20 Most Admired Companies of the Year 2019

Volume 09 | Issue 03 | 2019

Most

+

Galt & Company

Thirty Years of Superior Client Shareholder Returns

Editor’s Desk

F How Brands Changed the Way We Shop

Great brands sells dreams, not products.

ew decades ago, the idea of “purpose” that inspired brand development and management, was a far cry. However, few prophetic companies including “Johnson and Johnson” were miles ahead of the curve by the high standards of inspired individual leadership. Still, it needed few more years for the business community to turn its attention to brand values.

It all happened when Steve Jobs recognized the power of brand values in driving brand awareness and loyalty.

After returning to Apple, Steve drew a parallel line between the company’s mission and brand values in his famous speech. The best part was, Jobs was one of the very few leaders who recognized that brand values can eventually drive customer’s decision making in addition to earning the customer’s trust.

However, most of the business owners eventually ignored the final part of the speech and they came up with half-baked solutions, which were mainly for the sake of competitors or the customers, not for the brand.

So, those half-baked brand values eventually ended up as meaningless, and were unable to bring the real change in the customer's mind and organizational culture.

Now you may ask why I’m so bothered about the term “Brand Values”.

One of the most important part of brand values is, it engage customers on a far deeper level. The best part is, rather than just forming a connection, it instills love and affection into the customer’s heart. On the emotional level, customers are often drawn to those brands, who offer certain feature and benefits over the others and whose products are future proof. Still, customers will never fulfill their needs until they feel safe. So, brand values eventually tell customers that it’s safe to move forward with the purchase. That’s how love and affection towards a brand gets formed and you know the drill, right? Love and affection goes beyond one time

purchases- it leads to multiple purchases in long term.

So, with great enthusiasm Insights Success has shortlisted, “20 Most Admired Companies of the Year, 2019”, who are working round the clock to change the way how businesses work.

As our cover story, we have Galt & Company, who works with Fortune 500 companies to develop the strategies and organizational capabilities that achieve and sustain superior shareholder returns over time. The organization brings the discipline of the capital market inside a corporation, impacting how strategic, resource allocation and performance management decisions are made.

Also while flipping the pages of the magazine, don’t forget to go through the CXOs and articles written by industry experts and our in house editorial team.

Let’s read!!

Kaustav Roy

Cover Story

08 Galt & Company Thirty Years of Superior Client Shareholder Returns

Tech Outlook The Role of Consultants for Every Business Stage

14

Tech-Know Insights What a tech CEO can teach your business about digital?

30

22

ARTICLE

Infrastructure Transformation

36 Editor’s Choice Entrepreneurship Going Beyond the Comfort of Safety to Make Larger Impact

AI Moving Towards Transformation of Industries

CONTENTS 18

26

34

Assurance

Optimizt Technologies

Spark Energy

Minimizing Risk and Maximizing Health

Bearing Flagship in Technology Sectors

Competing in the Transformation of the Retail Gas & Electricity Industry

Editor-in-Chief Pooja M. Bansal Managing Editor Anish Miller

Executive Editor

Assistant Editors

Kaustav Roy

Jenny Fernandes Rohit Chaturvedi

Visualizer

Art & Design Director

Associate Designer

David King

Amol Kamble

Kushagra Gupta

Co-designer Poonam Mahajan

Senior Sales Manager

Business Development Manager

Kshitij S

Peter Collins

Marketing Manager

Sales Executives

John Matthew

David, Kevin, Mark, Sagar

Technical Head

Business Development Executives

Jacob Smile

Steve, Joe, Alan, Sanket

Technical Specialist Aditya

Digital Marketing Manager Marry D'Souza

SME-SMO Executive Prashant Chevale

Research Analyst Frank Adams

Database Management Stella Andrew

Circulation Manager Robert Brown

Technology Consultant David Stokes

sales@insightssuccess.com September , 2019

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Reprint rights remain solely with Insights Success.

COVER STORY

Galt & Company Thirty Years of Superior Client Shareholder Returns

I

n an interview with Insights Success, Sco Gillis, Lee Mergy, Joe Shalleck, Co-founders of Galt & Company, share valuable insights from the experiences they gained advising some of the world's largest and most successful corpora ons. Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between them and Insights Success:

issues and opportuni es facing the company while we also put in place the organiza onal capabili es and disciplines that will be needed to execute against those opportuni es and to sustain superior performance going forward.

Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons that have shaped the journey of Galt & Company.

How do your services benefit your clients?

Galt & Company works with Fortune 500 companies to develop the strategies and organiza onal capabili es that achieve and sustain superior shareholder returns over me.

We bring the disciplines of the capital market inside a corpora on, impac ng how strategic, resource alloca on and performance management decisions are made.

Each of our rela onships begins with an in-depth understanding of where and why our client’s business is crea ng and consuming shareholder value, what strategies are currently being pursued, where resources are being allocated, how performance is being measured and managed and what management capabili es are in place.

From there, we focus on the highest value-at-stake strategic

Galt was founded on the belief that there is an explicit connec on between performance in customer markets and capital markets; that shareholder value can be managed and that the ul mate measure of performance for any publicly traded company is the shareholder returns that company delivers over me rela ve to its industry peers.

We have learned that the biggest influence on a corpora on's rela ve shareholder returns are the management standards and decision processes that are used to run the company. Companies that consistently deliver superior shareholder returns exhibit similar traits in these areas, namely they have Ÿ A clear and consistent defini on of winning and ul mate measure of performance – constantly seeking

to outperform compe tors and investor expecta ons A keen understanding of where and how they generate customer value and how to mone ze that differen a on in terms of cash flow and economic profit, which in turn drive their ability to reinvest and the shareholder value they create Ÿ Manage to an evergreen value-improvement agenda – focusing management me and a en on on those things that will materially impact economic profit growth and shareholder value Ÿ Strategies and resources that are focused on growing share in profitable markets in which the company has, or can establish, a compe ve advantage, while fixing or withdrawing resources from other markets or market segments Ÿ Aligned decision standards, processes and capabili es to effec vely drive relentless management of profitable growth deep down into each business unit Ÿ

What according to you are the evident challenges in the industry?

