Business Chief North America - December 2020

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DECEMBER 2020

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USAF – MIT’S ‘AI ACCELERATOR’ Michael Kanaan, Director of Operations discusses the USAF and MIT’s AI Accelerator, and its mission to increase AI capabilities

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FOREWORD

2020

– a year like no other.

on investment management benefits and

As we enter into the

trends. “Similar to other industries,

final month of 2020, our cover features

technology has become increasingly

Michael Kanaan Director of Operations,

important to enhance customer

U.S. Air Force and MIT Artificial Intelligence

experience,” says Chapra.

Accelerator, on its mission to use AI to increase capabilities while addressing societal demands. “Our efforts stretch across three main lines [...] It’s all about making AI real for our workforce,”

Elsewhere, we discover what it means to be a digital brand in today’s world, in our roundtable discussions with McKinsey, Toluna and Ebiquity. While Vikas Butaney,

comments Kanaan.

Vice President and General Manager of

With AI continuing to prove its value

get the most out of IoT; and Ray Joyce

across multiple sectors and business

and Steve Gill HR Services at EY discuss

functions, Andi Britt, Senior Partner at IBM

the rise of human and AI collaboration in

Talent & Transformation, IBM Services

HR operations.

Europe and Chris Huff, CSO at Kofax, take a look at the innovative technology from a HR perspective and the ways in which it is reinventing processes.

Cisco IoT, explains how companies can

Finally to end the year, our December Top 10 ranks – by year – its top mergers and acquisitions made by companies in North America over the last two decades.

Other leaders featured include Charlotte

Do you have a story to share? If you would

Bancilhon, Associate Director, BSR on the

like to be featured in an upcoming issue

importance of shared value and trust to

of Business Chief, please get in touch at

drive effective stakeholder engagement, and the impact of COVID-19; and Fuad

georgia.wilson@bizclikmedia.com

Chapra, Head of Family Business, KPMG

Enjoy the issue!

(Saudi Arabia) provides his expert insight

Georgia Wilson b u s i n e s s c h i e f. c o m

03

Between hope and possible there’s a bridge.

There from the beginning to where we stand today. And to where we will go from here. One company. One promise.

If you can imagine it, we will build the bridge to get you there.

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CONTENTS

10 36

58

46

What Does it Mean to be a Digital Brand?

80 92 68

US MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS OF THE LAST TWO DECADES

110

124

Saphyre

Aligned

138 Community Health Network

154 [24]7.ai

170

SiteOne Landscape Supply

182 198 T5 Data Centers

Legacy Community Health

226

Nautilus Data Technologies

212 Protective Insurance Canada Brokerlink Inc.

240 254 Altar’d State

10

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR: COLLABORATION FOR NEW AI SOLUTIONS WRITTEN BY

WILLIAM SMITH PRODUCED BY

MIKE SADR

DECEMBER 2020

11

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

MICHAEL KANAAN ON THE USAF AND MIT’S AI ACCELERATOR, AND ITS MISSION TO USE AI TO INCREASE CAPABILITIES WHILE ADDRESSING SOCIETAL DEMANDS

M

ichael Kanaan is Director of Operations, U.S. Air Force and MIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator, having previously been at the

Pentagon as the co-chair of AI for the Air Force.

The USAF-MIT AI Accelerator began in January 12

2020. “It’s pursuant to a cooperative agreement with MIT, MIT Lincoln Laboratory and the Department of the Air Force,” explains Kanaan.

“Our efforts stretch across three main lines. The first is to execute a number of flagship AI projects and the related work to bring that into existence.

The second is developing scalable AI education for the workforce – all demographics, all ages, and all ranks. And the last is to lead the dialogue in AI ethics and safety. It’s all about making AI real for our workforce.”

Aside from the three flagship projects which we are covering in depth, the initiatives include such things as natural language processing for communication with machine and foreign language training, swarming unmanned aerial vehicles for

DECEMBER 2020

2019

Year founded

50

Number of employees

13

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

“ IT’S ABOUT BEING MORE ACCURATE, DELIVERING BETTER LOGISTICS, WORKING ON HUMANITARIAN AID MISSIONS WHILE ALSO SAVING THE TAXPAYER DOLLARS” — Michael Kanaan, Director of Operations, U.S. Air Force and MIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator

14

The MIT and Air Force collaboration is of a lineage with some of the most illustrious projects in the history of the United States. “There’s a triangular

deployment on humanitarian aid mis-

relationship between industry, aca-

sions, and using big data to illuminate

demia, and government in the United

weather circumstances in areas with-

States, that’s very special and very

out a ground station. The projects

storied throughout our past.” Kanaan

are linked by a shared focus, as

emphasizes that it stems from a com-

Kanaan explains. “The most important

mon language between government,

thing is to ensure that we all have a

industry, and academia which must be

common and shared dialogue and

nurtured. “We have to reinvigorate the

understanding of what AI is, what it

relationship that, for instance, brought

isn’t, how it works, and how to walk

the internet into our homes. Artificial

along that journey.”

intelligence is something that’s going to be viewed as equivalent to electricity in our lives, because of the way it affects us every single day. What could be more important than something like electricity being shared by the

DECEMBER 2020

Michael Kanaan | USAF-MIT AI Accelerator CLICK TO WATCH

|

1:14

15 greatest minds, by those who build the

the largest. “This is a team sport. It’s a

best technologies and by the govern-

whole-of-nation effort, with small busi-

ment as representative of its people?”

ness innovation and research crucial to

The work has been enabled by the

the success of the United States Air and

participation of a number of key part-

Space Force. Meanwhile, our traditional

ners, whose professional experts and

partners understand us better than

contractors have worked alongside

anyone else. They know how to integrate

MIT and the USAF. “A lot of work that is

technologies with the legacy architec-

necessary to bring modern technolo-

tures that we must rely upon. We can’t

gies like cloud to bear, without which

buy a new thing every single day, and

you would not have artificial intelligence.

many of those things we can’t put in the

We want to make sure that it’s as easy

cockpit of a jet, of course. And then lastly,

as possible for our workforce to grasp.”

nontraditional partners help to reinvigor-

Kanaan emphasizes that partners run

ate the conversations that we need

the gamut of sizes, from the smallest to

to have on AI today.” busi ne ssc hi ef . com

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Building trusted, secure, and safe AI systems Ron Keesing,VP of AI and Machine Learning, discusses how Leidos is exploring the applications and addressing the challenges of modern automation tech Leidos’ mission is to make the world safer, healthier, and more secure. We take on some of the world’s most interesting, challenging, and data-centric problems,” says Ron Keesing, VP of AI and Machine Learning at Leidos.

Among the company’s core technical competencies is the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, which it hopes to incorporate into all of its solutions. Leidos often begins by adapting technology developed in the commercial and academic world to the missions and domains of our customers. On the DARPA ACE (Air Combat Evolution) program. Keesing says, “We’re taking a technology that came from the commercial world and using it to transform aerial combat. AI allows us to invert traditional battle paradigms, from one where many people control a single aircraft into one where a single person can control a team of manned and unmanned assets to complete complex mission objectives.”

Reliable, resilient, and secure AI solutions

“We combine humans and machines to be able to perform these missions better and faster. Leidos’ role as an integrator of AI technology comes from many different sources, and we bring them all together into solutions that the U.S. Government can use. Currently, we’re using AI to transform the processing of veterans’ health benefits to make sure they’re receiving improved healthcare through natural language processing (NLP). This will enable faster claims and benefits processing with much higher accuracy and speed than was possible before.”

Keesing emphasizes the importance of keeping up with the latest AI-based research and promoting understanding among clients regarding the best way to use it. “Many across the community are also starting to appreciate what it means for AI systems to be ethical; we wouldn’t want systems making crucial mistakes that could put human safety at risk or behave in a manner we perceive as unfair.” As such, Leidos believes in building trust between humans and AI to foster comprehension and encourage its more comprehensive application.

Keesing closes by encouraging everyone, from students to senior decision-makers, to invest their attention in AI’s development. “This is such an exciting time for people thinking about launching careers in AI and machine learning, making sure how people understand AI will affect their systems and programs. Whether we want it or not, this technology is going to transform every aspect of our world, and Leidos’ is staying ahead to make sure the systems we’re building are safe, secure, and can be trusted.

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

18 The fruits of the labor being put into these projects are not only for the Air Force’s benefit, with wider society also

to detecting people in flooded areas, and delivering telemedical health.”

In that spirit, public challenges have

standing to gain. Kanaan cites humani-

been established for the two-way

tarian disasters, such as the wildfires

sharing of information. “The public

and hurricanes which have had a

challenges will ultimately help develop

devastating impact on the US this year,

the associated projects for use in pub-

as examples of situations that could

lic society. And I think what I’m excited

benefit from its work. “Humanitarian

about is our release of some of these

aid is a huge mission of the United

public challenges like magnetic navi-

States Air Force, as it is of the Army,

gation using earth’s magnetic sphere,

the Navy, Coast Guard, and so on. AI

for which you can find the public

has a role to play, and that can stretch

GitHub repository today.”

across swarming drones to using computer vision, to predicting fire lines, DECEMBER 2020

The initiatives are standing the Air and Space Forces in good stead

for the future by embracing digital

taxpayer dollars and making sure that

transformation. “Once upon a time in

we are good stewards of that money.”

the industrial age, you had to make

Kanaan views the collaboration

trade-offs between speed, accuracy,

that has enabled the accelerator as

and cost,” says Kanaan. “In the digital

key to its success. “I can’t emphasize

age, thanks to machine learning, arti-

enough how grateful we are to MIT,

ficial intelligence or any of the number

to academia, to industry for being a

of other automation techniques that

part of this conversation and to our

are part of digital transformation, you

airmen and workforce for wanting

can now do all three at once. For the

to have the dialogue. What makes us

Department of the Air Force, it’s about

special is that, while we are certain

being more accurate, delivering bet-

to make mistakes along the way, we

ter logistics, working on humanitarian

hold a dialogue afterwards. It’s all

aid missions while also saving the

about diving in.”

19

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Michael Kanaan Title: Director of Operations

Industry: Academia and Defense

Location: United States Captain Michael Kanaan is the Director of Operations to the USAFMIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator and the former co-chair of artificial intelligence for the U.S. Air Force. He was named to the Forbes “30 Under 30” list and received the US Government’s 68th Arthur S. Flemming Award (an honor shared by past recipients Neil Armstrong, Robert Gates, and Elizabeth Dole). Kanaan is a graduate of the US Air Force Academy and previously led a National Intelligence Campaign for Operation Inherent Resolve in Syria and Iraq. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

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USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

David Jacobs | USAF-MIT AI Accelerator CLICK TO WATCH

|

0:37

22

MAJ. DAVID JACOBS, US AIR FORCE: MAGNETIC NAVIGATION Having graduated from Stetson University College of Law as a patent attorney, Maj. David Jacobs, U.S. Air Force, got to ply his trade while stationed at an Air Force research lab. “I became the only active duty patent attorney, and I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to get where I am today as both the chief legal counsel to work on intellectual property, data rights, contracts, industry, and, of course, ethics, and then also a program manager for the robust neural differential models for navigation and beyond.”

Considering his role, Jacobs

with the Department of Army to

emphasises the focus on ethics that

develop a simple two-page guide to

pervades the Air Force’s work with

help Air Force and MIT researchers

AI. We embed in all of our projects a

understand when something is human

consideration of artificial intelligence

subject research under AI, and when

ethics and how it’s done. The Air Force

it is not, so that we’re following ethical

wants to be a leader in AI, and to do

guidelines at all times.”

that you have to focus on ethics.” He

In line with this ethical considera-

gives the example of the possibility

tion are the public challenges. “The

of human research subjects being

Air Force can actually be a partner

implicated from AI research based

in advancing the state of the art for

upon data. “One of the things we did

everyone, and be leaders in this field.

is work with the Air Force 711th Human

While it’s not new for academia to put

Performance Wing and coordinated

forward challenges for other academics, it is new for the Air Force to get involved.” That new approach has required a number of advancements to make possible. “Some of the things

“ THE AIR FORCE WANTS TO BE A LEADER IN AI, AND TO DO THAT YOU HAVE TO FOCUS ON ETHICS” — Maj. David Jacobs, US Air Force busi ne ssc hi ef . com

23

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

24

that we’ve had to address include the

alternative GPS could look like and

Air Force sharing data at such a public

magnetic navigation is one of the

level. On the legal side, we’ve devel-

possibilities,” says Jacobs. “Magnetic

oped a data sharing agreement which

navigation takes the earth magnetic

enables the Air Force to share data

resonance and a magnetometer reader

publicly with academia and industry.”

to pinpoint where you are in relation

That collaboration is key to the

to the earth. Because this technique

Magnetic Navigation project, which

doesn’t rely on any external sources,

Jacobs works on, and is aimed at

it becomes particularly useful in

developing an alternative to GPS

areas where other signal sources are

systems which are vulnerable to dis-

uncommon, such as over water.”

ruption, especially in a conflict setting,

The role of AI in the project is

which would create huge problems

threefold, as Jacobs explains. “One,

in both a military and civilian setting,

we’re using AI to reduce excess noise

considering the extent to which the

on the system. Have the AI cancel

technology is embedded in our lives.

out what is coming from the plane

“The government is looking into what

and recognize what is interference

DECEMBER 2020

and what are actual readings. Two,

Joint Artificial intelligence Center and

determine your position in real time

the Department of Defense. “We’ve

with faster speeds. As we go to other

had some talks with DARPA, with

vehicles like an F-16, we’re breaking

NASA and of course, academic insti-

the sound barrier and so we need to

tutions and industry. We’re happy

determine location at much faster

to work with small business, large

speeds. And then finally we’re com-

business and other academic institu-

bining that magnetic parameter with

tions, because the more people that

other systems in the aircraft to cre-

tackle this problem, the better. We’re

ate a complete picture.”

approaching it as a chance to provide

The project has attracted a number of interested partners, such as the

something that is good for the community at large.”

25

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

David Jacobs Title: Chief Legal Counsel

Industry: Academia and Defense

Location: United States Maj. Jacobs is the legal advisor to the USAF-MIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator. In addition to providing advice on contracts, intellectual property, fiscal, ethics, and cutting-edge AI legal developments to the Accelerator program; he also works as the Air Force lead on Robust Neural Differential Models for Navigation and Beyond. Jacobs earned a B.S. in Biology from Arizona State University and earned his law degree from Stetson University College of Law. He served as a patent attorney before commissioning in the Air Force.

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

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Tableau and the USAF: data as a strategic asset Tableau’s Michael Parker on the benefits its data analysis and visualisation platform brings to the United States Air Force

Data analysis and visualisation company Tableau offers its customers the capacity to make better use of the data they have.

Michael Parker is VP, Business Development at the company. “ Tableau’s mission is simple,” he says. “We help people see and understand their data. We provide that through a single pane of glass view of their data in a secure environment, ensuring the right people have the right access to the right data at the right time.”

It’s that capability that is behind Tableau’s partnership with the United States Air Force, as Parker explains. “They’re looking at data as a strategic asset and as a common service component of digital transformation. We use the tools specifically around a couple of use cases that draw a great return on investment.

One was civilian hiring. We needed to understand where the choke points are, where’s the lag and the slack in the process. By pulling the data in from end-to-end in that whole civilian hiring process, we could look at it through an operational lens to really understand where we were experiencing challenges.

Strategic decisions made along the

way ultimately compressed the timeline by two thirds.”

With chief data offices now established in each of the services, Parker believes the full value of data is now being appreciated. In standing that up, it’s been recognised that data is a strategic asset and a powerful tool for both the business and warfighting domains.”

The partnership has also proved its worth in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Having tools for personnel use, personnel accountability, tracking of individuals and even return to work processes was really important, and so the partnership was critical at that point.”

Parker emphasises that the partnership is built to last. “At Tableau, we plan to continue to build our partnership and understand the strategic and operational needs of the Defense Department and how the platform can help solve issues and provide capabilities in strengthening our partnership over time.”

tableau.com

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

TSGT. ARMANDO CABRERA, US AIR FORCE: SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR

Geospatial Intelligence. “I worked

“I’m first generation everything,” says

school and graduated as a distin-

TSgt. Armando Cabrera, US Air Force.

guished graduate.”

really hard in the Air Force technical

“First generation American, first in

28

Having demonstrated his potential,

my family to graduate high school,

Cabrera was eventually selected for

college and first to join the military.”

a program usually reserved for offic-

Having graduated with a Bachelor’s

ers to be sent to Amazon to learn best

in Mechanical Engineering, and

practices for machine learning. “I was

after some time struggling to find a

there for a year, playing two kinds of

job, Cabrera joined the Air Force for

roles. First, I was a student taking all

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Armando Cabrera Title: AI Flight Chief

Industry: Academia and Defense

Location: United States Tech. Sgt. Armando Cabrera is the flight chief for the USAF-MIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator’s Multimodal Vision for Synthetic Aperature Radar (MV4SAR) project. Carbrera earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California and worked as a geospatial intelligence analyst for the Air Force before being accepted as one of the first enlisted members into the Education with Industry program. Cabrera was assigned to Amazon for a year, and was the first DoD employee to complete Amazon’s Machine Learning Education University. Currently, he is a lead researcher for SAR to EO image translation, and is a content developer in AI education for MIT Lincoln Lab. DECEMBER 2020

Armando Cabrera | USAF-MIT AI Accelerator CLICK TO WATCH

|

0:49

29

their courses, starting from the fun-

the Multimodal Vision for Synthetic

damentals of mathematics, machine

Aperture Radar project. “What I bring

learning, all the way to neural networks.

is the operational experience of how

And then also I was building training

to use these types of sensors, so I can

guides for how to use their equipment

field questions.” The goal of the project

and software.”

is to turn the images taken by special-

That background has led him to MIT, where he is now responsible for

ized sensors into more human readable and interpretable photos. “That way

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

30

“ THE TWO YEARS THAT I WAS ABLE TO SPEND WITH A NON-STOP FOCUS ON MACHINE LEARNING AND AI HAVE MEANT I’VE BEEN ABLE TO BRING BACK A LOT OF BENEFITS” — TSgt. Armando Cabrera, US Air Force

you don’t need experience as an image

or clouds and easily get additional infor-

analyst, to understand what the images

mation that we normally wouldn’t have.”

show. SAR sensors can penetrate

The project uses learning algorithms

things like weather or smoke, but the

trained on paired SAR and more eas-

drawback is it’s hard to interpret the

ily understood electro-optical (EO)

image itself. I’m hoping that with this

images. “It’s able to learn what a SAR

capability that we’re creating, it can be

image will look like compared with an

used during events that usually don’t

EO image, and over time it will pick up

deploy it for. We can automatically use

the characteristics of the SAR image

the sensor to penetrate through smoke

that are equivalent to EO image. That

DECEMBER 2020

31

way, it can create new images with the

now accessible to far more people.

synthetic EO image attached.” Cabrera

“When I first heard I was going to learn

points to the usefulness of such tech-

machine learning, I didn’t know what

nology in response to disasters such as

it was. But AI is so democratized now

the California wildfires, making previ-

that I could learn a lot of information

ously obscured areas visible to build up

just from searching the internet. The

a better picture of what is happening on

two years that I was able to spend with

the ground.

a non-stop focus on machine learning

Cabrera hails the open nature of machine learning as meaning that it’s

and AI have meant I’ve been able to bring back a lot of benefits.” busi ne ssc hi ef . com

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

CAPT. RONISHA CARTER, U.S. AIR FORCE: C-17 SCHEDULING Having enlisted in the Air Force directly out of high school, Capt. Ronisha Carter started off in the field of server maintenance and boundary protection, before becoming an officer and receiving a Master’s in Computer Engineering. “I

32

was selected for an Education with

of scheduling less time consuming

Industry fellowship at VMware, where

while increasing efficiency and mini-

I was able to work within an Artificial

mizing errors. “Creating an Air Force

Intelligence Machine Learning develop-

flight schedule today, the scheduler

ment team,” she says. “It was at this time

has to account for a multitude of

when I developed a foundation in artifi-

variables we identify as constraints.

cial intelligence and machine learning.”

This includes qualifications or the

Her current role is as a Cyberspace

training a pilot requires for that seat

Warfare Operations officer. “My career

and crew rest – the time they must

field covers the entire communications

take off in between each flight. Also

spectrum,” says Carter. “Everything

the amount of flights that need to

from network defense to base com-

be scheduled, and the time intervals

munications structures, to tactical

between those flights. This process

communications. This background along

is currently being accomplished through

with my AI foundation led me to be one

various manual channels. Separate

of 11 selected to collaborate with MIT

data systems, phone calls, and even

on the integration of artificial intelligence

whiteboards, which causes schedul-

technology into Air Force platforms.”

ing to be immensely complex and

Under Carter’s remit falls the C-17 scheduling project, with the intention

time consuming.”

