Industry News
| News articles supplied in conjunction with MCN Direct Newswire and Top-Consultant.com |
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Accenture Acquires Acceria, Expanding Capabilities In Technology and Consulting Business Services for the Industrial Marketplace |
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| 26 July 2010 | Accenture (NYSE:ACN) has acquired Acceria, a privately held company based in France that specializes in providing business processes and methodologies dedicated to the after-sales operations of industrial companies. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The acquisition is designed to complement Accenture’s strength in providing services to the automotive and industrial manufacturing marketplace globally and further enhances Accenture’s capabilities in management consulting. The acquisition includes Acceria’s staff and assets which provide innovative business solutions intended to help companies improve and sustain after-sales performance. “For successful after-sales operations in a competitive market environment, optimizing a company’s product and service portfolio and its pricing strategy is key” said Sergio Colella, managing director of Accenture’s Industrial Equipment group. “Acceria’s after-sales expertise, industrialized assets and innovative solutions can help automotive and industrial manufacturing companies improve after-sales revenues. This acquisition is designed to accelerate Accenture’s expansion into the automotive and industrial marketplace.” “We are excited to be combining our business with Accenture’s consulting expertise and global reach,” said Laurent Boutboul, CEO of Acceria. “We are confident that together we will make a significant impact on the after-sales operations of companies in the automotive and industrial manufacturing sector, which should enable Accenture clients to set strategies that grow their businesses and allow for rapid return on investment.” Source: Top-Consultant |
A.T. Kearney achieves Carbon Neutrality in Global Consulting Operations fulfilling 2007 pledge |
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| 26 July 2010 | Global management consulting firm A.T.Kearney today announced it has achieved carbon neutrality across its worldwide operations, fulfilling its first-in-the-industry 2007 pledge to be carbon neutral in 2010. A.T. Kearney has 1,700 consultants in 54 offices in 37 countries. A.T. Kearney's approach to carbon neutrality is built on four planks that reach across its entire organization: defining and measuring a rigorous set of carbon indicators, empowering employees globally to develop greener office protocols, innovating new models for client-service delivery and investing in climate-protecting projects meeting the highest international quality standards. The firm's carbon neutrality is part of a broader initiative designed to deliver sustainable, environmentally sound results to A.T. Kearney's global client base. "Our clients are increasingly committed to finding more sustainable ways of doing business and we are dedicated to helping them do that," said Paul A. Laudicina, A.T. Kearney's managing officer and chairman of the board. "Our pledge to become carbon neutral was predicated first on changing the way we operate, then making up the difference with high-quality carbon-offset investments." In 2007 A.T. Kearney established a set of carefully defined baseline metrics against which to monitor and measure its carbon footprint. Since then, the firm has worked to significantly reduce carbon emissions throughout its operations, achieving a 5% reduction in 2008, a 14% reduction in 2009, and aspiring to a 20% reduction in 2010. More than 80 percent of A.T. Kearney's carbon footprint is related to travel. The firm developed advanced tools to calculate carbon emissions for all travel criteria including airline, hotel, car, rail, public transportation and taxi use and measures the carbon impact of travel by employee, office location and client project. A.T. Kearney's efforts to measure and track business- travel emissions have been recognized as pioneering and best practice by numerous travel industry groups. A.T. Kearney also established a global network of Sustainability Czars throughout its operations to spearhead local initiatives and drive cultural change throughout the organization. Offices have implemented more sustainable policies and practices, including renovations certified for energy efficiency and environmental design and state-of-the-art collaborative technologies. "We are proud to be the first among our traditional high-value added consulting peers to be carbon neutral worldwide," Laudicina said. "A.T. Kearney's advice to our clients is now 100 percent carbon neutral." Source: Top-Consultant |
2011 MCA Awards launched - new merged awards will focus on the value of consulting |
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| 26 July 2010 | The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) is proud to announce the launch of the 2011 MCA Awards. The MCA's two previous awards initiatives, the Management Awards and the Consultant of the Year Awards, have joined together to become the 2011 MCA Awards: the winning entries for both outstanding projects and individual consultants will be celebrated at a single ceremony. As the benchmark for quality within the consulting industry, the awards are the perfect way to demonstrate the value of consulting - to clients and the wider economy. The 2011 Awards will recognise the industry's best projects and individuals. The winners will be announced at a black tie awards ceremony in April 2011. The MCA Awards are decided by an independent judging panel that boasts a wealth of experience and expertise, spanning the full spectrum of business areas. Entries will be judged on the value they created. A rigorous two-stage judging process ensures that only the best can win. Alan Leaman, Chief Executive of the MCA commented: "The MCA is working with even greater determination to show the value of management consulting to business, the public sector and the economy as a whole - particularly during this time of economic uncertainty. The MCA Awards play an important role in this, demonstrating the tangible value of consulting through real-life examples and case studies. After the success of the awards in 2010, I anticipate that the 2011 awards will be even more competitive. The challenge is now on for consulting firms and individual consultants to prove that they deliver more than their competition." Project award categories:
Individual consultant categories:
For further information on the awards, visit www.mca.org.uk/awards or contact Stephanie Mitchell on 020 7321 3995 or stephanie.mitchell@mca.org.uk. Source: Top-Consultant |
Capgemini and Oracle leverage strategic alliance |
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| 19 July 2010 | Capgemini announced that it is leveraging its strategic alliance with Oracle, the world’s largest business software company, to market and implement Oracle Revenue Management for Public. Capgemini’s implementation experience, combined with Oracle’s leading products in this industry, is already enabling innovative solutions for clients in the US and Australia that consolidate information across tax, revenue and welfare sources, drive efficiencies and help resolve issues created by legacy systems. Capgemini and Oracle are working in a strategic alliance to pursue further tax, revenue and welfare management opportunities globally. “The combination of Capgemini’s implementation experience and Oracle’s standards-based application offers tax authorities flexible and cost-effective solutions to their technology challenge,” said Stephan Scholl, vice president and general manager, Oracle Tax Global Business Unit. “Working together, Oracle and Capgemini are committed to help tax and welfare agencies optimize the complex revenue collection process and quickly respond to tax law and regulatory changes.” “This go-to-market alliance is enabling Capgemini and Oracle to help streamline the work of tax agencies and reducing their tax gap” said Stan Cozon, Global Leader of Public Sector, Capgemini. “This continues our journey in becoming a global leader in tax transformation. After our success in the US, I’m delighted with our recent win in Australia which is testament to our work with Oracle.” This alliance supports Capgemini and Oracle’s significant focus on working with the leading global tax and welfare agencies as part of their global Public Sector practices. Source: Top-Consultant |
10 new partners join Ernst & Young’s Advisory Services practice in 12 months |
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| 19 July 2010 | 10 new partners have joined Ernst & Young’s Advisory practice in the UK & Ireland over the last 12 months, as part of the firm’s ambitious growth plans to double revenues for Advisory over the next three years. The new partners are both direct entry (4) – those who have been appointed externally – and partner admissions (6) – those who have been appointed from within the firm. Harry Gaskell, managing partner, advisory services, said: “These new partners are outstanding performers. They will help drive our ambitious growth plans across UK and Ireland, and help cement the firm’s position as the leading provider of advisory services.” Scott Halliday, managing partner UK & Ireland, Ernst & Young, said: “The UK & Ireland firm makes a vital and significant contribution to the development of our global business, both in terms of revenue generation and the mobility of our skilled people. These outstanding individuals, whose performance and accomplishments throughout their careers have led to their admission to the partnership, will really make a difference in their new roles and help us capitalise on our current opportunities both in the UK and around the world, as we lay the foundations for future growth.” For the first time this year the firm is introducing a Global New Partner Program, which will be held in Washington D.C. in the autumn to celebrate the achievements of all its new partners from around the world. Source: Top-Consultant |
ACCENTURE FORECASTS FALL IN REVENUE |
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| 13 July 2010 | Accenture has reported positive financial results for its third quarter to 31 May, but warns that its net revenue for the full fiscal year may fall by up to 3%. The firm's revenue rose 8% in the third quarter to $5.6 billion (£3.7 billion), but this followed falls of 11% in the first quarter and 2% in the second. Fourth-quarter revenue is expected to reach $5.2-5.4 billion, again narrowing the deficit, but failing to boost revenue growth significantly. Accenture's consulting and outsourcing businesses both increased their net revenues in the third quarter, with consulting up 9% at $3.2 billion and outsourcing up 7% at 2.4 billion. The firm's five operating groups all achieved revenue growth, with Asia-Pacific delivering 16% growth, the Americas 11% and EMEA 4%. Accenture CEO William Green commented: "We are delighted with our revenue growth, our momentum and our results in the third quarter, with growth led by strong performances from our products and financial services operating groups. While recovery in the economic environment remains uneven, we continue to see increasing demand for our services." Accenture estimates that its net revenue for the current fiscal year will be "at the low end of its previously guided range of -3% to +1%". Source: Management Consultan't News Direct |
MCA PUTS CASE FOR GOVERNMENT CONSULTANCY SPEND |
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| 13 July 2010 | The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) has estimated that management consultants delivered £3.2 billion worth of benefits to central government in 2009. In a report based on research among its members, '21st Century Government: Adding value, cutting the deficit', the MCA says spending on management consulting totalled £640 million last year - below the Government's own figure on consultancy expenditure, which includes investment outside Whitehall and spending on other forms of consulting, such as legal and PR, as well as on the use of contractors and interim managers. The MCA reports that around 75% of management consulting work in central government is commissioned because of a lack of specialist skills and that 40% of spending on consultants is for programme and project management, particularly complex, high-profile projects. While most management consultancies say there has been a more intelligent approach to buying their services across government since the National Audit Office report on consultancy in 2006, they believe the use of consultancy should be measured on outcomes and value delivered, and that government statistics should distinguish management consulting from work by contractors and interim managers to cover staff vacancies. Commenting on the research, MCA chief executive Alan Leaman said: "It makes economic as well as practical sense to draw on outside expertise whenever it is cost-effective to do so. The coalition government will need access to the best skills that are available outside government to achieve its ambitious objectives, particularly a step change in public sector productivity. Many of the best and most radical approaches to public service provision originate in the consulting industry." Source: Management Consultant's News Direct |
PwC ADDS NEW CONSULTANCY PARTNERS |
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| 13 July 2010 | PricewaterhouseCoopers has named 19 new partners in its UK consulting business, adding to the 110 already in post, and is promising to build the total to 200 over the next few years. The consultancy newcomers are among a total of 38 staff who were promoted to partner status on 1 July. Most of the consulting partners will specialise in the government & public sector or in financial services, with some dedicated to enterprise performance management. Commenting on the promotions, PwC UK chairman Ian Powell said: "We continue to recruit and promote talent focused on delivering outstanding service based on our clients' needs. As market leader, we believe that we must invest for the long-term success of the business and the wider economy. Alongside these partner admissions we remain committed to recruiting over 1,000 graduate entrants over the coming year." • PwC is not alone in this recruitment ambition with Deloitte planning to hire over 1,100 graduates across its audit, tax, corporate finance and consulting businesses in the next 12 months. Source: Management Consultants News Direct |
BOOZ AND AT KEARNEY DROP MERGER TALKS |
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| 13 July 2010 | Merger discussions between management consultancies Booz & Co and AT Kearney have collapsed, leaving both strategy specialists exposed to predators and the loss of leading partners and staff. Talks between the firms were revealed in June, but ceased early last week with a joint statement saying: "AT Kearney and Booz & Co confirm that they have ended discussions about a possible merger of the two partnerships. While the two firms greatly respect each other's legacy and capabilities, they have determined that their future aspirations will be best realised as separate partnerships." In a market dominated by large, global consultancies and characterised by a fall in pure strategy consulting in favour of a broader approach, the collapse of merger talks may make both firms' positions more precarious, with competitors keen to poach talented employees and partners who are worried about their future, and large consultancies perhaps playing the acquisition card. The merger was set to create the third largest independent strategy consultancy in revenue terms behind McKinsey and Boston Consulting Group. In 2009, AT Kearney reported revenue of $786 million (£519 million), down from about $900 million in the previous year. Booz & Co achieved revenue of about $1 billion last year. Joining forces would also have created strength in numbers through the combination of AT Kearney's 2,500 employees and 240 partners, and Booz & Co's 3,300 staff and 200 partners. Source: Management Consultant News Direct |
PA Consulting Group sells international development consulting business |
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| 8 July 2010 | Tetra Tech has signed a definitive agreement to purchase the US-based international development consulting business practice from London-headquartered PA Consulting Group (PA). Tetra Tech intends to acquire the portions of PA that focus on international energy and infrastructure consulting services, a practice that generates about $35 million of annual revenue. Tetra Tech plans to close the transaction during the fourth quarter of its fiscal 2010. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. This transaction will add about 125 employees to Tetra Tech's Technical Support Services segment. It will double Tetra Tech's energy management consulting business, expanding Tetra Tech's customer base with key utilities and government agencies and adding technical skills in utility performance improvement, market research, and modeling. About half of the business serves the US Agency for International Development, focusing on energy sector reform, regulation, and utility performance improvement in emerging economies. Source: Top-Consultant |
Bourne Business Consulting acquired by LECG |
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| 8 July 2010 | Bourne Business Consulting LLP has been acquired by LECG Corporation for an initial consideration of GBP 2.75 million plus contingent consideration over the next four years. Equiteq LLP, a specialist merger and acquisition (M&A) firm in the consulting and IT services sector, was lead advisor to Bourne in the sale, which adds Bourne's UK asset taxation expertise to LECG's global financial and economic advisory capability. Equiteq's Managing Partner Paul Collins said: "Having been equity growth advisors to Bourne since 2003, we are now delighted to bring these two companies together. LECG is a perfect fit for Bourne and the deal will produce significant synergistic benefits for both parties. The sale of an LLP to a major corporation is a rare event, but having sold another LLP early in 2010, we were able to navigate the complexities and bring it to a successful completion within 6 months." Commenting on the deal, Bourne's Managing Partner, Philip Feibusch said: "We are delighted to be joining LECG and could not have achieved this without Equiteq." Source: Top-Consultant |
Ex-FSA CIO Darryl Salmons joins Ineum Consulting |
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| 5 July 2010 | Ineum Consulting, the international strategy, organisation and information systems consultancy that is a part of Management Consulting Group Plc, has announced the appointment of former FSA Chief Information Officer Darryl Salmons as a Partner in its London office. Salmons will be responsible for leading Ineum’s CIO Advisory practice in the UK with an initial focus on Financial Services. The CIO Advisory service offering is targeted at the key issues on the CIO agenda ranging from IT strategy and planning to project management and governance. For the past five years Salmons has been CIO at the FSA where he led a successful IT transformation and outsourcing programme, and implemented a number of major IT systems such as GABRIEL, the FSA’s online regulatory reporting system. Prior to that he was Group CIO at De La Rue, the leading banknote printer, where he was responsible for leading the Group’s global IT function. Ineum Consulting’s UK Managing Partner Luke Williams commented: “The development of a CIO Advisory practice is a key part of our strategy for providing experienced-led consulting and advisory services to our customers. Darryl brings invaluable insight into the CIO agenda particularly at a time when the Financial Services sector is experiencing increased regulatory and other key strategic challenges.” Salmons added: “I am delighted to be joining Ineum at such an exciting time, and look forward to assisting clients as they seek to deal with the challenges and opportunities ahead.” Source: Top-Consultant |
PwC announce 57 new UK partner promotions |
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| 5 July 2010 | PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) announced the admission of 38 new partners with effect from 1 July 2010 in addition to 19 partners recruited during the course of the year. Ian Powell, UK senior partner and Chairman, commented: "I’m delighted to welcome these new partners to the firm. We continue to recruit and promote talent focused on delivering outstanding service based on our clients’ needs. Both the partner promotions and new partner recruitment reflect our strategy of building the broadest and deepest range of specialists. "We are fortunate to be able to recruit and retain the best talent in what remain uncertain and challenging economic conditions. As market leader we believe that we must invest for the long-term success of the business and the wider economy and alongside these partner admissions we remain committed to recruiting over 1,000 graduate entrants over the coming year." Source: Top-Consultant |
Michael Portillo to give MCA’s annual lecture |
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| 5 July 2010 | Former Secretary of State for Defence and Treasury Minister, writer and broadcaster, Michael Portillo, will give the Management Consultancies Association’s (MCA) annual lecture on Thursday 15th July 2010. The MCA Annual Lecture is by invitation only and is attended by partners and directors from MCA member firms and senior representatives from business, academia and the media. Portillo worked for the Conservative Party and for government ministers between 1976 and 1983. He entered the House of Commons in 1984 and was a minister for eleven years and had three positions in the Cabinet, including Secretary of State for Defence and Chief Secretary to the Treasury. He lost his seat at the 1997 election, and began to develop a career in the media. He returned to the Commons between 2000 and 2005, was shadow Chancellor, and contested the leadership of the party in 2001. Since leaving politics, Portillo has devoted himself to writing and broadcasting. He writes for the Sunday Times and is a regular on both BBC 1’s “This Week” programme and Radio 4’s “Moral Maze”. He has made documentaries on subjects as diverse as Richard Wagner and the death penalty and, in 2008, chaired the judges of the Man Booker prize. Portillo will be addressing the audience on the subject of new agendas for business and government. Alan Leaman said: “We are delighted that Michael Portillo will be giving his views and insights on the future for business and government. At these uncertain times, it will be fascinating to hear his unique take on the new coalition government and what lies ahead.” Source: Top-Consultant |
Digital Public and CVL merge to form new management consultancy,/h2> |
