyone on Daraz.”

This expansion includes, but will not be limited to, a fashion channel, dubbed D-Fashion, with tailorable experiences w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

343

DARAZ

“ The new technology infrastructure has been a huge win for the business. Alibaba has always taken our requests seriously and given us the flexibility to localise how we implement the product in our markets.”

344

— Bjarke Mikkelsen, Founder and CEO, Daraz

for individual customers, along with D-Mart, a dedicated grocery function.

“D-Mart will offer different, unique value propositions, such as overnight deliveries of fresh products sourced directly from farmers. For people who want fresh groceries with guaranteed high quality, we can do that. If you want a monthly subscription service for your groceries, we can do that too,” says Mikkelsen.

D-Motor, another addition on the horizon, will cater to motorists and enthusiasts in a manner akin to D-Fashion.

For those of us in more developed parts of the world, ecommerce and its ever-increasing convenience has

Online-offline partnerships are important to build trust with customers in rural areas. If a product is not in physical stock, then the shop owner helps the customer place an order that can be picked up at the store the next day FEBRUARY 2020

2012

Year founded

3,000 Employees

become commonplace, even unremarkable. It is therefore important to remember the gravity of what Daraz is developing in South Asia, and what a marked paradigm shift it is offering consumers in the midst of maturing economies. With the scope and depth of Daraz’s operations only set to grow, it’s certainly an exciting time both for the firm and for the hard-won customers it holds dear.

One of 5,000+ co-branded Daraz Stores in rural Bangladesh w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

345

346

FEBRUARY 2020

Vodafone Procurement Company: transforming the approach WRITTEN BY

SEAN GALEA-PACE PRODUCED BY

CHARLOTTE CLARKE

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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V O D A F O N E P R O C U R E M E N T C O M PA N Y

Ninian Wilson, Global Supply Chain Director and CEO of Vodafone Procurement Company, discusses his organisation’s transformation journey and procurement strategies in the supply chain space

T

ransformation. It’s the major trend of the supply chain industry. And with good reason — it is essential to achieving sus-

tained long-term success. Ninian Wilson, Global Supply Chain Director and CEO of Vodafone Procurement Company, has been with the organi348

sation since 2009. He initially joined in an IT role before transitioning into his current role in 2016.

As one of the first objectives upon his arrival, Wilson helped establish a transformation strategy for the organisation. The strategy, called ‘Our House’, was created with a clear mission statement: to be the best digital supply chain management (SCM) team in a connected world, powered by people and partnering to create value through innovation and ecosystem management. There are four main rooms of the house: the kitchen, games room, garage and dining room. “The kitchen is owned by the Chief Operating Officer. The best things happen in the kitchen, so naturally that’s where we run operations from,” explains Wilson. “In the garage, we have our innovation centre where we incubate small companies that can create value, whether FEBRUARY 2020

349

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

V O D A F O N E P R O C U R E M E N T C O M PA N Y

“ Our House’ is built on solid foundation blocks around health and safety, purpose and inspiring our people” — Ninian Wilson, Global Supply Chain Director and CEO, Vodafone Procurement Company

that’s increased revenue, profit or taking costs out of Vodafone. The games room allows us to trial new things. For example, we try new technology to use internally in supply chain management.

If it works, we scale it. If it doesn’t, then

350

we simply turn it off. Finally, we have the dining room, which represents our supply chain management sales. We work with external clients; not just for Vodafone. We invite those external clients into the dining room to see what we’ve developed and to support them in their procurement activities.”

With that clear plan in place, Wilson believes the reason the house strategy has been successful is because it allows the different categories to be split up and looked after individually, while also enabling staff to take responsibility for their respective areas. “‘Our House’ is built on solid foundation FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ARCH SUMMIT 2019_NINIAN WILSON – CEO, VODAFONE PROCUREMENT COMPANY’ 351 blocks around health and safety, pur-

With technology beginning to take a

pose and inspiring our people,” he

firm hold in the supply chain industry,

explains. “When I first joined, our staff

Vodafone Procurement Company has

decided to renovate the house, took

become more data-focused, building

ownership and transformed it by chang-

inconsiderable digital visibility into

ing some of the themes. It’s great when

supply chain operations. “We’ve built

people feel that the whole SCM organi-

a procurement control centre here in

sation is their house and they own it.”

Luxembourg that gives us a view of

Vodafone Procurement Company

every single purchase order from the

oversees its procurement opera-

operating companies in near real-time.

tions in Luxembourg via a centralised

We can then map all of our perfor-

procurement model. The organisa-

mance metrics into that near real-time

tion manages 83% of Vodafone’s

platform,” says Wilson. “We’ve added a

overall spend and supports all 24

tremendous amount of digital visibility

of Vodafone’s operating companies.

into our supply chain operations, AND w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

VMware helps power Vodafone’s network cloud of the future.

telco.vmware.com VMware is part of Dell Technologies. © 2019 VMware, Inc. VMware and Realise What’s Possible are trademarks of VMware, Inc.

Vodafone: Building a Network Cloud of the Future Worldwide, communications service providers (CSPs) are adopting software-defined virtualised platforms and services as they evolve their mobile networks for the upcoming introduction of 5G. That’s because Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV) streamlines the design and deployment of networking services and automates their operation—all while enabling scale and cost-efficiency.

Vodafone Group—with mobile operations in 25 countries and fixed broadband operations in 19 markets—is working with VMware to support its global rollout of virtual network functions.

Vodafone is using NFV and software-defined networking technologies across apps and networks to accelerate its delivery of cloud-based network functions.

“Virtualised, cloud-native network functions are a critical element of our Group-wide program as we continue to transform how we build, operate and evolve our networks and services,” says Matt Beal, director of technology strategy and architecture at Vodafone Group. “Reducing the time and cost to deploy and operate services, using automation and convergence in standardised cloud environments for both our network and IT businesses, is a critical part of our technology and operational transformation strategies.”

VMware helps CSPs like Vodafone create new revenue streams, open new industry opportunities, drive down costs and improve overall customer satisfaction by enabling them to become nimbler and more responsive. VMware provides an optimal infrastructure for all telco applications and services: customer-built, packaged, virtualised, cloud-native and software as a service (SaaS). With this infrastructure, CSPs can deliver those applications securely to any endpoint across a telco distributed cloud, including private and public cloud, branch/edge, micro data centre, gateway or end user.

Companies like Vodafone can roll out multiple applications on a common NFV infrastructure, rather than building new platforms for each innovative service. The VMware-based virtualised infrastructure also provides a common architecture spanning network and IT operations, further improving operational efficiencies and overall economics. With VMware, CSPs have the flexibility to choose from several certified VMware Ready™ for NFV virtual network functions, providing confidence in pretested and pre-certified solutions that can reduce deployment risk.

“Vodafone’s selection of VMware to support network transformation highlights how we are a proven, strategic software innovator that can help CSPs successfully deliver new services faster while driving down costs,” says Shekar Ayyar, executive vice president and general manager, Telco Group at VMware. “Our VMware vCloud® NFV™ platform is an agile and flexible virtualised infrastructure platform. Combined with Carrier-Grade Support, this will provide Vodafone with an open platform for new service development today, with an architecture that will support 5G deployments in the future.”