The market for business strategy advice is par cularly

opaque where advisory firm size and brand recogni on are not well correlated with the actual results their clients realize. This places high value on the purchasers of advisory service to do their own, in-depth due diligence before trus ng the advice they come to rely upon and paying the fees they will be charged. In addi on, clients should require clear defini on of what measurable results they should expect from their advisory rela onship and the consequences of under or over-performance rela ve to that measure. Furthermore, clients should expect advisors to help strengthen client capabili es, not replace fundamental responsibili es of the management team.

What are the current trends that are driving the industry?

Changes in market structure and the drivers of compe ve posi on have become quicker and more consequen al than at any me over the last 30 years that we have been advising large corpora ons. Where once technologic advancements improved the efficiency of tradi onal business models, digi za on is in many cases redefining a company's offer and leading to complete restructuring of the supply chain.

These changes are occurring with such speed that established compe tors can become obsolete and enormous shareholder value can disappear in only a few years. This places a premium on: Ÿ Understanding how technology is changing customer needs and buying behavior, product/service offers and supply chains in a company's industry Ÿ Considering fundamental changes in where to par cipate and how to compete, not just incremental changes to current strategies Ÿ Insuring that digital innova ons and technology investments have clear paths to commercializa on and returns Where does Galt & Company envision itself in the long run and/or what are its future goals?

Galt has and will con nue to pursue a consistent goal: to help the management of the world's leading corpora ons achieve and sustain superior performance in the customer and capital markets. Over the last 30 years, our partners have helped over 35 corpora ons pursue that shared objec ve, including companies like Caterpillar, Abbo Laboratories, Coca-Cola, Clorox, McCormick, Gille e, BB&T and others. We serve clients across the globe from offices in New, York, Chicago, London and Singapore.

Considering the rising number of compe tors, how does Galt & Company stand out from its compe tors?

Galt is the only advisory firm exclusively dedicated to helping large, mul -na onal corpora ons develop and implement the strategic and organiza onal changes

required to achieve and sustain superior shareholder returns. We have an unmatched track record of client results. On average, our clients have sustained total shareholder returns greater than 150% of their industry peers, o en for 10 years or more a er our engagements have ended. There is no other advisory firm with that track record or reputa on among Fortune 500 chief execu ves.

About the Leaders Sco Gillis, Lee Mergy and Joe Shalleck are Co-Founders and Senior Managing Directors at Galt. For thirty years, they have been advising chief execu ves and board level management on the strategic, opera ng and organiza onal changes needed to deliver superior shareholder returns.

About the Company Galt & Company works with Fortune 500 chief execu ves and their management teams to develop the strategies and organiza onal capabili es that achieve and sustain superior shareholder returns. Galt brings the disciplines of the capital markets inside a corpora on, impac ng business strategies, resource alloca on and performance management. The firm's clients sustain shareholder returns in the top quar le of their industry peers.

COVER STORY

“

Scott Gillis Co-founder

Galt brings the disciplines of the capital markets inside a corporation, impacting business strategies, resource allocation and performance management.

“

Joe Shalleck Co-founder

Galt works with Fortune 500 chief executives and their management teams to develop the strategies and organizational capabilities that achieve and sustain superior shareholder returns.

“

Lee Mergy Co-founder

Galt’s clients sustain shareholder returns in the top quartile of their industry peers.

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SUCCESS MEDIA TECH LLC

The

Role

of

Consultants for Every

Business Stage E

very business owner and execu ve comes to the realiza on and fear that they don’t know what they don’t know at some point in the game. To leap beyond this fundamental hurdle, wise leaders lean on experts to help fill in the gap.

Experts such as CPAs, a orneys, bankers, mentors, and consultants are rou nely sought by successful business owners for guidance, advice, and support that can be promptly made effec ve. Gaps in business are essen ally analyzed to determine the best, quickest, simplest, or most cost-effec ve solu on, which is then developed and finally implemented by consultants in various niches every minute of the day.

Consul ng is a big industry for a reason. Businesses have a high risk of failure. Failure is easy, and failure is hard. With the assistance of a consultant, businesses have a much be er chance of survival. Let’s take a look at how consul ng can work at every stage of a company.

Start-up / Pre-revenue This stage of a business is filled with passion and dreams. The owner is typically a technician within the industry breaking free from the constraints of their boss or is a dreamer of great things in general. Problems arise when the many components of running a business the right way interfere and bog down this solopreneur. Seemingly simple, but highly important, responsibili es such as accoun ng, opera ons, and marke ng can quickly overwhelm and lead to failure.

Bringing in a consultant at this stage or prior to start up can save the solopreneur from a tremendous amount of stress. The consultant can walk the owner through the hurdles of business with ease and experience. Establishing systems, crea ng procedures, and building plans for sales and marke ng will prepare the busy start-up for successful growth through to the small business phase.

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Tech Outlook

About the Author April Salsbury, MBA is the owner of Salsbury & Co., a business management consulting firm.

After growing an organization from 15 employees to 100 employees and seven locations, including international distribution and working in legislation for industry oversight and accreditation, she believed her experience as a CEO and a “builder” could help small business owners avoid certain hurdles and gain valuable insight.

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Mom & Pop Shop Mom & Pop Shops are what we refer to small businesses with 1-25 employees. This may be a small genera onal business or a growing start-up that is hiring friends and family to help get the job done. One day, the goals become too large and the owners take on more than they can handle in an effort to grow. What these owners don’t realize is that they need to have defined systems in place, along with communica on, leadership, and a growth plan to move beyond Mom & Pop Shop status to Small Business status without suffering collapse.