The remedy to that involves using AI

of bettering the lives of pilots and

to take up the burden. “What we hope

airmen using AI to make the process

to achieve is to create a data driven

DECEMBER 2020

model that can produce the best or

work that we’re doing today could

most optimized schedule for multiple

allow for advancements in sched-

objectives and constraints,” says

uling for hospital staffing, shift

Carter. “We provide decision-makers

workers, cargo and mail distribution,

with a mathematically aided assess-

logistics operations, and even com-

ment that predicts schedules weeks

mercial airline crew scheduling or

in advance and it gives them back time

flight maintenance.”

in their day.”

Wider implications for the project

Carter emphasizes the extent to which ethical considerations guide

involve the gaining of efficiencies

everything which is done with AI.

across the board, from supply chains

“Within all of our projects we are con-

to maintenance. “For instance, the

sidering the implications of ethics.

33

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Ronisha Carter Title: Artificial Intelligence R&D

Industry: Academia and Defense

Location: United States Capt. Carter is the USAF-MIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator’s lead for AI-Assisted Optimization of Training Schedules project.

Carter has a B.S. in Computer Science from Hawaii Pacific University and an M.S. in Computer Engineering from Florida International University. Carter worked as a Cyber Operations Officer before being selected to the Education with Industry program where she was assigned to VMWare to use ML/AI to create content driven intelligence platforms. Her technical papers on ML/AI during this time helped land her a follow-on assignment to MIT to serve as part of the initial core of embedded Airmen for the AI Accelerator. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

USAF-MIT AI ACCELERATOR

34

“ THE WORK THAT WE’RE DOING TODAY COULD HELP HOSPITAL STAFFING, SHIFT WORKERS, CARGO AND MAIL DISTRIBUTION, LOGISTICS, OPERATIONS AND EVEN COMMERCIAL AIRLINE CREW SCHEDULING AND FLIGHT MAINTENANCE” — Capt. Ronisha Carter, US Air Force

DECEMBER 2020

Ronisha Carter | USAF-MIT AI Accelerator CLICK TO WATCH

|

0:36

35 In February, the DoD adopted ethics

Software development teams that

principles for AI based on recom-

vector internal Air Force talent to

mendations from the Defense Board

solve and engineer solutions for the

of Innovation. This mandates that all

really tough Air Force problems. Our

DoD AI capabilities must be responsi-

team of MIT principal investigators,

ble, equitable, traceable, reliable, and

grad students, software develop-

governable and meet the same legal,

ers, human-computer interaction

ethical, and policy standards across

designers, and Air Force software

the department.

development teams ensures we cre-

Partnerships have again made the

ate better solutions for our Airmen.�

project possible. “Our partnership with MIT and Lincoln Lab is essential to developing these technologies, and we also work hand-in-hand with Tron and Airmen Coders, Air Force busi ne ssc hi ef . com

L E A D E R S H I P & S T R AT E G Y

36

DECEMBER 2020

Stakeholder Management – the Power of Shared Value & Trust WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON

busi ne ssc hief. com

37

L E A D E R S H I P & S T R AT E G Y

Business Chief North America gains insight from BSR on the importance of shared value and trust to drive effective stakeholder engagement

O

ver the last 10 months, COVID-19 has had an exponential impact on industries and organisations, regardless of size

or location. As a result stakeholder management has never been more important or come with 38

greater challenges. The business and economic uncertainty that has come with COVID-19, has increased the need for organisations to develop robust, defensible and flexible stakeholder management strategies and tools in order to be effective. “Stakeholder engagement is – and will remain – a core element of the sustainability toolkit,” comments BSR in its Five Step Approach to Stakeholder Management report.

BSR defines stakeholder management as “a fundamental component of materiality assessments, which are then used to inform sustainability strategy, reporting, and disclosure. Corporations need strategies in order to understand and respond to existing and emerging societal concerns. Without input from key stakeholder groups, any approach

DECEMBER 2020

39

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40

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“ Stakeholder engagement is – and will remain – a core element of the sustainability toolkit”

achievements are for the operations.

While often used to describe public relations or reputation management, it is also important for organisations to understand that these types of communication are not the same as stakeholder engagement.

In order to be successful when it

— BSR

comes to engaging with stakehold-

to sustainability will be limited by

mindset needs to shift from seeing

an organisation’s self-interest and

stakeholder concerns as external risks

inward focus.” While stakeholder

to manage, to being serious topics that

management is an essential part of an

require transparent dialogue and

organisation’s operations, engaging

a strategic response. “Stakeholders

with stakeholders is not an easy oper-

that choose to engage with companies

ation. With this in mind, Business Chief

generally expect this interaction to

North America gains insight from BSR

generate change, which is why it is

on why adopting a strategy that cre-

a mistake to treat engagement as a

ates shared value and develops trust

one-way information dissemination

is the best approach to drive effective

process, rather than as a dialogue,”

stakeholder engagement.

adds BSR.

ers, BSR highlights that the corporate

When done well, the value of stake-

DEVELOPING AN ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY

up over time, providing support during

Prior to engaging in any form of strategy

times of difficulty, whether it be reputa-

development, it is important for organi-

tional or economical. “Companies that

sations to develop an understanding of

are more aware of stakeholder interests

what stakeholder engagement means

are more likely to avoid crises because

to them, as well as what the desired

they are better able to anticipate risks

holder engagement is expected to add

busi ne ssc hief. com

41

L E A D E R S H I P & S T R AT E G Y

BSR’s Five-Step Approach

STEP

5

STEP

Feedba c

k Lo op

ACTION PLAN

STEP

4

ENGAGEMENT

Identify opportunities from feedback and determine actions, revisit goals, and plan next steps for follow-up and future engagement

Conduct the engagement itself, ensuring equitable stakeholder contributions and mitigating tension while remaining focused on priorities

1

ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY

Set vision and level of ambition for future engagement, and review past engagements

FIVE-STEP APPROACH TO STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

Define criteria for identifying and prioritizing stakeholders, and select engagement mechanisms

STEP

2

STAKEHOLDER MAPPING

Focus on long-term goals to drive the approach, determine logistics for the engagement, and set the rules

42

We have update

BSR’s five-step g STEP

stakeholder eng

3

PREPARATION

to reflect the eve

stakes at play in 5 Five-Step Approach to Stakeholder Engagement

and opportunities,” comments BSR.

they came from, as well as what their

“A number of compelling studies on the

relationship is to the company. This pro-

impacts of good community and stake-

cess allows organisations to map their

holder relations across industries and

stakeholder landscape and determine

countries, have concluded that compa-

the correct method and approach for

nies that intentionally build stakeholder

effective communications.

trust are more financially resilient over

Once determined, in order to deliver

time, across multiple indicators of value.”

clear, flexible and trusted communica-

An important element of stakeholder

tion, BSR identifies six core principles

engagement is the understanding of

that should govern engagement:

who the key stakeholders are and where

focused and relevant engagement

DECEMBER 2020

What is stakeholder mapping?

“A collaborative process of research, analysis, debate, and discussion that draws from multiple perspectives to determine a key list of stakeholders across the entire stakeholder spectrum” BSR

It is important to ensure that once an engagement with stakeholders is made, that the original purpose and aims; the methods used; the participants; a summary of any concerns, expectations, and perceptions; a summary of discussions; and a robust list of outputs are documented in order to measure the success and build upon the efforts made for future engagements. “Companies often conduct engagements and then fail to

goals; timely engagement that can

document the results and act transpar-

inform outcomes and business deci-

ently on the information gained through

sions; providing diverse and inclusive

the exchanges,” comments BSR, who

perspectives as well as being culturally

explains that adopting this approach

sensitive and accessible; not just sharing but ensuring that the stakeholder is

Charlotte Bancilhon

listened to too; and ensuring transparent communication and sharing information.

“ Without input from key stakeholder groups, any approach to sustainability will be limited by an organisation’s selfinterest and inward focus” — BSR busi ne ssc hief. com

43

L E A D E R S H I P & S T R AT E G Y

will “help hone your message for the

has amplified stakeholder manage-

appropriate audience.”

ment. Companies are getting more

Ultimately, BSR states that, “the art

questions from stakeholders, not less.

of stakeholder engagement does not

This includes questions from inves-

actually lie in which format you choose,

tors, clients, and consumers,” comments

but in how well you match a format to

Charlotte Bancilhon, Associate Director,

the issue, stakeholder(s), and situa-

BSR, who adds that “In terms of topics,

tion. The scale, scope, and span of the

the spotlight has shifted to the social

engagement will vary, depending on

agenda, in the midst of job losses and

these specifics.”

the economic crisis impacting people’s livelihoods worldwide. Marginalized

44

THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON STAKEHOLDER MANAGEMENT

populations and women are dispro-

“The companies we work with all say

crisis. Executive compensation and tax

that, if anything, the COVID-19 crisis

practices are coming under increased

portionately impacted by the COVID

Building Stakeholder Trust in 2019 CLICK TO WATCH

DECEMBER 2020

|

1:47

“ Companies often conduct engagements and then fail to document the results and act transparently on the information gained through the exchanges” — BSR scrutiny in the US, although this has been a topic for stakeholders in Europe for a while now.”

Back in April, BSR looked at what stakeholders were discussing online and on social media, leveraging its partnership with Polecat, which pro45

vides a big data tool to analyse global discourse. BSR found that online media would expect – procurement of medi-

THREE TYPES OF ENGAGEMENT FORMATS FOR STAKEHOLDER MANAGEMENT

cal supplies and the labor market. “The

1. Innovate collaborate consult – joint

social media conversation on the other

venture or partnership; external

hand was paying acute attention to

advisory council; collaboration work-

issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion

shop; joint research; or stakeholder

and how not all are equal in the face of

engagement summit

focused on some of the topics you

this crisis. One month later, the killing of

2. Message advocate – sustainability

George Floyd sparked the global Black

report; survey; town hall meeting;

Lives Matter movement.

mass email or newsletter; social

Of course COVID-19 has affected the

media outreach; or conference

way we engage as well, shifting from

3. Monitor – marketing campaign and

in-person to virtual and leveraging tech-

tracking; online and social media

nology to do so,” commented Charlotte

monitoring; subscription to stake-

Bancilhon, Associate Director, BSR.

holder; newsletter; or blog. busi ne ssc hief. com

H U M A N C A P I TA L

46

Reinventing HR Operations with Humans and AI Collaboration WRITTEN BY

DECEMBER 2020

GEORGIA WILSON

47

busi ne ssc hief. com

H U M A N C A P I TA L

As AI continues to prove its value across multiple sectors and business function, Business Chief looks at how the tech is reinventing HR operations

48

E

xpected to be the most significant business advantage in the future by 72% of executives, artificial

intelligence (AI) is predicted to be incorporated into 47% of organisations’ HR

functions by 2022.

While it is feared that employment rates will drop as the use of intelligent technologies rises, when speaking with Business Chief in October, Arun Shenoy, SVP Global Sales and Marketing at Serverfarm reflected on the best way to deploy technology, software and hardware tools. “Most organisations find this challenging because they are only solving one part of the problem – the technology. Simply buying and deploying a platform isn’t enough; you have to change and refine the processes and ensure that you have the right people,” commented Shenoy.

DECEMBER 2020

49

busi ne ssc hief. com

How Artificial Intelligence is Reinventing HR, Skills and the Employee Experience CLICK TO WATCH

|

19:11

51

In fact, speaking with executive

identify that AI can apply the same

experts in HR operations, the consen-

speed to the assessment of potential

sus highlights that benefits of AI in HR

candidates, the likelihood of future

operations come from a collaborative

success and the expected timeframe

approach between AI and humans,

to fill a given role. “This is an example

with a core use case being to provide

of the ways in which AI is changing the

efficiency gains. “It has allowed us to

situation so that technology enables

do the same thing we always did – but

the HR function to solve critical busi-

faster and more cost effective,” com-

ness challenges, building on earlier

ments Andi Britt, Senior Partner at IBM

contributions from workforce analyt-

Talent & Transformation, IBM Services

ics,” added Britt.

Europe. While the internet brought the

With COVID-19 placing organisation

capability of fast recruitment, both

and business operations on the edge

Britt and Chris Huff, CSO at Kofax

of a pivotal moment when it comes to busi ne ssc hief. com

H U M A N C A P I TA L

innovation and digital transformation, AI and automation have transitioned from a ‘nice to have’ to a ‘necessity for survival’. “COVID-19 has created a digital awakening that has accelerated the adoption of AI and automation technologies,” comments Huff. It is expected by those in HR that COVID19 will not only accelerate the overall digital journey for organisations, but the role of HR in the modern workplace. This acceleration will ultimately move organisations closer to HR 3.0 52

with employee experience at its centre.

“ C-Suite leaders surveyed expect to see nearly tenfold growth with regard to automating HR processes between 2018 and 2022 Andi Britt, Senior Partner at IBM Talent & Transformation, IBM Services Europe

DECEMBER 2020

The benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) in HR “ T oday, AI’s capabilities are being used to augment business operations and consumer solutions,� comments Andi Britt, Senior Partner at IBM Talent & Transformation, IBM Services Europe. At IBM, the company has identified five reasons for implementing AI in HR operations: 1. To solve pressing business challenges 2. T o attract and develop new skills 3. T o improve the employee experience 4. To provide strong decision support 5. To use HR budgets as efficiently as possible

busi ne ssc hief. com

53

H U M A N C A P I TA L

54

“CHROs at high performing organisations are taking immediate action to achieve this vision. They are leveraging real-time unstructured data from inside and outside organisations, and pairing that with analytics and AI to improve talent and workforce decisions while enabling more personalised employee experiences,” says Britt.

Statistics reported during the height of the pandemic, identified that many organisations are DECEMBER 2020

“ COVID-19 has created a digital awakening that has accelerated the adoption of AI and automation technologies” Chris Huff, CSO at Kofax

55

embracing AI tools to attract diverse

pandemic, IBM saw its clients rely

talent and to enhance and per-

heavily on AI enabled HR applications

sonalise recruitment. In an IBM HR

such as chatbots and skill building

executive survey, the company

recommendation platforms. “These

identified that more than half of

technologies enable organisations

high performing companies are

to free up HR leaders’ time for more

using AI to identify behavioral skills

meaningful work. C-Suite lead-

to build diverse and adaptable teams.

ers surveyed expect to see nearly

Currently, “High performing organi-

tenfold growth with regard to auto-

sations are leveraging AI across talent

mating HR processes between 2018

acquisition at a rate of 6 times more

and 2022,” comments Britt. However,

than all other companies.” During the

while the rate of adoption has busi ne ssc hief. com

H U M A N C A P I TA L

The challenges of artificial intelligence (AI) in HR “ Current HR and AI trends point to a promising Future of Work that’s richer in experience, but also brings

56

data and tech literacy and find the right partners.

3. G et the technology right: with

with it the need for strong govern-

the adoption of AI, organisations

ance to account for unintended

often require an update to the

consequences,� comments Chris Huff,

technology used to collect, store

CSO at Kofax. When it comes to the

and process data. Digitally native

successful adoption of AI to deliver

companies typically have an

on its promising future, IBM identifies

advantage due to their nimble

four key prevention barriers:

and scalable businesses models.

4. E thical and governance frame-

1. A ccess to the right data: it is vital

works: while AI can provide huge

that organisations develop a com-

benefits, misused it can have

plete understanding of the data

negative results, such as bias

involved, by harnessing compre-

and intrusive AI. To remove bias

hensive metadata libraries.

organisations should ensure that

2. A ccess to the right talent and

data privacy and security are at

skills: with AI skills in high demand,

the forefront of their approach,

organisations should look to

as well as a clear ethical and

upskill existing employees, boost

governance frameworks.

DECEMBER 2020

increased, IBM found that only 30%

easier to implement and adopt tech-

of companies have the skills and

nology. Ultimately, “Progress has to

capabilities in AI in the HR function.

start from the top, with good leader-

To be successful in adopting AI in

ship and open conversation to dispel

HR operations – or any technology

fears and misunderstandings about

– culture is identified as an all to often

the technology,” states Britt. Not only

underestimated barrier. It is important

is it important to engage with employ-

for organisations to ensure that they

ees to showcase the business needs,

include their employees in the trans-

it is also important to listen to the

formation journey. When employees

needs of the employees conducting

understand the reasoning for change

the tasks.

they are more receptive, making it

“ High performing organisations are leveraging AI across talent acquisition at a rate of 6 times more than all other companies” Arun Shenoy, SVP Global Sales & Marketing, ServerFarm

By combining the best of what AI can provide, with employee hopes for the technology, Huff explains that this approach is ”a win-win that will increase adoption of AI and lead to a collaborative person-machine future to drive productivity for the organisation and individual.” With this collaborative approach to AI and humans, HR is on the cusp of a new digital era in which employees adopt a more behind-the-scenes role to create the scenarios carried out by AI. “People will find themselves in more creative, strategy, problem defining and problem escalation roles as opposed to transactional activities,” concludes Huff.

busi ne ssc hief. com

57

C O R P O R AT E F I N A N C E

58

KPMG:

FIVE MINUTE EXPERT INSIGHT ON INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT WRITTEN BY

DECEMBER 2020

GEORGIA WILSON

59

busi ne ssc hief. com

C O R P O R AT E F I N A N C E

BUSINESS CHIEF GAINS EXPERT INSIGHT ON INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT BENEFITS AND TRENDS FROM FUAD CHAPRA, HEAD OF FAMILY BUSINESS, KPMG (SAUDI ARABIA) Fuad Chapra, Head of Family Business at KPMG in the Saudi Levant Cluster, and Head of Advisory 60

in the western region of Saudi Arabia, started his career at KPMG in 2014. Chapra’s responsibilities at KPMG include: leading M&A transactions, group restructuring assignments and business valuations, as well as specialised advisory services to the government of Saudi Arabia and leading family businesses. Prior to KPMG, Chapra has held executive positions at Panda Retail Company and the Savola Group.

WHAT IS INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT, AND WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF SUCH SERVICES? Investment management is the service provided by professionals in the management of financial assets and investment assets for an entity or an individual based on an agreed upon investment plan.

DECEMBER 2020

61

busi ne ssc hief. com

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“ BLOCKCHAIN COULD SAVE INVESTMENT MANAGERS APPROXIMATELY US$2.7BN THROUGH THE USE OF DISTRIBUTED MARKET INFRASTRUCTURE”” — Fuad Chapra, Head of Family Business at KPMG (Saudi Levant Cluster) and Head of Advisory in the western region of Saudi Arabia

in their investment that matches their risk profile and the desired investment horizon, commonly through the investment in funds.

Furthermore, investment management service providers would typically work to re-balance the investment portfolios based on the latest trends and analysis, thereby taking this burden away from the investor.

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES OF INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT SERVICES AND WHEN ARE THESE TYPES OF SERVICES BENEFICIAL FOR BUSINESSES? There are costs associated with investments through an investment management service provider – the

Professional investment management services offer a wide array of

fee that is required to be paid to the investment manager. This could

benefits. The primary benefit to investors is that this allows them to obtain advice and recommendations from experts in the field of investment and those that specialise in various types of investment.

More importantly for individual investors, investment management services allow an easier means for the investor to achieve diversification busi ne ssc hief. com

63

C O R P O R AT E F I N A N C E

of the performance of the endowments of Yale and Harvard, both of which are amongst the largest university endowments in the world. With a staff of 30, Yale believes in the model of managing investment managers. Harvard, on the other hand, has had staff up to more than 200 individuals and performed a hybrid of selecting its own investments and managing investor managers.

WHAT ARE THE CURRENT TECHNOLOGY TRENDS AND INNOVATIONS IN THE SECTOR?

64

Similar to other industries, technology either be on the basis of a percentage

has become increasingly important to

of assets under management and/or a

enhance customer experience. This

percentage of profits over a specified

includes digital onboarding of new cus-

amount. This implies that if the inves-

tomers and providing transparent and

tor had invested in the same assets by

up-to-date information on the status

themselves, then the investor would

of the customers’ investments.

generate a higher return.

In addition to the benefits mentioned

Furthermore, there has been a significant rise of robo-advisors which

earlier, engaging with an investment

automate investment management

management firm allows businesses to

through the use of algorithms, and

focus their efforts on their core opera-

thereby making investment management

tions. Furthermore, it allows the business

services more accessible for a wider

to have flexibility when they want to

demographic, as well as an increase in

change their investment strategy. A

availability of exchange traded funds that

good example of this is the comparison

aim to mirror performance of a particular

DECEMBER 2020

REDUCING INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT COSTS WITH BLOCKCHAIN Settlements and contracts

all activity is verified and accurate.

By harnessing blockchain, invest-

Ultimately, this can reduce the time

ment managers can benefit from

and costs associated with conduct-

its smart controls and automation

ing verifications.

capabilities. With Blockchain’s business rules and computer protocols,

Audits

investment managers can run settle-

Blockchain technology can eliminate

ments without human interference

human error for investment manag-

and facilitate, verify, or enforce the

ers, by using real time track and trace

negotiation or performance of

audit trails.

a contract. Transaction ledgers Conducting transactions on block-

Infrastructure

chain technology, all parties can

Adopting blockchain technology

gain transparent access to the

reduces transaction costs, as well as

data via a distributed network.

the need for infrastructure and the

This type of transaction can not

associated costs.