V O D A F O N E P R O C U R E M E N T C O M PA N Y

354

to help create that capability we’ve

we have a separate budget to try new

employed several data scientists. It’s

things which may or may not work,”

a truly international operation and the

explains Wilson. “Once we’ve seen,

team helps us to remain focused on

understood and analysed a specific

digitalising everything we do in the

technology, we then create a business

supply chain.”

case for implementation and are rigor-

Although Wilson recognises the

ous on how we implement that new

value of implementing technology,

technology and capability within the

he believes it’s important to not just

organisation.” Over the past few years,

introduce new processes for the sake

Vodafone Procurement Company has

of it. “There are things you should

sharpened its focus on digitalisation

try to see if they work, because it’s

significantly. To Wilson, operations are

important to improve your capabilities

centred around ‘performance manage-

and knowledge. That’s why we ensure

ment and metrics’. “If you think of that

FEBRUARY 2020

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Ninian Wilson, Ninian joined Vodafone on 1 June 2009 as SCM IT Director, and was appointed to the board of the Vodafone Procurement Company in November 2009. From 2014-16 Ninian held the role of SCM Technology Director, and was responsible for all technology sourcing in Vodafone including networks, IT and new product development. In March 2016 he was appointed as Director of Group SCM and CEO of the Vodafone Procurement Company. Prior to joining Vodafone, Ninian held the position of Operations Director for Royal Mail plc, managing the largest workforce in the United Kingdom with full accountability for the delivery of Royal Mail’s customer promise and its transformation programme. Previously, Ninian held senior positions in Cable & Wireless plc. (Chief Procurement Officer & Group Property Director) and was a member of the board of the Caribbean Business Unit and Trustee of the Pension Scheme. Ninian was educated at Aberdeen University and holds a Bsc Hons degree in Geography.

He is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply and a life member of the Institute of Directors. Ninian lives in Luxembourg with his wife Philippa.

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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V O D A F O N E P R O C U R E M E N T C O M PA N Y

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FEBRUARY 2020

357

2008

Year founded

250

Number of employees

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Making the difficult feel easy Delivering significant savings and strategic insight into your tactical and tail spend, reducing risk and increasing managed spend across your supply chain.

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transactional activity, it’s all digitalised

With continuous improvement a key

and metric driven. The next step we’re

component of Wilson’s mantra, he

working on is adding artificial intel-

believes that you can’t afford to stand

ligence (AI) into our processes,” he

still. “If you win a gold medal at the

says. “In our procurement organisation,

Olympics, you’ve done very well in your

everything is digitally presented on

particular sport, but the people who

scorecards. There’s no PowerPoint

really stand out are the ones who win

presentation. Over the past year, we’ve

consistently and keep on breaking

slowly increased our interest in AI

world records,” he says. “This applies

and machine learning (ML), which is

to us because we want to have a mental-

centered around category manage-

ity where it’s about being excellent at

ment and the tender process. It’s a

what we do and continually improving

work in progress and will enable us

all of our metrics, costs and perfor-

to ensure we’ve covered all the pieces

mance. It’s a mindset which we have

of the value stream and digitalised over

here in the leadership team and in

a three to five year journey.”

supply chain management.” While Wilson believes his organisation is in a great place, he also understands the necessity of striving to be better every year. “It’s so important that we all have the mindset around improvement

“ It’s a truly international operation and we remain focused on how they can help digitalise everything we do in the supply chain” — Ninian Wilson, Global Supply Chain Director and CEO, Vodafone Procurement Company w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

359

V O D A F O N E P R O C U R E M E N T C O M PA N Y

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FEBRUARY 2020

and excellence, because we can always do better every year,” says Wilson. “Everyone else in procurement improves, so you’ve got to keep trying to enhance yourself, team and function. I’m a great believer in continuous improvement and striving for things that seem impossible.”

Vodafone Procurement Company values its collaboration with other companies. Wilson points to the 12 strategic partnerships which exist

— Name of Person, Position and company

as key network and IT vendors. “Our partnerships are grounded in strong commercial foundations. For example, if we’re working with a technology partner with state-of-the-art technology, then we think about how we manage those relationships so that we both get mutual benefit,” he explains. “Every two months there will be a 90-minute check-in for some of the key technology partners. There are two parts to the agenda; there’s a review of performance and then there’s new releases that the vendor would like to come and talk to us about.”

Looking to the future, Wilson believes that Vodafone is built for success in the ever-evolving supply chain industry w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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V O D A F O N E P R O C U R E M E N T C O M PA N Y

362

“ I’m a great believer in continuous improvement and striving for things that seem impossible” — Ninian Wilson, Global Supply Chain Director and CEO, Vodafone Procurement Company FEBRUARY 2020

363

over the next few years. “We have

and that’s a really positive develop-

a tremendous European platform

ment for the industry. Ultimately,

now, following the acquisitions which

digitalisation and transparency will

we completed last year in Germany

walk hand in hand together and con-

and central and eastern Europe,” he

tinue to transform the supply chain

explains. “In terms of future evolution

over the next five years.”

of the industry, I think we’re seeing more automation of the menial tasks and more AI and ML being leveraged.

Blockchain is also becoming more important in the supply chain space w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

364

FEBRUARY 2020

365

A UNIQUE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION WRITTEN BY

HARRY MENEAR PRODUCED BY

RICHARD DEANE

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

ERAMET GROUP

Ludovic Donati, CDO at Eramet, discusses the French mining giant’s use of drones, AI, ML and other cutting-edge technologies in order to overcome unique challenges and thrive in a new digital age

A

global digital transformation is underway.

New digital solutions, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML),

the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data analytics and augmented reality (AR) are driving a digital revolu366

tion. Across every industry, companies are facing new challenges and exploring new opportunities.

But digital transformation is more than the simple adoption of cutting-edge technology; those companies that wish to reap the largest rewards are the ones that look to transform more than their software solutions. “We’re not guided by new technology, but by the new applications of that technology and the new ways of thinking and operating that it enables,” says Ludovic Donati, Chief Digital Officer at French mining and metals giant Eramet Group.

Operating since 1880, Eramet is a leading global player in the extraction of metals like nickel and manganese, as well as the processing and manufacture of high-value alloys such as high-speed steels, high-performance steels, superalloys, and FEBRUARY 2020

367

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

ERAMET GROUP

“ We’re not guided by new technology, but by the new applications of that technology and the new ways of thinking and operating that it enables” — Ludovic Donati, CDO, Eramet

US$4bn in 2018. The company’s main operations include mines and process-

aluminum and titanium alloys. “We

ing plants in Europe, Africa, Oceania,

also produce special alloys for differ-

Asia and North and South America.

ent sectors like aerospace, nuclear,

368

After obtaining a PhD in chemistry,

defense, and so on. For instance, when

Donati joined Eramet in 2011 and spent

you travel in a plane made by Boeing or

three years in the company’s R&D

Airbus, you are traveling with Eramet,

department as a research engineer.

because we produce a lot of very

In 2014, he moved over to the corpo-

important parts for those companies,”

rate strategy department and, in 2017,

Donati explains. “Eramet is an interest-

was asked by senior leadership to

ing organisation because it’s both a

conduct a study of what exactly the

metallurgical and mining company;

digital transformation of a mining and

we are present all the way up the

metallurgical company like Eramet

value chain.” Eramet employs around

would look like.