Small Business The small business typically has 1-100 employees which may also include many family and friends. Some systems are in place, yet there lacks organiza on and communica on leading the owner down a path of “too many chiefs” or not enough oversight. At this stage, business owners may discover they have a lot of people doing the same thing, no formal processes and a lot of fires to put out. Stress once again takes hold of the business owner in a way that may make them ques on closing shop and going back into the workforce.

Consul ng at these stages require in-depth analysis of where the company currently exists on the spectrum and iden fying gaps in the founda on of the organiza onal structure. Analysis will require a look at financial performance, opera ons workflow and processes, systems integra on and u liza on, human resources suite of knowledge and procedures, centralized standard opera ng procedures, marke ng plans and strategy, and more.

Analyzing each component of the business will bring to light top layer and secondary issues that the consultant will priori ze to match urgency and effec ve organiza onal modeling for proper implementa on. Business owners should expect this process to take some me, but in the end the business will operate like a well-oiled machine ready for growth.

human resources, systems integra on with maximized u liza on, and have a plan to move forward. These areas will experience ongoing expansion enhancement over me. Mid-size companies will start to departmentalize and create an execu ve team for improved oversight and strategy development. Problems Mid-size companies face are keeping everyone working toward the same goal, communica on, effec ve leadership and management development, mergers and acquisi ons, con nuous improvement of systems and opera onal workflow and recrui ng for longevity all while staying on top of their next strategic move and pacing change. Enterprises con nue to refine and silo roles within the company; however they experience many of the same issues a mid-size company does.

At Mid-size and Enterprise level, Consultants are brought into a company on a project basis and will be focused on a niche of service. This is when the: Branding Consultant is brought in to develop a brand or revitalize a brand for a segment of the business; Lean Specialists are brought in to examine one segment of the manufacturing process; System Analyst is brought in to create func onal APIs to connect the 25 so ware programs used by the company to prevent errors and reduce me wasted on duplica ng entries; and possibly, Coaches are brought in to develop a mid-level management team.

There is a need and a place for Consultants at every stage of business, even before the first signs of failure. Bringing a Consultant into the company earlier in the process will make the transi on to the next big step easier and the long-term outcome of the business much be er. Although business owners may have a difficult me jus fying the cost of consul ng, especially if funds are limited, the desired end result has greater poten al to be realized in a shorter meframe. Companies that have successfully worked with consultants see the value of their work in the overall success of the business and o en retain consultants for future projects.

Mid-size Business & Enterprise The Mid-size Business has successfully iden fied the needs of a growing business. Most companies of this size (101999 employees) and of the Enterprise size (1,000+ employees) have established policies and procedures,

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Minimizing Risk and Maximizing Health

A

s one of the largest and most awarded independent insurance brokerages in the U.S., Assurance is the premier, na onal insurance brokerage for clients and industry professionals. The company is an alterna ve to brokerages that sacrifice client services to meet profit demands, that ins tu onalize clients in a manner that negates personal rela onships and accountability, and that marginalize and disengage top talent.

Assurance invests an industry-leading percentage of revenues back into the services its clients need to improve their businesses. It generates measurable client value by minimizing risk and maximizing health.

Addi onally, it a racts and retains the best insurance professionals by rewarding their exper se, inves ng in their futures, and recognizing their contribu ons.

Assurance is currently the 35th largest insurance broker of U.S. business. It places over $1.5 billion in premiums annually for businesses and individuals and is staffed by over 500 of the brightest and most compe ve people in the insurance industry.

In an interview with Insights Success, Tony Chimino, the Chairman & Chief Execu ve Officer of Assurance shares his insights on how Assurance creates value by minimizing risk and

18 | September | 2019

maximizing health for over 6,000 businesses and individuals across the country through a suite of insurance solu ons.

Below are the highlights of the interview: How do you diversify your products and solu ons in order to benefit your clients?

There are significant fixed and variable cost components that drive a client’s total cost of risk –whether it’s on the business insurance, employee benefits, financial, surety bonds or private insurance side. What makes Assurance unique is that we understand this concept and have integrated mul ple service pla orms into on cohesive unit. Our insurance professionals work in lockstep with other departments across the agency.

The service pla orm provides clients with a handpicked team based on risk profile, as well as ensures best in class service, transac onal exper se and a dedicated claims and safety advocates.

Key advantages include early risk iden fica on, effec ve pre-and postclaims management, reduced claims and premium cost, robust wellness ini a ves and benefits, as well as improved business processes.

Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of Assurance.

We’ve been fortunate over the years to have been recognized as a “Great Place to Work” by many na onal, local and insurance industry-specific publica ons. Our workplace culture has con nually evolved, though we came by this recogni on quite organically. It began with the ideology that an engaged workforce would produce be er results for our clients.

We drove engagement with a focus on transparency, vision se ng, career development and apprecia on. And while those things wound up having the impact we’d hoped in terms of client sa sfac on and performance, admi edly it has and con nues to propel our organiza on in ways we never quite expected. Not the least of which is by helping us to con nue to a ract the best and brightest talent in our industry who desire a culture and environment not typically found in the insurance brokerage space.

What according to you are the evident challenges in the industry?

As technology seeks to replace fric on in nearly every industry imaginable, our brokerage world is certainly not immune. We must take care to credibly calculate the value we bring and the impact we make beyond merely the execu on of services that require limited thinking. In addi on, the changing regulatory landscape and rising healthcare costs con nues to pressure our clients and so crea ve approaches are needed to drive solu ons. www.insightssuccess.com

Minimizing Risk. Maximizing Health. These four words give us purpose, fire us up and challenge us every day. This passion affords each Assurance employee the opportunity to profoundly impact the world.

Tony Chimino Chairman & CEO

Considering the rising number of compe ons, how does Assurance stand out from its compe tors?

