Industry news

Infosys has announced it has been named a “Leader” in The Forrester Wave™: Global IT Infrastructure Outsourcing, Q1 2011 as well as recognised as offering strong consulting-led infrastructure transformation.

According to the March 2011 report, Infosys offers strong consulting-led infrastructure transformation and has a solid roadmap for planned enhancements. It is a rising power in the IT infrastructure management space. The research report further states that Infosys “has diverse geographic client distribution across the globe, a robust partner ecosystem, and a stand-out story on innovation and continuous improvement.”

Infosys received the highest possible scores for the following:

Ø customer value proposition and vision

Ø innovation and continuous improvement

Ø operations and strategy consulting

Ø planned enhancements and investments to support strategy

Ø ecosystem participation and global client geographic distribution.

Anand Nataraj, Vice President and Business Unit Head, Infrastructure Management Services, Infosys Technologies: “We believe Forrester’s rating confirms our position as a leader in the market. Infosys helps organisations transform their IT Infrastructure by aligning it to their business objectives and maximizing the value of their investments. By co-creating solutions with our clients and partners, Infosys helps improve users experience and agility, reduce the cost and complexity of their technology and operations, and stay ahead of the technology curve.”

Serco Group plc (Serco), the international service company, today announces that it has been selected as a preferred bidder for the Work Programme by the UK Government's Department for Work and Pensions.

Serco have been named as a prime contractor in two areas: Coventry, Warwickshire, Staffordshire and The Marches (West Midlands); and South Yorkshire (Yorkshire and the Humber). Through a strong network of public, private and voluntary sector providers, Serco will support jobseekers into sustainable employment.

Under Flexible New Deal, the current employment programme, Serco has contracts in three areas (Wales, West Midlands and Greater Manchester) and, with our network of 72 public, private and voluntary sector providers, has already successfully supported the entry of over 20,000 people into sustainable employment.

Christopher Hyman, Chief Executive of Serco Group, said: "We are pleased to be helping deliver Britain's biggest employment programme. By integrating the technical expertise of small back-to-work providers, and matching them to the needs of individuals, we have already had a high success rate in helping thousands of people to find jobs. Our approach ensures that the voluntary and community sectors can participate fully in the Welfare to Work market. And we see further opportunities to apply our partnering approach to other areas, as we help our customers in the UK and across the world tackle their financial and operational challenges."

Any CIO who has been through the complex mergers and acquisitions (M&A) process before will understand the consequences that come from not having a clear strategy for integrating IT systems. Having an unclear strategy can have huge implications on the actual bottom line of the business, yet so many companies still consider IT as an afterthought of the M&A process. Recently, we have witnessed a surge in M&A speculation, with the likes of the LSE/TMX exchange takeover deal. Furthermore, the tech M&A fever spewed more heat as shares of Facebook rose sharply around stories of a potential buyout deal with Twitter.

The result of this speculation has led to much debate and discussion about how fast or slow the IT integration process should be. My personal opinion is that the faster you get the integration done, and the more involved the CIO is with the process, the better it will be for both parties. It is also important that the CIO looks to explore new ways to position themselves as a key cog in the complex M&A wheel.

When the CIO and his operations and technology people are around the table with the finance or marketing teams, everyone has good reasons for why "their" version of the business process is the quickest, the cheapest and the most scalable. Given the importance of data, information and analytics to any organisation these days, CEOs are expecting their CIOs to play major roles in the redesign and enablement of new business models. This presents an outstanding opportunity for CIOs to enhance strategic value within the M&A team. Here is a perfect opportunity for CIOs to step up into a leadership position and work with their partners in the business to truly integrate the best parts of each of the legacy processes into a new best-of-breed process.

However, in order to achieve this leadership position and successful integration, the CIO must work and build a relationship with the M&A team right upfront. IT has to be part of business growth strategy and not an afterthought. If the IT integration team is not part of the M&A process right from the due diligence phase onwards, then there is something seriously wrong with the strategy. Integrating systems and processes is very complex and if not carried out correctly, can have a huge impact on the entire day-to-day performance of any business.

For example, the acquired organisation may decide to use a project management process to send out invoices to their customers. In contrast, the acquirer may adopt a manual process handled by their finance department. This can be a major point of concern because the IT team members who work closely with the overall M&A team will require deep and thorough understanding of the invoicing process in order to align their applications correctly. Therefore, from the CIO perspective, the best way to handle this process is to develop an IT risk assessment document and ensure the mitigation strategies are embedded into the overall M&A framework.