13,000 people across 20 countries and reported revenues of more than

FEBRUARY 2020

As the global business landscape is reshaped by the digital revolution,

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ERAMET, EXPLORING OUR WORLD’ 369 a shifting political zeitgeist and a

demand for lithium in things like elec-

worsening climate crisis, Eramet is

tric vehicle batteries, smartphones,

undergoing a unique digital trans-

etc. and, to produce it in quantities

formation in order to employ new

that meet our customers’ needs, we’re

mindsets and technologies to over-

going to use digital to drive efficiency

come new and evolving challenges.

wherever we can.”

“We started by making some proof of

In order to effectively transform

concepts that showed good results.

Eramet’s operations using technology

Then, we decided it was necessary

ranging from IoT and drones to digital

to create a new digital transformation

twins and advanced data analytics,

department,” recalls Donati. “Today,

Donati and his team need to overcome

the crux of Eramet’s strategy is to use

several challenges that are unique to

digital to support being a leading pro-

a company like Eramet. “So the first

ducer of nickel, manganese and also

problem is: how do you digitalise a

of lithium. We’re predicting exponential

mine when it’s in the middle of w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

ERAMET GROUP

“ It’s very important for our operations to be connected, in real time, to our experts” — Ludovic Donati, CDO, Eramet

370

FEBRUARY 2020

a rainforest? Or the middle of the pacific ocean? That’s a challenge,” he reflects.

The second challenge is that mining is a relatively old industry, and the skills required by Eramet are set to shift dramatically. “If you’re a miner or a geologist today, tomorrow you’re also going to need to be a data scientist and a drone pilot,” Donati says. “In order to align ourselves, we held a workshop with people from our operations in New-Calédonia, Gabon, Senegal, Norway, Paris — you name it. We sat down with everyone and worked together to define our vision for Eramet 4.0 using three axes.”

SAFETY In locations with environmental threats, Eramet is using IoT and drones to check equipment and monitor operations with w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

371

ERAMET GROUP

372

1880

Year founded

more accuracy and speed. “In New Caledonia, cyclones are quite common, and you need to run regular checks to make sure equipment hasn’t been

€3.825mn

damaged,” says Donati. “Previously, we’d send a car with two people in it to

Revenue in euros

check and hear back in three to four

12,705

to three hours.” The company has also

Number of employees

FEBRUARY 2020

days if everything was ok. Now, with a drone, we can reduce that down to two begun implementing AI-powered collision avoidance technology in its truck fleet, as well as overseer software to prevent fatigue-based accidents.

OPTIMISATION

says Donati. “With all this data, we’re

In addition to reducing fuel consump-

actually building a digital twin of the mine

tion across its entire operation, Eramet

in New Caledonia, so we will soon have

is using AI-powered data analytics to

the possibility to run different scenarios

manage its fleet and process topo-

based on, for example, fluctuations

graphical modeling data gathered by

in the price of nickel.”

drone surveyors. “We’re using drones to do these topographical measure-

REMOTE EXPERTISE

ments and, in 2019, we mapped more

As a way of solving the problem

than 300,000 acres, which is about 100

of changing skill needs, Eramet is

times more than the previous year,”

investing heavily in an operational

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

373

Ludovic Donati Ludovic Donati has been the Chief Digital Officer of the Eramet Group since its beginning in 2017. Eramet is a global mining and metallurgical group employing about 13,000 collaborators with a presence in 20 countries. Since 2018, Ludovic has been the Digital Correspondent of the French Mining and Mellurgy Sector and a board member of the Afnet association. A normalien with a PhD in chemistry, Ludovic joined the Eramet group in 2011, where he held various positions in R&D, investor relations and strategy (CEO’s office).

Ludovic was appointed Group Chief Digital Officer at Eramet in 2017 in order to provide the company with a strong, coherent and sustainable vision for digital transformation and to launch concrete achievements from proof of concept to industrialisation in the fields of Mine 4.0 and Plant 4.0. He was nominated for the Next Leader Awards of Les Echos French newspaper in 2018 and won the “Grand Prix de l’Acélération Digitale BFM Business” for Eramet in 2019.

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“ If you’re a miner or a geologist today, tomorrow you’re also going to need to be data scientist and drone pilot” — Ludovic Donati, CDO, Eramet

70 people, 50 of whom are focused on data science and engineering and now we’re working on AI, data sci-

transformation of the way it delivers

ence and ML projects. Our algorithms

expertise to remote locations. “We’re

implemented in our ferronickel or sili-

using remote expertise powered

comanganese furnaces are learning

by AR,” explains Donati. “It’s very

and, every day, they’re becoming more

important for our operations to be

and more accurate.” At the end of a

connected, in real time, to our experts.

successful year of small-scale imple-

We’re collecting all the data from our

mentations and proof of concept tests,

mines and plants and in 2020 we will

Eramet is at a tipping point. Looking

implement remote operations centres

to the future, Donati acknowledges

across our operations.” This, Donati

that the coming year will be one of

explains, allows the company powerful

monumental change for Eramet. “We

insight into the processes of its facili-

did a great job in 2018, running proof

ties, helping to drive efficiency on

of concepts and tests. This year, we

a global scale and enabling Eramet to be

industrialised and deployed a lot of pro-

more reactive to changes in the market.

prietary solutions,” he says. “Next year, in 2020, we will be aiming for full scale

THE FUTURE

deployment.”

This transformation has been defined by its speed and scale. “A year and a half ago, we had no competencies in data science, cloud, analytics etc.,” recalls Donati. “Since then, we’ve built a digital transformation team of about w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

375

376

THE POWER OF THE PERSONAL IN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

FEBRUARY 2020

WRITTEN BY

MARCUS LAWRENCE PRODUCED BY

CAITLYN COLE

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377

ROHIT DARODKAR

Supply chain thought leader Rohit Darodkar discusses the strategic approaches that generate success in the sector

T

he nature of supply chain operations is as diverse as business itself. For every country of operations, international rela-

tionship and industry or sector, the complexities of procurement, logistics and supply chain morph and shift. Executives in the space often settle within 378

their niche, but one who has not only led operations in multiple industries but in wildly different territories is Rohit Darodkar, currently Global Procurement and Logistics Manager at Tritium, an Australian firm dedicated to EV charging infrastructure. Having begun his career in India in a graduate supply chain role at Tata Motors, Darodkar moved to Australia to complete his master’s in Mechanical Engineering at Queensland University of Technology, then his master’s in Business Management at Griffith University, majoring in Aviation. After that, Darodkar joined the newly instated Australian operations of Indian car manufacturing giant Mahindra & Mahindra where he remained for over six years. “I worked in positions from warehouse manager to spare parts manager and operations manager and, in those roles, I developed strategies and FEBRUARY 2020

379

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ROHIT DARODKAR

“ You’ve got the challenge of generating demand for a particular product, having a proper strategy in place to support that demand, and ensuring the cost of the product still makes sense for it to be developed, manufactured and sold in Australia” — Rohit Darodkar, Global Procurement and Logistics Manager 380 a dedicated focus on continuous

“The Australian market is very different

improvement of end to end supply

to other corners of the world,” he says.

chain management,” says Darodkar,

“The majority gets manufactured in

reflecting on his early career.