There’s been a disturbing trend over the last 15 years in the insurance brokerage industry: growth merely by acquisi on, over-funded by debt. Now, the massive debt trend in our industry has resulted in numerous unintended consequences including the marginaliza on of produc on talent. As an independent and privately held insurance brokerage, we place value on our employees, we do not marginalize talent or treat our employees like a mere expense.

Where does Assurance envision itself in the long run and/or what are its future goals?

We believe we’re our clients’ best investment. We expect to stay true to our passion of minimizing risk and maximizing health through our long-term vision of "credibly calcula ng our services create $1 billion in value annually for clients."

This vision keeps us focused on improving the culture, produc vity and bo om line of our clients, not of ourselves. Generally, if we maintain our growth trajectory, by 2025 we expect to have a physical presence in 5 major geographic markets across the United States and be among the very largest privately-owned and independent brokerages in the country.

Tes monials “We’ve been with Assurance since early 2006. Assurance

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has provided effec ve guidance, unparalleled benchmarking, aggressive market representa on, as well as superior customer-centric service. We value their exper se, loyalty, commitment to our industry and daily recogni on that their service integrity is perpetual and necessary in today’s compe ve environment. We not only recommend Assurance to our partners and peers; we promote them as a value add to our business model.” Labor Finders “We’ve had a working rela onship with Assurance for over 15 years. They truly understand our business environment and the pressures the Senior Living industry puts upon us.

Assurance has saved us enormous amounts of premium costs over the years, while con nuing to put our best interests first. We consider them as more than our insurance brokers; they’ve become our business partners and most importantly – our friends.” - Heritage Enterprises, Connie Hoselton, Execu ve Vice President Human Resources About the Leader Tony’s driving ideology for Assurance is a complete and dedicated focus on crea ng value for clients through minimizing risk and maximizing health. This includes a combina on of business insurance, employee benefits and risk management improvements. Tony credits Assurance’s growth and success to hiring the most talented people in the insurance industry who are then recognized, rewarded and energized to make clients be er.

September | 2019 | 19

AI

Moving Towards Transformation of Industries

I

n the recent years, Ar ficial Intelligence (AI) has transformed various industries and helped to perform be er and achieve success in their respec ve arena. An ideal amalgama on of human intelligence and machines has proven that it can create wonders in the businesses. This a achment of human intellect with the machine assists businesses, to automate their day-to-day ac vi es, to understand customer behaviors, to decrease work expenditures and to create occurrences on an individual level.

Therefore, business individuals need to keep a close eye on the latest developments occurring in AI industry. This informa on can be vital as they can u lize AI in areas where it can create profit for them.

There are various industries that are already u lizing AI in their respec ve business func ons and are ge ng benefited. Following are some of the leading industries that have u lized AI as an instrument to op mize their opera ons: 1. Healthcare Healthcare sector has shown a posi ve response to assimilate AI in its field. That is the reason; Healthcare has received enormous funding to develop and execute AI. The modern day machine intelligence is assis ng healthcare sector to examine medical data extracted from X-rays, CT scans and various other tests.

Segrega on of this informa on is important as doctors go through the pa ent's history to check and diagnose illness.

Healthcare experts are dependent on their years of experience and prefabricated algorithms to acknowledge 22 | September | 2019

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Infrastructure Transformation

the symptoms of an illness. However, some mes they overlook and make mistakes unconsciously. A BBC report tled ‘AI Early Diagnosis Could Save Heart and Cancer Pa ent’ stated that nearly 20% of experienced doctors make mistakes while diagnosing pa ent’s illness. Therefore, this arduous as well as daun ng task is certainly made easier by AI. There are famous examples of u liza on of AI in healthcare sector. The Babylon AI doctor app avails speech recogni on to interact with pa ents cross-examines carefully against its database and provides necessary treatment. Another interes ng healthcare AI, Molly by Sense.ly -virtual nurse app- links pa ents to scien fic recommenda ons and help, with the assistance of proprietary categoriza on engine pays a en on to the pa ents and replies appropriate response to them. Microso ’s Hanover project u lizes machine comprehension with natural language processing to forecast produc ve cancer drug compa ble to the pa ent.

2. Automobile and Logis cs Automobile industry is witnessing crucial shi s such as autonomous driving, connec vity, electrifica on and divided mobility. It is an cipated that the automobile industry will experience rise in economic growth by shi ing from conven onal to disrup ve technologies and unconven onal business models.

On October 14 2015, Tesla announced that it is going to launch an autopilot car i.e. a car with self-driving capability.

The car is expected to drive itself from coast-to-coast with the help of autonomous naviga on. Other car makers are aiming to implant AI services like Amazon’s Alexa. This will authorize passengers to self-command car technologies with the help of natural language voice orders.

German premium car maker Mercedes-Benz has deployed voice command personal assistant in CES show 2018 held in Las Vegas. Its arch business rival BMW followed the footsteps and decided to adopt Alexa and its assimila on into its handpicked BMW and mini automobiles. KIA Motors has also proclaimed that it is thinking about assimila ng Google assistant in its cars.

It is the need of the hour for any business to perform be er in its services and increase profit as much as possible. It is expected that machine learning (ML) will empower systems to an extent that they will comprehend the data and u lize it to increase their performance. This is where AI comes into the picture. The associa on between AI and ML can create wonders in logis cs, where me is a paramount en ty.

The logis cs sector gathers extensive data from diverse sources such as websites, smartphones and various telema cs tools. Predic ve analy cs not only rearranges www.insightssuccess.com

September | 2019 | 23

delivery schedule but also predicts subsequent orders which gives logis cs sector an advantage to u lize its resources effec vely.

Interes ngly, AI does not stop there. It assists in semiautonomous driver assistance, autonomous fleets for ride sharing, engine overseer and forecas ng maintenance for automobiles.