There is also the fundamental issue of whether to categorise applications and integrate them in a phased manner. All organisations have numerous applications, which have been developed over many years. Some, like email, are lifeblood applications, and others have been developed to address a bespoke business problem. In theory, an M&A should provide the CIO with a great opportunity to clean up their application portfolio and develop a plan to retire rarely used applications. In general, the strategy should be to integrate the business critical applications, into the lifeblood category. This includes enterprise resource planning (ERP), Invoicing, HR and financial applications. This will make it much easier to integrate the applications supporting ancillary business processes like executive travel booking.

However, it is worth noting that for the CIO, integrating IT does not start or end with integrating applications. It starts with integrating the infrastructure like networks, telephone systems and goes well beyond applications with IM and chat support, rolling out of help desk and finally the email setup. However, there are two common sticky points that organisations often faced with integrations. Firstly, size limit on emails. This can be a very difficult issue to handle especially in cases where larger organisations are taking over smaller organisations. Large and medium companies tend to have strict quota on email. This is classic example of why the CIO needs to be involved from the outset.

In addition to handling applications and management processes, developing clear templates and deliverables at each phase should also be taken into consideration. Depending on the stages an organisation follows for integration, such as due diligence, the CIO also has to evolve the IT strategy with the business phases. IT can only be effectively aligned if each phase of the strategy has a clear set of pre-defined documents which can be used by any team member without too much of knowledge transfer, and clear deliverables which articulate any key concerns or measures. For example, the IT team should highlight the major risks in the process of integration, and then suggest an ideal timeframe for completion based on all the factors in the due diligence phase. In follow up, a clear step-by-step project plan for integration should be developed as part of the signing and closing phase. Finally, documents should be in place to report weekly during the post signing process, and stakeholders should also be able to address the major challenges right away.

The final and perhaps most critical area that CIOs should be fully involved in is the organisation structure, specifically when merging the acquired IT team into the existing IT department or function. Unless the acquired company will be a stand-alone entity, most organisations will have only one leader, so it’s important to rationalise and identify synergies among staff. CIOs should look to estimate how many people they will require incrementally within their team by assessing both skills and workloads. Whatever the situation, CIOs must keep in mind, there will be a period of time where retaining the acquired team will be critical.

In summary, CIOs clearly have the opportunity to transform their role from manager of the IT cost center to a recognised business leader who not only delivers operational efficiencies but who also drives innovative change and enable sustainable business value and growth. In order to achieve this, they must strike the right balance between engaging and building the relations wit the M&A team, demonstrating the broad range of ways in which they can make major contributions to business strategy and execution.

If your organisation is looking at diving into social media for the first time (or is ready to expand its social media efforts) you’re probably wondering: Is this something we should do ourselves, or should we hire someone to do it for us?

Social media disrupts the long-standing rules of business in many ways, but it can transform the way a business operates and open up avenues of opportunities which were currently not available.

Social media also requires an internal commitment from your organisation. A social media strategy simply won’t be sustainable if you are not investing time and resources from within. You can’t have everything handled by a third party.

People want to interact with real people at your organisation, and the authenticity and immediacy of that experience is essential. In fact, for social media to work, you need a social media point person - someone who will lead your efforts and who has the authority to make social media an organisation priority.

At the same time, there are many good reasons to supplement your efforts by outsourcing some of the work - from set-up and design, to ongoing technical assistance and content creation. Above all else, it’s very easy for social media to take a back burner if you try to handle it all internally. For that reason alone, securing outside help is a good idea. If you’re paying someone to do the work, then the work will get done, not languish at the bottom of someone’s to-do list.

Crafting a comprehensive social media policy is also vitally important for an organisation to meet their own expectations and take full advantage of the many opportunities which social media can offer.

"Social media offers tempting opportunities to interact with employees, business partners, customers, prospects and a whole host of anonymous participants on the social Web," said Carol Rozwell, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "However, those who participate in social media need guidance from their employer about the rules, responsibilities, 'norms' and behaviours expected of them, and these topics are commonly covered in the social media policy."

Some organisations confuse policy creation with policy communication. A policy should be well-written and comprehensive, but it is unlikely that the policy alone will be all that is needed to instruct employees about their responsibilities for social media. A well-designed communication plan, backed up by a training program, helps to make the policy come to life so that employees understand not just what the policy says, but how it impacts on them. It also explains what the organisation expects to gain from its participation in social media, which should influence employees in their social media interactions.

According to Amy Southerland, of Spurspectives, a social media and communications advice website: “In addition to just getting things done, there are a number of other benefits that make social media outsourcing a good idea - regardless of the size of your organisation or the scope of your social media plan.”

1. Speed: If you are new to social media - or ready to embark on a broader social media strategy - outsourcing can get things up and running quickly.

2. Training: An outside team can teach you how to do things, set up workable systems and schedules, and then transition some duties back to your internal team over time if that makes sense for your organization.