China, Korea or Thailand; very little

“In Australia, Mahindra was estab-

is local. The supply chain therefore

lished in 2007 and I joined in 2010,

becomes a strategic challenge because

so it was a really new organisation for

you cannot simply store these parts on

the Australian market whilst already

your shelf. You have to order a certain

having a huge domestic footprint in

amount to make it logical to pay freight

India.” During his time with Mahindra,

charges on particular parts.” The ques-

Darodkar was deeply involved in

tion, Darodkar elaborates, is how to

post-system development and the

justify bulk orders from overseas when

establishment of effective supply chain

the demand for the related parts isn’t

strategies for the company’s work in

there. In addition to that, the lead time

Australia, a drastically different busi-

for such orders, along with the cost,

ness environment to its native India.

must also be carefully balanced to avoid

FEBRUARY 2020

381

shortfalls in vital stocks for manufac-

making this balancing act far less chal-

turing. “You’ve got the challenge of

lenging to maintain, but the importance of

generating demand for a particular

robust strategies cannot be overstated.

product, having a proper strategy in

For Darodkar, effective relationships

place to support that demand, and ensur-

with vendors and employees are

ing the cost of the product still makes

among the most potent tools a supply

sense for it to be developed, manufac-

chain executive can access. He says

tured and sold in Australia. An excellent

it is important to remember that “every-

storage strategy needs to be in place

one’s in this business to make money”,

and maintained through Order Pattern

and that holding this reality at the front

Method, Reorder Point Process Method

of his mind when managing vendor

and Control Rhythm Method.”

relationships is vital to striking the bal-

Technology is increasingly providing

ance between cost and quality. “The

the answers, with data-driven insights

more you squeeze on cost, the more w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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it is reflected by the supplier in the

will buy the end product, and everyone

product quality they deliver.” Of course,

will go out of business.” There is a com-

pricing strategies must reflect market

petitive edge to this as well, as

viability — as everyone is in the busi-

manufacturers are rarely short of

ness to generate value, costs must be

options when it comes to vendor selec-

in line with the feasibility of selling the

tion. “You must always check where

end product. “You need to be open

you stand in the market,” Darodkar

from a business perspective, negotiate

says. “You cannot just rely on one sup-

those costs and manage the supplier

plier for a product. Supply chain is a

by explaining that, if they cannot

demanding and continuously evolving

reduce the cost of a product, nobody

sector — you need to keep your eyes

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

383

Rohit Darodkar With more than 15 years’ management experience in supply chain, logistics, transport and FMCG industries, Rohit Darodkar possesses a unique range of skills and experience delivering best practice management and leadership to a wide variety of international organisations. An experienced and commercially driven supply chain professional with demonstratable and proven experience in people management, process planning and information technology transformation, he is an expert at synchronising supply with demand and developing supply chain strategies that significantly impact profitability and increase the total value of a business. He demonstrates excellence in working through the 3 Cs of supply chain leadership — Communication, Collaboration and Change — and turning the business model into a profitable one.

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sales@currentlogic.com

“ You need to accept that you won’t ever have 100% support, and you need to accept that you cannot make decisions alone simply because you are the boss” — Rohit Darodkar, Global Procurement and Logistics Manager

industries. All of these factors are being affected by rapid shifts in customer and consumer buying-behaviour. Many markets which used to be purely local or

open to new developments and offer-

regional have now become global, as

ings.” Reflecting on this not only enables

have the supply chains that serve them.

the best value in product acquisition, but

As a supply chain leader, you need to

also ensures suppliers do not rest on

focus on what lies ahead and, to some

their laurels when it comes to appealing

extent, be able to predict it. This can

to their own clients. He continues: “The

only be possible with a thorough under-

supply chain world is changing rapidly,

standing of market dynamics.

sometimes unpredictably, in line with the market dynamics across many

“Another thing,” Darodkar adds, “is to be mindful of the professional relationship with vendors. You need to maintain the bond with them that their product is not only required but is at the heart of your operations. They need to know they are important to your organisation, that their quality is good and that you expect that quality to be maintained. You must set KPIs for that quality, for deliveries and so on, but it’s a two-way relationship.

If you give freedom for them to set KPIs for you as well, such as sales targets, w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

385

ROHIT DARODKAR

timely payments and the like, it becomes a more open relationship and they take more interest in the business’s success and how they can influence it.”

Internally, Darodkar says a keen focus on managing change is also imperative to effective supply chain operations, particularly in the age of digital transformation. “People come to do things their own way, and there’s always a resistance to learn new things,” he says. “As the world evolves, 386

you need to evolve, and change is the only thing that’s constant. As soon as you accept that change and believe that it’s important to your organisation, resistance goes down.” In manufacturing, it is not only changing technologies

“ If you give freedom for vendors to set KPIs for you as well, such as sales targets, it becomes a more open relationship and they take more interest in the business’s success and how they can influence it” — Rohit Darodkar, Global Procurement and Logistics Manager

FEBRUARY 2020

387

that necessitate a pro-change mindset,

“You need to accept that you won’t

as the iterative nature of products

ever have 100% support, and you need

means processes are similarly prone

to accept that you cannot make deci-

to alteration and optimisation. Instilling

sions alone simply because you are

this vital cultural component is one of

the boss,” he explains. “You need to

the leading challenges faced by execu-

have confidence in your people to

tives in every department of every

ensure that the decisions you make

industry undergoing transformation,

are effectively communicated and that

but Darodkar believes the answer to

everyone is on the same page. At the

the riddle lies in the personal.

end of the day, no organisation is run w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

ROHIT DARODKAR

388

FEBRUARY 2020

“ Flexibility will ensure that change will not faze you or cause you undue stress. In turn, your team will be encouraged to embrace, rather than resist change” — Rohit Darodkar, Global Procurement and Logistics Manager

by one person, it’s always a team effort.

You need to understand your people and your resources, what works for them and what doesn’t, and from there you can better understand how to convince someone to come on board.

Sometimes a simple coffee table discussion works, sometimes you need to take someone out for a beer, sometimes you need to be a strong authority, but often you don’t need to be pushy.

Flexibility will ensure that change will not faze you or cause you undue stress.

In turn, your team will be encouraged to embrace, rather than resist change.

If what you are doing is right, people just need time and they will come on board.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

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390

TRANSFORMING SAFETY AND EFFICIENCY IN MINING WRITTEN WRITTENBY BY

WILLIAM WILLIAM SMITH SMITH PRODUCED PRODUCEDBY BY

RICHARD RICHARD DEANE DEANE

FEBRUARY 2020

391

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MST GLOBAL

Haydn Roberts, CEO of mining technology company MST Global, reveals the integrated, platform approach futureproofing mines worldwide

M

ining technology firm MST Global can trace its origins back some 30 years to an urgent need for improved commu-

nications in a mining setting. Inspired by a tragic mining disaster at Moura colliery, the company was involved in pioneering a form of through-the-earth 392

communication known as PED. “It provided the ability to communicate through the rock and send a one way message to trapped miners,” says CEO Haydn Roberts. “From there the company started out of Sydney and grew into offering other types of technologies and solutions, all focused around underground coal and hard rock mining linked to voice or data communications and the tracking of people. We’ve really built a whole digital ecosystem around that initial offering.”