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| 5 July 2010 | Digital Public is a market leader in the re-design of public services and recently won for the second year running the Management Consultancies Association award for the most innovative consultancy in the UK. CVL works with retail, media and telecoms businesses to advance their use of technology, e-commerce, and logistics. Both companies have proven track records in delivering an enhanced customer experience with reduced delivery costs and improved outcomes. Both are owned by Engine, the UK’s largest and fastest growing communications consultancy, with CVL joining the Group in April this year. Transform will provide Engine’s growing international client base with an integrated service offering created by today’s connected, digital consumers. Clients require, and consumers expect, the transaction experience to live up the brand promise. Transform works with clients to deliver on that promise by improving the efficiency and effectiveness of their systems and processes. As part of Engine, Transform also provides a natural transition for clients requiring support in creating and managing demand for their brands, products and services. At launch, Transform will have over £11 million of annual revenue and over 100 staff based at Engine’s London HQ. Transform’s client base spans the private and public sectors and includes Argos, Orange, O2, Asda, Arcadia, the Home Delivery Network, Gala Coral, NHS Direct, Tesco, Department of Health, Department of Education, Home Office, Cabinet Office and the Skills Funding Agency. Simon Clark, currently Managing Director of CVL, becomes Managing Director of Transform. Jonathan Peachey, currently CEO of Digital Public, becomes Chairman of Transform. Commenting on the formation of the new business, Jonathan Peachey, said: “Change is a constant in today’s world. Radically changing markets create a need for businesses to change themselves. Citizens and consumers are driving that change, and demanding new and improved services. Transform will use its unrivalled experience to help our clients to deliver the products and services that consumers demand and which allow them to take leadership over their rivals.” Simon Clark, Managing Director of Transform, added: “Our pragmatism and award-winning innovation combined with our skills and knowledge of business strategy, customer engagement and digital delivery make us unique in the business consultancy market. Transform is able to think across all angles and focus clients on change and opportunities that drive their business success.” Source: Top-Consultant |
Management consultancy delivers value for central government, says MCA |
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| 5 July 2010 | The use of management consultants delivered benefits to central government in 2009 equivalent in value to £3.2bn, according to a new research report from the Management Consultancies Association (MCA). 21st Century Government: Adding value, cutting the deficit sets out the first authoritative analysis of how much central government departments spend on management consultancy and the types of work that management consultants do. It is based on detailed research with MCA member companies, representing around 70% of the industry, and contains a series of case studies. Alan Leaman, Chief Executive of the MCA, said: “It makes economic as well as practical sense to draw on outside expertise whenever it is cost effective to do so. The coalition government will need access to the best skills that are available outside government to achieve its ambitious objectives, particularly a step-change in public sector productivity. “Many of the best and most radical approaches to public service provision originate in the consulting industry and have delivered benefits worth many times their cost.” Key points from the MCA research report include:
Speaking about the differences between contractors/interim managers and management consultants, Richard Goodson, Vice President of Hitachi Consulting said: “Contractors and interim managers should be short-term solutions to resourcing problems but, unlike consultants, they can’t constructively challenge the requirements because they’re simply filling a pre-specified role. A team of consultants also brings a mix of skills and a willingness to work immensely hard whereas a single person tends to work at the rate of the people around them.” Alan Leaman concluded: “Greater scrutiny of consulting spending is welcome. The industry has a huge role to play in helping government to reduce costs and improve effectiveness. Our reform proposals will also help deliver further value for money for the taxpayer.” Source: Top-Consultant |
IT mergers resume as cloud use rises |
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| 28 June 2010 | Fearing that increased consolidation could lead to vendor lock-in, some users are looking to the cloud as a more open alternative. Patrick Thibodeau, Computerworld - At the onset of a stifling recession in the fall of 2008, the IT industry entered a new, rarely seen era in which merger activity virtually ground to a halt. That turnaround came abruptly, less than a month after Hewlett-Packard Co.'s $13.9 billion acquisition of Electronic Data Systems Corp. in late August of that year. On Sept. 15, Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. filed for bankruptcy, the Dow Jones industrial average plummeted 504 points, and HP itself announced plans to cut more than 25,000 jobs. By the first quarter of 2009, the value of tech deals was $3.1 billion -- far less than usual, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. It took almost a year for major IT merger activity to resume. In back-to-back September 2009 announcements, Dell Inc. agreed to buy Perot Systems Corp. for $3.9 billion, and Xerox Corp. agreed to pay $6.4 billion for Affiliated Computer Services Inc. By January, Oracle Corp. had closed a $7.4 billion deal to buy Sun Microsystems Inc., and in April, HP completed its $2.7 billion acquisition of 3Com Corp. While the renewed activity could prove beneficial to the economy, users fear that significant consolidation could increase vendor lock-in, and that's prompting some to consider shifting to cloud-based systems. Pros and Cons "A world where there is not much competition is a problem, certainly for public-sector buying," said Phyllis Koch, director of IT for the city of Boynton Beach, Fla. "I guess I'm torn. It's easier as an IT director not to have lots of different products, because then I become the integrator, as opposed to the company being the integrator for me." Nonetheless, the Boynton Beach government has made limited cloud moves that Koch said should help the city avoid vendor lock-in and make it easier to implement new technologies. For instance, Boynton Beach has hired SunGard Data Systems Inc. to run its AS/400-based ERP system, which could ease any move to a new platform such as the x86, she said. "I'm not concerned as long as healthy competition remains," said Jo-ann Olsovsky, technology services vice president and CIO at BNSF Railway Co. "We do our best to standardize and streamline the products we use, so certainly having fewer vendors can eliminate the complexity in our infrastructure." She noted that large vendors have been strategically acquiring technology via mergers for years. Andy West, a principal in McKinsey & Co.'s merger management practice, predicts "a coming wave" of acquisitions, citing the relatively high number of public companies and today's relatively low average sale prices. Cross-segment acquisitions, such as a storage firm buying a networking company, are the most likely moves in a technology market that "continues to be ripe for consolidation," he said. This story was originally published in Computerworld's print edition. It was adapted from an earlier version that first ran on Computerworld.com. Source: Top-Consultant |
CIOs looking to increase business value from technology |
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| 28 June 2010 | Cost gets downgraded as Tesco inspires CIOs to lead customer understanding KPMG study finds. Post credit crisis CIOs will not be totally focused on cost reduction, but instead looking to use technology to add value to the organisation writes Mark Chillingworth CIO UK - 21 June 2010. In the same month that saw the announcement that the next CEO of retailer Tesco will be their CIO; a study by KPMG finds that CIOs are looking beyond the recession to really drive the business forward through technology use, just as Tesco did. A KPMG study of 450 CIOs came to the conclusion that CIOs will now focus on the price and quality of deals from IT vendors and outsourced service providers, with 81 per cent reporting that they are focusing on getting value from their IT as their top priority. In doing so KPMG said CIOs “expect to IT to contribute directly to realising the business strategy and have a central role in management. Bryan Cruickshank, a partner at KPMG Advisory, which completed the research, said a clear example of this is supermarket Tesco, where Philip Clarke, the International Director of IT will replace Terry Leahy as CEO later this year. “Tesco have used IT to understand their audience and grow as a business,” Cruickhsank said of how Tesco has gone from an also ran in the UK supermarket sector to the undisputed leader. It has achieved this, he said, through its use of technology for its loyalty card and supply chain systems, leapfrogging rivals Sainsbury and Asda. “It is usually organisations that have gone public about the need to change the organisation, such as Tesco. Toby Redshaw, CIO at Aviva, formerly at Motorola is another example and will bring an emphasis on how technology delivers value and change to the Aviva business. “The CIO job is changing and requires a more intuitive understanding of business priorities. When looking at technology they are looking for something that adds value to the business, rather than getting a technology to right price point. Cost optimisation is considered to be about cost reduction, but it is not the case now, because the lowest cost is not always the best option,” Cruickshank said. KPMG Advisory does expect outsourcing service providers to be placed under increased pressure to deliver value as CIOs review their outsourcing arrangements. CIOs told KPMG that internally they see people as the most important component of the value equation they offer the organisation. |
Concentra appoints industry heavyweight to head up financial services practice |
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| 15 June 2010 | Ex-Microsoft executive to drive business growth in the industry. Concentra, a UK-based business consulting and technology services company, has appointed John Godfrey as director of financial services to lead its thriving financial services practice. Godfrey joins the company in this newly created role from Microsoft, where he held a senior client facing position in Microsoft Consulting Services. Godfrey started his career at the Bank of England and has worked across a wide range of sectors in the finance industry including retail banking, capital markets, insurance and mortgages. Throughout his career, Godfrey has been closely involved in helping businesses get value from technology, and has experience in developing online broker networks, Internet banks, web integration and business intelligence systems. Prior to Microsoft, Godfrey developed the Finance sector for Conchango, a specialist web, integration and BI consultancy, growing its finance sector revenues six-fold before its sale to EMC in 2008. “With over 25 years experience in the finance industry, John is in a prime position to drive development in this key area of our business. John’s insight into industry trends along with his ability to form successful client relationships will really help our ambitious plans for growth in this dynamic sector,” said Rupert Morrison, MD at Concentra. “I’m looking forward to using my finance and consultancy experience to drive Concentra forward in the finance sector. The company has seen some great results and having worked with its software, I am really excited by the benefits it can bring,” commented Godfrey. Source: Top-Consultant |
Consultants predict double digit growth for CRM work |
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| 15 June 2010 | Sourceforconsulting.com research identifies why over a third of CRM projects under deliver. New research by Sourceforconsulting.com has found that consulting firms are bullish about the CRM market with more than half of firms surveyed expecting double digit growth over the next six months. The Source research also found that the financial services sector is showing the most demand for CRM consultancy at the moment. Why over a third of CRM projects under deliver Source found that the proportion of projects failing to deliver what’s expected of them averaged out at just over a third (40 per cent). Chief amongst the reasons for under-performing projects were the lack of a clear strategy, and inadequate definition of requirements. Although sales departments within organisations are likely to be behind most CRM projects, Source findings show that they’re not necessarily where CRM will deliver most benefits. Consultants working in the area said that customer services and marketing were both functions more likely to benefit than sales. The main reasons people embark on CRM projects at the moment were identified as: 1. Improving customer experience 2. Increasing retention rates/reducing churn 3. Increasing customer profitability Ed Haigh, Head of Content and Marketing at Sourceforconsulting.com commented: “More than anything else, CRM initiatives are still borne out of a desire to improve customer experience and to increase retention rates amongst existing customers. Consulting firms are already reporting considerable demand from organisations, particularly in financial services - anxious to reconnect with their customers as confidence returns post recession.” CRM and thought leadership Source also utilised its online subscription based resource White Space to evaluate CRM thought leadership, both by quantity and quality. It found that thought leadership on CRM and how organisations segment, engage with and retain customers – accounts for around a third of all marketing and selling-related thought leadership. The Source ranking by quantity and quality of thought leadership is as follows: Quantity of thought leadership Leading CRM consulting firms by quantity of thought leadership are: 1. McKinsey 2. Accenture 3. Bain 4. Boston Consulting Group 5. IBM Quality of thought leadership Leading CRM consulting firms by quality of thought leadership are: 1. Booz 2. IBM 3. McKinsey Fiona Czerniawska, co-founder of Source and editor of White Space, concluded: “CRM, as a source of consulting income as much as a topic of thought leadership, has been comparatively unimportant in recent years, but the last few months of the recession has reversed that trend.” The Sourceforconsulting.com briefing note provides clients with a comparison of consulting firms that provide CRM services, and the sectors that they have experience within. |
Atos Origin named #1 in customer satisfaction in global telecom IT outsourcing for second consecutive year |
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| 9 June 2010 | Atos Origin was named Top Vendor in IT Telecom Outsourcing for the second consecutive year in customer experience following an in-depth survey by analyst Black Book, part of Datamonitor. Atos Origin scored Top Vendor in IT Telecom Outsourcing on 11 out of 18 performance areas. The report interviewed 629 individuals – including C officers of the Fortune 200 and Inc 500 - that work for telecom operators across the world and over 186 technology and outsourcing contracts were investigated. "Atos Origin has earned the distinction of being the most customer-respected Telecommunications IT vendor in the world," said Doug Brown, co-author of The Black Book of Outsourcing. "Atos Origin has earned the top honors in the industry due to its ability to deploy technology solutions consistently across the full spectrum of criteria that clients seek and honor in their outsourcing vendor." Bruno Fabre, Executive Vice President for Telecom and Media at Atos Origin explains: “The Telecom market is crucial to Atos Origin’s growth and this ranking as a Top Vendor in IT Telecom Outsourcing is proof of our customers’ trust in our capabilities. Atos Origin is helping operators worldwide with its technology to compete more effectively, generate larger revenues and profits and cut costs in ways that were difficult or impossible before Atos Origin services were introduced.” Atos Origin holds extensive contracts in managed services with major telecom networks operators in Europe such as France Telecom, KPN and E-Plus and has built a global and proven expertise with its end-to-end contract for the Olympic Games in which the IT services provider is responsible for all managed operations during this highly visible worldwide project. As stated in the report, telecom operators rate Atos Origin as: “Overwhelming satisfaction, exceeds expectations, highly recommended vendor.” Atos Origin has more than 20 years experience and annual revenues of €750 million in the telecom and media industries. Through its team of local experts and continuously evolving portfolio of services, Atos Origin offers an end-to-end approach to IT services. It delivers consulting, systems integration and managed operations services that enable its customers to grow their business, reduce costs and increase efficiency and revenue. Source: Top-Consultant |
Deloitte acquire identity & access management firm IM Global |
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| 9 June 2010 | Deloitte, the business advisory firm in the UK, has acquired IM Global, a specialist identity and access management security firm. IM Global will be integrated into Deloitte’s security team as part of the Information & Technology Risk (I&T Risk) practice which consists of over 500 professionals who help organisations deal with complex risk and control issues. Identity and access management incorporates the processes, technologies, and policies used to manage digital identities and specify how they are used to access resources. The acquisition will strengthen Deloitte’s existing identity and access management capabilities, with 17 specialists joining from IM Global to create one of the largest identity and access management teams in Europe. Simon Owen, lead partner of Deloitte’s I&T Risk practice said: “Identity and access management is cited as a significant concern by corporates in our recent security survey. Organisations are looking to increase the degree of control they have over who has access to their IT applications and networks. The acquisition of IM Global will significantly boost our existing capabilities.” Deloitte will be joined by three new associate partners from IM Global: Ian McCaw, Paul Boichat and Alam Hussain. Ian McCaw Managing Director of IM Global said: “Deloitte and IM Global have worked together on clients in the past, and with Deloitte’s advisory and strategic expertise and the complimentary vendor and technical skills of IM Global we are confident we will form a winning combination in the UK and EMEA market. |
CSC reports strong Q4 results |
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| 3 June 2010 | New business awards of $4.3 billion for the quarter and $19.2 billion for the year, an annual increase of 18.5% and compares favorably to the latest guidance of $19 billion. CSC reported fourth quarter fiscal 2010 revenue of $4.2 billion and fully diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.66 compared to fourth quarter fiscal 2009 revenue of $4.1 billion and EPS of $2.51 (which included $1.11 of net favorable tax audit settlements). For the full year, revenue was $16.1 billion (compared to $16.7 billion for the previous year), and EPS was $5.28 (compared to $7.31 for the previous year which included a total of $3.36 of net favorable tax audit settlements). Commenting on the results, CSC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Laphen said, “We had a solid quarter and an outstanding year marked by robust cash generation, further increased profitability, and a significantly strengthened balance sheet. I am especially pleased with our success in capturing new business with another $4.3 billion of new awards in the quarter bringing our total year result to $19.2 billion, a record for CSC and $3 billion above last year.” The breakdown of the $4.3 billion of new business awards in the quarter by our three lines of business is as follows: North American Public Sector (NPS) contributed $1.4 billion ($7.1 billion for the full year), Business Solutions and Services (BSS) reported $0.8 billion ($3.4 billion for the full year), and Managed Services Sector (MSS) closed $2.1 billion of new business ($8.7 billion for the full year). Business Outlook “Our fourth quarter revenue reflects a sequential increase of 7%, and that, coupled with the $19.2 billion of new business awards, positions us for a return to growth in Fiscal Year 2011,” said Laphen. “As the world economies gradually improve, our financial strength, market position, and innovative solutions will stimulate expansion across our three lines of business.” For fiscal year 2011, the company anticipates bookings in excess of $18 billion, revenue in the range of $16.8 billion to $17.2 billion (an increase of 4% to 7%) and operating margin between 9% and 9.25%, representing a further increase of 25 to 50 basis points. EPS is projected to be in the $5.30 to $5.40 range, representing an increase of approximately 20% when normalized for tax rate. Free Cash Flow is forecast to be in excess of 90% of net income attributable to CSC common shareholders. Source: Top-Consultant |
MCA: Consultancy will deliver savings and improvements in services |
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| 3 June 2010 | The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) has responded to this morning’s statement on public sector cuts where the Chancellor and Chief Secretary to the Treasury announced £1.15bn of cuts to spending on consultancy, advertising and travel costs. Alan Leaman, Chief Executive of the MCA said: “Central government can do more to ensure value for money in its use of consultancy. A greater focus on outcomes, with a clear business case, is required, together with reduced use of interim staff. But consultancy will help this government to deliver the significant savings and improvements in public services that are needed in the future. We want to see an improved partnership between government and the consulting industry. The evidence shows that there is a significant return on investment from intelligent spending on consultancy.” Source: Top-Consultant |
Navigant Consulting acquires Daylight Forensic & Advisory | |
| 1 June 2010 | Navigant Consulting, Inc. has acquired Daylight Forensic & Advisory LLC, an international regulatory consulting and investigative firm specializing in financial investigations, AML consulting, regulatory compliance, forensic technology services, and fraud risk management. Combining Daylight Forensic & Advisory's industry expertise with Navigant's Disputes and Investigations practice creates a significantly enhanced global investigative service offering, and reinforces Navigant's strong New York presence. "This combination is clearly a case of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts," said William M. Goodyear, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navigant. "Daylight's market leading expertise in corporate investigations and compliance around AML, FCPA and fraud risk management, combined with Navigant's deep forensic accounting capabilities, creates a comprehensive offering in the global investigations and compliance space. This combination comes at a critical time for our clients who are facing increasing regulatory pressure and risks associated with global business transactions." Daylight Forensic & Advisory is headquartered in New York City and the majority of their 65 consulting professionals are based there. Daylight Forensic & Advisory was founded in 2006 by Ellen Zimiles, Chief Executive Officer, and Joseph Spinelli, Chief Operating Officer. Zimiles has more than 25 years of litigation and investigation experience, including 10 years as a federal prosecutor in the Southern District of New York. She is a leading authority on AML programs, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, fraud control and public corruption matters. Spinelli is a leading authority on white-collar crime with more than 30 years of forensic experience, including eight years as New York State's first Inspector General, leading fraud, abuse, waste and corruption investigations for all New York State agencies and authorities. He also served as Assistant Director of Criminal Justice for the State of New York, with responsibilities for the investigation of criminal complaints and fraud allegations throughout state government. In February 2010, Spinelli was appointed by Governor Paterson of New York to the New York State Commission on Public Integrity. "Pairing Daylight's strong business investigations expertise with Navigant's global reach and established forensic accounting practice enables our combined organization to provide both enhanced services to clients and broader opportunities to employees," commented Zimiles. "Navigant's client-centric focus is shared by all of us at Daylight, where our top experts have always worked side by side with clients." Source: Top-Consultant |