65

be altered without permission from the network, which means

Source: Accenture and IBM

busi ne ssc hief. com

C O R P O R AT E F I N A N C E

a significant impact on investment

WITH THE WORLD CURRENTLY FACING WIDESPREAD DISRUPTION DUE TO COVID-19, WHAT HAS BEEN THE IMPACT ON INVESTOR MANAGEMENT, AND WHAT DO YOU THINK THE FUTURE WILL LOOK LIKE?

management services. As an example,

COVID-19 has caused significant mar-

Castalone estimated that blockchain

ket volatility, a reduction in deal volume

could save investment managers

and uncertainty in asset valuation. As a

approximately US$2.7bn through the

result, many investors have sought to

use of distributed market infrastructure.

shift towards less risky investments. In

Last but not least, artificial intelligence

contrast, sovereign wealth funds have

and machine learning are also antici-

seen this as an opportunity to acquire

pated to change the way investment

equity investments at attractive valua-

managers make investment decisions.

tions. COVID-19 has also accelerated

index. The US ETF market is expected to continue to be largest. However, the European ETF market is projected to have more aggressive growth.

Blockchain is also expected to have

66

AI & Manufacturing in Asia — Opportunities, Challenges and Solutions: Microsoft Asia CLICK TO WATCH

DECEMBER 2020

|

3:02

67

digital transformation across all industry

as well. This includes opening and

segments, thereby warranting renewed

enhancing channels for digital wealth

diligence on investment recommenda-

and robo-advisory in addition to lev-

tions. In particular, equity investments in

eraging digital to enhance the overall

companies that may have traditionally

customer experience. It is important to

performed well may not necessarily be

note that the move towards digital will

a good investment if they fail to digitise

also increase the importance of cyber-

their business model and adjust to the

security and ensuring the protection of

new normal.

customer data. In terms of investment

Similarly, investment management

strategy, post COVID-19, investment

companies should seek an acceler-

management service providers are likely

ated pace of digitisation for themselves

going to seek out undervalued assets. busi ne ssc hief. com

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

What Does it Mean to be a Digital Brand?

WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON

68

DECEMBER 2020

Business Chief speaks with leaders from McKinsey, Toluna and Ebiquity on what it means to be a digital brand and the best strategy to drive value

T

here are a number of definitions for what constitutes a digital brand. In this roundtable, leading experts look at the difference

between digitally native companies and how tra-

ditional companies are becoming digital. Business Chief also gains insight into what it means to be a digital brand in today’s world, as well as the ways in which companies can drive the most value out of their digital brand strategy.

THOSE PARTICIPATING IN THE ROUNDTABLE INCLUDE: JP: Jesko Perrey, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company MM: Michele Morelli, EVP, Global Marketing Strategy, Toluna AM: Angus McLean, Director at Ebiquity

busi ne ssc hief. com

69

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“ It is virtually impossible to segment a traditional brand from a digital brand today because social media and the internet are ubiquitous” — Michele Morelli, EVP, Global Marketing Strategy, Toluna

WHAT IS A DIGITAL BRAND? JP: ‘Digital brand’ can often be misleading because too many companies

T H E I M PA C T O F C O V I D -1 9

think that it’s simply doing what you already do but using digital channels.

Thanks to COVID-19, the adoption of digital that would have happened across all industries in a five to 10-year period happened in six months.

Essentially, COVID-19 has stolen companies’ time to prepare for this development.

Combine that with the latest and greatest trends which are personalisation, being human and being socially responsive and my advice would be: be yourself and don’t try to play an artificial game.

This is much more about a mindset. A digital brand is a brand that anticipates and is responsive to their customers’ needs. To do this at scale, companies rely on flexible technologies, comprehensive data sets, and advanced analytics. Given the profound shift to digital during COVID-19, every brand needs to be a digital brand.

MM: There are two ways to look at digital brands. One is a brand that exists solely within the ecosystem of the digital environment. Huffington Post and Twitter are both digital brands. The other, and more interesting, perspective is digital brand as

Jesko Perrey, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company

part of a ‘traditional’ brand’s identity and strategy that acknowledges and leads with the importance of its online presence, user experience and busi ne ssc hief. com

71

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

engagement. It is virtually impossible

being developed in a productive way.

to segment a traditional brand from

Influencer marketing, for better or

a digital brand today because social

worse, is also part of digital marketing.

media and the internet are ubiquitous.

The steps from an unboxing video viewing to purchase are much shorter than

72

WHAT ARE THE CURRENT TRENDS AND INNOVATIONS WHEN IT COMES TO DIGITAL BRANDS?

for personalisation in messaging and

MM: One trend we are seeing is

communications. Especially in the

the continued blurring of brand and

current environment, digital brands

acquisition marketing. The stand-

are expected to not only adapt their

ard customer journey path taught

communications messaging and

35 years ago has been completely

tone to reflect the circumstances,

disrupted. The path to purchase is

but to change their product and ser-

not linear; today it’s more a jumbled

vices offering. This is where market

mess. People are consuming content

research – especially platform-based,

for entertainment and the ‘time-to-

agile research – is key.

in a non-digital world.

Another trend is the greater need

purchase’ window has been greatly

JP: Two stand out. One is person-

reduced across the board. In social

alisation, which is the ability to tailor

media, shoppable posts are now

offers, products, services, and communications to individual customers wherever they are in their decision journey. These brands harness technology and insights to always be relevant to their customers. The other is the ability to continually pivot and innovate. That requires an operating model that constantly looks for new opportunities and develops new ways to tap those opportunities so they can

DECEMBER 2020

FoRfest2020 - Brand Building by Responding to Shifting Consumer Needs in Real-Time CLICK TO WATCH

|

31:23

73 stay ahead of competitors wherever

will fall and the friction for consumers

they emerge.

to purchase from these brands will erode away. We have already seen the

WHAT DO YOU THINK THE FUTURE FOR DIGITAL BRANDS WILL LOOK LIKE?

introduction of seamless, one-touch,

AM: The future was always bright for

stores and Amazon marketplace.

digital brands, a growing and highly

However, COVID has accelerated

connected customer base, easily

digital transformation among almost all

accessible target audiences through

companies to varying degrees, includ-

major digital platforms, being able to

ing traditional incumbents.

move faster than larger more traditional

end-to-end ecommerce with Facebook

JP: The human touch is becoming

competitors and not being restricted

hugely important. In response, digital

by geography or physical retail. As

brands will get more human and more

the world moves evermore online, the

personal. They will be much smarter in

barriers to entry for new digital brands

terms of spending and more diligent in busi ne ssc hief. com

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

measurement and optimisation. The variety of channels is so huge now, and the ways that customers use them change so often, that brands have to be much more diligent about how they spend. Across all countries measured in our global consumer sentiment surveys, consumers revealed that they are turning to digital and reduced-contact ways of accessing products and services. In the UK, 71% of consumers stated that they had tried a new shopping behaviour, with 16% stating that they had tried a 74

new digital shopping method. As these habits further evolve, granular data analysis and disciplined marketing-performance management will be essential for brands to stay in touch with their customers and drive MROI. In addition, we’re seeing corporate purpose, environmental considerations, the balance of individual time and all social topics (such as Black Lives Matter and diversity) driving the consumer agenda. As such, there are many potential areas for getting it wrong. Again, this is really about developing deep and meaningful connections with customers based on a deep understanding of what they care about, want, and need.

DECEMBER 2020

“ The human touch is becoming hugely important. In response, digital brands will get more human and more personal” — Jesko Perrey, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company

75

MM: Voice and audio will be the next

aren’t using a click to engage. Audio

frontier for digital brands. It’s impor-

branding and sound logos will become

tant to note that digital brands evolve

increasingly important.

as consumer behaviour evolves. And what their presence looks like in a more

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES OF A DIGITAL BRAND?

non-visual world. Right now, UX, UI and

JP: The basics still hold: you need to

design are an integral part of a digital

provide something that your custom-

brand, but brands must think about what

ers value. But with ‘digital’ at the core,

interactions will look like when people

you can react more quickly, test new

now, digital brands need to understand

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

76

opportunities cheaply, be much

Marketers have to work closely with IT,

more precise about how you con-

sales, operations, finance, etc, to make

nect with customers, and go after a

digital work. On the other hand, just

much more granular and widespread

because digital gives you the oppor-

set of opportunities. Is it even possible

tunity to do more doesn’t mean that

to be a ‘non-digital’ brand in today’s

you should do it. Privacy, security and

environment?

purpose are all issues that consumers

The challenges are huge. On the

care deeply about, and brands need to

one hand, it requires a new order of

continually balance how they want to

collaborative leadership to manage

connect with customers with the need

the complexity of technology and

to maintain trust with them.

data-driven marketing at an unprecedented degree of granularity.

DECEMBER 2020

MM: All brands are now digital brands. The differentiators are;

“ Is it even possible to be a ‘non-digital’ brand in today’s environment?”

— Jesko Perrey, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company

brands in reaching potential customers on digital platforms. Another benefit of being a digital brand is the ability to turn on, turn off and change strategy quickly based on data and insights gathered through digital channels.

Being able to dynamically and at reasonably low cost produce and

prioritisation of digital, emphasis on

iterate creative, product messaging

the UX and UI and integration of digi-

to what works is a huge advantage.

tal platforms in customer service and

However, building consumer confi-

products. This all equates to simplicity

dence and brand credibility without a

for the consumer. For instance, with

physical retail presence is a challenge.

digital, you can open a bank account

Can your brand be trusted to deliver?

quickly to secure the best interest

Does it actually exist or is there risk of

rate online. The offline method seems

an online scam?

obsolete and laborious. The benefit

Many small businesses establish-

is clear: the better and easier it is for

ing themselves as digital first brands

consumers to do business with you,

are bootstrapping and don’t have the

the more market share you gain.

deep pockets to compete with more

However, for all digital brands,

established brands. As with any small

customer service is challenging and

business, people are wearing many

must be a top priority. If you need to

hats and might be the HR, marketing

reach an actual person at Facebook

and logistics person in one. However

or Google to fix a problem or answer a

the ability to find talented contrac-

question, good luck! Customer service

tors and online tools to help has never

doesn’t exist for some of these large

been easier. Many online brands out-

digital brands. Amazon got this right.

source key functions like shipping and

AM: A major benefit is the ability to

logistics and never actually house the

compete against well-established

physical product. busi ne ssc hief. com

77

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

WHEN IT COMES TO DIGITAL BRANDS WHAT IS THE BEST STRATEGY AND APPROACH TO DRIVE THE MOST VALUE?

‘learn to walk before you run.’ A good

JP: You need to pull it back to the prin-

ferentiation) and which really focuses on

ciple of good marketing/branding. The

what your brand stands for. In addition,

rules of good marketing and branding

one of the key features for an effective

are being distinctive and being differenti-

strategy is the right people. Key people

ated. That’s particularly important to

are the core differentiator and make

revisit now as consumers are re-evalu-

the magic happen. They are the scarc-

ating what’s important to them and their

est resource in digital and non-digital

families. Even more important is the rule,

brands. Another is to combine creativity

78

DECEMBER 2020

digital strategy, therefore, is a strategy that focuses on the core elements (dif-

(often an element that is underplayed in digital brands) and match it with superior advanced analytics to ensure long-term success. Advanced analytics allow you to personalise, select elements that are appropriate, and allow you to spend efficiently. When companies get that right, their investments generate value quickly

“ The ability to find talented contractors and online tools to help has never been easier” — Angus McLean, Director at Ebiquity

and they develop strong relationships based on trust with their customers.

within an organisation. Moving offline

MM: Put the customer at the centre of

research processes online allows you

your strategy. Understand: how do they

to keep the customer close while also

engage online, where they are going, and

maintaining the integrity and quality of

what content are they consuming? As a

your research.

digital brand, these questions are para-

79

AM: The most effective strategy is one

mount. Digital tracking is an effective

that gets implemented, which generally

way to spot changes in digital search and

means keeping it simple. Defining the

buying behavior. With access to in-app

vision and setting goals, establishing a

buying behaviour and mobile search, our

timeline and clearly communicating the

clients use digital tracking to understand

strategy to everyone who needs to be

when and how consumers shop. Brands

involved. A strategy cannot be effective

should also focus on user centric design.

if people are not aware of it and have not

A good UX designer always has the con-

bought into the vision.

sumer at the centre of their design. With

Management support is also key to

this approach, users are at the centre of

any digital initiative. They require invest-

every step of the design process.

ment in tools and people but progress

Digital is not only about the external,

is better than standing still so don’t over

it’s about the internal. Employing digital

complicate it. Set goals, use data, test,

technology in areas like research speeds

iterate, support successes and learn

up decision-making and creates agility

from failures. busi ne ssc hief. com

TECHNOLOGY

80

DECEMBER 2020

Cisco:How to Get the Most Value Out of IoT WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON

busi ne ssc hief. com

81

TECHNOLOGY

Business Chief speaks with Vikas Butaney, Vice President & General Manager, Cisco IoT on how to get the most value out of the internet of things (IoT) TAKING IT BACK TO BASICS, WHAT IS IOT? Vikas Butaney, Vice President and General Manager of Cisco IoT, defines the internet of things (IoT) as a set of technologies that extends connectivity to edge devices and a wide range of ‘things’ to extract value from business data 82

and accelerate digitalisation. An example of IoT powered devices in an operational setting include automated robots that need to work 24/7 with no interruption in their communications in a pick and pack distribution centre or manufacturing facility.

In all cases where IoT is deployed, Butaney emphasises the importance of a secure and reliable communication system as foundational to success with this technology.

“ Securely connecting IoT devices is paramount” — Vikas Butaney, Vice President & General Manager, Cisco IoT

DECEMBER 2020

61% of enterprises show a high level of IoT maturity, Gartner

75bn of enterprises show a high level of IoT maturity, Gartner

127 new devices are connect to the Internet every second, McKinsey

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83

ericsson.com/ 5g-switch

Move towards zero touch, cut down on time

Ericsson.

The 5G switch made easy.

With automated provisioning and insight-driven service assurance, Ericsson Dynamic Orchestration simplifies operations, moving you closer to the zero-touch experience.

This means greater savings and shorter time to market.

TOP FIVE TIPS FOR SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTING AN IOT STRATEGY

3. Establish cross-functional teams

1. Be strategic and maintain focus.

4. Ensure that technology partners

It is important to understand the

have a high level of experience in

objectives and use cases before

your industry and the market power

designing IoT connectivity and

to maintain business operations for

solutions.

decades. Butaney notes that “these

that have shared business objectives.

types of operational settings have a 2. Avoid having a site by site, custom deployment of IoT. Instead, define

long shelf life. It is important to make sure that IoT solutions do too.”

company-wide standards, which are deployed step by step across

5. In addition to ensuring technology

the company as facilities are

partners have a high level of indus-

built or refreshed. “This standard

try experience, it is also important to

approach will drive the greatest

engage IoT partners at every stage

amount of efficiency at all levels

to accelerate learning and over-

of the organisation.”

come challenges. busi ne ssc hief. com

85

TECHNOLOGY

“ Video and mission critical communications over wireless are exploding edge bandwidth requirements and requiring new wireless technologies to support near-zero latency connectivity” — Vikas Butaney, Vice President & General Manager, Cisco IoT

THE CHALLENGES IOT Complexity: frequently operational settings across industries are legacy

86

THE BENEFITS IOT

systems that have been around for

Productivity improvements: the

decades. As a result rolling out new

capabilities of IoT are enabling

solutions with IoT can be complex.

improved operational efficiency such as: reduced downtime, improved

Security: when deploying IoT solu-

resilience and efficiency, as well as

tions, organisations need visibility

improved output and speed.

on what is connected and potential threats. It is important for organisa-

New customer experiences:

tions to leverage IoT security tools

Cisco’s Control Center connects

to ensure that they are not vulnerable

over 60 million cars, enabling new

to cyberattacks.

driver experiences, shile machine builders and device makers use

Scalability: With IoT being com-

Cisco Control Center to connect

plex to deploy and manage at scale.

100 million devices offering their

Butaney explains that IoT projects

customers new capabilities.

require a strong partnership between IT and OT in order to build scalable

Improving the way people work:

and secure projects for lower lifetime

improving workplace safety, produ-

TCO. “Bespoke projects are hard to

tivity, efficiency and revenue.

sustain over time.”

DECEMBER 2020

Vikas Butaney, Cisco | Cisco Live EU Barcelona 2020 CLICK TO WATCH

|

17:49

87

IOT TRENDS TO KEEP AN EYE ON AS WE COME TO THE END OF 2020

for high bandwidth, low latency wire-

With 75 billion IoT devices expected

devices on the move, “this wireless

to be connected by 2025, Butaney

connectivity to ‘things’ in motion is

details that “securely connecting IoT

frequently much more demanding

devices is paramount,” but requires

than connecting data to people over

a new level of security vigilance than

wireless. Video and mission critical

before. As a result it is important to

communications over wireless in min-

implement IoT security solutions out-

ing, ports, manufacturing, trains and

side of traditional network firewalls.

roadways are exploding edge band-

In doing this, IoT devices can be con-

width requirements and requiring new

nected securely and continuously

wireless technologies to support near-

monitored for potential threats.

zero latency connectivity.”

Another key trend highlighted by Butaney is the increased demand

less. With the increase in connected

In addition to security and high bandwidth, low latency wireless, Butaney busi ne ssc hief. com

TECHNOLOGY

E M E R G I N G I O T T R E N D S A S A R E S U LT O F C O V I D - 1 9

88

IoT has become a CXO-level conversation again: IoT’s value proposition is rapidly expanding from productivity, efficiency, and new services to enabling the board-level topic of 2020 - business resiliency. Businesses need to rapidly adjust operations based upon the workforce availability, supply chain interruptions, and changing customer expectations – exactly the places where IoT now sits.

IoT is delivering secure remote operations: over the last few years, the focus for IoT was on connecting devices to tap into new data for analytics. Now, in response to COVID, there is an added requirement to enable remote operations for both business resiliency and cost efficiency. This will fundamentally change how IoT devices will be connected.

DECEMBER 2020

IoT is now accelerating the move to a new class of networking: companies need secure remote access to IoT devices for diagnostics and remote technicians, in addition to remote controlling and operating IoT devices. This new dependence on IoT raises the bar on secure remote access requirements, including: • Connectivity for IoT devices requiring increased bandwidth • Extremely low latency wireless connectivity for applications at high speed • C ybersecurity to protect expansion of the threat surface • Network automation to make deploying and managing IoT devices at scale doable with finite resources • Edge computing for when going to the cloud is too slow to support real-time edge processes and analysis is needed closer to the IoT device

89 highlights the role 5G will play in the

weaknesses that address specific

future of IoT. “Wireless technologies

goals. The same is true for connectiv-

are a key pillar of IoT and 5G has

ity needs in IoT deployments.”

huge promise,” comments Butaney,

With organisations needing a

who also states that, by 2023, 34%

cohesive strategy that doesn’t result

of all mobile connections will be IoT

in costs, complexity and security

connections, up from 13% in 2018.

risks, particularly in a post COVID-19

However, he does emphasise that

world, Butaney explains that there is

there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach.

an increased need for business resil-

“Think of your mobile phone: one type

iency and remote operations. “These

of wireless technology doesn’t meet

needs are driving an evolution of

all your needs. You have LTE/5G

automation systems to be more end-

cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, and

to-end connected, more autonomous,

NFC - at least five wireless technolo-

and able to be remotely supervised

gies - each with their strengths and

via IoT connectivity.” busi ne ssc hief. com

TECHNOLOGY

90

“ This wireless connectivity to ‘things’ in motion is frequently much more demanding than connecting data to people over wireless” — Vikas Butaney, Vice President & General Manager, Cisco IoT DECEMBER 2020

Butaney recommends a four-step process for picking the right IoT wireless technology to reduce costs, complexity and security risks: 1. Decide what IoT device you are going to connect 2. Decide the application requirements - latency, reliability, cost, thrupu, etc 3. Decide the deployment scope indoors or outdoors, over miles or a few hundred feet 4. Assess the technology options against those requirements Overall, Butaney expects IoT to continue to deliver radical transformation across industries. “In a sense, the future is now. IoT is already critical today for many businesses. This will only become more pervasive.� Just a few examples of the future and

Combined, businesses, governments and consumers will invest nearly

US$1.6trn to install IoT solutions in 2020, PwC

current impacts of IoT include: connecting intersections to reduce traffic and improve road safety; connecting robots to reduce machine downtime through predictive maintenance; and connecting workers to improve worker safety ( measuring worker proximity in an age of pandemics). busi ne ssc hief. com

91

T O P 10

92

US Mergers and Acquisitions of the Last Two Decades Business Chief ranks – by year – its top 10 mergers and acquisitions made by companies in North America over the past two decades WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON WRITTEN BY

DECEMBER 2020

WILL GIRLING

93

busi ne ssc hief. com

T O P 10

2/9/20 DATE OF MERGER

N/A

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

94

10

NerdWallet & Know Your Money

Announced back in September 2020, NerdWallet announced its plans to acquire Norwich-based company Know Your Money. While negotiations for the acquisition began prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, the company highlighted that the pandemic has created a surge in demand for financial guidance and products. “Expansion to the UK is an important step towards our vision of a world where every consumer makes financial decisions with confidence,� commented Tim Chen, co-founder and CEO of NerdWallet.