When he joined four years ago, Roberts brought years of experience in the mining industry, as well as a passion for technology. “When I was very young, around 1980, I got my first computer – a Sinclair ZX80. I had a passion for computing and technology from a very early age, and right when the worldwide web was taking off I moved FEBRUARY 2020

Below: Corey Nesbit Systems Engineer and Nick Miller Senior Solutions Architect, Underground in a mine

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393

MST GLOBAL

“ Technology is going to change over time, and whatever we put into the underground space has to be upgradeable” 394

— Haydn Roberts, CEO, MST Global

to the US and worked for a surface mining company in California. I got quite involved in the technology side of mining at this particular open-pit surface mine with things like fleet dispatch, GPS and mine planning.”

Roberts’ career has seen him involved in a number of technological advances in the mining industry, including the introduction of autonomous trucks back in the mid-90s.

Digital transformation has perhaps an even more critical aspect in an industry such as mining, with lives potentially on the line in the harsh environment of an underground mine.

“Communication’s very difficult, you can’t see each other that easily, you’re working in different parts of the mine and so forth,” emphasises Roberts.

“So by definition you’re a very distributed workforce in a very risky environment.”

Gone are the days, however, when miners had to rely on canaries for safety. “Digitalisation lets you build a digital ecosystem where everything is connected. You have the ability

1989 Denis Kent with MST founder Gary Zamel and Voest Alpine founder Chris McGuinn Newstan Coal Mine FEBRUARY 2020

to track people and equipment, you have the ability to put in sensors that can detect methane and different

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘MST GLOBAL: AXON PRODUCT LAUNCH VIDEO’ 395 poisonous gases, you have the ability

time, and whatever we put into the

to detect movement of the rock. All of

underground space has to be upgrade-

this can be converted into data in real

able. That’s a key differentiator versus

time and acted upon.”

other vendors out there.” The company

This sense of integration character-

is able to combine solutions thanks

ises MST’s approach to its offerings.

in part to its vertically integrated

“We’re technology agnostic in terms

model. “We do our own manufacturing,

of wireless technologies and tracking,”

design, development of software and

Roberts emphasises. “We don’t just

hardware, and then direct selling and

bat for LTE or wifi. We realise that, in

support. That’s a very important part

an underground situation, you’re going

of it all, the service that goes around

to be using Bluetooth, you’re going

deploying it and supporting it. We’re

to use LoRa, you’re going to use wifi

very much focused on that.”

for certain things and LTE for others.

Technology is going to change over

Another differentiator is the company’s AXON platform. “We’ve just launched w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

MST GLOBAL

our latest smart infrastructure or smart network platform,” says Roberts.

“We realised that our older platform, Impact, wasn’t as easy to upgrade when new technologies came along.

With AXON, we knew we had to take a different view on that. We designed it so that it could be in a mine for 10, 15, or 20 years, but have the ability to be upgradeable as different technologies come along.” With an eye on upgrades comes an openness to integrating emerging technologies into the 396

platform. “We work with Microsoft quite closely and we designed AXON to use elements of Microsoft Azure.

Within Azure there’s things like voice

also need the ability to be tracked,

and video recognition. For instance,

just like people. Using wearables you

we plan to pick up certain phrases that

can track where people are in a mine,

the Azure module will allow us then

and then, for instance, if they go into a

to act on and turn on a fan or send a

certain area, secondary fans will turn

request for a piece of equipment to

on to make sure that those areas are

go down to a certain end.”

ventilated. The automation of fixed

Automation has a part to play across

assets underground is something that

the full spectrum of technologies

excites us – it’s a more sustainable

deployed in mines. “Automated vehicles

and safer way of mining.”

need real-time communications, so

Considering his experience in the

they need a platform like AXON that

mining industry, Roberts views the

can connect high bandwidth wirelessly

community as a family, a stance

to those vehicles,” says Roberts. “They

MST extends to the work it does with

FEBRUARY 2020

partners. “With all of our customers, we take a long-term partnership view,” he says. “There’s probably 30 mining companies in the world that mine 80% of the minerals. The truth is that it’s a very small industry when you compare it to something like automotive. We do business with about 300 mines. Every one of those needs to be a special relationship and a partnership.” MST Global’s work with gold-mining firm OceanaGold is one such example.

“From the very get-go we sat down and worked out how we could share

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Haydn Roberts Haydn is the CEO of MST Global. Haydn commenced his career in underground gold mines in South Africa before joining Rio Tinto, with roles in manufacturing, smelting and mining in the UK and USA. He has held senior leadership roles with Groundprobe and Komatsu Modular Mining Systems based in the US and Australia. Prior to MST Global, Haydn was the CEO of Leica Mining and COO of Hexagon Mining. He has extensive experience in executive management, mining technology and best practice. Haydn has a Mining Engineering degree from Cardiff University, Wales and a Master’s Degree in Systems Management from the University of Southern California.

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397

MST GLOBAL

398

“ It’s incumbent upon all of us to accept the reality of global warming and to do something about it” — Haydn Roberts, CEO, MST Global FEBRUARY 2020

A tunnel project to access a gold ore body at a new gold mine in Australia

our roadmap with theirs and identify the common alignment. We had workshops where they listened to what we felt about the strategic vision for the technology in this space, and then we started to deploy solutions at their various mines. They’ve been a great partner.”

As for the future, Roberts is clear that one challenge facing MST and the wider industry above all others is sustainability. “It’s incumbent upon all of us to accept the reality of global warming and to do something about it. What I seek for MST is to ask: ‘how do we address sustainability?’ How do we bring youth into the discussion and get their feedback on how we can improve the business? To me, that’s probably the most important external factor that we have to address in a meaningful way.”

While there’s a long way to go, MST is on the path and encourages fellow industry members to do the same. “It’s a journey of a thousand steps, but you’ve got to make that first one.”

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399

400

Enabling mobility, independence and support WRITTEN BY

HARRY MENEAR

FEBRUARY 2020

PRODUCED BY

STUART IRVING

401

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A C T I V F O U N D AT I O N

Mike Dunn, Head of Technology at Activ Foundation, shares the digital transformation story of one of Australia’s leading disability support organisations

T

he technology behind the rise of Industry 4.0 is driving efficiency, interconnectedness and ever-more intelligent decision

making across every industry and market in the world. But advances in AI, data analytics and Internet of Things (IoT) technology have the power 402

to do so much more than drive profits and operational efficiency. Technology has the potential to lift up and support all members of our society. “The vision for Activ is for people of all abilities to have the same opportunities,” says Mike Dunn, Head of Technology at Activ Foundation.

Since 1951, Activ has been supporting people living with disability in WA to live an independent life of their choice. Today, the organisation supports over 2,000 Western Australian individuals and their families. Dunn, a father of two and Perth native, joined Activ in March of 2017. “I actually started out as an accountant back in the day. I did a finance degree and pretty quickly worked out that it wasn’t for me, but that job really helped because it gave me the opportunity to move across to an ERP consulting firm. I started out at the service FEBRUARY 2020

403

desk and worked my way up to a senior consulting role.” Dunn reflects that his time in ERP consulting “has held me in the best possible stead for the rest of my career, because now I’m all about building relationships, working with new people and getting them to buy into what you’re doing.” Following a stint in the mining industry, Dunn leapt at the chance to apply his skills as a people-focused technologist to a role that “contributed to improving people’s lives. My wife worked at Activ 15 years ago and loved her time here, so when w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

A C T I V F O U N D AT I O N

“ Everyone’s going through some sort of ‘change’, but our team’s had a double dose of it and they’ve all been fantastic” 404

— Mike Dunn, Head of Technology, Activ Foundation

FEBRUARY 2020

the role came up it ticked all the boxes,” he recalls. “I’ve been here for the last three years and it’s probably been the most rewarding and challenging job I’ve ever had.”