Also, AI has been assis ng logis cs sector to construct supply chains beforehand with the help of advanced systems. This computer assistance in automobiles delivers goods in the efficient manner which is essen al for the success of a logis cs company. The forecas ng helps logis cs to avoid disastrous calami es such as difficult weather situa ons, traffic delays and many unexpected occurrences.

Virtual Assistant in the kitchen can also be u lized to handle kitchen machines.

Virtual Assistants such as Amazon Echo as well as Google Home incorporates ‘Rou nes’ a ributes which allow these Virtual Assistants to carry out many tasks on a single command given by the user. This means a user can create a ‘Rou ne’ command which will instruct the Virtual Assistant to start mul ple tasks it supposed to execute.

Industries are constantly trying to update themselves by adap ng new technologies. AI is transforming industries and helping them to grow their businesses. It is going to advance into more sectors. It will help human beings to operate risky tasks, decode universal issues and take care of various human tasks. We can definitely an cipate a future where AI will be the new normal.

3. Marke ng and Adver sing Marke ng sector has changed dras cally over the years.

Customers an cipate for a personal experience and it is the need of the hour for marke ng sector to change itself and adjust accordingly. They are required to leave the conven onal methods of marke ng and concentrate on enhancing their communica on, execute demands as well as aspira on. This adapta on of AI is vital for marke ng sector as reluctance to implement this new technology can lead to loss of business for the company.

AI assists marketers to find and forecast customer a tudes.

This precious informa on allows marketers to carry out impac ul keywords and communicate with consumers on a more personal level. Moreover, chatbots also help to execute this communica on in a less expensive, effec ve and in a persistent way.

On top of it, AI generates ideas which are subdivided into many sub ideas. This way the risk of catering a sole idea is eliminated and various ideas can be catered according to customers and their preferences. Brands have started to acclima ze on this useful technology and are focusing on selected customers. Startups have also begun to apply AI with the help of AI automated personaliza on and compelling video content.

4. Virtual Assistant A Virtual Assistant can help you to handle smart home devices. This feature will allow you to administer door locks, lights, appliances and many smart home devices. There are Virtual Assistants available in the market, which show the capacity to func on as an intercom. A user needs to place Virtual Assistants in every room to communicate with others.

Amazon Echo’s ‘Drop In’ feature enables users to interact with each other from different rooms.

Users can also u lize Virtual Assistants to shut down and start TV sets on compa ble television models. In addi on, a

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Optimizt Technologies Bearing Flagship in Technology Sectors

I

n an interview with Insights Success, Op mizt Technologies (OT) emphasizes on the contribu on made by its impeccable team in order to bring difference in the customary business prac ces. With the edi on "20 Most Admired Companies of the Year 2019", Insights Success admire such organiza on’s diligence to offer authen c solu ons to its customers.

Improvement and Audits, specialize Corporate Trainings and Staffing Services. Using their exper se, they create unique and enduring synergies aligned to their clients’ business mission and goals.

OT’s vision is to become the most recognized, trusted and value-added technology partner globally by its Clients.

Below are the highlights of an interview: Give a brief overview of the company and its vision.

Op mizt Technologies (OT) is most recognized & trusted Engineering Service Provider (ESP) company established in year 2010. OT offers mul -disciplinary technology services that are tailored as per the client demand with Innova on to Integra on and Implementa on. OT serves diverse Industries such as Automobile, Aerospace, Civil Structures, Energy, FMCG, Off Highway Vehicles, Metro Rail, Process Industry (Oil & Gas) along with clients from Asian, European, and North American countries.

Due to its outstanding service quality and performance, worldwide renowned companies approach OT. It has also received pres gious Interna onal awards & recogni ons for innova ve & quality technology services and business excellence in year 2012, 2015, 2018 and 2019.

Its exper se lies in Engineering Product Design and Development, Mathema cal Computa on and Simula on, Applica on Development, Cloud Compu ng Services, Test Automa on Services, Process

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How do you diversify your products and solu ons in order to benefit your customers?

We want to diversify our offerings to consolidate our presence for exis ng market and clients. Then slowly we will expand our offerings to new geographical markets within next few years.

We will iden fy our value proposi on, ar culate it and back it up with evidence. We will focus on core skills, capabili es and achievements when determining our value proposi on. Formula ng business development strategy, building network and rela onships, evalua on of resources will help us to grow during significant challenges in this market.

Onsite or nearshore business model has been developed for our exis ng clients which has brought more clarity and success in our business. Perfec on in project management, well-defined processes, value-added services, strategic partnership and at last investment in resources has also helped us to succeed. Presently, we are focusing on reinforcing competencies for future technologies like IIoT, AI, Data Science, Cloud Services etc.

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Staying a uned with the company’s mission and vision, Jitendra has taken some steps for enhancing OT’s growth and building trust in employees and clients. These steps involve crea ng spark in the team, gap analysis and training, improving facili es, implemen ng quality processes and security systems etc.

”

Give a detailed explana on of the featured person’s influence towards the industry and the company.

Jitendra Jagtap is the Founder and CEO of Op mizt Technologies, having 14 years of experience in engineering design and research field along with project management. His role at OT is TechnoCommercial, which includes overseeing crossfunc onal groups and defining new business strategies, iden fying emerging technologies, new business prospects, key accomplices and OT’s branding.

Optimizt Technologies offers innovative and value added engineering & technology solutions to diverse businesses globally.

”

—Jitendra S. Jagtap CEO

Jitendra has delivered hundreds of corporate training programs for MNCs from USA, Europe, India. Thousands of engineers are in his credit who are working all over world in the field of R&D today. Jitendra also has great influence as technical consultant to few Asian and European organiza ons operates in India.

Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of OPTIMIZT TECHNOLOGIES. In most professional services it is difficult for customers to judge quality un l it’s too late and they face a poten al catastrophe.

