Technological empowerment for businesses and leaders
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Technological empowerment for businesses and leaders WRITTEN BY
OLLIE MULKERRINS PRODUCED BY
JORDAN HUBBARD
NOVEMBER 2019
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IBL TOGETHER
IBL Together recently formed from GML and Ireland Blyth, two major conglomerates, as Group Information and Technology Executive Laurent Fayolle explains
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ML and Ireland Blyth merged to form IBL Together in July 2016, retaining the name of the latter to maintain brand familiar-
ity. Today, IBL Together has grown to encompass an incredibly diverse portfolio across a number of industries, from manufacturing to banking and beyond, with over 280 companies and more than 26,000 team members. In 2016, Laurent Fayolle, formerly GML’s Business Technology Manager, took on the role of Group Information Technology Executive at IBL Together. In this role, Fayolle is tasked with heading and restructuring the Group IT department. After the merger, a complete revamp of the governance model was started and the team had to be restructured to cater for this new governance to be rolled out across the various companies. As Ireland Blyth and GML both had completely different IT governance models, Fayolle explains, “on one side
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IBL TOGETHER
“ A person should be more empowered to tackle their problems inside a clear and defined framework” — Laurent Fayolle, Group Information & Technology Executive, IBL Together, Mauritius 06
we had a completely decentralised model, and on the other we had a much more centralised model, as well as a consequent team to manage and operate the IT activities. A new mandate had to be defined towards a ‘First-time right’ approach.” This, he says, meant that each step had to be carefully considered in order to minimise disturbance to the business and its teams. Solutions had to be tailor-made for each challenge, to allow for the diversity of IBL’s various operations, while maintaining a stable work process. Each operation, Fayolle notes, had to be granted more autonomy, or “empowerment” to heighten focus on the core business. “Our model had to become more decentralised. It became more about empowering IT managers to make these decisions for themselves. As a group, we can’t decide what’s best for business better than those that are directly involved on a daily basis. As IT strategies should always be aligned with business strategies, it doesn’t make sense for the Group IT department to make business decisions when, instead, a team can be more empowered to tackle its
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘IBL ANALYST MEETING PRESENTATION OCTOBER 2019’ 07 business challenges inside a clear
don’t think there is any one-size-fits-all
and defined framework.”
solution and I don’t think there ever will
IBL has a diverse portfolio which has
be. We have to fine-tune our approach
allowed Fayolle to assess each aspect
to accommodate each company’s
of the business on its own merits, meas-
subtleties.”
ure each problem individually and then
The transformation has not been
target necessary solutions. He explains:
carried out solely by IBL Together,
“We are so diverse that it doesn’t make
with expert partners being brought
sense to have a single set of tools. Do
in to tackle specialised areas of change.
we really need a single governance for
This is particularly the case for cyber-
all the entities in the group? Some need
security, which has been a key focus
a higher level of autonomy than others
of IBL’s efforts in recent times, and
because they are much more mature
Fayolle has worked to find the right
and have been doing great on their
partners to provide the necessary
own for years. Some need more help. I
solutions. “I approach it from the w w w.i bl gro u p . com
ARE YOU IN THE
DRIVING SEAT ?
Loss
Profit
Market Share
Sales lead
Gross Revenue
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“ Data is the new oil, but I think that is only true if you can get useful information from the data you own” — Laurent Fayolle, Group Information & Technology Executive, IBL Together, Mauritius
mindset of ‘I don’t want to talk about possible solutions, I want to talk about the best partners bringing solutions that will help us create value’. It always comes down to asking who our partners are and what needs we have. We want partners with a high level of ethics, competence and willingness to create value by partnering with IBL. You know it’s a ‘win-win’ when you can challenge a partner and they can use their skills to match your expectations.” The analysis and distribution of data has become the foundation for change
E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE
Laurent Fayolle, Group Information & Technology Executive Young, experienced IT executive who embraces evolution in the Information Technology and services industry. Fayolle consistently leads his team with a ‘First-time right’ approach, and keenly adheres to the concept of ‘Technology as a Business Enabler’ and the significant impacts it can deliver for profitability and growth. Laurent loves spending time with his wife and two young children, as well as travelling, playing soccer, cooking and reading.
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IBL TOGETHER
across a range of industries. In recent history, data processing was a manual process that involved heavy investment both in terms of manpower and money in order to be effective. Today, businesses increasingly turn to modern, more efficient and effective solutions. Fayolle explains: “The expression I consider is ‘data is the new oil’. However, I think that’s only true if you can get useful information from the data you own. Without context – without it being interpretable – the data 10
is useless. Information is key.” Companies must consider how they use those analytics to capitalise on
“ Securing data and making sure we know who can access it and for what purpose is absolutely imperative” — Laurent Fayolle, Group Information & Technology Executive, IBL Together, Mauritius
their potential. The implementation of automated processes can dramatically increase the operational efficiency of a company without having a huge impact on its overheads. “It’s much easier to work with data today thanks to AI and machine learning working with AIaaS, all whilst doing this for a small amount of money compared to building your own platform,” Fayolle says. “Our duty is to understand our data and make the best use of it, but to also ensure we
1972
Year founded
$1bn+ Approximate revenue
26,000
Approximate number of employees
have a proper data classification pro-
information in the wrong hands can
cess to better protect what should be
be extremely harmful. Securing the
protected.”
data and making sure we know who
The inter-connectivity of cloud-based
can access it and for what purpose is
data analytics, AI or machine learning
absolutely imperative. As James Snook
can present its own issues with regard
once said, if you think you haven’t been
to cybersecurity. As threats become
attacked yet, it’s because you aren’t
more credible as technology evolves,
looking hard enough.”
companies must be able to protect the information they hold. Speaking on the importance of cybersecurity, Fayolle says: “We can never forget that w w w.i bl gro u p . com
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