3. Reach: You will have access to the outsourced team’s existing networks, which can help your social networks grow bigger - and faster.

4. Experience: You’ll also benefit from your outsourced team’s experience with other clients. This will allow you to avoid pitfalls and learn about options and alternatives.

5. Synergy: An experienced team will be able to create integrated system of social media tools and channels, rather than a loose patchwork, allowing you to maximize your social media “nodes” for greater impact.

6. Branding: You want to select a partner with marketing and design capabilities in addition to social media know-how. The right team will make sure that everything you do supports your overall marketing strategy, including branding and identity.

7. Strategy: An outside social media team can help you develop a strategy and keep you focused on achieving long-term goals.

Amy continues: “How much of the work you will want to send out-of-house (and how much of it will need to stay out-of-house over time) will depend on several factors, including your staff’s knowledge and familiarity with social media, how much time your staff can spend each week creating content and tending to your social networks, and the overall size and complexity of your social media plan.”

So the question remains, should an organisation outsource their social media? The short answer is yes... and no. You can't outsource the culture of being social, nor can you outsource the very reason people follow you. You can, however, outsource the actual work, the daily monitoring, and the time it takes to use each channel efficiently.

If social media is managed well, internally or externally, the end result is that there is a presence that will represent the company online, engage with their past, present, and potentially future customers, and maintain that engagement to build relationships. The decision is ultimately yours.

A cross-practice Herbert Smith team has advised Man Group plc (Man) on its complex outsourcing agreement with Citi Global Transaction Services’ Securities and Fund Services division (Citi).

Man described the deal as a landmark transaction for its business and the industry.

Citi will become Man’s Global Shareholder Services Partner and, under the terms of the long term agreement, will perform global shareholder and transfer agency services for Man’s AHL and Multi-Manager private investor products which are distributed through Man’s global network of approved intermediaries and distribution partners.

The agreement requires Citi to enhance services to Man’s funds, simplify administration arrangements and migrate all of Man’s retail funds onto Citi’s new platform resulting in greater efficiencies and quality of service.

Corporate partners Nick Pantlin (outsourcing) and Tim West (funds) led the cross-practice team at Herbert Smith. This was a complex deal completed within a challenging timetable and one that allowed Herbert Smith to showcase its market leading skills in outsourcing and funds.

The Herbert Smith team worked closely with senior lawyers Chris Pyper and Alex Williamson at Man on all aspects of the deal.

Nick Pantlin comments, "The deal has an innovative structure and was particularly complex, given the existing arrangements across some 400 funds."

Man will continue to host the IT platform while Citi's new system is being developed.

Nick continued: "It was a pleasure to work so closely with such dedicated legal, commercial and operational teams from Man based in London, Switzerland and Dublin on this landmark transaction."

CSC has announced it has signed an agreement to acquire all of the outstanding equity of iSOFT Group Limited, one of the world’s largest providers of advanced healthcare IT solutions, by way of a court-approved scheme of arrangement.

The acquisition will strengthen CSC’s products and healthcare integration and services portfolio, while enhancing its healthcare research and development capabilities. It will also accelerate CSC’s strategic growth plan in the Life Sciences market.

The offer to iSOFT shareholders is at A$0.17 per share in cash. Closing of the transaction is expected during CSC’s Q2FY12, and is subject to various conditions, including, among others, iSOFT shareholder approval and certain Australian and EU regulatory approvals.

Adding iSOFT’s 3,300 global employees including those from major research and development centers in India, Spain, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Central Europe, will expand CSC’s capability to support existing customers, develop more innovative solutions, and add a robust set of clients in new and emerging markets.

“The combination of these companies will further establish CSC as an innovative leader in global healthcare IT,” said Michael W. Laphen, CSC chairman, president and chief executive officer. “Through our combined experience in global healthcare delivery, complementary world-class healthcare software solutions, and enhanced capabilities in system integration, outsourcing and process management, we are forming a compelling lifecycle of services to better serve our global clients and improve patient care.”

Wipro Further Strengthens its Position as One of the Global Leading Information Technology Providers to the Oil & Gas Vertical

Wipro Technologies, the global IT business of Wipro Limited, a leading Information Technology, Consulting and Outsourcing company, has announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire the Global Oil and Gas Information Technology practice of the Commercial Business Services business unit of Science Applications International Corporation, for an all cash consideration of approximately US$ 150 million, subject to adjustments.

SAIC's Global Oil and Gas Information Technology practice provides Consulting, System Integration and Outsourcing Services to Global Oil majors with significant domain capabilities in the areas of Digital Oil Field, Petro-technical Data Management and Petroleum Application Services addressing the upstream segment.