DECEMBER 2020

09

Salesforce & Tableau

In a US$25.7bn deal, Salesforce made its biggest acquisition of the decade. The acquisition made by Saleforce was designed to further drive the company’s ambition to help organisations’ digital transformations, and enable companies around the world to tap into data to produce deeper insights and make smarter decisions.

“Tableau will make Salesforce Customer 360, including Salesforce’s analytics capabilities, stronger than ever, enabling our customers to accelerate innovation and make smarter decisions across every part of their business,” commented Marc Benioff, Chairman of Salesforce.

1/8/19 DATE OF MERGER

95

$25.7bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

busi ne ssc hief. com

6 Ways Inventory Management Fuels Supply Chain Explore How Inventory Management Enables Supply Chain to Reach Its Fullest Potential For most businesses, the supply chain is not only the primary cost centre but one of the most challenging aspects of running a profitable operation.

This ebook examines the role of inventory management in each step of the supply chain and share best practices for how businesses can use inventory management to optimise and run a more profitable operation.

Download Ebook Now

9/9/19 DATE OF MERGER

$34bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

08

IBM & Red Hat

97

July 2019 saw IBM complete a landmark deal to acquire Red Hat for US$34bn. Designed to accelerate innovation for their customers, the acquisition was aims to provide a next-generation hybrid multi-cloud platform for secure deployment, running, and management of data and applications.

“Businesses are starting the next chapter of their digital reinventions, modernising infrastructure and moving mission-critical workloads across private clouds and multiple clouds from multiple vendors,” commented Ginni Rometty, chairman, president and CEO of IBM. “IBM and Red Hat are uniquely suited to meet these needs. As the leading hybrid cloud provider, we will help clients forge the technology foundations of their business for decades to come.”

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T O P 10

07

Amazon & Whole Foods Market

With a vision to make Whole Foods Market’s high-quality, natural and organic food affordable for everyone, Amazon closed its acquisition of Whole Foods Market on August 28, 2017. While the company was acquired by Amazon, Whole Foods Market retained its name for conducting operations, and continues to grow its team and create jobs in local communities.

“We’re determined to make healthy and organic food affordable for everyone. Everybody should be able to eat Whole Foods Market quality – we will lower prices without compromising Whole Foods 98

Market’s long-held commitment to the highest standards,” commented Jeff Wilke, CEO of Amazon Worldwide Consumer.

28/8/17 DATE OF MERGER

$13.7bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

DECEMBER 2020

6/9/16 DATE OF MERGER

06

N/A

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

Dell & EMC Corporation

While the value of the acquisition of EMC Corporation by Dell is unknown, the merger, which took place in September 2016, resulted in a market value of US$74bn (2016). The merger provided Dell with the infrastructure to allow organisations to “build their digital future, transform IT and protect their most important asset – information.”

Commenting on the merger Michael Dell, chairman and CEO of Dell Technologies, said: “We are at the dawn of the next industrial revolution. Our world is becoming more intelligent and more connected by the minute, and ultimately will become intertwined with a vast Internet of Things, paving the way for our customers to do incredible things. This is why we created Dell Technologies.”

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Pack the essentials for your business trip: Laptop Charger Business insights Payment solutions

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To learn more about the American Express Corporate Program, visit www.americanexpress.com.

14/2/14 DATE OF MERGER

05

$16bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS) 101

Facebook & WhatsApp

February 2014 saw Facebook acquire popular cross-platform mobile messaging company WhatsApp for US$16bn and US$3bn in restricted stock units. The acquisition was reported to support the two companies’ mission to increase connectivity and utility across the world by providing efficient and affordable core internet services.

“WhatsApp is on a path to connect one billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable. I’ve known Jan for a long time and I’m excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected,” commented Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook.

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T O P 10

04

Verizon & Vodafone’s 45% in Verizon Wireless

Valued at US$130bn, in September 2013, Vodafone sold its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless to the US telecommunication company Verizon Communications. It was reported that, as part of the transaction, Vodafone returned US$70.6bn to its shareholders, US$28.7bn of which was expected to go to shareholders in the UK. “We think we have a balanced approach here. We are reducing our debt level which will enable the company to be very robust and take opportunities if they arise,” commented Vittorio Colao, Chief Executive Officer of Vodafone.

2/9/13

102

DATE OF MERGER

$130bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

DECEMBER 2020

13/10/11 DATE OF MERGER

$8.5bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

03

103

Microsoft & Skype

October 2011 saw Microsoft enter into a US$8.5bn deal to acquire Skype. Marking a new business division in Microsoft, the acquisition was designed to focus on the two companies’ shared ambition to connect all people across all devices and accelerate real-time communications.

“Skype is a phenomenal product and brand that is loved by hundreds of millions of people around the world. We look forward to working with the Skype team to create new ways for people to stay connected to family, friends, clients and colleagues — anytime, anywhere,” commented Steve Ballmer, former CEO of Microsoft.

busi ne ssc hief. com

Adaptability is not an aspiration.

It’s a business asset.

TOGETHER

WE GOT THIS

“Applying Industry 4.0 processes has improved production decision making at 85% of manufacturers.”

MPI Group study 2020 – read the study to learn more To survive in an era of volatile demand, uncertain supply, and constrained capacity, your organisation must be adaptable.

Now is the time to commit to a new way of working that can help you adapt to supply chain disruptions, react to changes in demand, and capitalize on new opportunities.

SAP will work with you as you move towards digitalization and Industry 4.0 in a company-wide, business strategy that focusses on data-driven customer attention and • Build intelligent, individualized products by connecting each customer’s voice to everything from product planning to delivery.

• Meet the demands of customers looking for sustainability.

• Create the kind of production process that adapts • Use intelligence and networks to integrate every machine, partner, and employee.

• Connect the entire company, bringing together logistics, sales, and service, so every step is orchestrated.

The SAP Digital Supply Chain portfolio supports industry 4.0, enables the digitalization of engineering, manufacturing, and asset operation processes, connects and automates machines and devices, and brings intelligence via AI and advanced analytics to an entire production process. This can help to continuously improve production performance, lower cost, and increase the agility and resiliency of your supply chain.

Adaptability is no longer an aspiration, it’s a business asset that can help you stay connected to your customers, integrated with your partners, and ahead in your industry.

T O P 10

106

Disney Plus | Announcement Trailer CLICK TO WATCH

DECEMBER 2020

|

1:45

31/8/09 DATE OF MERGER

$4bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

02

Walt Disney Company & Marvel Entertainment

In August 2009, two of the oldest entertainment companies – Walt Disney Company and Marvel Entertainment – entered into a US$4bn acquisition deal, in which Walt Disney Company acquired Marvel Entertainment.

“This transaction combines Marvel’s strong global brand and worldrenowned library of characters with Disney’s creative skills, unparalleled global portfolio of entertainment properties, and a business structure that maximises the value of creative properties across multiple platforms and territories,” commented Robert A. Iger, president and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company.

“We believe that adding Marvel to Disney’s unique portfolio of brands provides significant opportunities for long-term growth and value creation.”

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T O P 10

01

Google & YouTube

108

Founded just one year prior in 2005, Google was quick to snap up YouTube in 2006, acquiring the company for US$1.65bn. Today YouTube has a market value of US$160bn.

“The YouTube team has built an exciting and powerful media platform that complements Google’s mission to organise the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful,” commented Eric Schmidt, Chief Executive Officer of Google. “By joining forces with Google, we can benefit from its global reach and technology leadership to deliver a more comprehensive entertainment experience for our users and to create new opportunities for our partners,” added Chad Hurley, co-founder of YouTube.

DECEMBER 2020

Google YouTube Merger CLICK TO WATCH

|

2:09

109

10/10/06 DATE OF MERGER

$1.65bn

VALUE (US DOLLARS)

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110

SOPHISTICATED YET SIMPLE PRE-TRADE ONBOARDING WRITTEN BY

WILL GIRLING PRODUCED BY

MICHAEL BANYARD

DECEMBER 2020

111

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SAPHYRE

Stephen and Gabino Roche, President and CEO, discuss overcoming risk-aversion in finance and how Saphyre is disrupting an inefficient system

I

n an era of increasing digital sophistication, the extent to which out-dated technologies, techniques and processes

continue to weigh down even the largest companies in finance is surprising. Not content with simply disrupting the pre-trade space with an integrated onboarding platform, Saphyre offers 112

clients an intuitive, easy-to-use experience that belies its sophistication. Founded in 2017, it is an iconoclastic company that desires to break down barriers in a sector easily siloed and fundamentally believes in creating a streamlined and user-friendly alternative that enables customers to generate revenue faster.

“I’ve always built technology products from scratch; that’s always been kind of my thing,” states Gabino Roche, CEO. An experienced and successful business-technology leader with 20 years of expertise gained from executive roles at some of the world’s most prestigious organisations, he says that the knowledge gained from these companies regarding product R&D has been invaluable to the development of Saphyre. “I learned

DECEMBER 2020

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SAPHYRE

“ I’ve always built technology products from scratch; that’s always been kind of my thing” — Gabino Roche, CEO, Saphyre

what five of the major US banks were doing in this space and then also what their clients in the arena needed.”

The process of mapping these two aspects together would prove crucial to the company’s development. Also adding to Saphyre’s strong leadership is Gabino’s brother, Stephen Roche, President. With a background focusing on business development and emerging communications tech, Stephen says that new innovation has always “enthralled” him. “I’ve worked with a

114

lot of Fortune 1000 entities and it’s always been a challenge to introduce new technology: companies always view it and the associated operations as an expense. However, it’s also been a good learning experience because I would help them realize a successful model, and that has allowed me to advise the Saphyre team on how best to allocate resources and grow.”

Allowing clients to digitise their emails, faxes and spreadsheets through an accessible platform and powered by ATTOM ((AI Tracking of Transactions and Operational Metadata), its patented artificial intelligence (AI) workflow management DECEMBER 2020

Speed Your Onboardings CLICK TO WATCH

|

0:41

115 technology, Saphyre integrates data

by focusing on both cost-reduction

sharing, real-time messaging and

and increased revenue, the company

transparency. Developing a successful

has been able to gain attention quickly.

product for pre-trade was an inte-

“Clients can start trading and making

gral part of Saphyre’s development.

money straight away, meanwhile the

However, as Gabino explains, this

custodians are also making money

was only half the battle in establishing

by collecting interest and fees. Our

the company’s place in the market.

overall strategy is to digitize the pre-

“The other half was actually planning

trade space, not just for the benefit

the adoption strategy; how do you

of trading, but also for trading and

get clients, individual users, or even

post-trade.”

institutions to adopt a new technology

Core to Saphyre’s ethos is the idea

that’s never existed before?”

of ‘levelling the playing field’ or, in

A believer in appealing to the “selfish

the company’s own words, “disrupt-

interests of the client”, he relates that,

ing a broken system”; it is adamantly busi ne ssc hi ef . com

SAPHYRE

116

opposed to the innovation-stifling

Wary that some firms were initially

bureaucracy that permeates so many

reticent to take notice at first because

aspects of finance. “We chose to

of (unrelated) unfruitful tech initia-

take on this endeavor because the

tives that spawned risk-aversiveness,

status quo wasn’t serving people’s

Saphyre’s first mission was to prove

best interests,” explains Stephen.

that it could outperform expectations,

DECEMBER 2020

which, Stephen continues, it soon did.

designers, and a second team of

“I started with the company in May of

coders, to whom the middle and back-

2017. We released our first product in

office operations are taught in order to

the fall of 2017 and we went live with

establish the appropriate context as

our first client in March of 2018. We

they work. “What that does is structure

just cut through the bureaucracy and

things so that the technology team

deliver what the client actually needs.”

is uninterrupted, and they know what

Maintaining a spirit of innovation

we give them is solid because we’ve

among its staff is also highly important

already validated it several times with

at Saphyre, which it achieves through

our innovation team,” Gabino explains.

genuine employee empowerment and

“Working at some other financial

a dual-layered workforce dynamic: one

institutions three and a half years ago,

team consisting of product managers,

you would never have seen those two

industry experts and user experience

things combined together.”

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Gabino Roche Title: CEO & Co-Founder

Industry: Financial Services

Location: United States Gabino is an experienced and successful business-technology leader with 20 years of expertise gained from executive roles at some of the world’s most prestigious organisations, including McKinsey, AT&T and JP Morgan Chase.

“I’ve always built technology products from scratch; that’s always been kind of my thing.” Holding a BSc in Business Management Information Systems from Seton Hall University (1993 to 1998) and an MBA in Global Management from the University of Phoenix (2000 to 2003), he is highly knowledgeable on industry trends, industry-leading approaches and the contemporary needs of clients. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

117

SAPHYRE

118

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Stephen Roche Title: President & Co-Founder Industry: Financial Services Location: United States Stephen has a background focusing on business development and emerging communications tech. He has acquired a large amount of experience working for AT&T prior to co-founding Saphyre with his brother. “I’ve worked with a lot of Fortune 1000 entities and it’s always been a challenge to introduce new technology. However, it’s also been a good learning experience because I would help them realize a successful model, and that has allowed me to advise the Saphyre team on how best to allocate resources and grow.”

DECEMBER 2020

to support a business, that would undermine how advanced our platform really is.” In some respects, market differentiation hasn’t been difficult for Saphyre at all: possessing a portfolio of 48 patents and a unique offering in the pre-trade market, Gabino states that, prior to the company’s formation, there was no competition at all.

Therefore, Saphyre’s team has been able to instead focus on raising the digital transformation of pre-trade to a higher standard. “When institutions in the finance space make investments, they invest in trading and post-trade because that’s where the money’s to be made. I’m not suggesting that pre-trade gets ignored, but you’d be Boosting Saphyre’s standing in a

surprised by the amount of Windows

cautious industry has been one of its

95 and legacy infrastructure that still

key challenges, particularly when other

exists out there.”

companies in the space compound the issue by over-promising and underdelivering. “And then, when you have a fintech startup saying, ‘We can do all these things too,’ people might look at our size and question it,” says Stephen.

“However, we’re bringing a phenomenal user experience,” Gabino adds, “If we needed to hire armies of people

“ We chose to take on this endeavor because the status quo wasn’t serving people’s best interests” — Stephen Roche, President, Saphyre busi ne ssc hi ef . com

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SAPHYRE

“ Our overall strategy is to digitize the pre-trade space, not just for the benefit of trading, but also for trading and post-trade” — Gabino Roche, CEO, Saphyre Any ‘glass ceiling’ that might have impeded Saphyre has been coun120

tenanced by the announcement in mid-September that it had struck a partnership with JP Morgan and BlackRock. Deployed to digitize their account opening workflow, produce

news.” Indeed, the partnership can be

improved scalability and remove

viewed as simultaneously a validation

manual processes, the two companies’

of Saphyre’s value and an illustration

choice to leverage Saphyre’s technol-

of the importance of collaboration, no

ogy has given it a significant credibility

matter how large a financial institution

boost. “We were selected because

might be, a conclusion that Gabino

Saphyre is the only one in this space,

concurs with: “If you try to be the

and [JP Morgan and Blackrock] were

master of many things, you’ll be the

tired of pseudo-monopoly financial

master of none. Saphyre has opted to

firms dealing with 1980s technology or

be the master of one thing, which we

faxing data information,” says Stephen.

do extremely well.”

“It’s our reputation and consistency of execution that has led to this great DECEMBER 2020

Emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic relatively unfazed, owing

121

S A P HY RE’S SU PP O RT

Saphyre’s new partners have been vocal in their support for the company: “Saphyre has been instrumental in transforming the account opening experience for our clients. J.P. Morgan was an early adopter of Saphyre and is now live in production after successfully testing its value proposition for over 6 months,” said Naveen TV, Managing Director, JP Morgan’s Securities Services.

“With powerful workflow features and enhanced visibility into the account opening lifecycle, Saphyre has enabled BlackRock to eliminate manual processes to support the account opening workflow across custodians and broker-dealers,” commented Liliane Ancona, Managing Director, BlackRock.

The full details of Saphyre’s momentous partnership with JP Morgan and BlackRock can be found here.

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122

to its high-tech operational infrastructure, Gabino even posits that certain aspects of the business, such as setting up meetings, may have become easier. “Traditionally, I would have to fly across the world, go to people’s offices, make pitches, etc. Now, relying on Zoom and Microsoft Teams, I’m actually more busy because I don’t have to allocate that additional travel DECEMBER 2020

“ If you try to be the master of many things, you’ll be the master of none. Saphyre has opted to be the master of one thing, which we do extremely well” — Gabino Roche, CEO, Saphyre

123

time; I’ve got meetings back-to-back.”

streamline the entire experience and

Subsequently, Saphyre has been

make it more user friendly,” concludes

able to concentrate on its mission

Gabino. “In the world today everything

for 2021: eliminating 70% of manual

is siloed, but we’re breaking down

post-trade activities, a complement to

those walls and bringing it all together.”

its uncontested work in the pre-trade space and demonstrating its holistic, end-to-end grasp of the trade process.

“Our model is sophisticated yet simple; we’re constantly exploring how to busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Adaptive Data Centers

124

DECEMBER 2020

Putting Sustainability at the Heart of Data Management WRITTEN BY

PADDY SMITH

PRODUCED BY

LEWIS VAUGHAN 125

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ALIGNED

126

DECEMBER 2020

Aligned has completed a historic billion-dollar round of financing specifically linked to sustainability. CEO Andrew Schaap is eyeing the possibilities it opens up

I

t’s a mark of Andrew Schaap’s modesty that he says of the Covid-19 pandemic, “We’re weathering it well.” While other

companies were diving for cover in the second quarter of 2020, Aligned – where Schaap is CEO – “saw a very big uptick in February, March, April, and May”.

“The pandemic has proven to be somewhat of a use case study in capacity planning for our big customers,” he explains. “All of them run analysis on what they can get out of a server, what they can get out of a CPU, what they can get out of a storage device or networking device. But the ones that are really born on web technologies are being pushed to the limit of what they can do. And so, our customers have been able to see just how effective adaptive infrastructure and our Delta3 cooling technology are when it comes to seamlessly addressing those peaks in demand.”

As well as higher headroom capacity, data patterns have changed. Schaap points to a gaming

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ALIGNED

“ This is a capital-intensive business. You need capital partners that understand the business” — Andrew Schaap, CEO, Aligned

financing led predominantly by ING. This is the first U.S. data center sus-

client using Aligned’s data centres

tainability-linked financing and also

which saw its traditional 6pm to 3am

one of the largest private debt raises

peak capacity shift as schools closed

in data center history.

and the workforce headed home.

For Aligned’s customers, its modu128

billion-dollar sustainability-linked

Previously, after joining Aligned in 2017, Schaap struck a deal with

lar, dynamic and highly scalable data

Macquarie Infrastructure and Real

solutions came into their own. And

Assets (MIRA) (“not your traditional

its finance partners have allowed the

private equity”) to recapitalise the

Dallas-based company to innovate its

business. “This is a capital-intensive

supply chain to meet the accelerated

business. So, you have to have capital

delivery needs of customers, specifi-

partners that are highly capable of

cally in the hyperscale space.

understanding what the business

Another sunny day in Aligned’s fair-weathered pandemic came in September, when it closed a

DECEMBER 2020

looks like.”

Traditionally, MIRA invests in infrastructure such as roads, bridges and

CEO Andrew Schaap Discusses Aligned’s Adaptive Data Centers CLICK TO WATCH

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2:19

129 highways. Aligned was the operating

leverage that buying power to get

group’s first foray into infrastructure

the best outcome out of the suppli-

of the digital kind. The entity saw

ers. What we did, essentially, was

a clear understanding that in order

approach the supply chain differently

to compete with the buying power

by deploying capital and committing

afforded to publicly traded Fortune

to capacity.”

500 data brands, Aligned needs to be

“Not everybody can do this. The pub-

able to work the angles. Schaap and

licly traded providers have to explain

his team laser-focused the business,

every dollar they spend to Wall Street,

including flipping the traditional data

and get a return on it within a set period

center supply chain / vendor-managed

of time – or they get penalised.”

inventory (VMI) on its head.

“We did it essentially to counteract

“But because of Macquarie, our other capital partners and our business

scale. Those [Fortune 500] guys have

model, we were able to essentially

buying power with scale and they

look at the supply chain and be bullish busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Munters brings over six decades of innovation to its partnership with Aligned Energy Munters has been developing innovative, energy efficient climate control solutions for over 60 years, and Data Center cooling is a market segment that is very active right now. DC President Michael Gantert explains why as the industry leader in energy efficient climate control solutions, Munters expertise in data center cooling helps Aligned Energy meet growth demands Munters has a long history in delivering innovative, energy efficient climate control solutions. Started in Sweden over 60 years ago, Munters has deployed its technologies in a host of industries.