Logica partners with Consensus Point to predict the future |
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| 1 June 2010 | Consensus Point, one of the US’s leading providers of prediction markets, announces today its partnership with Logica, a leading business and technology service company. Consensus Point will provide the innovative collective intelligence solutions to enable Logica to rapidly advance the prospective business decisions critical to succeed in today’s economy. “Integrating objective thinking from top industry leaders, innovators, and leading academics, as well as the Logica community of consulting experts to gain in-depth insight, will enable us to spot trends ahead of time for our clients. Providing them with a way to read the market will offer them an additional competitive advantage,” commented Amanda Mesler, Chief Client Officer, Logica. “Consensus Point brought us a technology platform and market-leading solution to create a dynamic collaborative forum.” Logica FutureScope is the name of the Logica prediction market to guide the provocative and insightful observations regarding the ecosystem in order to enhance business growth and productivity. The predictions are focused around sustainability, future IT and cloud services, and security. You are invited to join us to offer your thoughts at www.logicafuturescope.com “We are thrilled to be working with Logica on their thought leadership initiatives,” said Linda Rebrovick, Consensus Point’s CEO. “We are confident our unconventional capabilities will offer Logica and their customers a uniquely rapid and robust lens into the future, which could never be accomplished with traditional research methods. Prediction Markets are the new leader in modelling social intelligence-based perspectives on any degree – on any scale.” Source: Top-Consultant |
Accenture acquires customer analytics company |
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| 1 June 2010 | Accenture has entered into an agreement to acquire assets from CadenceQuest, Inc., a privately-held Arlington, Va.-based company that specializes in customer data and analytics for the retail sector. The proposed acquisition of the retail sector software assets of CadenceQuest, Inc. would expand the suite of digital, marketing analytics, retail marketing and merchandising solutions and platforms offered by Accenture Interactive, which was launched in September 2009. Accenture Interactive helps companies develop industry-leading digital marketing capabilities, enhance the development and management of their websites and online marketing, and optimize their online and offline marketing investments to more effectively interact with and influence the behavior of targeted consumer segments. The CadenceQuest deal also is intended to help Accenture Interactive achieve its vision of becoming the premier provider of marketing technology and related services in its field. CadenceQuest’s Customer Insight software platform is a self-service analytical platform that allows retail decision makers to perform analyses on high-targeted customer segments, which enables them to gain deep insight about their customers and their behaviors. CadenceQuest’s capabilities, in combination with Accenture Interactive data mining, analytics and business intelligence capabilities, would enhance the delivery of on-demand, real-time customer insights that can be used to support the development and execution of customer loyalty, merchandising and marketplace strategies. For instance, one retail customer has deployed a CadenceQuest solution that can deliver actionable, real-time business intelligence to its merchants, marketers and vendors about its more than 50 million rewards customers, enabling them to more effectively target the right promotion to the right customer at the right time to create a lift in sales. The solution also extended the retailer’s ability to deliver real-time customer insights to its manufacturing partners through an insights portal. More than 50 major manufacturers, representing more than 250 leading national brands, use this data to gain competitive advantage. By combining CadenceQuest’s marketing, consulting and technology delivery capabilities with Accenture’s global infrastructure, Accenture Interactive plans to market the CadenceQuest Customer Insight solution to retailers and traditionally non-retail companies that migrate to a “retailization” model*. Additionally, with these capabilities, Accenture Interactive expects to be able to help companies create more precisely targeted marketing messages that respond to customer needs and support merchandising activities. “CadenceQuest’s Customer Insight software platform and its delivery capabilities combined with Accenture Interactive’s predictive demand analytics and industry-leading digital search and intelligent web solutions will deliver a comprehensive consumer-centric marketing capability that is otherwise unavailable in the customer insights and loyalty industry,” said Tim Breene, Accenture senior managing director of strategic initiatives and chief executive of Accenture Interactive. “Bringing these assets into the Accenture Interactive fold will expand our services and help our clients develop a clearer understanding of their customers’ preferences by applying the advanced marketing analytics capabilities that are the linchpin to a company’s ability to satisfy customers and grow their business.” CadenceQuest is an established provider of retail marketing analytics services in North America. Following the acquisition, Accenture Interactive will expand the reach of these services into new geographies, beginning in Asia, the U.K. and continental Europe. “We’re excited to have found a new home for these business assets within Accenture Interactive, given its global reach and cross-industry knowledge,” said Bob Ghafouri, chief executive officer of CadenceQuest, Inc. “The combination of Accenture Interactive’s capabilities and our on-demand customer analytics platform will enable the world’s leading retailers to translate valuable customer knowledge into highly profitable retail marketing programs.” The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, and is expected to close within 30 days. Source: Top-Consultant |
Wipro teams with SAP on sustainability solutions |
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| 1 June 2010 | Wipro Technologies, the global IT services business of Wipro, has entered into a co-innovation agreement with SAP AG to develop and deliver sustainability performance management and energy management solutions to enterprise customers globally. The goal is to empower customers to drive a greener footprint while enhancing their bottom line. Wipro and SAP will work together to implement SAP solutions for sustainability -- including the SAP Carbon Impact on-demand solution and the SAP BusinessObjects Sustainability Performance Management and SAP Environment, Health, and Safety Management (SAP EHS Management) applications -- with "green" IT services from Wipro. The resulting solutions will reduce compliance costs and business risk in the face of proliferating local, regional and global regulation in the areas of people, health and safety; product safety and stewardship; and environmental compliance. The solutions will employ best practices in sustainability performance management, including risk management and strategy management, and engage stakeholders with visible and accessible analytics to protect and enhance brand value, market share, and market capitalization. Wipro, an SAP services partner and a pioneer in the field of sustainability consulting services, helps clients to create ecologically sustainable enterprises. Wipro offers "green" IT services related to strategy and assessment, planning and implementation. This includes formulating an overall approach to green IT, including ROI modeling and quick-win roadmaps, as well as implementing specific solutions for virtualization, consolidation, data center design and architecture, and non-IT solutions such as power and cooling management. "Wipro has significant expertise in the domain of sustainability, especially in the areas of energy management and sustainability reporting," said Tobias Dosch, senior vice president, Development, On-demand Sustainability Solutions, SAP. "By collaborating with them to develop and deliver sustainability performance management and energy management solutions, we can help provide even greater value to customers. These planned solutions will help our customers meet their sustainability goals while achieving business benefits." "Companies need and want a consistent and integrated business process to address sustainability initiatives," said Sangita Singh, Senior Vice President, Enterprise Application Services, Wipro Technologies. "The agreement underscores Wipro's commitment to offer its clients sustainability solutions, helping them create ecologically sustainable enterprises. We are working closely with SAP to co-innovate on the development and deployment of sustainability solutions." Source: Top-Consultant |
Baringa Partners is the UK’s best place to work |
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| 1 June 2010 | Baringa Partners has been named as the best place to work in the UK by The Great Place to Work Institute. 2010 sees the culmination of a four-year period in which Baringa Partners has been consistently recognised among the top twenty Best Workplaces in the UK, achieving a second-place ranking for the past two years, behind Danone and Google respectively. Baringa Partners, which was also named as the 11th best workplace in Europe in the small and medium companies’ category, is a leading consultancy operating in the energy, utilities and financial services sectors. In addition to its number one ranking, Baringa Partners won the Most Trusted Leadership Excellence Award and were finalists in six special award categories, including the Health and Wellbeing Excellence Award, the Learning & Leadership Sustainability Excellence Award and the Corporate Responsibility Excellence Award. The Best Workplaces Programme is the largest of its kind, with more than 1.5 million employees involved across 40 countries. Companies are ranked according to the results of an employee survey, which ensures that employees make a substantial contribution to the final position, and a management questionnaire that provides an analysis of the values, policies and practices that underpin an organisation’s culture. Jim Hayward, Senior Partner at Baringa, says: “We are truly honoured by this accolade which comes at a particularly pleasing time for us as we celebrate our tenth anniversary this year. From the start, we have put our employees at the heart of the business and our first-place ranking underscores our unswerving commitment to create a positive and stimulating working environment for everyone at Baringa. Our core values are defined by everyone in the company and are hardwired into our corporate DNA. They guide and inspire our people to continuously grow themselves, our business and our clients’. They form the bedrock of our great place to work culture, are emphasised in all publications we produce and feature in our appraisal process. We even have a quarterly awards scheme in place that, among other categories, has a prize for the individual who has made an exceptional contribution to one or more of our core values.” Hayward continues: “Our people are characterised by their deep market-focused expertise and absolute commitment to delivering outstanding value and service to clients. In return, we are committed to supporting them throughout their career. All new starters are provided with a ‘buddy’ for the first year who can provide advice and unofficial help. In addition, all staff members are assigned a career advisor as part of the induction process who acts as a mentor throughout the individual’s time at Baringa. And thanks to our flat non-hierarchical structure they also have constant access to the management team, who work closely alongside them with no distinction by rank or seniority. We strongly believe that our supportive culture motivates our people to perform to the best of their ability. That’s reflected in the feedback we hear from clients, and the extremely low attrition rates for Baringa compared to the rest of our industry.” The firm also runs a Women’s Forum, which encourages female staff members to take charge of their career progression and realise their full potential in the consulting world. Twice a year the company hosts a weekend away for employees and their partners. These weekends typically include a company update and teambuilding activity as well as an informal dinner and dance. Baringa Partners also holds an annual Christmas party for employees’ children. Furthermore, its core values extend beyond the workplace and into the community with an active corporate social responsibility programme. Mohamed Mansour, Managing Partner at Baringa, adds: “As an organisation, we have successfully navigated the downturn and defied market conditions to grow our client base, headcount and revenue significantly in the last two years. Over the past year, we have delivered strategically important, high-impact change programmes across a comprehensive range of businesses. Baringa’s success is a testament to the strong foundations upon which we have built the company and is a credit to the calibre of our people” Mansour concludes: “We maintain a consistent and uncompromising focus on getting the right people into Baringa. Once the right people are on board we empower them to make a difference both at client sites and internally. Indeed, it’s hugely satisfying to note that many of our Great Place to Work initiatives, policies and practices have been initiated bottom up rather than top down. We plan to continue our robust growth trajectory during 2010 and beyond, while ensuring we maintain the culture that all our people have helped create.” Source: Top-Consultant |
Largest ever spring intake of graduates at PwC in the UK |
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| 19 May 2010 | A total of 153 graduates have joined the largest ever annual spring intake at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC), part of a 1,000 strong recruitment drive for the firm nationwide in 2010. The group joins the UK’s top graduate employer as trainees in tax and assurance, and for the first time includes 30 new recruits who will join the firm’s growing management and strategy consulting teams. Application rates to the firm’s spring intake increased by 88% between 2009 and 2010, attracting over 2,000 applications. The huge rise is largely due to management consulting vacancies being open in spring for the first time, with 40% applying for 30 management consulting roles in this intake. Ian Powell, chairman and senior partner, PwC, said: “This year’s recruitment strategy is not about maintaining our numbers, it’s about our ambition and growth in the market. Keeping our doors open to new talent and experience during the recession fuels our business growth strategy in the recovery. The fact that we have had to increase this year’s spring intake speaks volumes for the return on investment for holding our nerve on graduate recruitment during the recession because we’ve attracted and retained the best people.” Sonja Stockton, head of recruitment, PwC, commented: "We've increased the spring intake to accelerate graduates into growing areas of the business. The continued demand and interest in our roles from students and graduates alike shows no signs of tailing off, because they realise that when they join PwC, they are joining a university of business. The level of training, investment and support we give them, the quality of work, and the variety of career opportunities it opens up, means we're becoming a hot house for UK business talent. “Talented, enterprising people matching academic achievement with a confidence in their skills, an ability to learn and contribute are always in demand by our business, and mean the war for talent, for employers and recruits alike is still very much alive.” The spring intake has attracted a wider variety than ever in the studies and experiences of those who have joined the firm. Two out of three studied science, the arts and engineering, and also include those who have taken time out to travel or change careers, demonstrating the renewed appeal of professional services to graduates and students alike. Amongst the new recruits, David Banks will join PwC’s assurance practice in Sheffield, after studying physics at Imperial College and achieving a PhD in laser physics at Southampton University. He said: “When I started university, accountancy wasn’t on my radar but I was attracted by the idea that it’s a career with long-term prospects and excellent training, rather than just a job. The university roles I was considering in my field were mostly short-term contracts, often less than two years, and this just did not offer the sort of long-term stability I was looking for.” Competition for remaining places in the firms A Level entry scheme in August and graduate entry schemes in September and October remains very strong, further extending the record 48% increase in applications last year, which resulted in 18,000 applications to the firm. Of the spring intake: • 66% studied subjects not traditionally associated with accountancy – including humanities, languages, law and sciences • 76% join London offices • Over a third (36%) from an ethnic minority, a 10% increase on the spring intake last year • 34% are over 25 years old, compared with 31% last year and 18% in 2008 PwC maintained its graduate recruitment programme throughout the recession, including expanding its internship programmes and consulting vacancies. By the end of 2010 the firm will have recruited over 3,000 graduates through its graduate recruitment programme in a three year period, creating an average of almost 20 intern and full time job opportunities a week throughout the recession for students and graduates nationwide. Source: Top-Consultant |
Cognizant acquires program management consulting firm PIPC |
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| 19 May 2010 | Cognizant, a provider of information technology, consulting, and business process outsourcing services, has acquired The PIPC Group, a global program management consulting firm based in London. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. With more than 200 professionals worldwide, primarily in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and the US, PIPC helps leading global companies drive business transformation by providing industry-leading program management services, methods and tools, including its PMO (Project Management Office) core competency and its PhD (Project Health Diagnostic) tool, which has been successfully deployed in over 800 engagements. PIPC will extend and complement Cognizant's existing project management and consulting capabilities and further Cognizant's ability to provide integrated services across consulting, technology, and business process outsourcing. "We welcome PIPC's talented program management experts to Cognizant. At a time when cyclical and secular pressures are driving clients to seek new performance thresholds, effective program management is essential to ensure measurable business outcomes. PIPC's strategic program management offerings will strengthen our ability to manage increasingly complex global projects while expanding our geographic footprint, particularly in Australia, New Zealand and the UK," said Francisco D'Souza, President and CEO, Cognizant. "This acquisition builds on our long-standing strategy of adding sharply focused business capabilities that complement our existing offerings and enhance the value we offer clients." "With 85,500 associates worldwide, Cognizant will provide the global delivery capability, experience and scale to enable PIPC to accelerate its growth ambitions. Our organizations have the right cultural fit, and together we can drive business transformation initiatives that combine high-quality consulting, IT, and business process outsourcing services with our advanced project management offerings," said Simon Rawling, Group Managing Director at PIPC. Source: Top-Consultant |
Steria Q1 revenue up 4.6% |
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| 19 May 2010 | For its first quarter of 2010, the Steria’s consolidated revenue amounted to €414.6 million, an increase of 4.6% compared to the first quarter 2009. Currency variation, particularly in sterling, contributed €6.3 million to revenue growth. On a like for like basis, Group revenue rose by 2.9% relative to the first quarter 2009. The banking sector, which showed signs of improvement, the public sector and the energy sector contributed positively to growth in the first quarter 2010, while the telecommunications sector remained difficult. The pipeline, measured as a proportion of forecast annual revenue, rose in all of the Group’s geographic areas relative to the first quarter 2009. As of 31 March 2010, the Group’s pipeline stood at 2.5 times forecast annual revenue, compared to 2.1 times as of 31 March 2009. In France, the improving trend seen in the final quarter of 2009 was confirmed in the first quarter 2010 with organic revenue growth of 2.6% relative to the first quarter 2009. The progressive strengthening of the activity throughout the quarter, the encouraging pipeline trend and an intercontract rate that was kept low confirm that the business in France has returned to a positive trend. In the United Kingdom, revenue rose by 1.7% at constant currency. In a challenging economic and political environment, the Group expects, given its solid position with long-term contracts notably in the public sector, revenue for the full-year 2010 to be stable compared to 2009 at constant currency, after a slight dip in the first half-year. In Germany, organic revenue growth rose by 4.8%. This good performance, achieved in a market that has not yet recovered its dynamism, highlights the quality of Steria’s positioning and offer. Other Europe showed a strong trend with 5.0% organic growth in revenue. In Scandinavia growth was again very strong with 14.2% organic growth and in Spain the rate of revenue decline slowed significantly. Source: Top-Consultant |
Capgemini Q1 revenues slightly above forecast |