Having clear understanding of this fact, OT has developed long term strategy to win new businesses.

Ini ally focused on pilot projects and affordable pricing services, we have

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built strong confidence and trust in our clients.

Consistent investment in knowledge, resources, processes, strategy has helped us to shape OT as trusted partner for our clients. We learned good lesson that fuel your business by leadership, people and systems while value the me.

Within 9 years of business, we have been recognized globally for our services and exper se. Fortune 500 and globally listed world renowned companies are our clients today. We have received few Interna onal Awards in recogni on of quality, commitment & innova on for our services. Though we feel proud today, we will con nue to work relessly and persistently to grow our business globally to create employment and other society benefits.

What according to you are the evident challenges in the industry?

Challenges such as need for innova on, increasing compe on, pricing aligned to client business metrics, short delivery models, reten on of talent in budgeted cost are key challenges in todays industry. These compounding parameters are driving significant transforma on, pushing professional services providers into a new era of services delivery.

Over the course of the next few years, we will see significant changes in the services engagement models.

To facilitate the change, managed services contracts for ESPs will need to move away from the tradi onal engagement models to demand more value and ghter service integra on.

Where does OPTIMIZT TECHNOLOGIES envision itself in the long run and/or what are its future goals?

In upcoming years, OT’s strategy is to ini ate marke ng & opera ons in handpicked countries with select services in demand. building customer credibility, developing domain exper se and promo ng the acceptability of the offshore concept. Along with this, company is planning to start opera ons in poten al countries to provide nearshore services to new clients.

OT plans to build a brand image and wants to be recognized as a trusted partner in this market. By the mid of 2020, the company will be inves ng for resources in future technologies in its por olio such as IIoT, AI, Data Science, Cloud Services etc.

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Its long-term goal is to develop smart methods & tools for engineering community to enhance learning efficiency. Then it will be offered at affordable price especially for economically poor students in Asia. OT is planning to establish Technology Research Centre with necessary facili es for engineering students where Industrial subject ma er experts will be invited to guide these engineers of future.

Considering the rising number of compe ons, how does OPTIMIZT TECHNOLOGIES stand out from its compe tors?

Due to emerging technologies and market trends, there are significant changes in tradi onal engagement models to demand greater value and ghter service integra on. Currently OT is also facing many challenges due to rising compe on. On the bright side, rising compe on is crea ng opportuni es for OT to think, reinforce and fine tune business model for long run.

OT is now focusing on delivering technical excellence, custom business models aligned to client business needs. Along with this, company is predic ng future technologies to add new services ver cal in offerings and upholding professional pride and integrity.

Company is working relessly and ethically to ensure that values are added to every service it delivers. In order to do so, this India based company is going to leverage the massive pool of skilled workforces to deliver outstanding technology services.

Innova on, Integrity, Inspira on is the key parameters which OT focuses as part of business strategy to successfully stand out in future market.

Tes monies: Fortune 500 and globally listed companies like Johnson Controls, Emerson, Alfa Laval, Atlas Copco, Forbes Marshall, GE Oil & Gas, MAHLE, Henkel, HORIBA MIRA, Putzmeister, TCS, Tech Mahindra, PARI Robo cs, Jindal Steel, TATA AutoComp, Godrej are few of its clients to whom it has been providing services. OT has successfully executed cri cal projects for USA’s top Electric Vehicle OEM, Europe’s leading Metro Rail Supplier, Japan’s leading Electric Drive supplier which was awarded by giant Indian IT companies as a strategic services partner.

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Pam Bateson CEO & Co-founder Thrive Partners

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Tech-Know Insights

What a tech CEO can teach your business about digital?

About the Author Pam Bateson is an expert coach and mentor in business, training others to Masters level qualifications and supervising coaches. She has worked within the healthcare, retail, hotels, construction, media, agencies, education and public sector. She specialises in Coaching, Mentoring, Employee Engagement, Change Management, Learning and Development and Organisational Design. She has worked with all levels in organisations from graduates to the CEO. She has designed change programmes that connect projects, outcomes, training and coaching. The performance outcomes have been outstanding. She is CEO and Co-founder at Thrive Partners. www.insightssuccess.com

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am Bateson set up Thrive Partners, an on-demand coaching company, three years ago. In this ar cle, she shares her point of view on how important humans are in a more digital world, what she’s learned as a tech CEO, and what this means when you’re looking to use tech in a way that’s both disrup ve and works for customers. In October 2015, I gave up a successful career as a management consultant and coach to set up Thrive Partners. Lots of people thought I was crazy. I was approaching 50, with two children s ll at home. But for the decade running up to that decision, I’d been thinking about a be er way to deliver coaching – supported by digital, to share more widely the coaching tools I’d used to help clients for many years.

This was the business I set out to build three years ago. Today, we’re working with 25 clients on five con nents – delivering our own brand of on-demand coaching, backed with insights for the whole business. The learning curve has been steep – par cularly for someone who, by their own confession, didn’t have a lot of September | 2019 | 31

experience in learning technology. So here, I wanted to share some of the things we’ve learned – and what it might mean for your business.

Dream big I didn’t really set out to build a business that would be considered disrup ve, but my background as a lean engineer and coach did mean that we ripped up the rulebook when it came to the coaching industry. We scrapped the idea that you needed to meet face to face, and that sessions had to last an hour, or even two hours. And we made it a lot easier for people to access a coach to answer the ques ons they had there and then – increasing access so people could chat to an expert within an hour.

Working with my co-founder, we then rebuilt the industry by asking the biggest ques ons we could imaging. What if we could make coaching available to whole organisa ons? What if we could get listening as valued as speaking? And what if we could help organisa ons learn as quickly as individuals?