Munters Data Centers (DC) business, managed

by President Michael Gantert, is a key partner for Aligned Energy. Munters has worked closely with Aligned Energy to manufacture and advance the development of their unique cooling solution.

Munters entered the data center cooling market 12 years ago and has developed a number of cooling solutions that have been widely adopted and are critical to the efficient operation of many data centers.

When Aligned Energy got in touch to discuss a partnership, it wasn’t to purchase an existing solution, but rather to further develop their own cooling solution and manufacture a product that would reduce equipment lead time and cost, while also improving reliability.

“For a data center company to come to us with a pre-designed cooling solution and ask us to manufacture it, while also making it better and easier to install, that was a bit unique from what we’ve experienced over the past 12 years.”

Michael Gantert, Munters

“Aligned Energy recognized in Munters our history of innovation, engineering expertise, and flexible manufacturing capabilities. They saw those aspects of Munters as key to support their growing business.

Our relationship is a true partnership. We share a lot of information including technical engineering details and manufacturing techniques for their cooling solutions.”

“There has certainly been a lot of collaboration between the two companies over the past few years. They have a great cooling technology.

We have embraced that, and we really feel Munters has provided value to Aligned Energy by understanding the technology and continuing to develop and enhance it for them.”

“We’ve worked very closely with Aligned Energy and we’ve been provided selective visibility into their pipeline, which allows us to plan and prepare to best meet their needs. We continuously assess equipment inventory and component stock levels as well as things we can do within our manufacturing footprint to shorten lead times to support Aligned Energy’s growth.”

LEARN MORE TODAY

ALIGNED

132

on where the market is going, where we think the market’s going and have manufacturers hold on to the inventory inside their warehouse or factory before shipping it on a just-in-time basis. We’ve done very well with that over the years; and it has proven effective during the pandemic. We had a handful of transactions that we were able to win on speed of delivery and our ability to get a customer moved in faster than the competition.”

“We didn’t start the VMI because of the pandemic, but It worked in our favor DECEMBER 2020

“ Our customers have been able to see just how effective adaptive infrastructure and our Delta3 cooling technology are when it comes to seamlessly addressing those peaks in demand” — Andrew Schaap, CEO, Aligned

in a big, big way because we already

allocate manufacturing to quieter peri-

had that gear forward committed.”

ods, keeping productivity stable, and

By ordering before equipment was

workers off furlough.

needed, Aligned was able to offer

“What we try to do is to stabi-

manufacturers flexibility over their

lize the throughput in the factory.

throughput. Rather than a lumpy

Everyone we’ve spoken to has had

work-to-order production schedule,

phenomenal feedback about what

with workers on triple overtime when

we’re doing because it solves a

demand surges, the company’s pre-

big problem for them – removing

ordering allowed manufacturers to

the lumpiness.”

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Andrew Schaap Title: CEO

133

Location: United States

Industry: Information Technology & Services Andrew Schaap is CEO of Aligned, dedicated to accelerating business growth by delivering data center solutions with industry-leading technology and adaptive infrastructure. Since beginning his tenure, Schaap has exponentially grown revenues, completed several successful capital raisings, and cultivated an ecosystem of innovation that advances Aligned’s commitment to reducing the social, economic and environmental impact of the digital era. He is a data centre, IT, private equity and real estate executive with more than 20 years of complex transactional experience and multidisciplinary senior leadership. Prior to joining Aligned, he held numerous leadership positions over an 11-year period with Digital Realty Trust. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

We are Franklin-Griffith, a USESI Company

Project management and vendor managed inventory experts dedicated to exceeding the goals of our customers. www.franklinelectric.net | www.usesi.com |

: Franklin-Griffith Co. | email Matt Venancio, VP of Sales: M.Venancio@frankelec.com

It’s just one example of Schaap’s approach to partnerships, which revolves around listening to partners,

their problem is our problem. So, we have to be mindful of their problem.”

While Macquarie’s financing allows

understanding their challenges, and

Aligned to game the supply chain, its

earning their respect. “Sometimes

debt financing with ING has beefed

2013

Year founded

90

Number of employees DECEMBER 2020

up its efforts to continue pursuing a strategic vision in sustainability.

“On the debt side, we’re very pleased with the first sustainability-linked financing done in the United States.

And ING really drove that with us and has just been a great partner.”

“We can be sustainable, have great uptime and reliability, and provide great service and support to our

“ Because of Macquarie, our other capital partners and our business model, we were able to essentially look at the supply chain and be bullish on where the market is going” — Andrew Schaap, CEO, Aligned

customers. We do all three and we do them in a thoughtful, meaningful way. So, we’re delighted with it and looking forward to showcasing our sustainability even more. We’re doing it because our customers care about it and it’s part of our DNA.” Schaap gesticulates towards a 40-inch monitor on the wall where he can survey the top line performance metrics in real time. Unsurprisingly, he’s big on data, and Aligned is keen to pass on its data to help clients. “If we sell a customer a megawatt, let’s give them

Aligned IAD-01 Build Timelapse CLICK TO WATCH

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2:15

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ALIGNED

136

“ We had a handful of transactions that we were able to win on speed of delivery and our ability to get a customer moved in faster than the competition” — Andrew Schaap, CEO, Aligned

thing to do. No stranded capacity; that’s

the tools to figure out how to use as

ing to where the puck is going to

much of that megawatt as possible

be versus where it is now,” asking

because that’s the most sustainable

Schaap to gaze into his crystal ball is

DECEMBER 2020

the best thing for the environment.”

For someone who is always “skat-

137

to open a window to a new genera-

of dollars – or Euros or Yen – that

tion of data technology.

are being put into it is incredibly high

“Everybody is thinking about energy

because that’s the new gold rush, to

storage right now. How do you get

figure out how to store energy. And

as creative as you possibly can on

on the data side, we use a lot, so we’re

energy storage? That’s the number

really paying attention to what’s next.”

one problem with green energy: it’s cyclical. The sun, wind, hydro, all those things are somewhat cyclical.

Adaptive Data Centers

And so, you’ve got to find ways to store the energy. And so, the amount busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Driving Healthcare Innovation Through Data and Analytics WRITTEN BY

LEILA HAWKINS PRODUCED BY

THOMAS LIVERMORE

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DECEMBER 2020

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COMMUNITY HEALTH NETWORK

Community Health Network (CHNw) provides convenient access to exceptional healthcare services, driving innovation through data and analytics

C

ommunity Health Network, headquartered in Indianapolis, can truly call itself a leader in healthcare services. Their Chief

Analytics Officer, Patrick McGill, MD tells us they 140

have one of the highest physician engagement scores in the region, and their patient satisfaction scores also rank amongst the top.

Another key aspect that sets them apart from other healthcare providers is their strategic focus on data analytics. Whereas many healthcare organisations are lagging in this area, McGill says they believe this is the pathway to future success.

McGill first came to work here as a family doctor around 10 years ago. When the organisation installed Epic as their electronic medical record (EMR), he was asked to work on some of its optimization. This led to a series of roles including Medical Director of Physician Informatics, leading training and strategic initiatives around Epic; Senior VP for Clinical Strategy, and two years ago he stepped into the position of Chief Analytics Officer.

DECEMBER 2020

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“One of the decisions the Board of Directors made when they created the role of Chief Analytics Officer was that it had to be a physician,” says

costs. But, as with any big change, it’s not an easy process.

Community took the approach of transforming just two areas initially.

McGill. “When you try and make data

“One is the patient-facing area

analytics a strategic asset, having a

to allow patients to have the same

physician lead the analytics and infor-

experience with healthcare as if

mation technology departments really

they were shopping or paying bills

puts a different focus on these areas.”

online,” McGill explains. “We focused

With his background as a physician,

on things like receiving appointment

McGill understands the need to drive

reminders, scheduling appointments

the digital transformation of the busi-

online and communications between

ness as a way of ultimately improving

providers and patients. Secondly,

patient outcomes while reducing

we focused on operational areas

DECEMBER 2020

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Patrick McGill, MD Title: EVP, Chief Analytics Officer

Industry: Healthcare

Company: Community Health Network

Location: Indiana

Dr. Patrick McGill serves as the Executive Vice President and Chief Analytics Officer for Community Health Network. In addition to serving on the Network Executive Leadership Team, he leads the Office of Network Analytics, Information Technology, Business Process Management and Clinical Informatics. Most recently, he served as the Senior Vice President for Clinical Strategy, overseeing programs to reduce clinical variation, strategies for growth and the transition towards value-based care. Prior, he served as the Vice President of Clinical Transformation. Additionally, Dr. McGill has special interests in clinical data and analytics, patient safety, population health, office workflow efficiency and waste reduction. Dr. McGill is a certified Green belt in Lean/Six Sigma. Born and raised outside of Atlanta, GA, Dr. McGill attended the University of Georgia in Athens, GA graduating Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. He received his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, GA and completed his Family Medicine residency at Ball Memorial Hospital in Muncie, IN. Prior to joining Community Physician Network in 2010, he practiced Family Medicine in Pendleton, IN. He is board certified in Family Medicine and continues to see patients at South Indy Family Practice.

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143

Providing medication access solutions for your patients We connect the healthcare industry with comprehensive technological solutions to help patients get the medication they need to live healthy lives.

To date, we’ve done that more than 200 million times.

Healthcare is complicated.

Our mission isn’t.

Visit covermymeds.com to see how technology can improve medication access.

“ Our brand promise is exceptional care, simply delivered, and one of our values is patients first” — Patrick McGill, EVP, Chief Analytics Officer

years. A good example is the da Vinci Surgical System, a robot-assisted system that helps surgeons perform delicate procedures.

“They’ve been very successful,” says McGill. “They have been found to reduce surgery time, improve outcomes, shorten the length of a hospital stay after surgery, and patients recover faster.”

McGill explains that there is still a

that don’t directly impact patient

degree of suspicion of AI in health-

care which we could align our busi-

care. “A lot of the time I feel that AI

ness processes. Things like billing,

is slow to be adopted in the care of

IT operations, and, moving forward, some HR functions like the onboarding of new employees, which we can streamline and automate.

“If we can show people that we’re moving forward as a digital enterprise, it’ll drive the organization forward and achieve the goals that we want, but still preserve that doctor-patient and provider-patient relationship that’s so sacred. We don’t want to disrupt that relationship – we want to enhance it.”

The organization has been deploying state-of-the-art technology to assist the workforce for a number of busi ne ssc hi ef . com

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COMMUNITY HEALTH NETWORK

“ We’re building the analytic platform to understand the patient journey and the clinical journey” — Patrick McGill, EVP, Chief Analytics Officer

patients because physicians, nurses and pharmacists really want to understand what’s in the black box of AI,” he says. “If they don’t understand it and they can’t explain it, then they don’t want to adopt it.

“While easing into the realm of digitalization, we’ve tried to leverage AI tools to help augment their knowledge, so servicing algorithms where patients might be at a higher risk of a fall, to alert the clinician to take some extra precautions with this patient, or

146

in areas where the patient might be

DECEMBER 2020

CHNw Safety Message CLICK TO WATCH

|

0:50

147 faster to deteriorate, to alert the clini-

receive test results or to pay their

cian that they’re at risk of becoming

bills, it’s about achieving a true con-

sicker. It’s about using AI to augment

sumer-driven experience.

their decision-making versus telling

“Leveraging things like Mychart

them what they need to do. We’ve had

within Epic as a communications

some success leveraging predictive

platform, and our partnership with

models and AI in that fashion, versus

CipherHealth that helps us provide

being more prescriptive.”

text-based outreach or post-dis-

In terms of how analytics and AI

charge follow ups when patients leave

can benefit patients, McGill explains

hospital, these types of partnerships

that they provide ease of use and

are key in creating this kind of patient-

convenience. “We’re trying to drive

centric, frictionless experience.”

a patient-centric frictionless experi-

As well as Epic and CipherHealth,

ence, whether that’s to schedule

CHNw has several other important

appointments or consultations, to

strategic partners. Health Catalyst busi ne ssc hi ef . com

has been a key clinical partner for six

prescribing process, and automates

years, helping to drive them towards

insurance authorization within the EMR

being a data-led organization, while

workflow. CHNw has piloted and will

guiding them on an improvement

be launching CoverMyMed’s Real-time

methodology, reducing unnecessary

Benefit solution across the enterprise.

clinical variation and improving patient

This tool allows providers to see patient

safety. By using the Health Catalyst

cost at the point of prescribing.

DOS operating system enterprise data

They are also partners with phar-

warehouse, CHNw has made tremen-

maceutical company Eli Lilly, who

dous gains in operational and clinical

they work with on patient educa-

efficiency. Over the last three years,

tion specifically for diabetes, and

they have removed more than than

Stanson Health (part of Premier,

$35mn of waste from the system.

Inc), who have provided a tool that’s

Additionally, software created

by CoverMyMeds improves the DECEMBER 2019

embedded into the EMR that ensures appropriate care is given.

“ A lot of the time I feel that AI is slow to be adopted in the care of patients because physicians, nurses and pharmacists really want to understand what’s in the black box of AI” — Patrick McGill, EVP, Chief Analytics Officer

“It delivers curated content and rules into the EMR silently, searches through the algorithms, and can actually look through the patient chart, searching their history, medications, problem lists and past visits,” explains McGill. “It can make recommendations, for example, if a patient comes in with acute back pain, and the recommendation is don’t have an MRI, when I try to order an MRI it will give me an alert to maybe refer them to physical therapy instead. Better quality outcomes with lower costs.”

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COMMUNITY HEALTH NETWORK

1956

Year founded

$2.5bn+ Revenue in US dollars

15,000 150

Number of employees

DECEMBER 2020

151

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COMMUNITY HEALTH NETWORK

He says a particular area of success with this tool has been with reducing unnecessary lab testing.

“We really strive for partners to help solve some of our problems” he says.

In terms of looking ahead, McGill explains that they’ve paused looking at their five-year strategy given the disruption and pace of change caused by Covid-19, and instead look at their more immediate future.

“I see us continuing to accelerate. Along with our partners, we’ve 152

built the foundation for a true digital transformation,” says McGill. “We’re building the analytics to understand

“ We’re trying to drive a patient-centric frictionless experience, whether that’s to schedule appointments, to receive test results or to pay their bills, it’s about achieving a true consumer-driven experience” — Patrick McGill, EVP, Chief Analytics Officer

DECEMBER 2020

153

the patient journey and the caregiver

reliable housing, continuing to focus

journey, so we will have the ability to

on those things, and leveraging digital

understand that and strive for a fric-

tools as much as we possibly can to

tionless experience.”

achieve those goals and outcomes.

“I’m not sure you ever get to where

“Our brand promise is Exceptional

you want to be because there’s

Care, Simply Delivered, and one of our

always continuous process improve-

values is Patients First,” McGill adds.

ment. But I do think that our goal is to

“When you put those two together,

continue to focus on the patient and

along with the culture at Community,

on our caregivers, on equity, whether

that’s what drives people to come to

that’s race and social equity, health

work here every day.”

equity, outcomes, social determinants of health like food insecurity and busi ne ssc hi ef . com

154

DECEMBER 2020

Leading the AI-powered CX Journey 155

WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY

RYAN HALL

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[24]7.AI

Against the backdrop of a growing cyber war, [24]7.ai is providing a safe platform for businesses to communicate with their customers [24]7.ai co-founder and CEO PV Kannan realised, back in 2000, that the key to forward-thinking customer engagement was reaching beyond customers calling up companies to talk to call centre representatives to get answers to queries and moving quickly towards a digital standpoint.

156

“Today, customers want real-time responses to their questions,” says [24]7.ai’s Global CISO & Chief Privacy Officer, Dr Rebecca Wynn.

CONVERSATIONAL AI Conversational AI is redefining customer experience (CX) across business messaging, voice and everywhere else. The journey for [24]7.ai towards meeting the need for more efficient customer interactions is allied to the rise of the chat bot triggering database responses; this inspired Kannan’s team to develop [24]7.ai’s NLP (Natural Language Processing) to build the business globally.

“Companies partner with [24]7.ai because we’re pioneers in the industry,” maintains Dr Wynn.

“We’re able to harness strong analytics to provide a seamless transition when customers need to DECEMBER 2020

“ Today, customers want real-time responses to their questions” — Dr Rebecca Wynn, Global CISO & Chief Privacy Officer, [24]7.ai

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[24]7.AI

“ A paradigm shift was already coming, and now it’s here companies like [24]7.ai, with our expertise through offerings like the Engagement Cloud, can support the global roll out of secure customer communications across a range of devices, at work or at home” — Dr Rebecca Wynn, Global CISO & Chief Privacy Officer, [24]7.ai

will increase our clients’ net promoter scores (NPS), lower operating costs and help drive revenues.”

Dr Wynn believes it’s vital for her

team to work to the mantra “How can 158

graduate to a human response but

we be better tomorrow?” She notes

don’t want to repeat all of the infor-

that recruiting the right personnel is

mation they’ve already given via a

vital to drive excellence. “We need

chatbot. We’ve created a unified digital

to be equipped to analyse customer

customer experience across channels

journeys and make them more efficient

from websites and tablets to social

and secure, not only for the company

media and smartphones to suit the

that hires us but for the consumers

needs of businesses across sectors,

that access them and want answers

from banking to retail. We’re confident

in real-time.”

that positive customer experiences

COMPLIANCE, RISK MANAGEMENT & SECURITY During a year where the pressures of the global Covid-19 pandemic have hastened many companies shift towards digital transformation, how is [24]7. ai offering support? “Businesses are moving decisively towards enabling DECEMBER 2020

Welcome to [24]7.ai CLICK TO WATCH

|

3:17

159 a remote workforce,” notes Dr Wynn

Dr Wynn sees the company’s cus-

of a process [24]7.ai has over a dec-

tomers as partners – a vital alliance

ade experience in delivering. “We’re

when facing up to the enemies beyond

mindful of the pressures that puts on

the keyboard… “We’re in this cyberwar

bandwidth so we regularly commu-

together,” she pledges. “We’re not only

nicate with our customers to analyse

driving a positive customer experience

business continuity and how they are

but also working with privacy, compli-

able to move their workforce quickly

ance and security teams because we

and offer an instant response to their

need to be cybersecurity warriors

customers, even when faced with

together. It’s an ecosystem that needs

disaster scenarios like this pandemic.

to be protected. If anyone on our

It’s something we were well prepared

platform is being attacked we need

for and are able to make key deci-

to let each other know and act accord-

sions quickly to mitigate risk in moving

ingly to stay secure. That’s why when

agents to work from home.”

I look at key vendors it’s not just a box busi ne ssc hi ef . com

[24]7.AI

160

checking exercise; we’re investing in

messaging. “Proofpoint are able to help

good partnerships that protect ours

us with our top layer of security, to see

and our customers futures to better

where active threats are coming from

protect consumers at large worldwide.”

before those attempts start trickling down into our architecture,” explains

PARTNERING TO INNOVATE WITH PROOFPOINT, TANIUM & SUMO LOGIC CROWDSTRIKE

Dr Wynn. “It means we don’t have to

In its quest for cybersecurity innovation

board providing real-time dashboards

[24]7.ai partners with Proofpoint, tak-

for threat analysis of our firewalls.”

ing advantage of a raft of compliance

She applauds Proofpoint’s ability to

solutions to protect customers across

carry out deep dives that ensure

every channel from email, web and

a company is equipped to deal with

cloud to social media and mobile

constantly morphing phishing attacks

DECEMBER 2020

spend time training our personnel because we have their specialists on

and ransomware, dealing with issues

so many patches to go ahead and

effectively in real-time with a turn-

apply, they’re all important. But which

around time of less than 45 seconds.

one on what system do you patch

Gaining an overview of the cyber-

first? And then which server of that

security posture of a firewall and

system do you patch? First you have

enabling real-time filtering is vital for

to be able to know the risk that you’re

[24]7.ai. “You’re going to need patch

carrying on each server or each

management but it’s not the old

system; then you can know the order

school approach anymore,” says Dr

of precedence on that. That’s why we

Wynn. “I tell people when you have

work with companies like Tanium who

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Dr Rebecca Wynn

161

Title: Global CISO & Chief Privacy Officer Industry: Computer Software

Location: Greater Phoenix Area

Dr Rebecca Wynn is lauded as a “game-changer who is ten steps ahead in developing and enforcing cybersecurity and privacy best practices and policies.” She is a “big picture” thinker who brings nearly 20 years of experience in Privacy, Compliance, Risk Management, Information Security, Assurance & Technology. She led the information security, privacy, and compliance pre-acquisition, acquisition and postacquisition of LearnVest, Inc. to Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company – a Fortune 100 company.

She is well known for being a gifted polymath, having deep understanding of current cyber security challenges and privacy issues, and is always open to new opportunities. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Call-Center Automation Leader [24]7.ai Enlists Proofpoint for People-Centric Cybersecurity

If you’ve ever felt trapped in a telephone menu tree, a nonsensical exchange with a chatbot, or even a call with a human customer-support rep who won’t go off-script, [24]7.ai feels your pain.