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| 19 May 2010 | Capgemini Group reported consolidated revenues for the first quarter of 2010 of €2.052 billion, representing a 6.9% drop from last year’s first quarter (€2.205 billion). However, the number was practically unchanged on the previous quarter (€2.049 billion) and slightly higher than the company’s revenues estimated in February. Consulting Services reported an increase of 3.3% on like-for-like basis compared to the fourth quarter of 2009. Local Professional Services (Sogeti) remained almost stable with a slight drop of -0.9%, while Outsourcing Services reported a drop of 3.3%. Paul Hermelin, Chief Executive Officer of Capgemini Group, commented: "The global economic crisis impacted our industry late on, but signs of a recovery in corporate investment are multiplying. Thanks to the five global service lines set up at the end of 2009, we are ideally placed to benefit from this recovery and enjoy a return to growth in the second half." By region, compared with the first quarter 2009, excluding the programmed and announced reduction in business volume with one of our major clients, North America reported growth of 3%, mainly due to the marked recovery in IT investment in the financial services sector. The United Kingdom continued to resist well to the economic crisis, reporting a drop in revenues of 3% despite the forecast decrease in business with another major client. France reported a drop in revenues (7.1%) close to the Group average, while Benelux reported revenues equal to only 82% of first quarter 2009 revenues, despite contracting to a lesser extent than in the previous quarter. The rest of Europe, the Asia/Pacific region and Latin America reported a moderate downturn of 3.2% on average. Bookings in the first quarter 2010 were in line with forecasts at €2.073 billion. For the Consulting Services, Outsourcing Services and Local Professional Services businesses, the book-to-bill ratio was equal to 1.06 and in the North America region it was 1.30, confirming the more rapid recovery in this region. Headcount increased 1% during the first quarter (to 91,792 employees) and the Group said it re-launched its dynamic recruitment policy. The company reiterated its revenues forecast for the fiscal year of a contraction of between 2 and 4% on like-for-like bases, with an operating margin rate of between 6 and 6.5%. Source: Top-Consultant |
Navigant Consulting reports increased profit for Q1 |
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| 12 May 2010 | "Navigant's first quarter results met our expectations and provide a solid start to the year," stated William M. Goodyear, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Given the rapidly evolving regulatory landscape, our growth practices of Disputes, Economics, Healthcare and Energy are increasingly generating attractive consulting opportunities. Navigant's favorable trends in pricing and utilization are positive indicators of a gradually improving business climate. Credit crisis related consulting activity continues to expand and, coupled with recent signs of increased government regulatory intervention, we are optimistic that business will continue to build as the year progresses." Navigant's first quarter 2010 revenue before reimbursements (RBR) totaled $154 million, up slightly from $153 million in fourth quarter 2009 and down from $167 million in first quarter 2009. Year over year declines were the result of previously discussed service line redeployments and increased attrition that occurred in the Company's west coast disputes practice in early 2010. Utilization increased modestly from fourth quarter 2009 and year ago levels, averaging 77% for first quarter 2010. Average bill rate also improved to $264 for first quarter 2010, up from $260 for fourth quarter 2009 and $252 for first quarter 2009. Average billable full time equivalents (FTEs) were essentially flat from fourth quarter 2009 to first quarter 2010, and were down 13% from first quarter 2009. The Company expects modest headcount growth over the remainder of 2010. Navigant's focus on cost management continues and its balance sheet remains strong. First quarter 2010 cost of services (before reimbursements) were $102 million versus $110 million for first quarter 2009, primarily reflecting the cost impact of staffing reductions and service line redeployments made in 2009. Year over year cost comparisons also benefited from lower severance costs. General and administrative expenses for first quarter 2010 were $30 million compared to $35 million for first quarter 2009. Lower depreciation, amortization and interest expense contributed to year over year improvements as well. Bad debt expense for first quarter 2010 was $2 million, a significant decline from $4 million for first quarter 2009. Additionally, days sales outstanding was 83 for first quarter 2010 compared to 87 for first quarter 2009. Navigant's Dispute and Investigative Services segment reported RBR of $63 million for first quarter 2010, down 3% from fourth quarter 2009 and down 12% from a strong first quarter 2009. First quarter 2010 average billable FTEs were down 20% from first quarter 2009, reflecting market driven staffing reductions as well as increased voluntary attrition in the segment's western region. Segment results also showed signs of market recovery, as evidenced by acceleration in credit market related litigation, traditional commercial litigation opportunities and international arbitration matters. Revenues for this segment are expected to strengthen as the year progresses, benefitting from success in senior talent acquisition. Navigant's Business Consulting Services segment reported RBR of $57 million for first quarter 2010, down 2% from fourth quarter 2009 and down 14% from first quarter 2009. Strong utilization of 80% for first quarter 2010 was offset by the wind down and realignment of certain non core services in 2009. The segment's Healthcare and Energy teams represented over 72% of first quarter 2010 Business Consulting segment revenues, compared to 60% for first quarter 2009. Navigant's Healthcare practice is being sought for advice as providers seek to determine the impact of healthcare reform and focus on improving performance and better managing revenues. Navigant's Energy team has been experiencing steady demand for services related to renewables, energy efficiency and Smart Grid, and the integration of Summit Blue Consulting, which was acquired on December 31, 2009, is meeting expectations. Additionally, the segment's Restructuring and Valuations teams continued to perform well in the first quarter 2010. Navigant's International Consulting segment reported RBR of $16 million for first quarter 2010, down 8% from fourth quarter 2009 but up 4% from first quarter 2009. First quarter 2010 utilization and revenues were adversely impacted by the settlement of a large client engagement within the Construction practice. All other service lines within the International Consulting segment generally performed well and achieved increased RBR for first quarter 2010, compared to first quarter 2009. Navigant's Economic Consulting segment achieved RBR of $17 million for first quarter 2010, an increase of 48% from fourth quarter 2009 and a 32% increase from first quarter 2009. This strong performance reflected bill rate improvements, outstanding utilization of 90%, and the acquisition of Empiris, LLC on January 20, 2010. Improvements in disputes and regulatory related activities are expected to positively impact new project opportunities in the months ahead. 2010 Outlook Navigant confirmed its 2010 guidance originally issued on February 18, 2010. Total revenues for the year are expected to range from $700 million to $750 million, and adjusted earnings per share (excluding the net income impact from severance and other operating costs) are estimated to be between $0.75 and $0.85. This outlook excludes any potential impact from significant acquisitions or from further redeployments of lower growth service lines. "We expect our growth initiatives to be increasingly reflected in our financial results as the year progresses," stated Mr. Goodyear. "Focus on emerging market trends in our core service lines is a priority, as are strategic investments in these key areas to enable us to maximize our positioning in the marketplace." Source: Top-Consultant |
Logica first quarter driven by strong growth in outsourcing |
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| 12 May 2010 | Logica’s Q1 revenue was down 2% compared to an average 4% decline in the previous three quarters, benefiting from strong order bookings in 2009, the company said in its interim management statement based on unaudited results for the first quarter ended 31 March 2010. Outsourcing continued to be the main driver for growth with revenue for the quarter up 11% to £369 million, with the increase reflecting market demand for cost reduction. Book to bill was 123% in the first quarter (2009: 122%). Logica said the pipeline continues to be strong and order intake remains solid with key wins including Posten Norden. Consulting and Professional Services showed an improved trend in the first quarter, declining by 8% compared to an average decline of 11% in the previous three quarters. Book to bill was strong at 112% (2009: 123%) with improving demand in France and the Benelux. Logica said it continued to see a good volume of opportunities and stabilisation in pricing levels on last year. Commenting on the results, Andy Green, CEO, said: “We saw some positive trends in the first quarter with particularly strong demand in France and continued revenue growth in the UK balancing the continuing difficult market conditions in the Benelux and to a lesser extent, Sweden. The pipeline of opportunities to help our clients evolve their businesses remains good as demonstrated by important wins at Posten Norden and Swedish food processing companies, Lantmännen and Scan.” Logica continues to expect revenue to decline modestly in the first half, with full year revenue and adjusted operating margin expected to be at a similar level to 2009 on a constant currency basis. Logica had 38,689 employees at the end of March 2010 compared to 38,780 at the end of December 2009. Attrition increased slightly through the quarter to around 9%, reflecting improved demand in countries such as France and India. Utilisation improved through the quarter, with some improvement in the Benelux. Onshore headcount was slightly down, with some recruiting in France offset by around 150 exits in the Benelux in the first quarter. Total offshore and nearshore headcount was around 5,200 compared to 5,100 at the end of December 2009. Around 170 new trainees joined the business in offshore locations at the end of the first quarter. Logica said it expects to grow our nearshore and offshore headcount by around 10% in the second quarter. Source: Top-Consultant |
Aon Consulting strengthens global leadership team |
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| 12 May 2010 | To drive opportunities for future growth, Aon Consulting, the human capital consulting business of Aon Corporation, today announced two new appointments to its global leadership team. Piyush Chaudhari was named to the position of Chief Executive Officer of Aon Consulting EMEA, effective immediately. Chaudhari joined Aon Consulting in 2006, and held the positions of Chief Executive Officer of Global Benefits, and Chief Operating Officer of Aon Consulting, responsible for strategy, human resources and marketing. He will be based in continental Europe and continue to lead Aon Consulting's Global Benefits business. Chaudhari replaces Robert Middleton who will be leaving Aon Consulting in September to pursue personal interests. Alistair Connell will become Chief Executive Officer of Aon Consulting UK, effective July 1. He is currently Managing Director of Benefits Solutions and Pensions Consulting for Aon Consulting, a role he took on in 2009, after serving as Commercial Director. Connell joined Aon Consulting in 2002 from Gissings. In making the announcement, Baljit Dail, Chief Executive Officer of Aon Consulting, said: "We have a very strong foundation in the UK and EMEA, which through a united team of colleagues, is delivering distinctive value to clients, helping to drive long-term growth opportunities for our firm. We are pleased that Piyush and Alistair have accepted these new responsibilities, and we are confident in their abilities to help drive growth, develop talent and deliver operational excellence on behalf of the firm." Aon Consulting is among the top global human capital consulting firms, with over 6,300 professionals in 229 offices worldwide. Source: Top-Consultant |
Bill Cook is new CEO of Technology Services at Capgemini UK |
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| 12 May 2010 | Bill Cook is new CEO of Technology Services at Capgemini UK Bill Cook has been promoted to the position of Chief Executive Officer of Technology Services at Capgemini UK plc. In his new post he heads a team of some 1,100 IT professionals in the UK and draws on the expertise of an additional 650 technology specialists at Capgemini locations in India. Cook has had a number of senior roles during his ten years at Capgemini UK plc., including head of commercial management, chief financial officer, head of sales and head of public sector. He started his career at HM Treasury before joining consultants Ernst & Young, where he was a senior partner. Christine Hodgson, Member of the Capgemini Group Executive Committee, said: “Technology is key to success for companies seeking to control costs and find new wealth creation opportunities and for public sector organisations aiming to ‘do more for less’. I am therefore delighted that Bill Cook, with his outstanding track record, is to lead our Technology Services team in its mission to help our clients identify and deploy the best IT support possible.” Capgemini Technology Services offers the full range of systems integration, applications development, business intelligence and technology advisory services to clients in all sectors, including some of the UK’s largest public and private sector organisations. Source: Top-Consultant |
Wipro Q4 profit grows 21% year-on-year |
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| 12 May 2010 | Wipro Q4 profit grows 21% year-on-year Bangalore-based Wipro reported net income of 12.1 billion rupees ($271.6 million) in the three months ended March 31, from 10 billion rupees a year earlier. The company’s fourth-quarter sales climbed 8.2 percent to 69.8 billion rupees. Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro, commenting on the results said: "We have seen another strong quarter of broad based, volume led growth. We saw good recovery in our challenged verticals of Technology and Telecom. The business environment is returning to normal." For April-June, Wipro expects IT services revenue between $1.19 billion to $1.215 billion, compared with $1.166 billion in January-March. Suresh Senapaty, Executive Director & Chief Financial Officer of Wipro, said: "We had a satisfying quarter. We delivered close to the upper end of our guidance with revenues of $1,180 million in constant currency. We have driven up margins by 60 basis points despite headwinds of wage increases, rupee appreciation and the impact of cross currency." Source: Top-Consultant |
Management Consulting Group appoints new Chief Executive |
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| 4 May 2010 | Nick Stagg, who joined the group’s Board of Directors on 21 October 2009, is appointed Chief Executive of Management Consulting Group (MCG) with effect from 1 July 2010. Before joining MCG Stagg was CEO of Teather & Greenwood Holdings PLC and, prior to that, managing director of WS Atkins International PLC. Commenting on the appointment, Executive Chairman Alan Barber said: “I am delighted that Nick is becoming Chief Executive at this time. His extensive background in managing and developing businesses which rely heavily on the motivation and talent of their employees will be extremely valuable at MCG as we move forward. As reported in March I intend to continue as Executive Chairman until the end of 2010 and will see through Nick's induction and the merger of Ineum Consulting and Kurt Salmon Associates, before transitioning to the Non-executive Chairman role." MCG also reiterated its trading outlook for 2010, saying the economic climate has eased from that experienced in the middle part of 2009. The Group said new business input booked so far in 2010 is above that for the equivalent period last year and the order book continues to trend upwards. "Although the Group's current trading continues to feel the effects of the recent recession, encouraging signs in our order book and pipeline are quite evident," said Barber. Alexander Proudfoot has significantly more leads for new business than at any stage last year, the company said. It has booked and is currently working on some sizeable projects but is finding that others in the pipeline are taking longer than expected to come to fruition. In total, input at Ineum Consulting is good even if the current performance of the French market is “patchy,” with some areas very strong and others weaker. Kurt Salmon Associates continues to trade more profitably than in 2009, leveraging its reduced cost base to good effect. The Group said the merger of Ineum Consulting and Kurt Salmon Associates is proceeding well. The combined business will be known as 'Kurt Salmon' from the beginning of 2011. Source: Top-Consultant |
Large contract restructurings lifted outsourcing market in Q1 |
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| 4 May 2010 | TPI, the sourcing data and advisory firm, released data today showing that contract restructurings, in which clients renewed, renegotiated or expanded existing contracts, lifted the global outsourcing market during the first quarter of 2010. The 1Q10 Global TPI Index, which measures commercial outsourcing contracts valued at $25 million or more, recorded total contract value (TCV) of $19.5 billion, up 25 percent from the first quarter of 2009. Contract restructurings accounted for 42 percent of TCV, far surpassing the previous record of 29 percent set in 2006. While restructurings fueled the growth in two of the three regions of the world and IT outsourcing (ITO) and also accounted for three of the four mega-deals awarded in the quarter, an analysis of TPI Index data indicates that the market is continuing to recover at the slower pace it began in the middle of last year. TPI anticipates restructuring activity will continue at an above-average level for the rest of 2010 but is unlikely to account for as high a percentage of TCV as more new-scope contracts are added to the pipeline. “The real story in the first quarter of 2010 was the large amount of restructuring activity, which greatly impacted a variety of key outsourcing metrics,” said Mark Mayo, Partner and President, Global Operations, TPI. “The underlying market is recovering at a much slower and more uneven pace than those heady growth rates would suggest.” The TPI Index provides a quarterly snapshot of the sourcing industry for clients, service providers, analysts and the media. Now in its 30th consecutive quarter, it is the industry’s authoritative source for marketplace intelligence related to outsourcing transaction structures and terms, industry adoption, geographic prevalence and service provider metrics. While the TPI Index finds clients renewing, renegotiating and expanding existing contracts every quarter, large restructurings, especially the three mega-deals, had a very significant impact in the first quarter of 2010. The result was robust growth in a number of market metrics. For example, the quarter’s four mega-deals, those contracts valued at $1 billion or more, bested the two during the first quarter of 2009, and overall mega-deal TCV more than tripled year-on-year to $7.1 billion. In all, 109 contracts were awarded in the quarter, down 21% year-over-year, and there were fewer awards valued at greater than $200 million. This represents a break in the pattern of a greater number of smaller contracts seen over the last four or five years. Regionally, restructurings fueled TCV growth of 7 percent year-over-year in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and 47 percent in the Americas, which had its best first quarter since 2006. Asia Pacific, which did not see significant restructuring activity, increased its TCV 35 percent over a relatively weak first quarter of 2009. Restructuring activity also gave a significant boost to TCV in the ITO segment, which expanded 46 percent, with particular strength in Application Development & Maintenance (ADM) and ADM-plus-Infrastructure contracts. Business process outsourcing (BPO), which saw minimal restructuring activity, remained slow as clients postponed transformational projects and other initiatives requiring large investments. However, there are some encouraging signs in the market. For example, while still significantly weaker than a few years ago, Human Resources turned in its second relatively solid quarter in a row. Among vertical industries that have historically been critical to overall outsourcing market success, Manufacturing increased its TCV by 69 percent, while Financial Services TCV slipped 18 percent. Surprisingly, the Travel, Transportation & Hospitality vertical led all industry sectors with its best-ever TCV of $5 billion, more than quadrupling results from a year ago. Leading the charge were contracts awarded by a U.S.-based airline, a European logistics company and the French railway SNCF. Looking ahead, TPI anticipates that contract restructurings will continue to have an impact on the outsourcing market. Between $10 billion and $12 billion in annual contract value due to expire in 2010 will be renegotiated, up 20% to 25% from where the industry stood last year. Furthermore, service providers closed a number of contracts that had been “pushed out” at the end of 2009, and it does not appear there are as many larger contracts coming to market soon. Said Mayo: “We don’t expect a huge rush of new-scope contracting. Instead, we foresee a steady flow of new opportunities as the recovery continues at a slow pace.” Source: Top-Consultant |
Fujitsu to double size of its Applications business in ambitious 3-year plan |