Dunn’s entrance into the role came at a time of significant change for Activ and the entire Australian disability sector. In 2012, the agreement was made to launch the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), which aims to provide around 460,000 people living with a disability under the age of 65 with funding for necessary support

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘A DAY IN THE LIFE OF ANDREW – AN ACTIV CUSTOMER’ 405 and services. This is a landmark

have far more choice and control as to

reform, and has completely changed

where they want to spend and where

the environment in which disability

they want their services to come

service providers operate. “It’s a

from. The NDIS aims to guarantee

once-in-a-generation shift that’s

fairness, dignity and equity for people

completely changed the funding

living with a disability, which aligns

model and how the sector actually

with our strategy here at Activ.” This

functions,” says Dunn. “The philoso-

historic restructuring of the sector

phy behind it is all about giving more

has prompted non-profits like Activ to

choice and control to people living

reevaluate their approach to be more

with a disability. The thing I really love

commercially minded when it comes

about it is that it’s transferred the

to attracting and retaining custom-

power of disability support funding

ers, as people with disability and their

away from providers and put it in the

families are given more choice across

customers’ hands. Now, customers

an increasingly competitive space. w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

A C T I V F O U N D AT I O N

406

“The biggest challenge since I joined

Activ’s digital transformation has

Activ has definitely been the fact that,

been focused on three key areas:

as there have been massive changes

adopting new technologies to drive

rolling out across the whole sector,

efficiency; implementing cybersecu-

Activ has been rolling out its own mas-

rity that doesn’t impede operations

sive technology transformation as well,”

and, most importantly, finding new

says Dunn. “Everyone, everywhere,

ways to allow its staff to spend more

has to deal with change in some way,

time with their customers.

but our team has had a double dose of

As a driver of efficiency and cus-

it, having to contend with sector-wide

tomer centricity enablement, making

change in tandem with tech transfor-

Activ’s technology more mobile was

mation. It’s a tough gig, and they’ve all

a natural step for Dunn and his teams.

been truly fantastic.”

“Our old systems were making our

FEBRUARY 2020

staff desk-bound,” says Dunn. “We needed to enable our staff to break away from their PCs and be present with our customers whilst still recording evidence of the service they are providing. We delivered on this via a series of sweeping software and hardware measures.” Activ has increased its network coverage, and introduced mobile devices that give employees access to insight-generating data on the go, as well as handle staff rosters, clocking in and out, reporting incidents and a host of other capabilities. “We

“ We needed to enable our staff to break away from their PCs and be present with our customers” — Mike Dunn, Head of Technology, Activ Foundation

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Mike Dunn Mike is an IT leader who thrives on the people side of the role. His background in consulting during his career has enhanced the belief that relationships are critical to bringing the business along for the journey. After previous roles in differing commercial sectors, Mike’s current role as Activ Foundation’s Head of Technology has presented new challenges whilst also being his most rewarding role to date. “The challenge of driving significant technological progress and efficiencies in the NFP sector has tangible real world benefits for our customers which is extremely rewarding for an IT leadership role”.

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407

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• CMS Integration • Payroll Integration • HR / Onboarding • Business Intelligence … plus much more.

“ We have been extremely lucky to have found the partners that we did” — Mike Dunn, Head of Technology, Activ Foundation

industry knowledge to the table, which has been a massive value addition for us, and have also delivered on our key objectives of mobility, cloud integration and delivery of efficiencies across the business.”

In this time of accelerated evolution for Activ, Dunn sometimes has to stop and marvel at how far the organisation has come. “This job was a real eye opener for me, since all my previous roles had been in white collar environ-

needed to find a mobile tool that was

ments. I remember getting a taste of

easy for our staff to operate, whilst

the challenge to come when, in my

being robust enough to handle our

interview with Danielle Newport, the

evidencing and enabling better access

CEO, she asked me how I was plan-

to valuable data,” continues Dunn. “We

ning on delivering the required change

have been extremely lucky to have

initiatives of an ICT transformation

found the partners that we did. In the

when none of our 1,000 support work-

applications space, after a lengthy

ers at the time had an email address,”

selection process, we partnered with

he recalls. For Dunn the real goal of a

Lumary and EasyEmployer to deliver

technology leader is taking an environ-

a simple customer management and

ment where technology isn’t a priority

rostering app. It allows our staff to

and selling its benefits to a team of

view and accept their rosters, deliver

people. “Activ has a lot of people com-

services with all the required customer

ing to work here whose primary driver

details available, evidence what they

isn’t technology. It’s helping people

have delivered and ensure we are

with living with disabilities to achieve

funded for that service. Lumary and

greater independence. My job as

EasyEmployer have brought their

an enabler is all about getting those w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

409

A C T I V F O U N D AT I O N

C O M PA N Y FACT S

• Activ is one of Western Australia’s largest disability providers • Activ supports more 2000 customers • Activ has over 100 sites across Western Australia • Activ has been supporting people living with disability for more than 65 years

410

• Activ is the major beneficiary of the Chevron City to Surf for Activ, WA’s oldest and most loved community fun run

FEBRUARY 2020

people to come on board with what I’m proposing,” he says. “We have come on in leaps and bounds in the last three years.” From video conferencing to collaboration software, Activ’s staff are increasingly adopting, exploring and finding new use cases for the technology provided to them.

Looking forward, Dunn wants to expand the range of applications available to Activ’s team, as well as find new ways to harness the data that they’ve begun gathering and integrating into the Activ system. “This year is about applications. We’ve laid some really strong foundations, and we have a ton of data going through these systems” he says. “Now, we need to extract it, give it to our leadership team and start delivering the kind of insights that are going to drive further success. Activ will continue to play a role in ensuring that our customers have every opportunity in life, whether that be finding a meaningful job, independent living options, home ownership, greater social inclusion – the list goes on and on.”

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412

RACING & WAGERING WA: IMPLEMENTING TECH WITH A PEOPLE-FIRST APPROACH WRITTEN BY

SHANNON LEWIS PRODUCED BY

ANDREW STUBBINGS

FEBRUARY 2020

413

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R AC I N G & WAG E R I N G WA

Sam McCready, Chief Information Officer at Racing & Wagering WA, explains how the company has changed its culture, breaking down the barriers between the technology and business teams to promote customer-centric practices

I

n 1961, the Wagering and the Totalisator Agency Board of Western Australia founded its first agency in Perth, Australia, begin-

ning a trajectory of state-supported racing that culminated in Racing and Wagering West Australia 414

(RWWA). Founded in 2003, RWWA turned over AUD$1bn in its first year of operations. The company’s business is divided two ways. As a sporting body, it oversees greyhound, harness, and thoroughbred racing across Western Australia. As a retail license operator, it operates the wagering around these races and was the first digital betting site in Australia.