The 20-year-old Silicon Valley company is on a quest to make customer service easier and more enjoyable—a mission that has grown ever more urgent amid a major shift to digital commerce and remote work.

“If you have clients who go to your website and they can’t find information very quickly and efficiently, they usually go away,” says Rebecca Wynn, [24]7.ai’s global CISO and chief privacy officer. “People don’t have any patience anymore with that.”

Two critical aspects of [24]7.ai’s business are protecting its intellectual property and keeping clients’ information private.

[24]7.ai’s customer base runs the gamut of industry sectors. Many of those—such as healthcare finance and government—are highly regulated. [24]7.ai must keep customer data out of the hands of cyber criminals and compliant with a growing myriad of regulations.

“Cybersecurity plays a big, big role in what we do,” Wynn said. “We’re fighting a cyber war with people who are behind another keyboard and who are trying to harm us all.”

In any war, you need allies. Wynn enlisted the help of Proofpoint, a cybersecurity vendor she calls a strong partner in her fight against cyber threats and compliance risks.

“Proofpoint allows me to sleep at night because of what they are doing for me.”

Rebecca Wynn Global and CISO Chief Privacy Officer, [24]7.ai

Today’s threats target people, not technology.

That’s why Proofpoint takes a unique peoplecentric approach to cybersecurity. It offers a complete portfolio of security and compliance solutions designed to protect today’s “people perimeter.”

Proofpoint protects against a wide range of email and cloud threats. It helps customers control access to sensitive data and prevent data loss. And it trains users to be more resilient against the threats that target them.

“One of the things that I look for is who can be a good partner with me,” she said. “We are in a cyber war and I need people who can be in that cyber war with me.”

With Proofpoint, [24]7.ai can easily scale up its cyber defenses, using Proofpoint to augment its internal security team.

Having a trusted partner such as Proofpoint helps [24]7.ai identify which cybersecurity functions it does not need to duplicate because Proofpoint already provides them.

Learn more For more information visit proofpoint.com

[24]7.AI

E N GAGEM EN T CLO U D

164

[24]7.ai Engagement Cloud is the industry’s first integrated suite of conversational AI services designed to power both virtual and human agent interactions seamlessly across voice and digital channels. With Engagement Cloud, IT and CX leaders are able to rapidly diagnose customer intents and build, automate, monitor and optimise customer service and sales journeys. The intuitive, self-serve interfaces in Engagement Cloud empower both experts and non-technical users to make quick decisions.

Powered by [24]7.ai’s AIVA conversational AI technology, informed by decades of contact centre operations excellence,

DECEMBER 2020

and combined with expert human insight, Engagement Cloud anticipates your customers’ needs to streamline resolutions and strengthen relationships.

Engagement Cloud supports a consistent, branded customer experience while making every interaction more cost efficient and satisfying for customers and agents alike. Offering a single point of control for creating and managing human and bot interactions across digital and voice channels, its self-service tools can be used to set up intent selections and build conversational bots, business logic, conversation flows, user interfaces, and more.

“ Proofpoint are able to help us with our top layer The Total Economic Impac of security, to see where active threats are coming [24]7.ai Engagement Cl from before those attemptsOfstart trickling down Through customer interviews and data aggregation, Forrester concl into our architecture” [24]7.ai Engagement Cloud has the following three-year financial im — Dr Rebecca Wynn, Global CISO & Chief Privacy Officer, [24]7.ai

“Being able to consolidate our endpoint agents with an extensive SUMMARY OF BENEFITS Three-year risk-adjusted platform that grows and adapts to our

$22.3M company’s needs without complex-

ity has been great,” says Dr Wynn. are more than just a vendor, they’re

She explains that “having systems

a trusted partner thinking beyond the

$8.2M in place that use machine learning

security space into risk management,

$1.9Mbefore to ensure that breaches stop

compliance and privacy to help us win

they occur isLiveparamount is today’s Live phone agent chat agent Decomissioned

the cyberwar. Because, again, it’s not

productivity productivity legacy system fast-pace technology world.

That

only the return on investment, it’s a

is especially true when you add on

165

return on the efficiency of an investment that really counts.”

[24]7.AI ENGAGEMENT CLOUD BY THE NUMBERS

Completing a trio of trusted partners, CrowdStrike empowers

25% NPS score increase

world-class intelligence to [24]7.ai to provide a full picture of attacks and the context needed to pivot to a protective security posture. Described

by Dr Wynn as a “next gen endpoint security on steroids”, it combines

42% IVR containment improvement

next gen anti-virus protection, endpoint detection and response (EDR), and proactive threat hunting in one platform.

50%+ live agent productivity increase

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

This document is an abridged version of a case study commissione

[24]7.AI

fifth-generation (5G) mobile networks and how fast malware, botnet attacks, and other cyber-attacks can move through a network.

“Without a EDR and threat hunting platform, it might take dozens of analysts to do those correlations, but CrowdStrike’s use of machine learning and real-time response capabilities speeds up investigations and remediations in our environment. It’s not just correlating the data, it’s about being able to correlate and stop an attack 166

as quickly as possible.”

FUTURE PROOFING CX Dr Wynn highlights a growing trend for businesses, particularly retail, moving online; something which has been accelerated by the global pandemic. “We’re supporting new customers as they develop communication channels to be able to manage this shift,” she says. “With our full web presence, we can manage their transition seamlessly. We’re also being approached by the education and healthcare sectors to help them meet the challenge of keeping their people connected.”

DECEMBER 2020

2000

Year founded

1.3bn

Self-service interactions/year

10,000 Number of employees

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

167

[24]7.AI

168

“ We’ve created a unified digital customer experience across channels from websites and tablets to social media and smartphones to suit the needs of businesses across sectors, from banking to retail” — Dr Rebecca Wynn, Global CISO & Chief Privacy Officer, [24]7.ai

DECEMBER 2020

Recognised as a leader in The Forrester New Wave: Digital-First Customer Service 2020, and working with a host of Fortune 500 companies, organisations across multiple sectors can trust [24]7.ai to deliver.

Dr Wynn believes a global paradigm shift that has seen millions working remotely has offered an opportunity to move forward in a better way. “Businesses are looking

169

at their physical footprint and asking

customer communications across a

if they need so much real estate, can

range of devices to securely manage

they find ways to be more efficient?

that change to a hybrid way of working

Startups have been operating via this

between office and home. We’re pio-

model for years, leasing space that

neers for strategic thinking with much

allows them to expand and contract.

more to come.”

A paradigm shift was already coming, and now it’s here companies like [24]7. ai, with our expertise through offerings like the Engagement Cloud, can support the global roll out of secure busi ne ssc hi ef . com

170

WRITTEN BY

GEORGIA WILSON PRODUCED BY

GLEN WHITE DECEMBER 2020

171

SiteOne’s Strategy Driven

by CX and Operational Efficiency busi ne ssc hi ef . com

SITEONE

Sean Kramer, Chief Information Officer (CIO) at SiteOne Landscape Supply on the company’s approach to digitalisation, industry trends and COVID-19

S

ean Kramer, Chief Information Officer (CIO) at SiteOne Landscape Supply, started his career at the company in 2014.

“I have been with the company for six years. I joined 172

the company when it was John Deere Landscapes.

John Deere Landscapes was sold to a private equity firm in 2013. As part of the transaction the company needed to rebrand, and so SiteOne Landscape Supply was officially established in 2015. Today, we are a publicly traded company with a billion dollars in revenue and 550 locations.”

Prior to his career at SiteOne Landscape Supply, Kramer worked for eight years at Fiat Chrysler (FCA) supporting the company’s public websites and its technology infrastructure. After leaving FCA, Kramer joined Volkswagen Group of America, where he worked for six years supporting enterprise applications, internal software systems, infrastructure and operations.

DECEMBER 2020

173

“It is very important that we keep our customers and associates as safe as possible” — Sean Kramer, Chief Information Officer (CIO), SiteOne Landscape Supply

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SITEONE’S APPROACH TO DIGITAL INNOVATION AND TRANSFORMATION

rience and operational excellence

When it comes to digital innovation

in the branch and how we achieve

and transformation, Kramer says

those,” says Kramer. “First and

the company’s core focuses include

foremost it’s safety, especially in the

customer experience, operational

current climate, and ensuring that

excellence, systems efficiency

we have the inventory on hand that

and security.

the customers need.”

“The first is around customer expe-

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Sean Kramer Title: CIO Company: SiteOne Industry: Wholesale Distribution

Location: Atlanta Metropolitan

Sean Kramer began his career at SiteOne Landscape Supply in 2014 and is the current Chief Information Officer (CIO).

From a technology perspective, Kramer explains that the landscape industry has been a unique challenge. “When I joined, I came from the automotive industry where the technology was more prominent. They had technology in vehicles and online experiences for several years. At the time I joined SiteOne, the technology in place was to support the back office. Almost all the ways of interfacing with a customer was coming into the branch, looking at the products and buying while in the branch.

We didn’t have any customer facing technology that we used to interact with customers regularly. But the industry is changing, customers are looking for new ways to interact with the wholesale distributor.

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

175

SITEONE

Kramer adds that when it comes to

“it’s about how we can use technology

digital innovation and transformation,

to achieve this. We have developed a

“it’s about how we can use technology

new mobile point of sale application

to achieve this. We have developed a

with our partner Stratix. Recently, this

new application called Mobile Pro – a

application has been vital in maintain-

mobile point of sale – with our part-

ing social distancing. With our new

ner Stratix. Recently, this application

mobile point of sale, customers arrive

has been vital in maintaining social

at our branches and our associates

distancing. Customers work with our

can greet them as they pull up. Our

associates to place their orders via

SiteOne associates can open an order

Mobile Pro and wait in their vehicle for

on this system, adding the products

an associate to bring them their order.”

they need, pull the order and send the

Kramer adds that when it comes to 176

digital innovation and transformation,

customer on their way to the job. It’s done safely and efficiently.”

While this application has been a vital tool for the company, Kramer explains that the company still has plans to improve it further. “While the application has several enhancements planned for future use, it has played a vital role in keeping our associates safe,” he says.

In addition to mobile point of sale, the company also has plans in the pipeline for siteone.com. Kramer says they will look to continue to evolve and develop the system to make it easier to search for products and place an order online, as well as develop a recommendation engine

DECEMBER 2020

177

2001

Year founded

$2.4b+ Revenue in US dollars

4,600 Number of employees

for customers based on their location and purchase history.

“We also want to make the system easier to transact online, especially for our customer’s back-office processes through enabling them to pay their bills online seamlessly and with clear visibility over their transaction history,” he adds.

In addition to customer experience and its mobile application, SiteOne Landscape Supply is looking to further improve its systems efficiency, operations and security. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

SITEONE

SiteOne Online CLICK TO WATCH

|

2:10

178 “We continuously work on developing internal security training programs and increasing the technology footprint to stay ahead of the threats that are out there in the market,” states Kramer. “But we are also trying to make it easier for our suppliers to do business with us. Here at SiteOne, we want to be the distributor of choice for all the suppliers in the landscape industry. Right now, our team is working to introduce new solutions, such as ramping up robotic process automation (RPA), enhancing our optical character recognition (OCR) and DECEMBER 2020

“ We have developed a new mobile point of sale application called Mobile Pro. In the recent climate, this application has been vital to adhering to social distancing guidelines” — Sean Kramer, Chief Information Officer (CIO), SiteOne Landscape Supply

launching a vendor portal. The aim of these initiatives is to increase the efficiency and transparency of doing business with SiteOne.” When working to drive such innovation and transformation in an organization, Kramer explains the importance of having the right culture in order to be successful.

“It’s very important,” he states. “The team of leaders that we have bring experience implementing these types of new solutions from their experience in other organizations and know the potential pitfalls and successes. I believe that the culture they bring to our company has been critical for us to support our growing business.

My leadership team consistently goes above and beyond.”

Historically, Kramer highlights that technology is starting to take a foothold in the landscape industry.

“We see more and more customers use technology to run their business and SiteOne is working to offer a constantly improving customer experience. Technology is at the core of that.

In the last few years we have seen technology usage from our customers busi ne ssc hi ef . com

179

SITEONE

“ Most of my team has been at the company for a few years, and we have the right leaders in place to keep an eye on innovations” — Sean Kramer, Chief Information Officer (CIO), SiteOne Landscape Supply

YOU’RE A PART OF THE TEAM EVEN WHEN YOU’RE APART FUZE PUTS YOU IN THE ROOM

fuze.com

with product needs, replacements and recommendations,” says Kramer.

“We evaluate the line of business they operate within and geographic location closely to better understand how we can continue to help our customers grow in the industry.”

Kramer explains that the team values and philosophy is a key to the success of his technology group. “We take pride in our company culture. We are very collaborative, conduct our operations with high integrity, and are very humble.

As we continue to grow our team, it’s important that new team members we ramp up quite a bit. With our technology know-how and our team of innovators,

bring on share the same vision.”

In addition to working with Stratix for

I think we can offer new solutions that

its Mobile mobile point of sale applica-

can help our customers. We are reach-

tion, SiteOne is collaborating with Fuze

ing out and collaborating with many

and V2 Soft. “Fuze is currently the phone

different companies in the technology

system for all of our branches, while V2

space to make this possible and dis-

Soft helped us to redesign our support

cuss the changes in the industry.”

platform for our project services appli-

Over the years, SiteOne has

cation. This system is used to help our

become an analytical company, put-

customers submit a design and take-off

ting more emphasis on understanding

of materials for a job they are bidding.

market trends. “As we continue to

V2Soft has also helped as we have

grow, we look at our customers by

grown our QA service offering.”

their specialty so that we can better understand how to support them busi ne ssc hi ef . com

181

182

THE COMPLETE DATA CENTER SOLUTIONS COMPANY DECEMBER 2020

183

WRITTEN BY

DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY

GLEN WHITE

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

T5

Meet a company at the cutting edge of customized turnkey development, facility management and mission critical services; keeping your business ‘on’ forever

N

ow in its 13th year, T5 evolved out of the services sector representing data center users. Back in 2008 T5 started

out as a development company before growing a full lifecycle of services geared towards hyperscale and enterprise customers. These extend 184

across the lifecycle of the core data center ranging from customised turnkey development and facility management to data hall operations, mission critical construction services and sustainable approaches to power genera-tion. T5 is serving the needs of the hyperscale and enterprise data center user across North America and at strategic international locations.

“Our roots in the development of cutting-edge data centers for leading corporations gave us a platform to evolve,” remembers President & CEO Pete Marin. “Those same customers looked to us to operate those DCs. There have been numerous changes inside these structures that required construction activity which drove us to create T5CS (T5 Construction Services). Everything we do revolves around that discerning data center customer in DECEMBER 2020

185

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

T5

186

“ We advise our customers on lowering the cost of their operations going forward by evaluating power and cooling systems and helping them design and procure the best system that’s going to use the least amount of energy throughout a data hall’s lifecycle” — Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5

two different sectors of the business cycle - hyperscale and enterprise. We’ll continue to grow with those strategic customers and the markets they want to be in, and we will continue to add the services they need as we evolve our assets to support them.”

A DATA CENTER LIFECYCLE PARTNER Marin highlights that T5 is the only company across the sector offering a full lifecycle combination of assets and services in strategic markets.

From delivering a fully functioning data center building at a competitive cost to producing the lowest possible cost of occupancy and then going on to operate it for the customer, T5 can utilize a build to suit approach delivering tailor made specs - for everything from power to cooling - inside the data hall.

Evolving assets through the data center lifecycle is a big part of the philosophy that drives T5 explains Marin: “We advise our customers on lowering the cost of their operations going forward by evaluating power and cooling systems and helping them design and procure the best system that’s going to use the least amount of

DECEMBER 2020

energy throughout a data hall’s lifecy-

these developments are all inter-

cle. With that comes a big focus on the

twined. “We’re making sure we have

reduction of carbon footprint. We’re

the right cooling methodologies to

very supportive of that and have devel-

meet future needs. Simple things like

oped the capabilities to construct

having water at the rack for our cool-

solar installations and we’ll continue to

ing systems which allows a deeper life

expand that expertise as the technol-

cycle for that asset. And of course,

ogy evolves for the hyperscalers.”

we’re agnostic to networks, but we’re

Marin notes that, as electrical densities across data centers increase,

very supportive of having a robust network in all of our buildings.”

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Pete Marin

187

Title: President & CEO

Company: T5 Data Centers

Industry: IT

Location: Atlanta, Georgia, United States

As President and Chief Executive Officer of T5 Data Centers, Pete is responsible for setting the overall strategy of the firm, maintaining client relationships, capital management, and creating and executing the firm’s vision for growth. Pete has more than 20 years of experience in the data center sector ranging from development, securing debt and equity capital, to tenant representation including site selection and incentives.

Pete’s understanding of end-user needs has enabled T5 Data Centers to reduce project cycle-time and cost, which leads to successful relationships, and repeat business.

Pete received a B.S. in Finance from the Pamplin College of Business at Virginia Tech.

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

T5

T5 FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

• 400+ FM FTEs

T5’s commitment to greener ways to power data centers has seen it extend

• 500 MW IT load currently managed in over 55 data centers

its construction services to include

• 100% data center focused

into the delivery of solar projects a

• Battle-tested leadership experience

few years ago, and we’ve had a lot of

• Award-winning operations platform

188

A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

• Multiple recipient of uptime institute’s continuous availability award and M&O certification • Commitment to military veterans and diversity

DECEMBER 2020

solar and renewable energy. “We got

repeat business,” reveals Marin. “The technology continues to improve and evolve, and it really comes down to the battery technology which I think will bring us to a point where we will see a huge reduction in traditional power sources. It’s going to be interesting to see how this develops because you’ve got some competing forces…

T5 Atlanta Hyperscale Data Center CLICK TO WATCH

|

0:46

189

“ We have the ability to give visibility to as many touch points as a customer wants all the way down to the circuit level, so they have that vital input into how their building is operated” — Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5

You want to reduce carbon footprint and carbon emissions because this industry has a lot of generators that are fired with diesel fuel. We need to address that. The evolution of solar represents a great opportunity to do that so we will continue to develop a skill set to deliver these solar projects.

Already, a lot of the big hyperscale customers will typically build a solar deployment to offset what they’re taking from the grid. Eventually, I think you could see solar deployments that are directly set into the grid, so we’re moving in the right direction.” busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Unparalleled experience in nearly every major market Gibson exists to provide the highest quality, most cost effective and safest electrical construction, repair and retrofit, telecommunication, structured cabling, distributed antenna systems (DAS), and life safety systems maintenance possible for our customers.

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191

“ We’ll see continued investment as 5G implementation ramps and the move to the Edge continues” — Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5

“Being able to go from bricks and mortar all the way through to the white space and be able to operate inside the data hall is unique in our business. We ensure we have the right EPMS and BMS systems to run the facility with a proper model that works all the controls throughout the data hall,” assures Marin. “We have the ability to give visibility to as many

THE T5 DIFFERENCE

touch points as a customer wants all

It’s one thing to build a great build-

the way down to the circuit level so

ing and deliver it, but another beast

they have that vital input into how their

entirely to operate it believes Marin.

building is operated.” busi ne ssc hi ef . com

T5

CRISIS MANAGEMENT TEAM

192

“COVID-19 is a challenge for all of us but we got up to speed as quickly as we could,” says T5’s President & CEO Pete Marin. “Right out of the gate, we were ahead of it with extra safety protocols instituted across our sites. We were one of the early adopters of testing and, with the use of smartphone cameras that read a barcode, our staff must complete a questionnaire each day before they are cleared to enter a site. Communication is key - that simple approach, along with best practice when it comes to PPE and social distancing, has limited the spread of COVID-19 at our sites. I’m very proud of how we’re tackling this but we’re not out of the woods yet. Our view is that we’re going to be managing and living with COVID-19 for the next year or two, so we need to make sure we take care of our people first. People first and then we’ll grow the business

DECEMBER 2020

and keep moving forward.”

Mission critical facilities rely on highly specific processes to ensure seamless IT deployment and migration, low redundancy and secure connectivity - much of which is handled by on-site IT or remote hands staff. An industry leader in critical facility management, T5 formed a cross-functional Crisis Management Team to further support its customers with expanded emergency action and business continuity plans to make sure “the lights never go out” as they navigate a global pandemic. By keeping many of its staff on the ground and avoiding the implications of an IT-less facility T5 has been able to continue performing preventative maintenance and server updates to mitigate the risk of downtime and outages while guaranteeing uptime and continuous availability.

The open book approach Marin

at how to improve the data center and

describes gives T5 the flexibility to

to solve the problems of hyperscale

build to suit offering a best in class

and enterprise users.”

service. “We work with the brightest

Marin maintains that recruiting the

and the best partners out there, from

right people, often with mission critical

design and construction through to

backgrounds in the military, and training

services inside the data hall. If there

them to the highest level is paramount.

are services our customers want and

“It’s a big part of making sure the lights

we’re not delivering those today, we

never go out,” he says. Training is the

will go out and find the best to do that

front-line philosophy, to keep our people

and develop that capability internally,

at the cutting edge and allow the group

or acquire it. We’re constantly looking

and its work culture to grow.”