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| 4 May 2010 | Fujitsu has announced an ambitious 3-year plan to grow its Applications Division, expanding the number of existing Fujitsu customers and growing the number of new customers within the business. Fujitsu will aim to double revenues for the business by 2013; this growth will be overseen and driven forward by new Applications Division managing director, John Hanley who was appointed this month. Fujitsu’s Applications Division is a well established innovation hub within the company, offering a range of services for business-critical applications. In particular, Fujitsu has established a reputation for delivering application projects into the public sector. It is responsible for providing the services which underpin some of Fujitsu’s most prestigious contracts, including: • Environment Agency’s flood warning solution, which protects over five million people in two million properties • Rail Journey Information System (RJIS) enquiry system which handles over one million enquiries from rail passengers every day • Centrica’s Tariff Gas Billing system, the world’s largest gas billing system at the time, including migration of 19 million customer records from over 30 regional systems The decision to invest heavily in this area of Fujitsu’s business reflects the market opportunity which has been identified and the ability to meet the business challenges which CIOs face in the current market. ‘Applications outsourcing’ will form the cornerstone of Fujitsu’s aggressive growth into the applications market. In anticipation of this, Fujitsu recently commissioned original research with London Business School to understand the dynamics of the Applications Outsourcing market and gain the views of leading CIOs. The report “Making Application Outsourcing Successful: Business, IT and Competitive Advantage,” will be launched later this month and generated the following insights: • Let sources of competitive advantage determine what to outsource and what to keep inhouse. Application Outsourcing decisions must be made in the context of competitive advantage in order to avoid impairing a company’s ability to operate effectively. Study participants made clear that understanding the sources of competitive advantage within their organizations was essential to making appropriate decisions about which applications (or parts of applications) should be outsourced and which should not. Applications that support areas of competitive advantage and are subject to frequent change are typically not best suited to Application Outsourcing. • Anticipate the need to manage continuous change. Like the business processes they support, business applications are constantly being modified and adapted. This doesn’t change once they are outsourced. While all IT outsourcing requires ongoing fine tuning, this is even more the case for Application Outsourcing. • Seek to develop business performance measures, not just IT or financial measures. Depending on the type of applications outsourced, this may be more or less difficult to accomplish. At a minimum, understanding the perception and satisfaction of users within the business is an important indication of how well an Application Outsourcing engagement is running. John Hanley, managing director, Applications Division Fujitsu UK and Ireland, commented: “Organisations face an increasingly complex environment when making decisions about business applications. First, there are continuing business pressures in terms of reducing cost, developing greater agility and efficiency, improving process and attracting and keeping customers – and the need to align applications to support the business in these areas. “Second, there are specific IT operational challenges which need to be overcome: changes in application software, upgrade decisions, maintaining legacy systems and managing and evaluating complex application portfolios, often with limited resources. These organisations are looking for IT services companies who can meet these operational challenges and thereby help to solve their wider business issues.” As well as a solid base of existing customers Fujitsu has a range of well-formed and strategic partnerships with leading software and application providers. These include: • Oracle - Fujitsu has more than 400 in-country Oracle consultants, making it one of the largest practices in the UK • SAP - Fujitsu is one of only three SAP partners globally to be accredited for hosting, services and technology • Salesforce.com - Fujitsu is one of salesforce.com’s biggest global UK partners with over 75 implementations Hanley concludes, “There is no doubting that Fujitsu has the relationships and abilities to achieve its growth targets – this is proven by our strong track record and experience. We now have the challenge to evolve the Applications Division from the IT industry’s best kept secret, into industry-leading innovators.” Source: Top-Consultant |
TCS doubles profit from year ago |
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| 4 May 2010 | Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) reported a 47% jump in quarterly profit from a year earlier on a stronger demand for its services. N. Chandrasekaran, CEO and MD said: "Our ability to react to growth opportunities and execute efficiently has helped TCS deliver a superior performance for the fourth successive quarter. Our volumes have grown and our margins are at near historic highs." The company said net profit rose to 19.31 billion rupees (419 million dollars) for the final quarter of the financial year that ended in March 2010, from 13.14 billion rupees in the same period a year ago, according to US accounting standards. Revenues for the quarter rose 7.9% to 77.38 billion rupees. For the full year, TCS reported a 33% rise in consolidated net profit to 70 billion rupees (1.52 billion dollars). Commenting on the performance in 2009-10, Mr. Chandrasekaran said: "Strong volume growth of 17 percent during the year has rounded off an exceptional year for TCS. Our sales and execution machine is primed and we have laid a solid platform for growth. There is significant traction for our strategy of full services which together with our global engagement model positions us well for accelerated growth." TCS does not provide a revenue outlook. However, last week, Infosys forecast sales may increase as much as 18% to $5.67 billion in the 12 months ending March 31, 2011. Accenture has projected sales may grow as much as 10% next year. Source: Top-Consultant |
Deloitte boosts advisory capability with addition of Swiss management consultancy |
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| 4 May 2010 | Deloitte is merging Exsigno, a specialist in public sector and health care consulting, into its own existing Swiss consulting practice to create one of the largest management consulting businesses in Switzerland, comprising 300 people and with revenues of CHF 85m (GBP 52m). The combined business will offer expertise in strategy, operations, enterprise applications, technology integration, human capital and actuarial consulting across a range of industries, including financial services, public sector, health care, consumer business, manufacturing and energy. Martin Eadon, chairman of Deloitte in Switzerland, commented: “This is an important part of our ambitious growth strategy in Switzerland. Deloitte will now have a combined strength of more than 1,000 of the best professional services people in the Swiss market, significantly extending our capability. The transaction will create a new force in the Swiss consulting market, deliver enhanced value to our clients, and offer new career opportunities to our people.” Howard Lovell, managing partner for Consulting at Deloitte in Switzerland, commented: “This is a very exciting transaction, which will truly differentiate us in this sector in Switzerland. Together we will offer unrivalled service capability and expertise and have a fantastic platform from which to further build our consultancy business.” John Connolly, CEO and senior partner at Deloitte, commented: “This is the latest in a series of moves to bring in new skills and broaden and deepen our advisory capabilities. We have completed four transactions since the start of the year which have added some 30 new partners and over 750 people to the firm. “We will continue to look for opportunities to bring in highly skilled people from other organisations who enable us to offer increased range and depth of advice to a broader number of clients.” Last month, Deloitte completed the merger into its business of Drivers Jonas, the property advisory specialist, to create Drivers Jonas Deloitte, a groundbreaking new real estate advisory business. In March, Deloitte also acquired dcarbon8, a leading carbon and sustainability consultancy, to help the firm expand and evolve its environmental and sustainability consulting practice. This followed the announcement in January that Deloitte had acquired ReportSource, the leading business performance and information management consultancy. Source: Top-Consultant |
PARITY'S PROFIT PLUNGES IN 2009 |
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| 21 April 2010 | IT resources and solutions company Parity Group has reported 2009 pre-tax profit of £250,000, down from £1.7 million the previous year. Revenue in the year fell 10% to £119 million.
Parity's profit was decimated by exceptional charges of £271,000 related to the closure of its Hemel Hempstead office, cancelled transaction costs of £63,000 and a restructuring charge of £200,000. Parity shed its training business in February 2009, but not before making a two-month loss on the business of £245,000.
Despite the downturn, Parity's resources business held up well, reporting revenue of £100.5 million, compared to £110.2 million in 2008. But solutions did not fare so well, with 2009 revenue of £18.5 million, down from £22.1 million in 2008. Parity chief executive Alwyn Welch said: "As the recession deepened during 2009, Parity continued to experience difficult trading conditions. By acting quickly on both costs and operating systems, we have weathered the economic storm far better than the group has done in the past." Looking forward, Welch said revenue visibility remained low and volatility high, and that 'prudence' and 'caution' would remain the company's watchwords for the year ahead. An early highlight of this year has been a £1.4 million contract won by Parity's solutions business with NHS Direct. The contract covers the development and support of a health information search portal that is due for completion in March 2011 and will give NHS Direct call centre staff better access to information when dealing with public enquiries. Management Consultants' News Direct |
CSC ON COURSE TO BEAT RECESSION |
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| 21 April 2010 | CSC has updated its financial guidance for the year to 2 April, showing significant increases in new business and profitability, despite an ongoing struggle to honour the contracts it holds as part of the £12 billion NHS IT overhaul.
Ahead of releasing its fourth-quarter and full year results on 20 May, CSC has reported that new business wins in the year to 2 April reached $19 billion (£12.4 billion), up from previous guidance of $17-18 billion. Earnings per share are expected to come in between $5.05 and $5.15, up from previous indications of $4.80-5.00.
The company is forecasting revenue of $16-16.5 billion, in line with previous guidance, and a respectable margin of 8.6-8.8%. But although CSC's global forecast is good, the company appears to be struggling with its NHS contracts in the UK. CSC is the largest supplier to the £12 billion NHS IT programme, having added regional contracts initially won by Accenture and Fujitsu Services to its own initial win. But according to a report in the Financial Times, its recent failure to meet a March deadline to get systems running smoothly in a large, acute hospital in the north-west may mean a review of CSC's work with hospitals or even cancellation of its contract to install such systems. Management Consultants' News Direct |
INFOSYS SET FOR 18% GROWTH |
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| 21 April 2010 | Infosys Technologies, India's second largest IT services firm, has reported slow financial growth in 2010, but is predicting revenue growth of 16-18% in fiscal 2011 on the back of increased business momentum in last year's fourth quarter. In the year to 31 March 2010, Infosys' net profit rose 2% to $1.3 billion (£846 million), on revenue also increasing 2% to $4.8 billion. But fourth-quarter net profit shot up 9%, on revenue rising 18%, leading the company to forecast similar revenue growth through fiscal 2011 for a total of around $5.6 billion. Commenting on the results, Infosys CEO and managing director S Gopalakrishnan said: "We have been able to take advantage of the opportunities in the market and grow faster due to our investments in capacity and capability building even during the economic downturn. Although the economic environment continues to be challenging, businesses are investing in growth to build a better future." One early win for Infosys in fiscal 2011 has been a three-year IT services contract with Microsoft. Infosys will manage Microsoft's internal IT services across 450 locations in 104 countries. The deal is based on an outcome-based pricing model, allowing Microsoft to manage IT costs in line with business variables and demand. Management Consultants' News Direct |
MCA LEADERSHIP MARKS PwC RETURN TO THE FOLD |
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| 21 April 2010 | The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) has named Pat Newberry of PricewaterhouseCoopers as its president, highlighting the return to the consulting market of the accounting firms that divested their consultancy business in the early 2000s. Newberry, a PwC veteran of 32 years, is the firm's UK commercial lead of consulting with responsibility for building its consulting business. At the MCA, he takes over from Jan Gower of IBM and will be supported by three vice presidents: David Cox, managing director of the business & technology division at Mott MacDonald; Steve Watmough, managing director of Xantus Consulting; and Paul Winter, chief executive of Corpra. Newberry assumes the MCA presidency after a year of falling revenue in the consultancy market, with a particularly steep drop in the financial services sector, an area he has focused on for the past 20 years. According to the latest MCA Industry Report, total consultancy revenue dropped 6% in 2009 to £8 billion. Spending on consulting in the public sector was flat, with demand in the financial services sector falling 12%. Revenue from strategy consulting dropped about 25% in 2009, according to the report, with revenue growth coming from practices fuelled by recession - notably process re-engineering up 5% and HR consulting up 6%. Overall, the number of people employed by MCA member firms fell 15% in 2009 to 40,000, although the number of senior people rose by 10%, suggesting a willingness to invest in expertise and experience. MCA members also improved their own productivity, with the average consultant becoming 7% more productive by the end of 2009 than 12 months earlier. Management Consultants' News Direct |
CSC updates fiscal year financial guidance |
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| 14 April 2010 | Significant increases in new business awards and profitability. CSC updated its financial guidance for the fiscal year ending April 2, 2010, saying that it now expects new business awards of approximately $19 billion versus prior guidance in the range of $17 - $18 billion. Revenue is expected to be in the range of $16 - $16.5 billion, consistent with prior guidance, while earnings per share are now forecasted in a range of $5.05 - $5.15 versus prior guidance of $4.80 - $5.00. CSC expects to release its fourth quarter and audited fiscal year results on May 20, 2010. Source: Top-Consultant |
Companies remain upbeat about their own prospects but less convinced by the outlook for the UK economy |
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| 14 April 2010 | Around two thirds of companies (63%) are more confident about their ability to grow their business in the coming 12 months compared with last year, but only 20% believe the UK remains a competitive environment for business, according to a poll of UK plc directors by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC). The results suggest the downturn has left business confidence in the economy severely shaken. The findings, from a poll of companies attending the recent PLC Awards, of which PwC is one of the key sponsors, do however provide some grounds for optimism. There are signs of an improving environment as 73% of companies surveyed said they had no problem accessing finance, suggesting the liquidity issues caused by the economic crisis are at last easing. David Snell, partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, commented: “Businesses appear to have more faith in their ability to manage their own companies but lack confidence in the wider economy. This is a challenging situation because an improved business environment for individual companies is clearly dependent on the restoration of confidence in the wider economy. With business investment remaining lower than at any time since 1992, to move firmly out of the recession, there needs to be significant improvements in the business climate so that individual companies are able to invest for the medium and long-term. “Essentially, there seems to be a chicken and egg situation at play – for the wider economy to improve, this investment needs to happen, but there remains considerable uncertainty about the health of the economy and the potential consequences of a double dip recession to individual businesses. Given the indications of improved availability of capital in the market, there is some hope that this will act as a catalyst in helping to restore much needed confidence among UK plc directors.” Other key findings include:
Source: Top-Consultant |
| Infosys reports sequential quarterly growth of 6.8% | |
| 15 January 2010 | Quarterly results are Infosys’ highest sequential gain in the last eight quarters. Infosys Technologies reported revenues of $1.232 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, a 5.2% growth from a year ago and 6.8% from the previous quarter. Net income after tax was $ 334 million for the quarter, a growth of 0.6% from a year ago and a 5.4% jump sequentially. “Global economic recovery seems to be led by the US and the Financial Services,” said S. Gopalakrishnan, CEO and Managing Director. “Even though IT budgets are expected to be flat in 2010, offshore outsourcing is expected to benefit from this recovery.” For the current quarter the company expects revenues to be in the range of $ 1.24 billion and $ 1.25 billion, representing year-on-year growth of 10.6% to 11.5%. For the full year Infosys expects revenues to be in the range of $ 4.75 billion and $ 4.76 billion, representing year-on-year growth of 1.8% to 2.0%. Source: Top-Consultant |
| Management Consulting Group reintegrates 2009 results | |
| 15 January 2010 | Ineum Consulting is still performing strongly; Kurt Salmon Associates has seen trading recover somewhat; and Alexander Proudfoot has continued to operate at a lower level. Management Consulting Group PLC (MCG) said in a trading update it expects to report revenue for the 2009 financial year in the range of £280m to £290m and underlying operating profit between £28m and £30m. Net debt is expected to be around £90m. The Group is in compliance with the covenants under its existing banking facilities and will manage its affairs to ensure that this continues to be the case. Executive Chairman, Alan Barber, commented, "2009 was a challenging year for MCG after the record results achieved in 2008. We took decisive action during the year to manage the cost base in a difficult trading environment. We are dedicated to ensuring the business is well positioned to benefit from the eventual recovery in the global economy and to create long term value for shareholders." MCG said Ineum Consulting is still performing strongly, especially in its heartland of France where the public sector business performed particularly well in 2009. Kurt Salmon Associates has seen trading recover somewhat over the past few months in both its businesses, consumer products and health care, and has returned to profit in the second half of 2009. Alexander Proudfoot has continued to operate at a lower than normal level, although it is beginning to see new leads that inspire some confidence for the Spring 2010 selling season. Ineum Consulting Chiheb Mahjoub was appointed Chief Executive of Ineum Consulting on 9 December 2009, replacing Miguel de Fontenay who stepped down from that role. de Fontenay has subsequently left the Group, along with one other senior manager of Ineum Consulting. As previously announced Mahjoub was appointed to the Board of Directors of MCG on 10 November 2009. Under the terms of the acquisition of Ineum Consulting in 2006, the vendors have the right to put forward a director for appointment to the Board of Directors of MCG until 1 September 2010. As previously announced, Marco Lopinto was therefore appointed to the Board on 15 December 2009 as an Executive Director. Lopinto has been with Ineum since 2005, is responsible for the Strategy Practice of Ineum Consulting and plays a key role in the development of the Ineum Consulting business. Non-recurring items During 2009 the Group continued to restructure its business, rationalise office space and reduce its headcount. Currently MCG employs around 1,500 people, a reduction of over 35% from the 2,350 employed in June 2008. The company is currently vacating one floor of its KSA office space in Atlanta and closing another office in Minneapolis. The non-recurring cost of these latest closures is £3.6m and will be recorded in the 2009 results. As a result of this the Group will benefit from lower rental costs of £0.5m per annum from 2010 onwards. In respect of the departure of de Fontenay, the Group will be showing a non-recurring item of £1.3m. As a result of these major items, and the continuation of the other Group redundancy plans detailed earlier in the year, the total non-recurring cost for 2009 is expected to be in the range of £15m to £16m. MCG 's 2009 preliminary results will be announced on 8 March 2010. Source: Top-Consultant |
| Employee confidence increases in fourth quarter 2009 | |
| 15 January 2010 | UK employee confidence increased 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter 2009 and showed an increase of 5.3 percent since the first quarter, according to a quarterly measure of worker opinions from Kenexa, a global provider of business solutions for human resources. Employee confidence has been found to relate to multiple economic and business performance outcomes at the individual, organisational, industry and country levels as well as being predictive of consumer confidence. A high level of employee confidence is achieved when employees perceive their organisation as being effectively managed and competitively positioned, and believe they have a promising future with their organisation, as well as job security and skills that are attractive to other employers. Employee confidence influences individual behaviour and has implications for organisational performance and economic conditions. Kenexa's quarterly study, which measures the degree of confidence employees have in their employers' marketplace competiveness and their own careers, involves over 15,500 employees in 12 countries (Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Russia, Spain, the UK and the United States). In December 2009, the global employee confidence index score was 98.0, a very slight improvement from the third quarter (97.9). Brazil (107.5), China (105.6) and India (101.3) reported the highest levels of employee confidence, while France (94.9), Japan (94.0) and Spain (92.4) reported the lowest levels. The United Kingdom's employee confidence index score was 99.8 (an increase from 97.2 in the third quarter). For the year ending 31 December 2009, the 12 largest economies reported an increase in employee confidence index scores, with the exception of Japan, which reported a slight decrease for the year. The global employee confidence index score for the fourth quarter of 2009 increased approximately 4 points, from 93.8 in the first quarter. Countries that reported the most improvement in employee confidence index scores throughout 2009 were China (15.8 point increase), Italy (8.1) and Brazil (7.1). Anne Herman, research consultant at the Kenexa Research Institute, said: "Employee confidence fluctuated throughout 2009, with the majority of the countries reporting both increases and decreases. India and China were the only two surveyed countries that had an increase in scores, quarter over quarter." She continued: "We enter 2010 on a positive note. Our studies have linked employee confidence to higher country-level GDP and stronger organisation performance, among other metrics. Therefore, this indicates that as employee confidence increases, GDP and organisation performance should both improve, indicating that we appear to be in a state of resurgence." Kenexa's quarterly Employee Confidence Index was started in June 2008 and was normalised for each country to equal 100. Subsequent scores are reported in percents above or below that starting point. The resultant data is available by country, industry, age, gender and job type. Source: Top-Consultant |
| Deloitte UK acquires reporting consultancy | |