I found these ques ons irresis ble: I wanted to do for coaching what Uber had done for ge ng a taxi, Ne lix had done for home entertainment, and Tinder had done for da ng. It’s these big dreams that have galvanised our success in the last few years – and which has set us in the right direc on for the future.

Build for modern users Despite big dreams, we’ve also made our fair share of mistakes! A lot of them mistakes happened when we took our a en on away from our end customers. It sounds obvious to see it there on the page. But it can be easy to lose sight of the customers that ma er most, especially when, as a tech CEO, some me we get preoccupied with a shiny piece of new technology.

So, what to consider first when it comes to users? The main thing to bear in mind is that they expect experiences that are easy and fast to access – a shi brought about by what we call the ‘Amazon Prime Mindset.’ In this era, clunky user experiences reduce the chances of uptake of services. In short, if your technology can’t match or exceed the quality of digital experience people get in their everyday lives, then you’ll need to go back to the drawing board.

than just scale and facilitate coaching in global organisa ons; it would also mean we could spot trends and pa erns within communi es of users, in organisa ons or society at large.

Just as carefully listening has a powerful and transforma ve role in one-to-one coaching conversa ons, carefully listening to and analysing anonymised version of the conversa ons we host has a powerful and transforma ve role within whole organisa ons.

The whole-system insights we produced has helped to make sales processes smoother, improved communica ons and created more opportuni es for people to learn.

Keep it human With suicide being the biggest killer of men under 45, loneliness sweeping through developed economies in epidemic propor ons and a third of all young people suffering from anxiety, I strongly believe that we have a duty to keep talking to each other as a society.

We believe that keeping the art of conversa on alive in this digital age is essen al; only humans can master crea vity, empathy, humour and imagina on in a way that’s compelling. Informa on is everywhere, so we’re using technology differently – to offer real human experiences at scale, at any me of the day, whenever our clients need a conversa on, for everything you can’t Google.

And what of the future? Curiously, even the structures of ar ficial intelligence and machine learning look set to mimic human pa erns. It’s s ll early days, but leaders in this space talk of ‘deep learning’ with AI – by layering up different tools that connect in the same way as our brain’s neural networks.

And so, the next three years?

My recent experiences have led us to ask even bigger ques ons than we did to begin with – which I suspect will lead to our next irresis ble set of adventures! What if we could transform learning management systems into learning ecosystems? What if any community of learners could connect with any community of teachers? And what if a be er understanding of outcomes from learning could help both individuals, organisa ons and society to thrive?

I for one believe there are exci ng mes ahead.

Create wins for the many So, if users come first – who else can we harness the power of technology for?

Our answer? Everyone else in the system.

Early on in the development of our MyThrive pla orm, we realised that delivering digitally would enable us to do more

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Spark Energy Competing in the Transformation of the Retail Gas & Electricity Industry

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park Energy is an independent, compe ve, retailer of gas & electricity. It was founded in 1999 as a start-up with today’s vision to ’Achieve sustainable profit growth through a lean organiza on focused on customer value’. The company serves more than 800,000 residen al customer equivalents, and operates in all key states that are open for retail gas & electricity compe on. Spark Energy currently operates in 19 states, plus the District of Columbia, where consumers can choose the company they want to serve their retail gas & electricity needs.

Mr. Kroeker’s impact on the company is impressive, par cularly in the company’s growth. With his leadership, the company went from private to public (SPKE) in 2014 and since that me the company has tripled in revenue, customer count, and earnings.

Diversity in Offerings

History in Making

Spark Energy’s value proposi on for consumers includes poten al energy cost savings for consumers through a compe ve market place; green, renewable and carbon neutral products; and stable and predictable energy costs. Consumers have op ons for both fixed and variable price contracts, and a range of unique value added products such as green energy, rewards programs, or protec on plans.

According to Spark Energy, the process of taking a fully regulated industry to one that is open for compe on and consumer choice is making history and something everyone who took part in making it happen can be extremely proud of. The company asserts that the future genera ons will read case studies about the transi on of a regulated gas & electricity u lity market to compe on. It truly is history in the making not unlike what happened in the telecommunica ons industry that started transi oning back in the 1980’s.

A Dynamic Leader Nathan Kroeker is the President & CEO at Spark Energy. His impact on the gas & electricity industry is through his advocacy for compe on. He believes that compe on drives innova on and it intensifies a focus on be er costs and creates value for consumers that

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regulated cost-plus models aren’t inherently mo vated to achieve.

Whether or not consumers are Spark Energy customers, they benefit in a compe ve marketplace with the op ons of choice driven by innova on, product offerings and price.

Overcoming Adversi es The challenge in the states that are open for compe on is breaking the iner a that regulated, incumbent

u li es have through their many, many, decades of being the customer’s only choice. There’s an educa on of consumers and an evolu on that takes me to break that iner a. The addi onal challenges in the industry are clearing the barriers that exist to open up addi onal U.S. states for compe on.

Innova on has not been realized at the rate that everyone expected, primarily due to the sharp drop in commodity prices earlier this decade. I believe we are star ng to see this innova on now – not driven by high commodity prices, but rather an elevated consumer interest in technology and being good stewards of our resources for future genera ons.

The upside for consumers that can be realized through compe on is limitless if not beholden to a strictly regulated model that provides no choices.

Future Aspira ons Spark Energy’s aspira ons in the longrun are declared in its vision. The people in the company are keenly focused on strategic ini a ves that straddle the dimensions of crea ng customer value, delivering sustainable profit growth for shareholders, and achieving success through a high performing & lean team of people and partners. The team members’

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Spark provides both residential and commercial customers with alternatives to their local utility for their natural gas and electricity supply needs.

collec ve set of behaviours, guided by Spark’s social contract, is the recipe that creates the company’s culture.

They are aligned in what the company has set out to accomplish in working together and being commi ed to doing the right things for the right reasons. Employee engagement throughout the organiza on is ultraimportant and will remain a key ingredient to the company’s success.