Sam McCready has worked at RWWA for around three years. The Chief Information Officer, he was recruited to help the company improve its digital presence, bringing 18 years’ experience in finance, with the last decade focused around increasing customer service through digital channels. The technical transformation at RWWA has been divided into three primary areas: operating model, technology product architecture, and capability FEBRUARY 2020

415

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R AC I N G & WAG E R I N G WA

“ Regardless of what industry you’re looking at, to engage customers you need highlymotivated individuals that are offered a slick way of working with quality processes and quality technology pipelines” — Sam McCready, CIO / CDO, Racing & Wagering WA

and performance. “The organisation knew we needed to do things differently to take a large step up into the digital marketplace,” he says.

The key to this has been establishing a working partnership between the business and technology teams. Digital

416

transformation at RWWA remains people-centric. Initially, the two teams operated separately, leading to frustration and miscommunication.

“Once they had those frustrations,” McCready says, “they weren’t seeing eye to eye on how to actually unpack

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘2020 OWN THE DREAM LAUNCH’ 417 them.” McCready’s team partnered

made collaborative work a necessity,

with GM Wagering Michael Saunders

which ultimately has led to high perfor-

and CFO Ian Edwards to research and

mance across the teams. RWWA has

design a new operational approach,

also implemented greater operational

using study tours to challenge inter-

structure, integrating security and

nalised predispositions and bring

development practices, and structured

about the necessary cultural changes.

improvement design reviews into pro-

These ultimately ranged from the

cesses. By implementing cloud tech

ideological, such as establishing new

with the help of partner AWS, RWWA

methodologies, to the mundane, such

ensures employees and customers

as removing the physical partitions

have access to the same information

between teams to improve effective

across the board.

communication. The primary mindset

From a technology perspective,

shift was a move from focus on pro-

smooth transformation means estab-

jects to focus on products. This has

lishing clear targets. The focus has w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

R AC I N G & WAG E R I N G WA

418

shifted from specific system activities

move towards test automation, which

to the broader end-to-end customer

allowed it to update a quarterly sys-

experience. “Like any business,”

tem to one of weekly releases. It uses

McCready explains, “there were legacy

tech to better understand customers,

aspects to our system that we needed

leveraging the knowhow of external

to modularise and resolve before our

partners to analyse customer patterns,

teams could move at the pace we

preferences, and behaviours. “The

wanted them to.”

detail richness and product offerings

In order to reach the desired speed

of our partners enables us to react to

to market, RWWA leverages new

customers with targeted offers and

technologies, implementing an

features,” McCready continues.

evolutionary technical product archi-

RWWA has been able to continually

tecture internally. One of the biggest

readjust its metrics to account for pro-

technical changes at RWWA was a

gress, relying on partner Dynatrace

FEBRUARY 2020

to determine its systems’ performance

organisations like Scalabl, AWS and

and metrics. RWWA is highly stringent

Dynatrace support us has enabled

in its controls around cyber security

a faster than normal transformation.

control and anti-laundering regula-

“It is critical,” McCready says, “that

tions. “Our business always has to be

we focus on the performance and

on the right side of regulators. It keeps

immediacy our customers expect.”

us accountable both in a financial and

RWWA increased its digital channels

an ethical sense.” McCready states.

in part to remain competitive, but pri-

Trust is at the core of RWWA’s relation-

marily to enhance customer

ship with third-party partners. “What

experience. The measures and key

we’re really looking for, other than

performance indicators (KPIs) for

the ability to achieve the common

teams to focus on customer impact.

goal,” McCready explains, “is value

It engages with holistic testing method-

alignment between businesses. Having

ologies. A specific pool of loyal

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Sam McCready Sam has led the Technology division at RWWA for nearly 3 years. Having joined in 2017, Sam is part of the executive team and has been responsible for a change of strategy and execution to realise a transformation in the culture, ‘Ways of Working’ and technical direction. These changes have supported the growth and continuous improvement of the customer offerings of the Wagering arm of the business through the TAB and TAB touch brands.

Sam leads a technical team of 160 people that are responsible for supporting the delivery of the Strategic outcomes needed by the Racing, Wagering and corporate areas of the company. Experienced in leading commercial and strategic outcomes, prior to his time at RWWA, Sam has been responsible for operational excellence, digital growth, innovation, customer experience and banking integrations for organisations in Australia and internationally.

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

419

R AC I N G & WAG E R I N G WA

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421

“ The detail richness and product offerings of our partners enable us to react to customers with targeted offers and features” — Sam McCready, CIO / CDO, Racing & Wagering WA

looking at customer outcome.”

Monitoring reception is a major part execution and staff are equipped for

and long-standing customers tests

customer interactions. “From a people

everything produced by RWWA, pro-

point of view, there was a huge amount

viding feedback that it uses to make

of work that went into changing com-

changes before complete roll-out.

munication styles, from analytical and

“There’s been a significant shift,”

problem solving approaches to more

McCready explains, “from looking at

curiosity-based, customer-centric

what you’re technically delivering to

methods,” he continues. As a highw w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

R AC I N G & WAG E R I N G WA

422

FEBRUARY 2020

2003

Year founded

$1.3bn+ Revenue in USD dollars

500

Number of employees 423 transaction business, RWWA sees customers making significant amounts of transactions in short periods of time. “The experience needs to be seamless,” McCready states, “Regardless of what industry you’re looking at, to engage customers you need highly-motivated individuals that are offered a slick way of working with quality processes and quality technology pipelines.” w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

R AC I N G & WAG E R I N G WA

“ We are a business that has be always be on the right side of regulators.

It keeps us accountable both in a financial and an ethical sense” — Sam McCready, CIO / CDO, Racing & Wagering WA

Between 18 months ago when the bulk of the change began and now, RWWA looks like a different company.

424 The approach for change has been top down, but execution has been at every level of the business. RWWA has created a new product owner role, part of a team of leaders that execute all delivery functions. Teams now combine developers, marketing specialists, analysts, and product experts.

“I suppose one of the challenges with any transformation is it’s never really done,” McCready says, “there is a continual drive for improvement across all teams; it’s a part of our required outcomes.”

Change remains on the horizon for RWWA. Over the next six to 12 months, it is going to be moving FEBRUARY 2020

425

and re-platforming its back-

modernising the business.” McCready

end databases and product

concludes, “We’re effectively making

engines over to AWS to

sure that we’ve got the workforce, the

promote further cloud imple-

technical stack, and the product offer-

mentation. It is also currently

ing to promote a brand that is already

undergoing a privatisation

well-established and now competes

process, moving away from

very well with competitors.”

its government ownership.

“I think it’s been really interesting going through and w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

426

Social Futures: road-mapping digital transformation FEBRUARY 2020

427

WRITTEN BY

SHANNON LEWIS PRODUCED BY

STUART IRVING

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

SOCIAL FUTURES

We speak to Ashleigh Martin, Manager of Digital Innovation and Transformation, about the importance of not just being reactionary to new technologies, but laying the groundwork for a clear forward strategy around digital transformation

428

W

ith over 40 years’ experience as an advocate and service provider to regional communities, Social Futures is

an expanding social justice organisation based in Northern New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Its partnerships with the community and with state and federal governments have allowed Social Futures to grow its reach across NSW, delivering homelessness and housing support, youth and family services, and disability schemes. With core values such as inclusion, integrity and learning, this not-for-profit is accredited by the Australian Service Excellence Standards (ASES).