| 15 January 2010 | Deloitte to boost its consulting business with acquisition of ReportSource. Deloitte, the business advisory firm, is to acquire ReportSource, the UK’s leading business performance and information management consultancy. The deal will see 66 people join Deloitte’s 2,500 strong UK Consulting practice, with Ian Harrison, the managing director of ReportSource, joining Deloitte as a partner. David Owen, managing director for Consulting at Deloitte UK, commented: “Many UK businesses and organisations have invested significant time and money implementing new IT systems in recent years. Business leaders now want to maximise the benefit of this investment by extracting better, more insightful management information. ReportSource is a leader in providing the expertise to help organisations achieve this goal. “We are delighted to welcome the ReportSource team into the business systems arm of our Consulting practice. The quality, experience and specialist skills they bring complement our existing technology advisory and technology execution expertise, and add a considerable new string to Deloitte’s bow. We are now proud to have the UK’s largest and best equipped business performance and information management team. Ian Harrison, managing director of ReportSource, commented: “Having developed the UK’s most respected and largest niche performance management practice, Deloitte was the only logical home for ReportSource. In joining Deloitte we are able to put our skills and experience to work, in the service of our clients, by ensuring that our staff work alongside the world’s most sought-after talent, drawn by Deloitte’s eminence, culture and diversity. I am very proud of what ReportSource has achieved and delighted to have joined Deloitte.” David Owen continued: “Ian Harrison and his team bring valuable new expertise to the considerable technology skills and experience we already offer in this market. This deal ensures that Deloitte offers an unrivalled breadth and depth of services and resource to help businesses solve complex problems and optimise their technology.” Source: Top-Consultant |
| Predictions for 2010 – what lies ahead for the UK consulting industry? | |
| 7 January 2010 | Many a great reputation has been tarnished over the years, attempting to predict what the future might hold. So it’s with a degree of trepidation that I share my predictions for consulting industry developments in 2010. Clearly another major global shock could upset these projections quite considerably, but on our current trajectory I would foresee: A perception that the consulting industry has returned to growth.I fully expect those working within consulting firms to start feeling like better times have returned. Announcements of client wins will become more frequent and the numbers marooned on the bench will start to fall. Morale will be boosted, at least for those serving private sector clients. The reality that consulting returns to miserly levels of growth.With the major global consulting brands having announced growth figures indicative of a -10% market contraction in 2009, we’re clearly starting from a very low base in 2010. Even during the dot-com crash – when let’s not forget consultants lost their jobs in droves – the market as a whole still managed to grow revenues year on year. So this last year has seen extremes of revenue contraction, hiring freezes and utilisation collapses that have never been seen before and probably will not be seen again in my time with Top-Consultant. Our expectation is that UK consulting revenues will grow by just a couple of percentage points in 2010, with a stronger revival in private sector consulting spend offset by some high profile casualties amongst public sector consulting contracts. However, this still reflects a sea change from the significant contractions seen in 2009 and whilst not a return to the double-digit growth associated with much of the last 10 years it nonetheless will relieve the strain on consulting firms’ very survival. Utilisation rates will pick up and the atmosphere of fear within consultancies will be diminished. The public sector as the new drag on growth. Political pressure in the UK very clearly points to the culling of some high profile public sector consulting contracts this year – and an ongoing drive for greater frugality in the use of consultants. The looming general election makes consulting cutbacks an open goal and consultants akin to turkeys in the run-up to Christmas. Whilst Brown’s stated ambitions of halving consulting spend sound both far-fetched and self-defeating, 2010 will nonetheless undoubtedly see the climate for winning public sector work darken. What we’re definitely hearing though is that new projects are increasingly being put out to tender with smaller niche consulting practices, so these political clouds could also play into the hands of smaller firms and potentially have the greatest negative impact on the major brands. Improved fortunes for those job-hunting in the consulting market.Again this is a matter of all things being relative - mass hiring or a return to the war for talent are certainly not on the horizon. However two factors this year will mean hiring volumes pick up considerably at UK consulting firms. The first factor is that any change in the profile of client demand can stimulate the need for hires. So a market that’s not growing much but which is seeing public sector spend decline and private sector spend increase will actually generate the need for new hires to fill capability gaps in the parts of the business that are growing. The second factor is that consultant churn is bound to increase in 2010, following a year in which it’s probably been at an all-time low. So just the increased likelihood that consultants will try to switch careers this year is actually enough to stimulate an upturn in the hiring market – as on aggregate firms will need to replace all staff that leave in a given year just to stand still. Compared with a year that was typified by widespread hiring freezes, 2010’s jobs market is going to feel significantly more vibrant – albeit down considerably on the hiring levels prevalent in the boom. Continued downwards pressure on consulting fee rates.With both public and private sector clients increasingly willing to consider lower cost consulting providers, the pressure to reign in costs and reduce fee rates will be intense in 2010. The major western consulting brands will continue to offshore research and production tasks wherever possible so that services can be offered at a lower cost; while the major Indian players are increasingly making inroads in the US and European markets, adding to the pressure on rates. New start-ups will continue to pop up meanwhile, headed up by consulting practitioners with Big Firm backgrounds and the credentials therefore to woo major clients. In sum, then, price pressures will remain downwards and this can mean only one thing for salary outcomes too - meagre growth in earnings for the foreseeable future. Source: Top-Consultant |
| ACCENTURE BACKS PUBLIC SECTOR INNOVATION | |
| 15 December 2009 | Accenture has joined with the Lisbon Council think tank and the College of Europe to set up a centre dedicated to developing innovative strategies and solutions for public sector organisations across Europe. Called the 'Government of the Future' centre, the Brussels-based venture will initially focus on four areas seen as key to improving the social and economic conditions of European citizens: the provision of healthcare; boosting employment; connecting citizens and governments; and enhancing the sustainability of public sector organisations. In 2010 the centre will also host a Government of the Future summit with government leaders, opinion formers and public sector organisations, publish a series of state transformation case studies; and convene public sector modernisation workshops. Paul Hofheinz, president and co-founder of the Brussels-based Lisbon Council, which focuses on economic modernisation and social renewal, explained: "Society needs more innovation in the public sector - not just as an antidote to the recession, but as a platform for meeting citizens' demands in a fast-changing world." Meanwhile, Accenture has also established an innovation centre for health in response to the growing challenges facing the global health industry. The centre, based in London and Chicago, will provide research and solutions aimed at delivering cost-effective care and services across the healthcare market. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| CAPITA DENIES BUSINESS SLOWDOWN | |
| 15 December 2009 | Capita chief executive Paul Pindar has challenged analysts' suggestions that the group's sales growth is slowing - insisting that the days of double-digit organic growth are not over and that there are vast areas of government outsourcing work still to be tapped. In an interview with the Financial Times, Pindar likened today's situation to the recession of the early 1990s, when top-line growth slowed for a couple of years and took off as the economy came out of recession. He said: "If you look at the underlying strength in the business at the moment, the margin growth is still looking encouraging, as is profit. The environment for acquisitions is extremely healthy." As the UK's largest outsourcing group and a leading player in the public sector market, Capita has grown revenue at a compound annual rate of 26% over the past 10 years. But analysts say this could slip, pointing to a November trading statement that showed Capita had won £1 billion of new business this year, but £814 million was secured in the first half, meaning the win rate slowed in the second half of the year. Despite this Pindar remained bullish on the prospects for outsourcing, though he highlighted government reluctance to set up major IT projects in the run-up to the general election and concerns about a potentially hung parliament with no clear decision making. He remained adamant, however, that any new government will see outsourcing as a means of cutting IT spend and said Capita would not lower its prices to win public sector contracts. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| DELOITTE NAMES GLOBAL HEAD OF CLIMATE CHANGE | |
| 15 December 2009 | Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu has selected senior partner Nick Main as its global managing partner for climate change and sustainability, in the same week that it reinforced its green capabilities by being chosen by Denmark's Ministry of Foreign Affairs to measure the carbon footprint of the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen. Main will be based in London and will offer guidance to Deloitte member firms on laws and regulations regarding greenhouse gas emissions, as well as advice on sustainability issues. He was previously chairman and CEO of Deloitte New Zealand. Commenting on Main's appointment, Deloitte global services managing partner Jerry Leaman said: "Deloitte firms recognise the urgency for many of their clients to address the potential impact of new and proposed greenhouse gas legislation on business strategy and operations. Nick Main's experience with climate change and sustainability issues will be critical to Deloitte member firm professionals." At the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen, Deloitte Denmark helped develop a method for calculating the local carbon footprint of the conference, taking into account greenhouse gas emissions of elements such as accommodation, local transport of participants and conference centre activities. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| HCL WINS $200m DEAL AT EQUITABLE LIFE | |
| 15 December 2009 | HCL Technologies, the Indian IT services firm which last year acquired Liberata Financial Services, has beaten competitors to a $200 million (£123 million) BPO contract with Equitable Life Assurance Society. The deal is HCL's first and long-awaited major win in the life and pensions administration market since it acquired Liberata's financial services business. Under the contract which starts in March 2011, HCL Insurance Business Services (IBS) – essentially Liberata's UK operations - will take over a BPO contract currently being delivered by Lloyds Banking Group, along with Lloyds staff working on the Equitable Life account and a small number of Equitable Life staff. The transfer will place over 500,000 life and pensions policies under HCL IBS administration and is expected to save Equitable Life £8 million in the first full year. HCL Technologies senior vice president Stuart Drew said: "Over the coming years, we plan to develop the scope of this work to encompass other financial services clients. Ultimately, we aim to transform the operation into a centre of excellence within our global service delivery capabilities." Chris Wiscarson, chief executive of Equitable Life, said: "This is one of the most important decisions in the society's history. HCL has an impressive reputation and I am confident that it will provide great service and great value to policyholders." Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| MCA SLAMS 'PERVERSE' GOVERNMENT PLANS TO HALVE CONSULTANCY SPEND | |
| 15 December 2009 | The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) has branded as 'perverse' government plans to reduce consultancy spending by 50%, warning that arbitrary cuts in consultancy would rob government of essential expertise and could leave it unable to reduce public sector debt.
The MCA's attack follows publication of the Government's 'Putting the Frontline First: Smarter Government' document, which describes how it will improve public service outcomes while cutting costs. One action will be to streamline central government for sharper delivery, a process that will involve "releasing further resources for front-line services by reducing spend on consultancy by 50%".
In response, MCA chief executive Alan Leaman said: "Management consultancies will play a critical role over the next few years in helping the government to save money, improve front-line services and raise productivity. "It is perverse to announce an arbitrary reduction in consultancy without any analysis or explanation. The Government could easily miss its other spending objectives if it robs itself of the ability to use consultancy when it is appropriate to do so." As well as cutting consultancy spend, the Government plans to improve back-office and procurement processes "to the standard of the best", expand successful shared services centres, and explore best governance and ownership structures for every department. Source: MC Direct Newswire |
| Capgemini named one of Renault’s preferred partner in applications outsourcing | |
| 15 December 2009 | Capgemini has signed a three-year outsourcing contract - through its Capgemini Outsourcing Services subsidiary - with the Renault Group, becoming one of the car manufacturer’s new preferred partners in outsourcing. Following a global tender offer, Capgemini will take responsibility for optimizing and managing one quarter of the Renault Group’s applications portfolio, over the entire application lifecycle. The project will involve over 180 Capgemini professionals and will include technical and functional updates and improvements, technical support, and applications development in Procurement, Quality and Sales. “To meet the constantly evolving needs of users, a good knowledge of their industry is essential. This enables good alignment between the service provided, current projects and priorities. Capgemini has the functional and industry capabilities required, as well as a great capacity for innovation drawn from its experience with other car manufacturers. These factors all create favorable conditions to meet the needs of Renault,” said Francois Gitton, Deputy CIO at Renault. Capgemini’s proven expertise in outsourcing, and its strong knowledge of the challenges facing the automobile sector, combined with its Sogeti subsidiary’s work with Renault, all played a key role in the car manufacturer’s decision to select Capgemini as its new partner in Application Development and Maintenance. “This contract is a great opportunity to build a strong partnership with Renault. Our commitment can be seen in both the length of the project and in our ambition to assist the group in its future challenges,” noted Alain Donzeaud, member of the Capgemini Group’s Executive Comm Source: News Direct |
| ea Consulting Group still one of the fastest growing UK companies | |
| 15 December 2009 | ea Consulting Group (eacg) features for the second year running in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100, which celebrates the UK’s fastest growing unquoted companies. The company has continued to grow through its pioneering approach to helping its clients cope with the challenges of the recession.,br> Steve Robson, founder, CEO & Chairman of eacg said: “We’re delighted to be in the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 again - especially given the tough market conditions. Our success this year is down to our whole team offering great value and delivering change effectively to our clients through innovation and special partnerships.” The last year has seen unprecedented change in the banking industry and eacg has focused on delivering results not theories. Jon Murphy, Executive Director at eacg commented; “We have cost-effective solutions to the problems facing the financial sector today, by providing professional interims and consulting teams to deliver the change they need. Whether that is in ensuring compliance or in managing mergers and transitions, they see a huge value in our services”. eacg is a change delivery firm that covers the full lifecycle of change from strategy through to the design and management of change solutions. eacg has over 1,000 consultants and interim change managers who are affiliated to eacg, and over the last 12 months we have had over 400 consultants and professional interims engaged on client programmes. eacg was founded in 1998 and has established itself as one of the largest independent companies providing change solutions in the financial services sector. eacg offers a client-centric approach by developing responsive long-term relationships. Source: News Direct |
| CMC Partnership now one of UK’s fastest growing companies | |
| 15 December 2009 | Project management consultancy CMC Partnership has been recognized as one of the fastest-growing private companies in the UK. In difficult trading conditions, CMC’s sales have grown 53% a year over the last 3 years from £3.7m in 2006 to £13.3m in 2009. Thanks to this, CMC Partnership has now made it onto the Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 league table. Launched nine years ago, CMC has grown from a small specialist consultancy to one of the leaders in its field, with core contracts with Government and the Public Sector and a substantial track record delivering effective, tailored project and change management. The company recently played a pivotal role helping to set up the Government’s new Stabilisation Volunteer Network (SVN), to promote stability in countries affected by violent conflict such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Sudan. CMC is also the major supplier of consultancy services to the Driver’s Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in Swansea. Managing Director Brian Clancy attributed CMC Partnership’s success to the commitment and excellent performance of its staff. He said: “Our rapid growth reflects the trust our customers have in our ability to deliver and the benefits of our very close way of working with our clients to ensure we exactly meet their business needs and deliver long-term value for money.” CMC is based in London and Wales. The company has twice been named the fastest growing company for financial and business services in Wales. Source: News Direct |
| BP awards global communications contract to T-Systems | |
| 8 December 2009 | T-Systems, the business solutions arm of Deutsche Telekom, has secured a contract to provide telecommunications services to global energy group, BP plc. BP awards global communications contract to T-Systems The five year contract will play a key role in supporting BP's ongoing efficiency programme by delivering significant cost savings. T-Systems will transform BP's global telecoms services network enabling it for next generation voice and data services. In a flexible contract, BP's business units will have the freedom to choose communications services that align with their specific needs and cost base. The agreement heralds the introduction of a new multi-sourcing model for communications services. The transformation programme will simplify BP's existing network, heavily reducing the number of suppliers to remove complexity, significantly lowering the cost of operations and ensuring end to end service quality. In a parallel agreement, Siemens Enterprise Communications (SEN Group) will be providing a global managed service that supports BP's voice requirements, including managed telephone and audio visual services. The two companies have extensive experience of working together and enjoy a strong track record of successful collaboration. Dana Deasy, BP Group CIO, said: "We are looking forward to working with our new strategic partner for BP's telecoms services. Their expertise, new perspective and energy will give BP a significant opportunity to reduce complexity and lower our overall cost base." "We are proud to have become a key partner for change at BP", said Reinhard Clemens, CEO, T-Systems. "In the current economic climate, it is imperative that ICT providers demonstrate a clear ability to have a positive impact on their clients' business performance. From today, it will be a priority for T-Systems to apply our combination of IT and Telecommunications capabilities to deliver strong business results for BP." Today's announcement underlines T-Systems' continued progress in achieving its goal of becoming the leading ICT provider for global corporations and public institutions. Source: Top-Consultant |
| Ernst & Young top for financial services risk management | |
| 8 December 2009 | Ernst & Young in the UK has been voted the best financial services risk management advisory business by over 300 operational risk and compliance professionals in this year OpRisk & Compliance magazine annual consultancy survey. Ernst & Young top for financial services risk management In addition to placing Ernst & Young first overall, the global professional services organization also secured the top spot in 6 of the 13 categories: Operational Risk; Compliance Effectiveness; Operational Risk Software Selection, Implementation; Compliance Software Selection, Implementation; Business Process Improvement; and Financial Crime Prevention. Ernst & Young was ranked in the top 3 in all other categories. Hank Prybylski, leader of the Global Financial Services Risk Management (FSRM) practice said: We are clearly in a period of intense and rising regulatory expectations regarding risk requirements. For over 12 months we have been at the center of one of most trying global financial services environments. These results speak volumes about the hard work of our professionals and client focus we continue to display. We often highlight the power of our collective talent but industry recognition, like this, proves it. EMEIA FSRM leader, Dr Stephen Christie, comments: The pace of change, complexity and technical breadth expected from financial institutions and regulators has increased significantly. Our integrated advisory services have been critical to ensure successful outcomes for our clients. This has been a key factor, we believe, in our differentiation reflected by this award. Phillip Straley, FSRM leader for the Far East added: Beyond global connectivity and integrated offerings, which are critical, we have focused on building capability to execute in local markets of importance to our clients. This means knowing local regulations and regulators, delivering depth of skills in the local language, and tailoring services to local operating environments and governance expectations. Survey respondents were from Europe (48%), North America (40%) and Asia-Pacific (10%). Source: Top-Consultant |
| BANK OF ENGLAND INVESTS IN LOGICA | |
| 1 December 2009 | Logica has won a competitive five-year contract with the Bank of England to develop HR services.