As a result of the transaction, approximately 1,450 employees are expected to transition to Wipro across North America, Europe, India and Middle East.

Wipro's Energy, Natural Resources and Utilities Strategic Business Unit (SBU) is a high-growth SBU and IT spend in this sector is expected to grow as customers increasingly look to grow newer streams of revenues, optimise their operational cost and find better ways to become environmentally conscious.

Anand Padmanabhan, Senior Vice President, Energy, Natural Resources and Utilities SBU, Wipro Technologies said, "Oil & Gas companies are investing in the upstream business while looking at rationalizing cost through IT. The acquisition of SAIC's Global Oil & Gas Information Technology practice will strengthen Wipro's existing Energy business unit in becoming a long term strategic partner in our customer's transformation journey. We are happy to have the SAIC team on board. Their domain consultancy and competencies significantly enhances Wipro's capabilities in the Upstream Oil & Gas space and further strengthens Wipro's position as an end to end leader in servicing customers."

Ashridge Business School is working with CloudApps sustainability software to monitor and assess all aspects of its sustainability footprint, to precisely identify energy usage and trends, in the effort to achieve outstanding ‘green’ standards.

CloudApps will also act as an educational resource for the many leading international business people and organisations that attend Ashridge. The business school is the first beneficiary of the CloudApps Foundation, an initiative which voluntarily offers its services, time and resources to the wider community.

CloudApps sustainability and energy technology will monitor and assess usage of electricity, fuel, waste, water and associated carbon emissions right across Ashridge’s campus. Results from CloudApps will be a core learning tool for the teaching of sustainability and social responsibility, which is incorporated within most of the school’s programmes. As a result, Ashridge will use CloudApps to help other businesses instil sustainability within their organisations.

CloudApps will capture and allocate both consumption and costs for heating, cooling and lighting as well as those for corporate travel from the college’s faculty, students and non-academic staff. Having also recently achieved CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project) accredited provider status; CloudApps will allow Ashridge to prepare its CDP 2011 disclosure report.

Ian Downie, Ashridge’s Facilities and Maintenance Manager, explained: “This programme will enable us to easily assess our energy outputs so that we can identify areas where we can strengthen the sustainability and energy efficiency. Instead of poring through spreadsheets, this will give us more specific information for more pointed and flexible analysis.

“In the past year we have made significant strides forward in improving our energy efficiency. The results of the CloudApps work will help our efforts to further reduce emissions, to support sustainable practices across our supply chain – and in achieving ISO 14001, the international environmental standard.”

Atos Origin, an international IT services company, after having announced on February 1st, 2011, the signature of a final binding agreement to acquire Siemens IT Solutions and Services with Siemens AG, has obtained clearance from the European Commission to proceed. The transaction is also approved by the US anti-trust authorities in the absence of any observation during the relevant waiting period.

The transaction is expected to close by July 2011, subject to the completion of the remaining condition precedents of the deal, among which the Atos Origin shareholders approval at an Extraordinary Shareholders Meeting.

The 2011 European Outsourcing Association (EOA) Summit & Awards will take place in Madrid, Spain on 20th & 21st June, it has been announced.

Hosted by the EOA’s Spanish chapter, the 2011 EOA Summit will look to build on the success of the 2010 event by bringing together Europe’s leading outsourcing suppliers, end-users and support service providers for a two day conference focusing on the latest innovations, trends and developments in the European outsourcing market.

The event will also include the prestigious European Outsourcing Association Awards, a gala awards ceremony aimed at celebrating and rewarding excellence in pan-European outsourcing.

“We’re extremely pleased to announce that this year’s Summit and Awards will be held in Madrid in June,” said Martyn Hart, Chairman of the EOA. “Last year’s event proved to be extremely popular with our members, and was hugely successful. We look forward to offering delegates the opportunity to learn about and celebrate best practice in outsourcing, while ensuring a variety of networking opportunities as well as, of course, an opportunity to relax and enjoy the world famous Spanish hospitality.”

As the umbrella organisation for a collection of not-for-profit trade associations operating across Europe, the EOA is the centre of excellence in pan-European outsourcing, focused on communicating the significant benefits and strategic lessons of outsourcing across Europe. Run by its members, for its members, it offers a unique combination of seasoned experts and practitioners working on the buy-side and supply-side of outsourcing, active across the Central European markets. With more than 1,000 corporate members from the seven national trade associations the current EOA chapters span across Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, The Netherlands, UK and Spain.

Companies already confirmed as attending this year include: Visionlab, T-Systems, Telefonica Espana, DHL Supply Chain, Adecco, Hitachi, Steria, Fujitsu, and Capgemini.

For more information on how you can enter the awards, register for your place or sponsor, please visit our website at: www.noa.co.uk