Ashleigh Martin is the Manager of Digital Innovation and Transformation at Social Futures, overseeing the not-for-profit’s strategic and operational use of information systems and digital technologies. “I’m responsible for helping set the agenda for how we use technology, both in the FEBRUARY 2020

429

w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

SOCIAL FUTURES

“ The strategy for the board is one of thoughtful growth and expansion.

It means we’re setting our agenda to best scale the impact” — Ashleigh Martin, Manager of Digital Innovation and Transformation, Social Futures

short to medium term, as well as into the future,” he explains. Martin brings with him over two decades of experience in the corporate sector, from the design and delivery of technical services, the development of business technology strategy, architecture and transformation programs, through to senior IT management and operational roles with large multinational corporations across Australia and Asia.

His blend of commercial and technical experience lends him a unique perspective. “At Social Futures, I am

430

privileged to be able to work along the full breadth of the transformation journey; from setting the strategic agenda and designing systems, through to rolling my sleeves up and taking an active role in their implementation,” Martin elaborates. When he joined in December 2018, Social Futures was in the midst of a significant growth in scale thanks to a new contract from the federal government as part of a national program to transform the disabilities services sector. Social Futures was chosen as the local area coordination provider for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

FEBRUARY 2020

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SOCIAL FUTURES’ RECONCILIATION ACTION PLAN’ 431 The organisation close to doubled in

where they are. “The strategy for the

size over an ambitious timeframe, now

board is one of thoughtful growth and

employing almost 300 staff across 21

expansion,” Martin says. “It means

locations. “With that expanded foot-

we’re setting our agenda to best scale

print and staff, we needed to establish

our impact and maintain our unique

new ways of collaborating with each

organisational culture even as we

other, new ways of making decisions,

grow.” This involves setting a clear plan

tracking outcomes and supporting

while simultaneously remaining open

staff services,” Martin says.

and flexible. “We consider ourselves a

The organisation’s focus is on

learning organisation. We can change

establishing new frameworks and

when we need to.” This is especially

systems, understanding best prac-

relevant as the human services sector

tices and sharing these across its

moves to outcomes-based funding

many locations to ensure clients have

models. “Not only must we be able to

a consistent experience no matter

demonstrate the impact we’re having w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

Imagine a world where we embrace the abilities of people living with disability.

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but we also need to identify services

funders, donors and clients. The

gaps in our communities to better

sector as a whole is becoming more

design programs and advocate for

oriented towards customer service.

funding,” Martin says. His team has

New technology allows Social Futures

designed a comprehensive IT strategy,

to clearly track its progress and offer

reviewed yearly, aligning current busi-

data-driven insights. On the funding

ness needs with a vision of greater

side, this means being able to integrate

organisational effectiveness and tech

with whatever platform funders use to

sophistication. “In my experience,”

track outcomes. On the delivery side,

Martin says, “without that set of prin-

it is about efficiency. Social Futures

ciples to focus on, without a roadmap,

information systems have moved from

you become reactionary. This has

transactional local-based services

made us a lot more strategic.”

to scalable dynamic utility-based

Social Futures is looking into how tech can best serve people: staff, FEBRUARY 2020

offerings that better meet the needs of all stakeholders. Whether this is

E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE

Ashleigh Martin With a successful career spanning senior commercial IT and strategic technology consulting roles across ANZ and Asia Pacific, Ashleigh brings a uniquely valuable perspective in aligning digital technologies with business strategy and then transforming technology strategy into plans of action.

His expertise in implementation planning and transformation execution helps organisations maximise their chance of success through carefully designed roadmaps and prioritised portfolios of tactical projects. A blend of strategic advisory and facilitation experience compliments his skill and experience in project management and technology transformation execution.

Ashleigh leverages a natural systems-thinking mindset and takes a practical and human-centred approach to creative problem solving and operational excellence.

He believes in co-creating elegant technology solutions that address real business challenges and opportunities, providing organisations with the means to generate greater levels of value, have greater impact in the markets or social sectors in which they operate, or simply to be more efficient in how they do what they do.

Ashleigh’s current passion and focus is in the social services sector where he is working with Social Futures to harness the benefits of digital technologies to; improve operational efficiencies, leverage the power of data to draw insights from the communities in which they serve, demonstrate social impact and inform systemic advocacy, and use technology to innovate the ways in which they engage an increasingly digital-savvy population.

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433

SOCIAL FUTURES

434

C O M PA N Y FACT S

The organisation went from having 30 to 40 staff, to employing almost 300 people across 20 locations under an aggressive timeframe

FEBRUARY 2020

automating base level transactions or outsourcing transactional IT systems, the goal is to move the organisation’s ICT focus from solving problems as they come to using automated systems to avoid them altogether and allow staff to spend less time on admin and more time with clients. “We traditionally operated like a help desk ‘break, fix’ service,” Martin says. “Now, we focus our IT function on higher added value, co-designing solutions with staff to truly meet their needs.” The organisation leverages its status as a not-for-profit to gain access to technology that has traditionally been the domain of large, well-funded commercial enterprises. “In terms of scalability, tech has been an enabler.” Martin says.

Partnerships have been key in helping Social Futures achieve this mission and their partnership with Australian-based cloud service provider Lumary has been crucial to its success. In 2018, Social Futures was looking for help in managing its NDIS Local Area Coordination programme; Lumary has experience developing a suite of products for the disability and aged care sectors in Australia. “Social w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

435

SOCIAL FUTURES

Futures takes a person-first approach to design, so we spent a considerable amount of time with the people who are going to be the beneficiaries of our tech solutions,” Martin says. “Lumary has always maintained a person-centred approach to its product.” Together they developed an application, migrating 7,000 records held across dozens of spreadsheets into a Salesforce client management system. Moving onto digital platforms such as cloud-based applications and data has allowed 436

Social Futures to better coordinate its staff and unlock productivity. In moving its workforce management solutions onto Fusion5’s Empower HR platform, Social Futures saw an 80% reduction in payroll errors. By using cloud-based training, it ensures its almost 300 employees all have access to the same information and elements of its recruitment process are also automated.

“We talk about change management and it’s not always done well,” Martin explains. “What worked well in one area through ambassadors and training small focus groups might not work in another.” Checking in on progress is a major element of Social Futures’ FEBRUARY 2020

“ In my experience, without that set of principles to focus on, without a roadmap, you become reactionary.

This has made us a lot more strategic” — Ashleigh Martin, Manager of Digital Innovation and Transformation, Social Futures

1978

Year founded

$39mn Revenue in US dollars

250

Number of employees

strategy. Staff are engaged as early

of big changes in two years,” Martin

as possible in the design process for

says. “We envision a future where we

the implementation of new systems.

can do more of what we do best and

“It’s been trial and error,” Martin con-

have capacity to scale.” With its digital

tinues. Moving towards becoming a

transformation journey well underway,

data-driven organisation has been

Social Futures has a bright future

beneficial to staff. An online central

ahead. “With our strategy, we are

depository of client information helps

always looking forward and our guiding

employees better manage clients.

star is to create positive social change

A second Lumary project around cli-

wherever we can,” Martin concludes.

ent management systems has seen success in the locations where it has been implemented. “We’ve made a lot w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com

437

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