The bank was looking for a partner to automate and standardise its HR operations, in turn improving efficiency and cost-effectiveness in the delivery of services to 1,750 employees and 7.000 pensioners. Logica will provide a managed software service solution based on an Oracle platform and will offer applications including performance management, recruitment, time & attendance, flexible benefits, self-service, HR analytics and a bureau payroll service. Implementation will be phased, with the service due to go live next year. Logica's director of BPO UK, Patricia Taylor, said: "We are delighted to have been chosen to help the Bank of England with its HR services. We were keen to demonstrate our ability in a solution that would meet long-term business requirements by using a flexible system and service options." The contract follows a run of successes for Logica in the HR and payroll market, with new clients including Channel 4, KPN, Martinair and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| HP BUILDS SERVICES REVENUE | |
| 1 December 2009 | Hewlett-Packard increased its services revenue by 8% in the last financial year, despite an overall fall in net profit and revenue.
Services revenue reached $9 billion (£5.5 billion) in the year to 31 October, generating an operating profit of $1.4 billion, up from $945 million the previous year. Infrastructure technology outsourcing contributed revenue of $4.1 billion, technology services $2.5 billion, application services $1.5 billion and BPO $778 million. HP said the integration of its subsidiary EDS was ahead of plan, helping it end the year with a surge in services signings. For the full year, HP's net profit fell 8% to $7.6 billion, on revenue down 3% to $114.6 billion. Fourth-quarter revenue dropped 8% to $30.8 billion, with the EMEA region down 17%, the Americas down 3% and Asia-Pacific down 1%. HP chairman and CEO Mark Hurd commented: "HP's solid performance in services drove record profits, and the accelerated pace in signings creates strong momentum going into 2010. Our operational execution and improving cost structure generated strong quarterly and year-end results. We expect to outperform the market due to our significant scale, broad portfolio and market-leading position." Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| SATYAM SINKS INTO WORSE FINANCIAL TROUBLE | |
| 1 December 2009 | Satyam Computer Services, the Indian IT services firm rocked by financial scandal in 2008 and rescued by Tech Mahindra this April, has slipped into deeper trouble following new charges made by India's Central Bureau of Investigation.
The charges have been filed against former chairman Ramalinga Raju - who was detained in January on charges of cheating and forgery after admitting he had manipulated the company's accounts - and nine other people who have not been named. The charges state that the alleged fraud at Satyam was larger than initially admitted by Raju and could total 118.8 billion rupees (£1.6 billion), against the 71.4 billion rupees previously stated. Allegations include using forged board resolutions to raise loans, the creation of fake customers and invoices, and acquisitions of land and property made with money taken illegally out of the company. The new charges will be a blow to the recently formed company, Mahindra Satyam, which has been rebuilding the Satyam customer base and market confidence since the acquisition in April. Speaking recently, Mahindra Satyam president Atul Kunwar said customer attrition had stopped and that the company was adding clients, including General Electric and Cisco Systems. Mahindra Satyam declined to comment on the new charges. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| Environment Agency of England and Wales partners with Capgemini for a green IT contract | |
| 1 December 2009 | The Environment Agency of England and Wales has chosen Capgemini to provide the partial outsourcing of IT services under a new seven year IT service contract which aims to be the greenest in government. It should see the Environment Agency reduce IT carbon emissions by around 50 percent within the next few years. Environmental considerations have been the core of the design of the service – from the production and transportation of hardware, to energy savings for each end-user. Further green measures will include reduction, reuse and recycling of hardware, while all disposals will be done under strict Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations. It is the first time that such a comprehensive set of green measures has been formally set within a U.K. IT contract. It is widely accepted that IT usage globally contributes to two percent of the total carbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to that usually attributed to aviation. For these reasons, the Environment Agency has contracted with Capgemini to ensure that this service can be reused by Government and other public sector organizations. In designing a framework with environmental measures built in from the outset, such as equipment purchase, its delivery and use on the desk, through to its ultimate disposal, the total cost of IT purchase and operation should be reduced. The result is that public sector organizations and businesses can not only improve their environmental performance, but also can make long-term cost savings. Graham Ledward, Director of Resources at the Environment Agency said: "This contract not only aims to exceed the Government’s sustainable IT targets, it also sets a high standard for environmental performance which we hope that other public sector organizations and businesses would wish to reflect." Ledward continued, "The real message of success is that a green IT contract can be frugal, cost-effective and environmentally beneficial. The Environment Agency is not only reducing its carbon emissions, it’s also saving money in the long term. We will effectively do more for less." Christine Hodgson, Vice President and member of the Capgemini Group Executive Committee, said: "We are proud to have won this important contract on the strength of the value of our proposition to the Environment Agency and our commitment to sustainable IT. We believe this contract should become a benchmark that will shape and influence how other organizations in the public and private sectors adopt sustainable IT as a business benefit, and that where the Environment Agency has led, others will inevitably follow." With much of the Environment Agency’s existing IT provision reaching the end of its useful lifecycle, this contract means that the organization will be more efficient and flexible in meeting its future challenges. This will underpin the delivery of the Environment Agency’s ambitious new Corporate Strategy 2010-2015, which was unveiled on Tuesday (November 10, 2009). Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| Nearly 80% of consultancy firms are currently hiring, Prism survey reveals | |
| 1 December 2009 | Many candidates find their job search frustrating and fragmented. Having seen a significant upturn in interview activity since the beginning of September, Prism Executive Recruitment conducted a market survey in early November with a prequalified sample of candidates and employers, with responses from 45 employers and 153 candidates. The headline results show candidates are slightly more confident but, digging deeper into the responses, opinions are somewhat polarised, with some finding the market very buoyant and more active, while many others are commenting that things are very slow. As you might expect of a recruitment agency database, many are actively interviewing but many of these are making negative comments about the market. Common themes relate to slow recruitment processes, salary pressures, window shopping and employers setting very tight specifications and unwilling to compromise. On the employer side, the results are quite startling: the overwhelming majority are primed to recruit AND are finding candidates hard to find. While this might seem at odds with the candidate experience it suggests employers are chasing the same population of candidates who have the "best" CVs AND the "in demand" skillsets and sectors. These include: Public Sector (particularly security cleared candidates), Energy/Utilities, Financial Services, Strategic IT, risk, lean and transformation (both consulting and delivery). Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| PwC's Financial Services regulatory practice scoops best consulting award | |
| 1 December 2009 | PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP in the UK was named the Best Consulting Firm of the Year at the annual Complinet Compliance awards last night. The awards are the pre-eminent annual event for compliance professionals in the financial services industry. The award recognises the strength of the PwC team, which brings together knowledge and experience from the Consulting, Assurance, Forensics, Actuarial & Insurance Management Solutions and PwC Legal practices. Pat Newberry, Chairman of PwC's UK Financial Services Regulatory Practice, commented, "We are delighted to have received the award. Navigating the complexities of regulatory compliance remains a challenge for organisations, particularly in the current environment, and we are hugely committed to helping our clients succeed in this area." Ian Powell, Chairman and Senior Partner, said: "I would like to congratulate the team on winning this award. This is an excellent example of bringing expert insight and skills to our clients. I believe it is the depth and breadth of our experience that stands us apart." Source: MCN Director Newswire |
| Logica says orders up 6% in Q3 | |
| 1 December 2009 | Logica, the Anglo-Dutch IT services provider, said orders were up 6% in the third quarter ended 30 September, driven by outsourcing. Logica said overall quarterly revenue was down 4% on the previous quarter, while year to date revenue was down 3% to £2.731 billion. For the quarter outsourcing revenue grew 11%, while Consulting and Professional Services declined 12%, due to lower volumes and pricing agreed in the first half. By geography, the UK remains Logica’s strongest performer, with the Benelux its weakest region. The company will focus additional cost reductions in markets with weaker demand that will deliver ongoing cost savings of £15 million from 2010 at a one‐off cost of around £20 million in 2009. Logica expects full-year revenue to decline 3%, while its margin guidance remains at around 7.5%. The company had 39,157 employees at the end of September, compared to 39,525 as at the end of June. Logica said attrition stabilised through the quarter, remaining at around 7%. The company its utilisation rates are good in most regions outside the Benelux. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| Capgemini reiterates its profitability targets for 2009 | |
| 1 December 2009 | The Capgemini Group reported consolidated revenues of €1,946 million, down 9.0% on a like-for-like basis versus third-quarter 2008, despite a challenging environment with reductions in corporate IT spending. Capgemini said its revenues for fourth-quarter 2009 should experience a similar decline to that recorded in the three months to September 30. Thanks to costs controls, the Group said it is able to confirm its operating margin guidance of around 7% for full-year 2009. Outsourcing Services fulfilled its role as a stabilizing force despite posting a slight 2.7% decline in quarterly revenues from Q3 2008 due to the expected – and announced – fall in business under a major contract in North America. Revenues for the Group’s other three business segments retreated 12.5% on average, with those activities most vulnerable to the economic cycle (Consulting Services and Local Professional Services) recording the largest decline. UK and Ireland continued to gain ground, delivering a 1.5% increase in revenues. Although revenues for North America were down 7.3% on the same year-ago period, this was a better performance than in the three months to June 30, 2009. The group’s other regions saw revenues contract 13.3% on average, with France posting a fall of 9.9%. Bookings in the three months to September 30, 2009 represented €1,981 million. Bookings advanced 7% for Outsourcing Services compared with third-quarter 2008. In the Group’s other three businesses (Consulting Services, Technology Services and Local Professional Services), the book-to-bill ratio remained above 1. Although there are signs that activity is stabilizing and even picking up in some market segments, benefits are not expected to filter through immediately. To leverage the upturn, Capgemini has decided to launch five comprehensive service offerings between now and March 2010. The offerings focus on high-growth markets such as those targeted by Business Information Management (BIM), the services package just announced. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| Consultancies dominate Top 10 list of most attractive employers | |
| 1 December 2009 | PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, KPMG, McKinsey and Deloitte top list of first global index of employer attractiveness. This is the first global index of employer attractiveness by employer branding company Universum, which highlights the world’s 50 most powerful employer brands – those companies that excel in talent attraction and retention. The ranking is based on a survey of business students from the US, Japan, China, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Russia, Spain, Canada and India. Nearly 120,000 students from top academic institutions chose their ideal companies to work for. Google is the world’s most attractive employer, followed by PricewaterhouseCoopers, placing the highest among the Big Four firms and boutique management consultancies. Ernst & Young placed 5th, KPMG 8th, followed by McKinsey and Deloitte 10th, rounding off the top 10. The global ranking is based on the national rankings that Universum conducts annually all over the world. The companies that are featured in at least eight out of the twelve leading economies were included in the global ranking, and the 50 most attractive employers were identified. The Big Four accountancy and professionals service firms; financial services companies and management consultancies, still remain strong. They are globally attractive employers and are especially popular with business students. The Boston Consulting Group narrowly missed the top 10, placing 11th. Accenture was 23th and Bain & Company 26th. “These companies in the Top 50 really work with employer branding strategically. The Big Four, for example, are all in the top 10 business ranking, as they have employer branding as part of their business strategy. Many associate their corporate brands to people. This is normal for the service industry, but it’s a new approach for other companies” says Michal Kalinowski, Universum CEO. “These companies are in the Top 50 because they are focused, consistent and differentiate themselves in their communication.” Irrespective of rank, the Top 50 Global Employers for business and engineering students are very similar, showing strong employer brands transcend many skill and industry groups. Conversely, Oracle and Philip Morris make it to the Top 50 for business students, but not for engineering students. GlaxoSmithKline and Alcatel-Lucent appear in the engineering ranking, yet not in the business ranking. Aside from these differences in choice of employers, what the rankings most certainly reveal is that the big multinational brands are favoured. Due to the globalisation of the talent market, multinational companies are generally recognised as being attractive employers. Findings from Universum’s various student surveys show that students would like a good career reference, an international career and an employer that can offer secure employment. Lovisa Öhnell, head of research and consulting at Universum, comments, “These multinational brands are globally well-known, they offer relocation opportunities and business travel, interaction with clients and colleagues in various countries, and due to their size and economic strength, they are also seen as being the safest choice.” Google’s number one position is no surprise. Due to its remarkable brand image, students worldwide see it as a company they would like to work for. What’s surprising about Google, however, is that it doesn’t invest in employer branding much in comparison to other companies that spend massively on branding activities. Farhad Manjoo, a journalist from Time magazine, recently said it best, “What’s astonishing…is how effortlessly Google has come to earn the public’s affection,” while others “spend enormous sums to stay in the consciousness”. The question remains: will Google be able to do this forever? Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| Baringa Partners marks successful year with two partner promotions | |
| 1 December 2009 | Baringa Partners, the specialist management consultancy in energy and financial services, has promoted Nick Tallantyre and Gareth Campbell to the position of partner. The move follows Phil Leonard’s appointment earlier this year as a partner in the company’s energy networks and water practice. Nick Tallantyre said: “When I joined the wholesale energy practice of Baringa Partners in 2002, I was attracted by the quality and experience of the team who had already established themselves as a high value consulting practise with exceptional client relationships and an entrepreneurial spirit. Over the last seven years, our offerings have matured further to become industry leading practises and we continue to provide quality results to a highly sophisticated client base. It’s been very rewarding to be a part of that growth, and I’ve really valued the chance to shape the direction of the business. It is a testament to the quality and attitude of our staff when I reflect on the fact that our spirit and values today are identical to when I joined despite growing from a 20 to a 120 person organisation.” Gareth Campbell said: “I came into the firm in 2007 to help establish the newly formed financial services practice. We really hit the ground running there and we have won some major new clients due to the unbeatable value we offer in terms of quality, expertise and measurable results. To achieve as much as we have in spite of these incredibly challenging economic conditions is a real testament to the calibre and capabilities of our people.” “Not only will I continue to help lead the financial services practice, but I’ll also be taking on the responsibility for HR and people development across the firm,” continued Campbell. “Our reputation in the market hinges on our ability to recruit and retain people of the highest possible quality, especially as we grow the firm to meet increasing client demand for our services. This has always been a major focal point for us, and we are very proud to have been named the second best place to work in the UK for the last two years by the Great Places to Work Institute. We’ve worked hard to embed that culture of being a positive, stimulating and rewarding place to work into the company, and I look forward to helping the firm strive to uphold those values as we expand.” Mohamed Mansour, managing partner of Baringa Partners said: “It gives me great pleasure to announce the promotion of Nick and Gareth. Nick has been with us from a relatively early stage of the company and has been an integral part of our development over the last few years. We always strive to bring in senior individuals at a high level, and that’s the case with Gareth, who has really spearheaded our financial services practice and played a key part in its success.” Mansour continued: “More broadly, 2009 has been a remarkably strong year from successfully completing our re-branding exercise to being named Energy Risk’s Advisory House of the Year. Our sustained growth has demonstrated that clients really value our highly specialist approach. We look forward to continuing to deliver exceptional work for all clients, both established and new, as we move into 2010.” Source: MCN Director Newswire |
| Atos Origin begins the countdown to two Olympic Games | |
| 1 December 2009 | Atos Origin, the Worldwide IT Partner for the Olympic Games, is beginning the 100- and 1000-day countdown to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the London 2012 Olympic Games, respectively. “As Worldwide IT Partner for the Olympic Games we are delighted to confirm that with 100 days to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and just less than 1000 to the London 2012 Games the implementation of the technology for the information systems is on track,” said Patrick Adiba, executive vice president for the Olympic Games at Atos Origin. “As long-standing partner to the International Olympic Committee, we are committed to delivering a flawless performance to ensure the Games are successful in Vancouver in 2010 and in London in 2012.” In 100 days Atos Origin will begin bringing real-time results from the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games to a global audience of 3 billion people. First it will lead the technology team to complete testing of all the IT infrastructure, systems and processes including simulating the three busiest days of competition during which about 500 operational scenarios will be executed (such as a flood and network disconnection). It will also deploy 5,800 computers, 800 servers and 5,000 PCs to 35 venues in just 10 weeks and in January will switch to operational mode to manage and monitor 24/7 the technology at all the competition and non-competition venues. Meanwhile in London there is just under 1000 days to the 2012 Games. Like the athletes who are hoping to take part in the Games, Atos Origin must prepare extensively between now and the opening ceremony. As lead integrator, Atos Origin will work with its partners under the direction of LOCOG’s Technology Department to design the extensive technology infrastructure and systems that will deliver the results and support the planning and operations of the Games. This will include developing the volunteer portal that will help London 2012 recruit up to 70,000 volunteers for Games time; conducting more than 200,000 hours of testing to ensure that the technology provided for the Olympic Games delivers a gold winning performance and processing 200,000 accreditations that serve as a visa for athletes, workforce, volunteers, media, sponsors, officials and other members of the Olympic Family to enter the UK as well as accessing the Olympic venues. Atos Origin designs, integrates, manages and secures the multiple Information Technology systems needed to manage the Olympic Games and the systems that communicate the results to the world. Atos Origin holds the largest sports-related IT contract in the world. The contract with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) encompasses Salt Lake City in 2002, Athens in 2004, Torino in 2006, Beijing in 2008, Vancouver in 2010, and London in 2012. It was renewed in 2009 for Sochi in 2014 and Rio de Janeiro in 2016. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| HMRC revises Aspire IT agreement with Capgemini | |