Quotes from Customers “I’ve been very sa sfied with Spark Energy, and I know I can always count on you. Thank you, bye bye.”

“Contac ng you today was very easy. I got through right away, and I was very pleased with the service. Thank you very much.”

“I love you all. Everyone is so wonderful to deal with on the phone. The rate I get per month is the lowest I’ve seen, and I would highly, highly recommend you, which I do, to all friends of mine.”

“This is John, and we love Spark Energy. The representa ve helped us with our ques ons today in an outstanding manner, and we’re just glad we’re part of the Spark Energy family. Thank you very much.”

“I love you guys, Spark. You’ve been there for me for all these many years. I really, really appreciate you. Your rates are fantas c, and I would not change you for any other electricity provider. Thank you very much Spark Energy. I love you, and I’ve been telling people about you and will con nue to do so. Thank you.”

— Nathan Kroeker President & CEO

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Editor’s Choice

Entrepreneurship Going Beyond the Comfort of Safety to Make Larger Impact

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ntrepreneurship is the process of star ng a new business that adds some value to the world by solving some specific problems.

Entrepreneurship is the capacity and willingness to develop, organize and manage a business venture along with any of its risks in order to make a profit. Entrepreneurship combined with land, labor, natural resources and capital can make a profit. Those who create these businesses are called entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurial spirit is characterized by innova on and risk taking and is an essen al part of a na on’s ability to succeed in constantly changing and increasingly compe ve global market place.

Entrepreneurship in its truest form is all about iden fying a gap in the market and crea ng a product which can fill that hole. Entrepreneurship is not solely about making money- it is also about changing and enriching the lives for be er. It is about improving people’s lives through crea on of products or launching services that makes the lives of people easy. If one’s business does not add value to the lives of people then it is unlikely to survive. The business that makes nothing but money can easily be considered as a poor business.

Entrepreneurship is the act of being an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs act as managers and oversee the launch and growth of an enterprise. It is a process by which either an individual or a team iden fies a business opportunity and

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acquires and deploys the necessary tools and resources required for its u liza on.

Entrepreneurship is all about being ready to go beyond the comfort zone.

It is about defining success on one’s own terms and achieving it by one’s own process and methodology. It is also about thinking outside the box or thinking like there is no box. True entrepreneurial spirit is about seeing challenges as opportuni es.

Entrepreneurs should be able to shake off depression, laziness and should jump into the flowing stream of hard work in order to achieve their dream.

True Entrepreneurs understand that they can’t be great at everything they do, but they know that they can be great at something. They focus on that par cular something in which they are good at with laser like focus and they are passionate to deliver the best solu ons in their chosen work.

Entrepreneurs create something new, something different that solves some problems or adds value to the world.

An entrepreneur is a person who is willing and able to convert a new idea or inven on into a successful innova on. Entrepreneurial journey is not always so easy. As Elon Musk Quotes “Being an entrepreneur is like ea ng glass and staring into the abyss of death.” Many people experience entrepreneurial journey as a rollercoaster ride filed with challenges and opportuni es; ups and downs.

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perseverance through all such ups and downs. The journey may be filled with crest and troughs but the journey is worth taking.

Entrepreneurs understand that seduc on of safety is much more dangerous than the percep on of the risk. Therefore they take calculated risks based on market trends and market es ma on. Where common people see the problems entrepreneurs see the opportuni es.

Entrepreneurs are driven to create solu ons to those problems.

Entrepreneurs are not the part of problems but entrepreneurs are people who want to be part of the solu on to those problems.

Entrepreneurs are innately programme to create solu ons to the exis ng problems.

Entrepreneurs roll up their sleeves every day and work hard to create solu ons to the exis ng problems in the world in order to make profit as well as to enrich the lives of people.

They are in the game to make a difference and impact in the lives of people through offering solu ons to some of the biggest problems. Money is secondary to them but making valuable contribu on and adding value to the world is what they focus on.

They understand that money is just a byproduct of serving as many people as possible with full efficiency.

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Entrepreneurs plan their work and work their plan. Successful entrepreneurship requires entrepreneurs who take conscious, systema c, logical and though ul decisions. It is about thinking deliberately and ac ng on the conclusion of logical thought process.

Great entrepreneurs have the ability to think decisively even in indecisive environment also. Their conscience and intui on helps them to come up with some solu ons that add glory to their business. Successful entrepreneurs are also very cau ous of making use of the latest technology for crea ng more profitable solu ons.

They know how to leverage everything to create glorious business that adds value to the larger por on of the world.

Entrepreneurs are here to make a valuable contribu on to the world through their words and worthy ac ons; they just don’t want to occupy the space in the universe.

Entrepreneurs believe in making world a be er place by crea ng something that customizes the lives of people for be er. Great entrepreneurs walk their talk and talk their walk. Their lips and lives both make difference in the lives of people. They know that world rewards those who press on.

Entrepreneurship is about paying the price of dedica on, commitment, sacrifices, hard work and pu ng heart

and soul into the business to create something different that makes lives of people easier. The words and ac ons of great entrepreneurs show that they know where they are going and the world has the habit of making room for such people.

Entrepreneurship is about knowing the way, going the way and showing the way. Entrepreneurs lead by example.

They use all the resources they have to make larger contribu on to the world.

They think of changing the world through their skills, abili es, talents and making op mum u liza on of all the resources they have.

Entrepreneurs build a strong network of people in their organiza on. The great entrepreneurs understand that one’s network determines one’s net worth. Therefore they choose smart and pragma c people around them that are having the ability to come up with solu ons to some of the toughest problems. They are very cau ous of people they associate with.

Entrepreneurship is about building bridges of success instead of crea ng barriers to opportunity. It is about having talented people on-board to come up with great idea and to implement that idea to make a tangible difference in the lives of people.

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