193

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

T5

THE EDGE Evaluating the industry today, Marin believes that on the asset front it’s still important to have space that’s ready to occupy and in key strategic markets. “Over the past couple of years, it’s been just a few buyers of data center space picking up the majority of it. That’s the hyperscale phenomena. That’s going to continue.

However, we predicted last year that enterprise business would come back and we’re seeing that with a combi194

nation of both cloud operations and data centers all supporting the hybrid platform. There’s going to be a combination strategy there. We’re seeing the enterprise return with more build to suit, as well as just leasing traditional data center sites.”

A key development for the future of connectivity is the impending 5G roll out. Marin is excited to see what this will mean for The Edge. “Thanks to 5G

data centers that can be deployed

we’re going to see more Edge deploy-

quickly in multiple locations bringing

ments,” he says. “There have been

compute and storage as close to the

a number of new companies estab-

users eyeballs as possible. We’ll see

lished that are looking at data centers

continued investment here as 5G

from a different perspective, not as

implementation ramps and the move

big, scalable operations but micro

to the Edge continues.”

DECEMBER 2020

2008

Year founded

400+ Number of employees

SCALING UP

to continue to scale the breadth of our

Last year, in partnership with QuadReal,

operations,” confirms Marin. “We have

T5 launched a $2.5bn fund to develop,

significant equity to build our asset

acquire and operate data centers

deployment while remaining nimble as

which has proved to be very success-

a private company.”

ful, allowing the company to scale on

T5 recently acquired an asset in

multiple levels. “We’re well positioned

Chicago, which it is currently building busi ne ssc hi ef . com

195

T5

“ Continuing to grow our third-party services will be at the heart of our strategy to remain the industry’s premier data center lifecycle partner” — Pete Marin, President & CEO, T5

196

out on a turnkey basis. Located in the

Oregon, just outside of Portland with a

Elk Grove Village Technology Park,

maximum capacity of 17.6 MW,” adds

T5@Chicago will provide 103,000

Marin. “We’ve also acquired an exist-

square feet of white space and up

ing turnkey data center in Northern

to 27.6 critical megawatts of power

California in Silicon Valley where we’ll

capacity, purposefully designed to

be able to deliver in excess of 17 MW.

serve enterprise and hyperscale cloud

Elsewhere, we’ve acquired a large

computing customers. “We’re con-

tract of land (80 acres) in Atlanta,

structing a new building in Hillsboro,

where we’ve started what we call the

DECEMBER 2020

197

‘horizontal construction’ of a facility

their facilities, so continuing to grow

with a total design capacity of 217 MW.”

our third-party services will be at the

“This is just a taste of what we’re up

heart of our strategy to remain the

to at T5 with many exciting develop-

industry’s premier data center lifecy-

ments in the pipeline. So far, we’ve

cle partner.”

deployed 30% out of our fund and we’ve got a lot more work to do,” pledges Marin. “Some of the world’s best brands have entrusted us with busi ne ssc hi ef . com

DIGITALLY-ENABLED PATIENT CARE 198 WRITTEN BY

HARRY MENEAR PRODUCED BY

MIKE SADR

DECEMBER 2020

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LEGACY COMMUNITY HEALTH

ROBERT TENNANT, CIO OF LEGACY COMMUNITY HEALTH, TALKS LEADERSHIP AND THE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION OF PATIENT CARE DURING THE COVID-19 CRISIS AND BEYOND

2020

has been a year of unprecedented challenges to healthcare providers across the globe.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected more than 38 million people around the world, with more than 7.8 million cases in the US alone. As US healthcare companies strive to cope with the monumental task 200

of providing care during this crisis, as well as continue to support existing patients, many are turning to technology in order to digitally transform their operations. The new capabilities offered by Industry 4.0 are allowing for generational advances in the fields of telemedicine and remote care, as well as providing powerful new organizational capabilities that are revolutionizing the relationship between healthcare providers and their patients. “This year has been really challenging. We had a lot of projects on our plate coming into the COVID-19 crisis in March, and then the crisis demanded we quickly shift priorities to remote patient care and working from home,� says Robert Tennant, Chief Information Officer (CIO) at Legacy, a full-service network of community health clinics offering primary and specialty

DECEMBER 2020

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LEGACY COMMUNITY HEALTH

“ THIS YEAR HAS BEEN REALLY CHALLENGING. WE HAD A LOT OF PROJECTS ON OUR PLATE COMING INTO THE COVID-19 CRISIS IN MARCH, AND THEN THE CRISIS DEMANDED WE QUICKLY SHIFT PRIORITIES TO REMOTE PATIENT CARE AND WORKING FROM HOME” patients it serves throughout the Gulf — Robert Tennant, CIO, Legacy Community Health,

Coast region. We sat down with him to learn more about harnessing digital transformation to support Legacy’s

care in the Texas Gulf Coast region.

operations, and how to create a cus-

Tennant, who joined Legacy in August

tomer service-facing culture during

of 2019, has been at the forefront of the

the COVID-19 crisis and beyond.

organization’s efforts to adapt, react 202

When the COVID-19 crisis hit the

and overcome the challenges, both of

United States in March of this year,

a global pandemic and of delivering

Legacy, like many other providers in the

quality healthcare to the underserved

industry, was almost entirely focused on in-person medical care. “Our first concern was figuring out how we were going to continue to deliver the care that patients need,” Tennant explains.

“It was obvious that the first thing we needed to roll out was a telehealth

DECEMBER 2020

Legacy Community Health - Principles of Leadership CLICK TO WATCH

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1:36

203 solution, which we did in record time.

We signed a contract with a vendor on a Friday and were treating patients remotely the following Wednesday.”

Tennant adds that he’s particularly proud of the speed with which Legacy transitioned to providing telehealth services to a patient base suddenly thrown into lockdown. “We went from just a few telehealth visits to about 3,000 per week in the span of three weeks. It was an incredible effort by my team and other teams throughout Legacy. The crisis gave us focus and we accomplished

1978

Year founded

$186mn+ Revenue in US dollars

1,000+ Number of employees

a lot in a very short amount of time.” busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Make work life as great as real life Meet the expectations of today’s modern workforce by using intuitive, intelligent technology and automated workflows to deliver digital experiences that connect departments and help people do their best work.

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E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Robert Tennant Title: Chief Information Officer

Industry: Healthcare

Location: Houston, Texas Robert Tennant earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Ambassador University. In 1993, Tennant started an IT services company focused on IT networking and custom software development. He sold the company in 1999 and spent time traveling before moving on to a new IT venture at the onset of the new millennium.

In 2000, he founded another IT services company, this time focusing on health care advisory and IT services. He stood at the helm until selling in 2009, at which time he joined a national consulting firm focused on leading healthcare provider organizations into Value-Based Care (VBC), delivery.

Over the years following, Tennant held various healthcare IT consulting leadership roles, including time as an Executive Heath Care Consultant and VP of Value-Based Care. The focus on VBC, Tennant says, comes from a strong foundation of customer service along with a belief that health care organizations should anticipate and listen to consumers’ needs while measuring success by their ability to deliver the best health outcomes at the lowest possible cost.

Tennant has worked as a consultant for Legacy since 2014, and officially came on board with the organization in 2019.

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LEGACY COMMUNITY HEALTH

“ WE WENT FROM JUST A FEW TELEHEALTH VISITS TO ABOUT 3,000 PER WEEK IN THE SPAN OF THREE WEEKS” — Robert Tennant, CIO, Legacy Community Health, 206

Legacy Community Health - Working with Financial Stakeholders CLICK TO WATCH

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2:55

Today, Legacy’s Behavioral Health Service Line is delivering 91% more telehealth appointments than preCOVID-19. “Virtual visits have drastically changed the way members of our community receive health care. Whereas virtual visits were previously reserved for those with private insurance that approved this option, now anyone can get the care they need from the comfort of their home,” commented Katy Caldwell, Legacy’s CEO, in May. Near the beginning of lockdown, Legacy also opened a virtual pediatric clinic to deliver care to minors in need of physical and/or mental health services.

In tandem with a customer base that

In order to connect Legacy’s custom-

was suddenly unable to visit Legacy’s

ers with its healthcare professionals,

clinics and sites, the organization also

Tennant and his team have increased

had to adapt to its own staff’s transi-

their efforts to digitally enable the organi-

tion to a remote working model. “It was

zation’s customer-facing experience.

kind of the perfect storm,” he recalls.

“A lot of our innovations are customer-

“We made a big push towards working

facing. We’re working to build out what

from home which was something we

I call a digital patient engagement

had not done before. Again, within just

strategy – or a digital front door – for our

a few weeks, we managed to make a

patients, so they can take advantage

180-degree shift to enable a significant

of services from Legacy without having

number of people to work from home

to come into a clinic or site,” Tennant

and, in the case of many of our providers,

explains. “Its development has only been

to provide care remotely.”

accelerated by the COVID-19 outbreak. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

207

LEGACY COMMUNITY HEALTH

P E D I A T R I C M EN T AL HEALT H CARE

208

The global pandemic has been hard on everyone. However, it’s been found than children and young adults in particular are bearing the brunt of its effects on mental health.

A recent study found that, in the US, 7.1% of children between the ages of 3 and 17 are currently living with an anxiety diagnosis, and a further 3.2% are struggling with clinical depression. According to Roxane Cohen Silver, a social psychologist at UC Irvine, the elevated levels of stress following national crises can have long-lasting detrimental effects on the mental health of an entire generation.

Now, she added in an interview with TIME, we can expect to see the coronavirus pandemic contribute to an even greater spike in mental health issues than following the September 11 attacks in 2001.

“This is a difficult time for everyone, and that includes children,” said Dr. Melanie Melville, Medical Director of the Behavioral Health Service Line at Legacy in March of this year. “As we turn to social distancing to quell the spread of this unprecedented DECEMBER 2020

virus, we at Legacy want to proactively work to ensure that our most vulnerable populations have continued access to equitable care – including behavioral health care for children.”

Since the early days of the US’ Stay Home Order, Legacy has offered remote pediatric appointments to children up to the age of 17, including therapy appointments to assist pediatric patients with anxiety, depression, and behavioral problems.

“The crux of our school-based health care program has always been to keep students healthy and relieve the burden of a clinic visit from the parents’ shoulders,” says Dr. Teandra Gordon, the Clinical Director of School Based Behavioral Health program at Legacy. “By now offering these services via telehealth while students don’t have access to their campus clinics, our goal is to continue that warm-hug feeling of wrap-around care that the students – and parents – have come to know and trust from Legacy.”

Legacy Community Health - Cultural Initiative CLICK TO WATCH

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1:29

209 We want patients to be anywhere and

processes from Legacy’s caregivers and

be able to pick up their mobile device and

support staff. Both internally and exter-

self-schedule an appointment with us,

nally, Tennant and the Legacy team are

arrange a telehealth visit, pay a bill, digi-

engaging with technological innovation

tally sign a document, etc. We’re working

in the healthcare sector and beyond, in

diligently to digitally enable our patient

order to better harness the Industry 4.0

engagement offerings.”

developments in service of their unique

Internally, Tennant has also been

healthcare model.

working to increasingly automate and integrate the organization’s back-end systems. “We’re looking at how to create a similar digital strategy to better serve our employees,” he explains, adding that their ongoing project is dedicated to alleviating the burden of manual

“ WE’RE WORKING DILIGENTLY TO DIGITALLY ENABLE OUR PATIENT ENGAGEMENT OFFERINGS” — Robert Tennant, CIO, Legacy Community Health, busi ne ssc hi ef . com

LEGACY COMMUNITY HEALTH

“We’re not a hospital or a healthcare system; we’re a community health provider. We serve the underserved and we function very differently than a lot of other organizations in our industry.

Culturally, I think we’re very unique and extraordinary in a lot of ways,” says Tennant. “We do look at what other people are doing, but we’re very entrepreneurial and agile as an organization. We do a lot of self-inquiry as a business and ask ourselves what we, our customers and our patients need,

ServiceNow Global Elite Partner of the Year ®

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“ VIRTUAL VISITS HAVE DRASTICALLY CHANGED THE WAY MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY RECEIVE HEALTH CARE” — Robert Tennant, CIO, Legacy Community Health,

to feel like their work is meaningful. I want them to feel safe. I want them to feel like they can make suggestions and be confident that they’ll be heard.

And I want them to be able to go home at the end of the day and separate themselves from work. I want these things for everybody, including myself,” he says, stressing that, “If we don’t get the customer service element right,

and how best we can serve those

it’s going to undermine every other

needs with technology.”

aspect of the culture that we’re trying

Both during and beyond the pandemic,

to create.”

Tennant notes that his number-one initiative is the creation of a culture of customer service. “I want my team busi ne ssc hi ef . com

212

DECEMBER 2020

213

Embracing the Art of the Possible WRITTEN BY

WILL GIRLING PRODUCED BY

JAKE MEGEARY busi ne ssc hi ef . com

PROTECTIVE INSURANCE

Jeremy Johnson, CEO, describes the company’s tech transformation, customerfocused service and why problem-solving is at the heart of its business

A

t its most fundamental level, insurance is an industry predicated on risk management, customer service and trust. Few

companies understand the interconnection of these principles better than Protective Insurance, 214

and even fewer have an equivalent level of the experience, engagement and commitment necessary to transcend these precepts and deliver superior results. Founded in 1930 and headquartered in Carmel, Indiana, USA, the company is a transport insurance specialist for trucking fleets of all sizes, licensed in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and all Canadian provinces. With a long-standing heritage, a portfolio of diverse products, services and solutions, it has been and continues to be a strong partner for an equally essential industry, particularly in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jeremy Johnson, CEO, joined Protective Insurance in May 2019 following several years in executive positions at some of the world’s most

DECEMBER 2020

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PROTECTIVE INSURANCE

“ There’s just so much data that, with the right attitude, you can really envisage a different approach, one that can really make the roads safer” — Jeremy Johnson, CEO, Protective Insurance

prestigious insurance organizations.

“Because it’s a smaller company (Protective has approximately 500 employees), it’s a much more intimate environment and it feels like one person can really make a difference,” Johnson explains. “It’s a pretty

216

revered brand and, because of our client-centric, relationship-oriented approach, Protective Insurance is very well respected both by our distribution partners and by our customers, trucking fleets.” Despite starting with the company only last year, Johnson says that his first exposure to truck insurance actually occurred earlier in his career. Recognizing that it was an intricate, data-rich opportunity, he gained a particular fascination with the sector which continues to this day.

“There’s just so much data that, with the right attitude, you can really envisage a different approach, one that can really make the roads safer. We’ve got DECEMBER 2020

Protective Insurance CLICK TO WATCH

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3:33

217 a lot more work to do in order to seize

meant a new, tech-driven transfor-

that massive data opportunity, but we

mation of Protective Insurance was

have a great foundation, momentum

necessary as, like many companies

and a vision.

with decades of experience in the

For Johnson, this interest in the

market, the business was rife with

possibilities of data analysis goes

non-integrated legacy systems. “The

back to one of his former bosses, who

linchpins were moving to the cloud

instilled in him a passion for ‘the art of

using Microsoft Azure to build a ‘data

the possible’ – a spirit of inquisitiveness

lake’ and embracing an analytics-first

and innovation that isn’t afraid to chal-

commercial auto underwriting plat-

lenge the status quo or explore new

form built for us by TSIQ. We have a

directions. “Unless you’re prepared

partnership with a company called

to ask really intriguing questions,

Roots Automation, who’ve provided

the data just exists in a vacuum,” he

us with self-learning digital bots, and

states. Facilitating this approach

we have a great partner in Majesco busi ne ssc hi ef . com

PROTECTIVE INSURANCE

218

whose approach to microservices and

However, increased technological

‘plug and play’ style system modules

sophistication is only a component

really align with our technology vision.”

of Protective Insurance’s success-

In addition, Johnson explains that

ful formula. What really sets it apart,

there will be numerous, more mundane

as Johnson intimated, is its cultural

but no less crucial changes happening

emphasis on employee engagement

behind the scenes that will affect the

and building strong customer rela-

company’s ability to scale as well as

tionships. “People genuinely enjoy

ingest, harmonize and analyze data.

working here,” he states. “In fact,

DECEMBER 2020

1930

we recently celebrated one member of staff’s 50th year with us. We are

Year founded

a specialist and know our customers well; we have a shared dedication and

$495m+

excitement about our mission: making roads safer.” The importance of

Total Revenue in US dollars (2019)

this client connection took on even

500

In order to ensure that it was meeting

greater proportions at the start of the COVID-19 lockdown in mid-March. its customers rapidly shifting concerns and priorities, Protective Insurance

Number of employees

reached out to understand how best it could lend assistance. The answer,

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Jeremy Johnson Title: Chief Executive Officer Industry: Insurance

Company: Protective Insurance

Location: United States

Jeremy has more than 25 years of insurance industry experience and has been the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Protective Insurance since May 2019. Prior to Protective, Jeremy served in various executive leadership roles at American International Group, Inc. (AIG) for 17 years. Roles included, President, US Commercial for AIG; and CEO & President of Lexington Insurance Company, AIG’s excess and surplus lines unit. Jeremy is a graduate of the University of Oxford with a Masters of Arts degree in Law. busi ne ssc hi ef . com

219

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“ Unless you’re prepared to ask really intriguing questions, the data just exists in a vacuum” — Jeremy Johnson, CEO, Protective Insurance

Johnson claims, was rather ironic.

“We asked them, ‘What can we do for you?’, expecting an answer that would revolve around digital technology. However, the overwhelming reply was, ‘We need hand sanitizer’.”

Partnering with a local distillery, Protective Insurance was able to purchase and distribute hundreds of gallons of sanitizer with logistical assistance from the American Trucking Association.

221

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PROTECTIVE INSURANCE

Despite this response, the company

you’re actually in that environment,”

was more than adequately prepared to

he explains. “I think there was a lot

meet the technological challenges of

of fear and trepidation as to whether

the pandemic too. Having analyzed the

our employees could effectively man-

pre-lockdown situation and modelled

age our customer relationships, pay

for various operational contingen-

claims, take submissions and commu-

cies, Johnson says that Protective

nicate effectively while working from

Insurance “didn’t miss a beat” through-

home.” Enabled by the company’s

out the transition, even though it

technology team, which provided the

was still undergoing a major tech

bandwidth necessary for sustaining

transformation at the time. “We had

an equivalently high standard of cus-

tested some things and taken some

tomer interaction virtually, Johnson

dry runs, but you never know until

reports that staff were emboldened

Smart bots.

Happy people.

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“ Protective Insurance will continue to invest in other tools that can make our employees’ lives more comfortable when working remotely” — Jeremy Johnson, CEO, Protective Insurance

look at the modules that are of most interest to them.” Educating staff is

and empowered to succeed. “I think

an important part of his ‘embracing

we’re going to be in this environ-

the art of the possible’ concept, and,

ment for quite a lot longer. Therefore,

as data analytics continues to play

Protective Insurance will continue to

an important role in insurance’s digital

invest in other tools that can make our

transformation, knowing how to

employees’ lives more comfortable

extract results will be critical. “You

when working remotely.”

build all this infrastructure and you

To further develop this tech familiarity

gain the ability to look at the data, but

among its staff, Protective Insurance

how do you get the right minds to ask

hosted a ‘virtual’ fair on relevant

the right questions?” Johnson asks.

tech-based subjects. Presented

“What are the questions that will allow

to employees by employees, the

us to get a game changing advantage?

company hopes to augment its trans-

I think there’s a colossal amount

formation through learning and

of momentum behind unlocking the

communication to highlight the impor-

value of data.”

tance of change. “Employees can go through the many modules that make up the Technology Transformation Fair and learn, for example, what the cloud or a data lake is, and why and how that matters to us,” Johnson explains. “I’m fully confident that 100% of our employees will take the time to busi ne ssc hi ef . com

223

PROTECTIVE INSURANCE

224

“ We couldn’t have got into this position without 500 committed, experienced and able employees” The company’s worth is defined by — Jeremy Johnson, CEO, Protective Insurance

its ability to manage risk, save clients money and make the roads safer; 2021 is a year in which it hopes to fulfil this mission with tech-enhanced vigor and

Achieving this goal is Protective

partners equally committed to sur-

Insurance’s primary aspiration, “We

mounting the challenges of delivering

want to be our customer’s most valued

superior service. “I think we’re going to

transportation insurance provider.”

be valuable to all of our stakeholders;

DECEMBER 2020

225

not just our customers, but our share-

and engagement with the corporate

holders, employees, reinsurers, vendor

mission: “Our existing customers value

partners and technology partners,

us and many more now want to work

who are all important to us.” Engaging

with us. We couldn’t have got into this

with ‘possibility thinking’ and adopting

position without 500 committed, expe-

an ‘always moving forwards’ mentality

rienced and able employees. I’m super

will maintain Protective Insurance’s

proud of what we’ve achieved.”

competitive edge, which has already seen it triumph over other, less-imaginative companies in the space. Finally, Johnson concludes with a declaration of pride for his employees’ hard work busi ne ssc hi ef . com

226

Transforming in the Data Center Industry WRITTEN BY

SEAN GALEA-PACE PRODUCED BY

LEWIS VAUGHAN

DECEMBER 2020

227

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NAUTILUS

James Connaughton, Nautilus CEO, discusses how his firm is revolutionising the data center industry

N

autilus Data Technologies is a global pioneer in water-cooled data centers and is leading a global transformation to ultra-

efficient, high-performance and environmentally sustainable operations in the data center sector.