| 1 December 2009 | Under the revised Aspire agreement, Capgemini, Fujitsu and Accenture have committed to save £110 million a year for HMRC, in addition to the £70 million per annum savings committed in 2007. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) – the UK's tax authority - has committed to channel all core external IT spend through the Aspire contract, HMRC’s contract with Capgemini and major sub-contractors Fujitsu and Accenture, for the provision of IT services, which runs until 2017. In return, the revised agreement will enable HMRC to reduce its IT running costs. A transformation program has been established to implement standardized systems with common industry components, and investment in modern, more flexible, technologies to better meet the needs of HMRC’s integrated organisation and drive cost savings, which will be realised from financial year 2011/12. Under the revised Aspire agreement, Capgemini, Fujitsu and Accenture have committed to save £110 million a year for HMRC, in addition to the £70 million per annum savings committed in 2007. The service providers under the Aspire agreement have been granted exclusivity on all project delivery for HMRC until April 2013, with a minimum revenue commitment on project work thereafter in addition to exclusivity on data centre services delivered through the subcontract with Fujitsu until 2015. The existing desktop service has also been extended, whereby Capgemini will act as HMRC’s procurement agent in respect of office IT equipment and consumables, which will enable Capgemini to deliver an improved end user experience for HMRC employees. Lesley Strathie, Chief Executive, Permanent Secretary for HMRC said: “HMRC and Capgemini have worked together to achieve outstanding savings for the Department. This is just one of the ways HMRC will be reducing operating costs and it signals the intent to bring IT costs down as announced in the 2009 Budget." Nigel Martin, CEO, Capgemini Aspire said: “The latest change to the Aspire contract has been made possible by collaboration both with HMRC and Capgemini’s Aspire partners particularly Fujitsu, our core infrastructure partner, and Accenture. Together we’re helping HMRC respond to a challenging environment and our flexible contract is continuing to set the standard for all outsourcing arrangements five years after it was first signed. The new agreement would not have been possible without our track record of reliable service and up to 200 projects delivered on time and within budget for HMRC each and every year.” Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| PA Consulting: Businesses must act now to survive the new zombie reality of half dead banks, governments, consumers and companies | |
| 1 December 2009 | New book from PA Consulting explores strategy on how to survive in the ‘new normal’ of the coming recovery. We have avoided an economic apocalypse and a form of recovery is imminent but we must prepare ourselves to live in a world dominated by powerful forces of half-dead, half-alive zombies. These zombies will ensure business does not return to any kind of acceptable normality for at least several years, according to PA Consulting Group's book The Zombie Economy: Leadership in times of uncertainty. It will be at least 2011 before we return to pre-crisis performance levels and growth rates will remain subdued for longer still. In this zombie world business leaders have at least two years before they can start thinking about business as usual -- and even then it will not be the same business as usual. Why a zombie economy? The zombie economy is made up of not quite dead banks, governments, consumers and companies staggering along, struggling to function in the new world: - Zombie banks whose balance sheets are too weak to support sufficient lending. Banks may be declaring huge profits but their recovery is partly an illusion. Losses of US$3.4 trillion in the financial system have still not fully unfolded. - Zombie governments whose finances are too stretched to sustain expansionary policies. Highly expensive government intervention means debt to GDP rates are set to rise to levels not seen outside war-time. - Zombie consumers whose wealth is too depleted to allow them to consume. Because of the state of the economy in general, and bank lending in particular, US consumers are spending 5% less of their disposable income -- they will be unable to act as the world's 'consumer of last resort'. - Zombie companies the combined impact of zombie banks, governments and consumers is exerting a powerful negative force on companies. They are saddled with debt that they cannot comfortably service, impeding growth and investment. UK Corporate insolvencies are now at record rates. The impact of a zombie world on any recovery The impact of zombies on the economy cannot be overstated. The zombies are set to create a vicious circle that prevents any rapid return to business as usual, and a recovery that feels more like a recession. Mark Thomas, author of the book and head of the strategy and marketing practice at PA, says: "The simultaneous existence of the zombies is something that has not occurred before in the working lifetime of anyone in business today. Business leaders are struggling to assess the impact of the zombies on their organisation. "Companies are battening-down the hatches and waiting for recovery -- but in the zombie reality this is a high risk strategy. We must prepare ourselves to live in the zombie world and companies need to take radical action. Businesses need to take certain actions now to survive and thrive in the zombie economy." The winners and losers The zombie economy will divide the business world into winners and losers. The winners are highly liquid and well-positioned to meet the needs of the zombie economy. They are more likely to benefit from competitor distress and they are unlikely to go under. While there will be winners and losers within each sector, some sectors overall have shown signs of resilience in the zombie world. Healthcare has so far been most resilient, though even here, the future will bring greater challenges. In contrast the losers are companies who are not liquid or whose business model is unsuited to the zombie world. They could go under, and if they survive, are likely to struggle. Manufacturing, Banking and Construction are all sectors which face significant short term challenges and where further consolidation is likely. How business leaders can overcome the threats from the zombie economy There are four steps to thriving in the zombie world: - secure liquidity - create a portfolio of potentially winning businesses - remodel each business to ensure that it can perform strongly in the new world - subject to the success of the first three steps, take bold action to stake out a massively enhanced market position in the new world Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| IBM WORKS ON SMART WATER MANAGEMENT IN IRELAND | |
| 1 December 2009 | IBM has teamed up with Ireland's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide smart water management across the country's beaches and lakes, plus a portal that offers immediate information on water quality for the general public. Working with An Taisce, the National Trust for Ireland, IBM and EPA are collecting and analysing environmental data from Ireland's coastline and lakes on water quality, tides and weather forecasts. The information is being made available at online portal Splash. Prior to Splash, public reports on water samples and compliance with standards were not available until the year after samples were collected. EPA director general Mary Kelly said: "Our collaboration with IBM and An Taisce is paving the way for smarter water quality management at our beaches and lakes. It is a good example of how smart green technologies can be deployed to provide easily accessible and useful information to the public. The Splash portal is just the beginning of what we hope to accomplish." Sharon Nunes, vice president of big green innovations at IBM, said: "By providing near real-time access to water conditions we are enabling environmental agencies and citizens to make smarter decisions about everything from how to handle changes in water quality to where to plan their next vacation." Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| FUJITSU SECURES WORK IN SCOTLAND AND SWEDEN | |
| 1 December 2009 | Fujitsu has won a £66 million, five-year IT modernisation deal with the Scottish Highland Council and an IT services outsourcing contract from Volvo in Sweden. The contracts will be a welcome fillip for Fujitsu, which recently announced a 10% cut in its UK workforce and forecast a 7% fall in annual revenue for fiscal 2010. The Highland Council has awarded Fujitsu preferred bidder status to transform and modernise its entire ICT infrastructure, systems and services. Projects include customer relationship management and the provision of unified communications solutions across the council. Councillor Carolyn Wilson, chair of the Highland Council resources committee, said: "This contract will deliver significant efficiency savings - £6.76 million over the next five years - and cut the carbon footprint of the council through reduced carbon emissions and energy consumption." At Volvo, Fujitsu has won a competitive tender to provide outsourced services for the company's IT platforms, desktops and service desks. Twenty-five Volvo employees will transfer to Fujitsu's offices in Gothenburg in Sweden and Gent in Belgium as part of the arrangement, while another 50-60 will be recruited at operations centres in Gothenburg, Stockholm and Russia. Under the contract, Fujitsu will become the sole supplier of IT infrastructure to Volvo. Source: MCN Director Newswire |
| LOGICA CREATES BUSINESS CONSULTING SERVICE LINE | |
| 1 December 2009 | Logica has bundled its business units - with the exception of outsourcing services - into a global business consulting service line that will be led by Patrick Guimbal, former CEO of Logica in France. The introduction of a second service line alongside outsourcing comes as Logica shuffles its executive committee. This now includes six regional CEOs covering vertical markets, and CEOs in charge of three horizontal service lines – outsourcing, business consulting and global operations. Logica's aim is to combine local client-facing operations with low-cost shared services and global service lines to deliver consistent capabilities wherever they are needed. The business consulting operation will be under pressure to perform when the new structure comes into force on 1 January 2010. Logica's latest third-quarter financial results show a 12% drop in revenue from consulting and professional services, offset by 11% growth in outsourcing revenue. Total revenue for the quarter was down 4% at £862 million, leading the company to forecast annual revenue down 3% for the year - a previous forecast suggested a 2% fall - and to announce a further 300 job cuts in weak markets including the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden. These job cuts will add to the 1,900 cuts made since Logica launched a restructuring and cost saving programme under incoming CEO Andy Green in early 2008. Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| MCA NAMES TOP CONSULTANT TALENT | |
| 1 December 2009 | The Management Consultancies Association (MCA) has awarded accolades to three career stage winners and six category leaders in its 2009 consultant of the year awards. KPMG associate partner Rakesh Majithia scooped the award for 'outstanding achievement'. Majithia works in KPMG Advisory's sourcing team and won the prize for a global change project at a leisure group requiring efficiencies from its shared finance services model. Also among the career stage winners were Lisa Henneghan, a director in Deloitte's technology integration practice, who beat finalists from KPMG and CSC to win the 'future leader' award. Taking the 'young consultant of the year' accolade was Kimberly Hurd from Accenture. In the MCA's category awards, Derek Felton from Tribal secured the change management award, Rustin Richburg from Accenture took the HR prize and Will Cooper form Ernst & Young won the IT award. Julian Horberry from Propaganda scooped the top marketing honour, with the performance improvement award going to Graham Ramsden of BT Global Services and the strategy award to Richard Lewis of Ernst & Young. MCA CEO Alan Leaman said: "This year's awards recognise the top talent in the British consulting industry. The standard of entries was very high and everyone who was shortlisted can be proud of their achievement." Source: MCN Director Newswire |
| TCS WINS £150m CONTRACT AT CARDIFF | |
| 1 December 2009 | Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has made its long-awaited break into local government as a strategic partner to Cardiff Council. TCS has secured a 15-year deal worth an estimated £150 million to support Cardiff's strategic transformational change programme. The contract will not involve any council staff transferring to TCS. Instead, the two organisations will work together to change the way the council's technology infrastructure supports day-to-day operations and to improve service delivery to the people of Cardiff. TCS is expected to use its government framework DigiGov, which has been implemented in Gujarat in India, to support the programme and will be looking to impress other local government organisations with its work in Cardiff. TCS UK public sector director Brian Woodford commented: "We want this to be an outstanding example of innovative engagement between the public and private sectors - a genuine partnership-based approach rather than the traditional supplier versus buyer." Councillor Mark Stephens, executive member for finance and service delivery, said: "We need to be more innovative and put the citizen at the heart of everything we do. Key to this has been bringing a technology partner on board and I am delighted TCS has been awarded the role." Cardiff Council leader Rodney Berman added: "This exciting collaboration will help us make savings in our spending on technology and enable the council to raise money through the development of technology-enabled products." Source: MCN Direct Newswire |
| CSC signs Cloud computing agreement with UK Royal Mail Group | |
| 1 December 2009 | CSC has signed an agreement with the UK's Royal Mail Group to provide cloud computing information technology (IT) services. The new agreement expands the company's current contract signed with Royal Mail Group in 2003 to maintain its desktop computers and manage and develop its servers, mainframes and IT processes. The new contract is an industry first, with CSC being the first Microsoft partner to lead and win a cloud computing services agreement of this scale. Under terms of the contract, CSC will provide Royal Mail Group's 30,000 employees with access to new IT services using Microsoft's Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), part of Microsoft Online Services. CSC will also provide first line helpdesk support. CSC's cloud services are designed to help businesses easily and securely adopt cloud computing solutions, allowing them to reduce the costs of managing and maintaining business systems while giving them access to the latest Microsoft Online Services including Microsoft Exchange Online, Microsoft SharePoint Online, Microsoft Office Communications Online and Microsoft Office Live Meeting. Royal Mail Group's Head of Technology Service Delivery, Carol Olney, said: "This deal forms part of Royal Mail's drive to invest in new technology to improve efficiency and customer service." "The Microsoft suite will give people across Royal Mail Group the tools they need to do their jobs more effectively, enabling our business units to collaborate with each other, partners and other external organisations more freely, easily and securely while securing cost savings." "We are pleased to expand our relationship with Royal Mail Group and deliver the benefits of cloud services," said Kevin Brown, vice president and chief operating officer of CSC in the UK. "Working collaboratively with Microsoft, we look forward to helping Royal Mail Group lower operational costs and providing more flexibility in the management of its IT systems." "Public and private sector organizations, such as Royal Mail Group, are moving their critical applications to Microsoft Online Services in increasing numbers," said Ron Markezich, corporate vice president at Microsoft. "Partners like CSC are important in helping our customers take full advantage of the enterprise-grade capabilities and flexibility Microsoft's cloud applications deliver." Source: Top-Consultant |
| Capgemini helps transform Hovis supply chain at Premier Foods | |
| 1 December 2009 | The Hovis Division of Premier Foods, the UK’s largest food producer, is targeting improved customer service and reduced waste following a transformation of its supply chain carried out in collaboration with Capgemini UK plc. The new solution, which is currently being rolled out across all 23 Hovis bakery sites, will provide traceability for every batch of bread baked across the entire end-to-end manufacturing and distribution supply chain.
Premier Foods says that key benefits of the new solution, which will be fully implemented by the end of 2010, include better customer service, with improved accuracy of order fulfillment, and an improved visibility of supply chain performance. The nationwide rollout of the new solution has now started following a successful pilot programme involving three Hovis sites.
The project to develop and prove the new supply chain solution was led by a team of Capgemini SAP and supply chain specialists working closely with Premier Foods’ staff , with SAP, who provide the core technology underpinning the solution, and with barcode scanning specialists Zetes.
Phil McCallum, Director of IT and Infrastructure at Premier Foods, said: “The traceability solution we are implementing will deliver important benefits, including improved customer service and reduced waste. We have been pleased with the expertise Capgemini has provided in this transformational project.”
Capgemini was selected to lead the supply chain project, which started last year, because of its long and successful relationship as a principal IT infrastructure partner to Premier Foods, and because of its expertise in SAP technology and supply chain best practice. Other factors included Capgemini’s capabilities in rapid application development and its provision of cost-effective solutions based on its global delivery model. The solution automates many processes previously carried out manually, and utilises the inventory management, warehouse management, sales and distribution functionality of SAP, integrated with bar code scanning devices and software from Zetes to track the product off the production line and across the primary distribution supply chain, providing full visibility and control. Anthoula Madden, Vice President for Consumer Products at Capgemini said: “This is a very important project for Premier Foods, introducing full track and trace capability across the Hovis sites. The benefits to the business are considerable and should result in improved customer satisfaction. Bringing together the right technical solution has required strong supply chain expertise and SAP capabilities. We have been working closely with Premier Foods, SAP and Zetes to make the solution work end-to-end in an integrated manner to deliver value to the client.” Source: Top-Consultant |
| Logica creates new Chief Client Officer role | |
| 1 December 2009 | Amanda Mesler, currently President and CEO of Logica in North America, will assume the newly created nExecutive Committee role of Chief Client Officer and relocate to Europe on 1st January 2010. As Chief Client Officer, Amanda will be responsible for leading Logica’s global sales, account management, marketing and for driving its client intimacy strategy, as well as its Global Innovation Function. Amanda joined Logica in January 2007 to lead the North American business. Prior to joining Logica, Amanda has held executive positions at EDS, BearingPoint (formerly KPMG Consulting) and General Electric. Most recently, she was Vice President, Strategy and Organization Design and corporate officer at SYSCO, North America’s largest food service marketer and distributor. Andy Green, CEO of Logica, commented: “During Amanda’s time at Logica, she has shown a real passion for Sales and Marketing as well as a desire to drive genuine customer intimacy in our relations with our clients. She has become a respected leader across the group and has spearheaded a significant transformation of our North American business. I am delighted that she will be joining the EC in this newly created role. I believe her wide-ranging skills and extensive experience will bring significant value to the team.” Source: Top-Consultant |
| PwC acquires 90-strong Consulting Business | |
| 1 December 2009 | PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) has acquired corporate performance management (CPM) business Paragon Consulting Group. The group will become part of PwC Advisory’s consulting business with immediate effect. As a result of the acquisition, PwC will now be able to leverage the CPM expertise of over 90 people within the teams based in the UK, Turkey and Singapore, as well as the joint venture in Dubai. Over forty staff have joined PwC in the UK. Ashley Unwin, head of consulting, PwC, said: “We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Paragon Consulting Group. Paragon is a leader in corporate performance management technology and this acquisition is an excellent strategic fit with our consulting business. “We already offer our clients corporate performance management capabilities, but this acquisition means that we can enhance our offering, giving clients full-service – from ideas to implementation – of corporate performance management systems.” Richard Wyles, managing director, Paragon Consulting Group, said: “We are really excited that we will be able to continue to deliver excellence in performance management, but look forward to new opportunities for us to enrich our skills and experiences, to extend our relationships and make a significant contribution to growing the consulting business.” Ashley Unwin, head of consulting, PwC, said: “The economic upheaval in the past year has shown organisations the imperative of having access to the information they need to make business-critical decisions. Corporate performance management systems aim to help companies marshall essential information, often from across complex organisations, and access it at short notice. It helps them ensure that they can lead their people and continue to stay ahead in challenging economic times.” PwC’s Consulting business had revenues in 2008 of 201m (£181m in 2007) and employs more than 1,100 people, working with leading private and public sector clients to deliver significant and enduring improvements in performance and profitability. Source: Top-Consultant |
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