James Connaughton is the CEO at Nautilus.

Having joined the organisation in March 2016, he 228

has overseen the implementation of the world’s first water-cooled and water-borne data center with Nautilus. “There are two essential features,” explains Connaughton. “The first and most important feature is cooling with naturally cold water, which is how all other major infrastructure sectors address the large amounts of heat generated by their systems. These include, for example, thermal power plants, ships, industrial processing facilities, and paper mills. Only data centers, generate heat at a similar industrial scale, still use massive and unsustainable air-cooling systems.

The second feature is mobility--the ability to prefabricate the data center in large modules, and either assemble them onto a barge and deliver it fully ready to go, or transport the modules to

DECEMBER 2020

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NAUTILUS

230

a prepared site for rapid assembly.

providing access to digital infrastruc-

Placing essential infrastructure on

ture to those who currently lack it.�

barges—such as energy barges and

Connaughton believes data centers

water treatment barges--is a well-

are the newest and most important

established model for enabling rapid

component of critical infrastructure

and flexible access to such infrastruc-

that sustains and enriches the lives

ture in fast growing and emerging

of people around the world. “Data

markets. The opportunity and need is

centers now stand alongside power

equally strong today when it comes to

generation, drinking-water plants,

DECEMBER 2020

waste-water plants, roads and other

the development of the company’s

critical infrastructure that allows

first full-scale commercial facility,

society to function and create good

which provides six megawatts of

outcomes for people,” he explains.

water-cooled data center capacity on

“Access to the water molecule and

a barge. He strives for an innovative

the electron has long been vitally

approach across all his operations.

important. Worldwide access to the

“We’ve been on the arc of creative

photon for data delivery is the next

invention and cleverly practical engi-

essential piece.” Over the past two

neering to make that a reality,” says

years, Connaughton has overseen

Connaughton. “The first part of our

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

James Connaughton Title: CEO

Company: Nautilus

Industry: Data Centre

Location: San Francisco Bay

231

James Connaughton is the CEO at Nautilus. Having joined the organisation in March 2016, he has overseen the implementation of the world’s first water-cooled and water-borne data center with Nautilus. He began his career as a Partner at Sidley Austin focusing on energy, natural resources and environment, energy and environmental management and compliance assurance systems. He then moved on to serve as Chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality as Senior Advisor to President George W. Bush. Roles followed at clean energy companies Constellation Energy and Exelon, and big data analytics company C3.ai, before moving into his current role at Nautilus.

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NAUTILUS

“ We’ve been on the arc of innovation and invention and engineering to make a high performing and environmentally sustainable data centre a reality” 232

— James Connaughton, CEO, Nautilus

DECEMBER 2020

company’s life has focused on building a functional prototype, and then using that experience to make the thousands of decisions of what not to do against the several hundred decisions of what to do in bringing a full scale facility into being. We’re really excited to be commissioning that data center in California in just a few weeks time.”

Nautilus is planning to develop facilities in North America, Europe and Asia, and has been contacted by potential partners to pursue projects in the Middle East, Africa,

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233 and South America. “Once our data

Connaughton explains that a key

center in Northern California is up

part of his organisation’s development

and running, we look forward to

has been to develop the supply chain

onboarding a great set of anchor cus-

partnerships with companies such

tomers,” says Connaughton. “We will

as Usystems, Schneider, Vertiv, and

show the world the ultra-efficiency,

George Fischer, among others. “Our

high-performance, and the strong

objective is to work with partners that

sustainability of our approach. After

can help us make this technology

that, we are ready to rapidly move into

available globally,” he says. “These

other locations to “productize” the

partnerships are important because,

technology and we look forward to

as customers, communities, and

partnering through joint ventures and

digital infrastructure providers become

technology licensing so that we can

excited about taking advantage of

get this important technology out into

our technology, we don’t want to lose

the world as quickly as possible.”

ground in being able to deliver it. In order busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Systems

www.usystems.com

Future proofing data centers with advanced, sustainable and energy saving coldlogik cooling technology Low to high density cooling ‘in one solution’.

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USystems are proud to be an integral part of the Nautilus journey incorporating ColdLogik adaptive intelligence into the ‘TRUE ’ green data center solution. A shared vision leading with innovation, high-performance and sustainability.

TM

“ In order to support an innovation company like ours, partners must field tiger teams that know how to interact with startups and other smaller technology innovators like us” — James Connaughton, CEO, Nautilus

to support an innovation company like ours, partners must field tiger teams that know how to interact with startups and other smaller technology innovators like us. And these teams need to have the creativity and agility to adapt as the innovation advances. We’ve come a long way in just three years, and there is a lot more to come. Our partners need to keep pace with us.”

With the future in mind, Connaughton believes that the data center industry is moving rapidly to where the users are in order to

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NAUTILUS

“ Data centers are the newest and most essential piece of critical infrastructure for the world” — James Connaughton, CEO, Nautilus

236

DECEMBER 2020

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DECEMBER 2020

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provide the more powerful computing

highways, railroads, airports, ports,

and faster connections necessary

and even overnight package delivery.

for smart-city, smart-transportation,

To these we will now add warehouses

smart grid, tele-medicine and other

of computers, countless miles of

highly valuable digital applications

fiber optics, and an endless array of

and services. “This means high-per-

wireless devices linking everyone to

formance data centers in the centre

everything digital. We need to make

of every population center,” he says.

sure that the environmental footprint

“We’ve seen this dynamic before with

of the data centers at the heart of all

the buildout of other forms of public

of this well serves both society and the

and private infrastructure—such as

planet. It’s very exciting.”

electricity and gas delivery, public water systems, telecommunications, busi ne ssc hi ef . com

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DECEMBER 2020

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A New Vision for Community-based Insurance WRITTEN BY

WILL GIRLING

PRODUCED BY

JAKE MEGEARY busi ne ssc hi ef . com

BROKERLINK

Alena Kharkavets, VP Digital Strategy and CX, outlines the transformation roadmap that’s enabling a new, digitally driven vision of insurance processes

A

t a time when it seems like there’s insurmountable uncertainty about so many aspects of life, BrokerLink is spearhead-

ing a new approach to the insurance process: one that emphasises clarity, community and customercentricity. Founded in 1991, this Canadian company 242

has managed to create an expansive presence across the country, with over 140 branches serviced by more than 2,000 employees.

“I’ve been in insurance for over 13 years.

Throughout my entire career, I’ve always had the mindset of wanting to understand how all the pieces fit together,” says Alena Kharkavets, VP Digital Strategy and Customer Experience. Joining BrokerLink in October 2013, Kharkavets relates that her current role, in combination with her extensive industry experience in actuarial, corporate development, operations and sales, provides her with the “big picture thinking” she needs to thrive.

That holistic mindset is crucial for a company with a broad geographic footprint, which, nonetheless, must still deliver a consistent level of high quality

DECEMBER 2020

243

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BROKERLINK

“ Every single branch has a unique, grassroots presence and that resonates with me tremendously” — Alena Kharkavets, VP of Digital Strategy and CX, BrokerLink

service across all of its locations.

Kharkavets adds that “every single branch has a unique, grassroots presence and that resonates with me tremendously.” With regards to her management style in this ‘many community branches with a unified approach’ model, Kharkavets credits one of her previous roles as a sales team manager as a perfect primer: “It was one of the most transformational experiences of my career; it really taught me how to break

244

down complexities into something more simple.”

BrokerLink’s national scale doesn’t detract from its local impact, and employees benefit just as much as customers. The company is a firm believer in fostering career development, which it facilitates by being a subsidiary of Intact Financial Corporation, allowing brokers to have a wide range of career opportunities from underwriting to claims adjustment. “We’ve worked very hard to be a great employer,” states Kharkavets. “In fact, we’ve obtained ‘Best Employer in Canada’ from Kincentric, again.” Empowered with DECEMBER 2020

lean and agile capabilities through

at the beginning of the COVID-19

analytics technology, BrokerLink’s

pandemic. “In our case, nearly all our

team managers are given access to

employees ended up working from

a variety of live data and customer

home virtually overnight,” Kharkavets

surveys. “This year, we’ve received

relates. “I think the pandemic will

over 40,000 responses from our

change how we stay connected and

customers,” Kharkavets says. “The

how we make sure that culture is

notion of changing our tactics and

retained, particularly when onboarding

addressing pain points depending on

new staff.” This also goes hand-in-

what we read in those comments or

hand with BrokerLink’s renewed focus

observe in trends is hardwired into

on employee wellness and mental

BrokerLink’s culture.”

health. Indeed, for the company and

Like many companies around the world, BrokerLink rushed into action

insurance generally there is a sense that things are on course for significant busi ne ssc hi ef . com

Payments solutions built for the insurance industry.

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change, including how customers

“The pandemic has accelerated a lot

experience modern products and

of trends that we’ve seen before.”

services. While digital transformation

Developing omnichannel customer

certainly generated the momentum for

service capabilities has been a direct

a technologically invigorated industry,

and necessary consequence of

Kharkavets believes that current con-

increased digitisation at BrokerLink.

ditions are enabling its fulfillment,

Customer needs and expectations

1991

Year founded

2,000+ Number of employees

DECEMBER 2020

are changing in relation to technology, claims Kharkavets, and insurance’s evolution will be dependent on its realisation of this fact. However, while it’s tempting to assume that there is a clear divide between younger people (i.e. millennials) preferring digital self-service options and older people wanting agent-based service,

Kharkavets states that the truth is

is also careful to ensure that its road-

much more nuanced. “Everyone talks

map is configured to meet the specific

about digitisation in those terms, but

challenges of its clients, particularly in

what’s interesting is, when we dive

an industry often represented as being

into the data, 35% of BrokerLink’s

overly complex. “When we design

‘70+ years old’ demographic enjoys

things, we want them to be inclusive

using an app for their insurance needs.”

and accessible,” says Kharkavets.

Therefore, she considers the contin-

“We’re constantly exploring how

ued investment in digital channels as

digital interacts with local: how can

wholly validated. However, BrokerLink

it support and act as an extension of

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Alena Kharkavets

247

Title: VP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience Industry: Insurance

Location: Canada

Alena Kharkavets is the VP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at BrokerLink Insurance. She brings extensive experience in actuarial, corporate development, strategy and sales operations. She’s passionate about modernizing and simplifying the insurance experience. Alena graduated from the University of Toronto with a dual degree in Computer Science and Actuarial Science. She has also completed a Global Professional Master of Laws. She is a Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries and the Casualty Actuarial Society. Outside of insurance, Alena loves spending time with her daughters, ages two and four. She loves travelling with them and showing them the world.

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BROKERLINK

our branches?” One of BrokerLink’s

behavioural science in our design: we

guiding principles is its ‘#realpeople’

serve information in bite-sized chunks

philosophy, a method by which digital

and manage price expectations with

projects are developed conscien-

an accuracy meter on our website. If

tiously with maximised accessibility

someone’s eyesight is impaired or their

as the ultimate goal. “Our accessibil-

attention span is reduced because

ity score is 92% while the industry

they’re browsing at night and require

benchmark is only 71%,” she explains.

more visual information, it all has to

“We implement the principles of

be factored in.”

248

DECEMBER 2020

“ The notion of changing our tactics and addressing pain points depending on what we [...] observe in trends is hardwired into BrokerLink’s culture” — Alena Kharkavets, VP of Digital Strategy and CX, BrokerLink

Furthermore, on the topic of digital projects, Kharkavets emphasises the importance of instilling team confidence with ‘minimum viable product’, a concept predicated on fast-paced two-week development sprints and combined with a “progress over perfection” attitude and data-based decision making. “In digital, if you aim

249

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BROKERLINK

250

B R O KE R L I N K: I N SU RAN CE WI T H SO CI AL I MP ACT

Sponsoring YW Calgary’s ‘International Day of the Girl 2020’ on 11 October, a UN sanctioned annual event dedicated to empowering girls and protecting their rights, BrokerLink has distinguished itself as part of a rising movement in insurance: insurers with a strong social stance.

“Every branch participates quite actively in the community; we have a firm belief that organisations of every size – small, medium and large – have a role to play in making society a better place,” states Kharkavets. “BrokerLink will continue to champion diversity DECEMBER 2020

and inclusion. We believe that the input of business will be essential to achieving this goal, particularly as consumers expect companies to have an opinion and to stand up for what is right.”

“The power of ‘diversity of thought’ is huge. I encourage everyone when they start their digital roadmap, or wherever they are on their journey, to question whether they have a team that contains different opinions and consider how they interact so that everyone is inclusive of each other.”

for perfection you’ll likely arrive too late. BrokerLink demonstrates the value of its propositions to customers and then iterates and improves from there based on their feedback and what data shows.” From these key building blocks, the company is able to forge a coherent understanding of where and how it wants to develop.

Kharkavets adds that, although BrokerLink’s transformation journey has been underway for slightly less

“ When we design things, they are inclusive and accessible. We’re constantly exploring how digital interacts with local: how can it support and act as an extension of our branches?”

— Alena Kharkavets, VP of Digital Strategy and CX, BrokerLink

than two years, it firmly believes 251

that maintaining focus on delivering

BrokerLink Recruitment Video 2019 CLICK TO WATCH

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2:38

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BROKERLINK

252

“ In digital, if you aim for perfection you’ll likely arrive too late. BrokerLink demonstrates the value of its propositions to customers and then iterates from there” — Alena Kharkavets, VP of Digital Strategy and CX, BrokerLink DECEMBER 2020

customer value at all times will ultimately reap greater success.

When considering the direction of the company as it prepares to enter 2021, Kharkavets states that BrokerLink will remain as dedicated to transformation as ever, “We like to set ambitious goals. We then break them down into small steps and say, ‘Okay, here’s where we are going and here’s how we’re going to achieve it’.”

This approach will be bolstered by collaborating with its partner companies to help improve customer experience by responding to their needs. Central to BrokerLink’s future success will be an inherent trust in the value of digital technology and fast-paced R&D, which Kharkavets highlights as being particularly important. “The term ‘digital transformation’ can be intimidating for many because it’s a big term,” she adds. “But you don’t need to do everything at once, so long as you’re putting the right building blocks in place.”

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253

254

Customerfocused Digital Transformation DECEMBER 2020

255

WRITTEN BY

WILLIAM SMITH PRODUCED BY

MIKE SADR busi ne ssc hi ef . com

ALTAR’D STATE

Ty Tastepe, Chief Information and Digital Officer at fashion retailer Altar’d State, on digital transformation and its response to COVID-19

T

y Tastepe is Chief Information and Digital Officer at Altar’d State, a fast-growing women’s fashion retailer, which sees

him leading its technology and digital teams. “We have three brands,” explains Tastepe. “We have A’Beautiful Soul, our plus size brand and Vow’d, our 256

recently launched weddings brand, as well as the flagship Altar’d State brand.” Tastepe emphasizes the fact that the company likes to do things differently from its competitors. “We’re very focused on giving back to the community, exceeding our guest expectations at every touch point, doing the right thing and being willing to challenge established notions in the retail industry.”

Tastepe came to the role as an experienced technology leader having worked at Universal, Hilton and Disney to deliver innovative technologies around the globe. “Altar’d State gave me the opportunity to make an impact in the digital transformation of the organisation, as we focused on balancing our physical and digital portfolio and providing our guests the choice of platforms to engage with us.”

DECEMBER 2020

257

2009

Year founded

2,400 Number of employees

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

ALTAR’D STATE

258

“ We’re very focused on giving back to the community” — Ty Tastepe, Chief Information and Digital Officer, Altar’d State His approach to leadership has

a picture of the destination and really communicate the role of each team member on that journey,” says Tastepe.

“Seeking a diversity of ideas and experiences, listening to input from partners both inside and outside the organization, staying positive and maintaining a can-do attitude, learning from failures, moving forward quickly and celebrat-

been solidified by the challenging

ing successes are really essential in

times caused by the ongoing COVID-

achieving the company’s goals.”

19 pandemic, which he believes made it

The company’s approach to

necessary to move more quickly on all

implementing new technology is

fronts. “I believe that to be an effective

guided by a clear strategy. “We have

leader one needs to be able to paint

looked at the digital transformation in

DECEMBER 2020

two ways. One is a set of technologies

explains. “We are starting to leverage

to enable our associates to reduce

AI in some places. For instance, we use

friction in their lives and to help them

technologies on our website to recom-

serve our guests better. And the sec-

mend products based on our customer

ond is another set of technologies that

history and choices. We are continuing

help us know our guests better and

to identify many more opportunities to

enable them to engage with us any-

leverage tools that help us make better

time and anywhere.”

decisions, AI being one of them.”

One such group of technologies is artificial intelligence, as Tastepe

It is data that is at the heart of the company’s decision making. “Frankly

E X E C U T I V E P R O FILE :

Ty Tastepe

259

Title: Chief Information and Digital Officer Company: Altar’d State Industry: Retail Location: Maryville, TN, USA Ty Tastepe serves as the Chief Information and Digital Officer for Altar’d State, and leads technology and digital teams to deliver exceptional digital experiences for guests and associates.

Prior to Altar’d State, Ty spent almost two decades delivering large scale digital transformation programs at global entertainment and hospitality brands including Universal Parks and Resorts, Hilton Worldwide and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

He earned an MBA from Villanova University and received both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Electrical Engineering from Drexel University.

busi ne ssc hi ef . com

ALTAR’D STATE

the better we know our guests and the

provide the right tools to our asso-

more we are informed about what is

ciates so that they welcome the

happening in our business, the better

change and can help our guests. This

we can make adjustments and improve

is an area we can always do better

our business,” says Tastepe. “We look

in and it’s something I think about a

at hourly, daily and weekly metrics

lot. But I am impressed with how our

across many fronts to help our leaders

associates have responded to the

make decisions as quickly as possible.”

introduction of new technologies.

Tastepe is clear that such technolo-

Although we’ve seen that can-do atti-

gies cannot be implemented without

tude in every corner of our business,

first being aware of how changes in

it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t focus on

technology might impact associates

change management, communication

and customers. “It’s important to

and training.”

260

DECEMBER 2020

We Missed You! We Thank You! We Love You! CLICK TO WATCH

|

3:57

261

“ We look at hourly, daily and weekly metrics across many fronts to help our leaders make decisions” — Ty Tastepe, Chief Information and Digital Officer, Altar’d State

extensive evaluation process. The things we liked about them include their ability to combine customer

Altar’d State’s transformation has

data management, segmentation,

been enabled with the support of a

orchestration, and analytics. We

number of key technology and ser-

recently deployed the solution into

vice providers, both large household

production and we are continuing to

names and emerging companies.

learn and evolve our use of the tech-

One such partner is Exponea. “We

nology. That’ll teach us a lot more

selected Exponea as our customer

about our customers and how we

data platform provider after an

engage with them.” busi ne ssc hi ef . com

ALTAR’D STATE

“ I am impressed with how our associates have responded to the introduction of new technologies” — Ty Tastepe, Chief Information and Digital Officer, Altar’d State experience across all touchpoints.

“That includes both our direct channels and third party channels. We’re deploying technologies to provide sinThe ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

gle visibility to our inventory in a near

has led to changes in customer behav-

real-time mode and manage orders

iour which Altar’d State is responding

across the ecosystem, both direct

to. “We’re emphasizing our digital

and indirect channels. That enables

investments but we’re continuing to

us to offer capabilities like buy online,

invest in our stores as well. We care

pickup in store.”

very much about the experience we

Such innovations stand the com-

provide to our guests in our stores,

pany in good stead to thrive in the new

and that will continue to be a key

normal, leaving Tastepe to conclude

component of our strategy. So it’s

that the future is bright for Altar’d

a balancing act between our digital

State. “We weathered the storm as

and physical presence.” That balanc-

well as can be expected and even

ing act dovetails with the company’s

launched our wedding brand in the

strategy to be present wherever its

middle of the year during the pan-

guests shop, to provide a seamless

demic. We will continue to listen to busi ne ssc hi ef . com

263

ALTAR’D STATE

264

DECEMBER 2020

“ We will continue to listen to our guests and constantly adjust to shifting purchase patterns and evolving conditions” — Ty Tastepe, Chief Information and Digital Officer, Altar’d State our guests and constantly adjust to shifting purchase patterns and evolving conditions. The keys to success in such an environment are resilience, persistence, responsiveness, and ultimately taking care of our guests and associates. With those pillars in mind, we will continue to grow our business into the future.”

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265

Driving insurers

digital future into a

At Cognizant, we’ve invested in the end-to-end capabilities needed to help insurance organizations not just do digital, but be digital. We partner with our clients to unlock new value and through the power of digital technologies and new ways of working, we help them evolve into more competitive, progressive versions of themselves.

Learn more at Cognizant.com

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