Computerworld Philippines Staff
March 10, 2010

Local accountants and finance professionals with the right operations skills now have more opportunities to choose from with the burgeoning finance and accounting (F&A) BPO industry, according to global BPO provider Accenture.

Accenture, which provides end-to-end F&A BPO services and has pioneered the first major finance outsourcing deal in the country back in 1991, said accounting professionals have a lot to gain by venturing into the booming BPO field.

“F&A BPO work presents vast learning and growth opportunities for people to enhance their analytical ability and hone their leadership skills,” described Benedict Hernandez, senior executive and BPO services operations delivery lead, Accenture. “And because Accenture is continuously growing, and caters to a wide-range of clients, there is the opportunity for any person joining the company now to move into two or three different roles within two or three years.”

Highlighting its commitment to furthering the growth of these professionals, Hernandez said that the company invested as much as US$800 million for training and development in 2009.

Aside from the typical accounting work, which can include monthly accounts, analyzing value and profitability, ensuring accuracy and credibility of balance sheets and annual financial reports, employees are exposed to the tax laws, rules and regulations of different countries.

But the main differentiator of F&A BPO with typical financial services institutions is the country is its ability to expose its employees to global accounting skills and processes, as well as an understanding of how different vertical industries in various nations work.

“In Accenture, our F&A workforce is more than just number crunchers. They are given the chance to expand their skills not only in accounting, but also their leadership and operational capabilities,” Hernandez said.

Career opportunities are open not only for certified public accountants but for industry professionals who math the skills requirements as well. “Having the necessary knowledge on operations and process management, possessing analytical ability and good communications skills can also land you a job in F&A BPO services with Accenture,” Hernandez added.

Additionally, Accenture provides Accounting Refresher courses for those who need re-engagement with various concepts in the field, as well as a CPA Review program for non-CPAs to help them achieve their professional licenses.

“Accenture’s distinct advantage as a provider of F&A BPO services lies in our expertise and experience to help companies support core business services and functions to improve business performance and achieve measurable business outcomes,” Hernandez shared. – John Mark V. Tuazon

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By Jennifer Kavur
ComputerWorld Canada
February 22, 2010

TORONTO - SAS Institute Inc. and Accenture Plc. are teaming up to form the Accenture SAS Analytics Group, a joint venture that will develop, implement and manage predictive analytics solutions. The venture is a “first for both companies,” according to Accenture.

The Accenture SAS Analytics Group will develop industry-specific solutions that initially focus on financial services, health care and the public service sector. The group also plans to develop cross-industry offerings, starting with customer acquisition and retention and enterprise analytics.

Business analytics software vendor SAS, has worked management consulting firm Accenture, for over 10 years. “Our successful work together since 2007 has shown the potential for us to jointly address the growing interest in predictive analytics,” said Pat Finerty, vice-president of alliance and business development at SAS Canada, the Canadian subsidiary of SAS.

The venture will bring “SAS’s leadership position in the advanced analytics space together with Accenture’s leadership position as thought leaders in management consulting and systems integration,” said Finerty.

Enterprise analytics is the concept of bringing true predictive analytics and insight to decision-making throughout the entire business processes of an organization, which is really the end-game for clients, explained Finerty.

There are no intentions to develop a new suite of predictive analytics products, according to Finerty. Any jointly developed software and services will enhance and add new value to SAS’s existing offerings, not replace them, he said.

“This group intends to offer clients Analytics as a Service, which will combine innovative new approaches such as subscription and managed services,” said Finerty. The three industries and two cross-industry offerings are “just the beginning,” he added.

The joint venture is an “extremely important development from the standpoint of SAS,” according to Gareth Doherty, research analyst at Info-Tech Research Group Ltd.

“In my mind, there has never been any question about whether or not SAS’s tools are valuable and useful to organizations — the question has always been whether or not the organization is capable of being able to use the tools,” he said.

One of the biggest barriers to large-scale deployments of SAS analytics within enterprises is the level of expertise required to use the toolsets, according to Doherty. “You’re going to need a rocket scientist to use some of these advanced analytics tools for predictive modeling,” he said.

By combining SAS’s existing training with Accenture’s consulting expertise, the Accenture SAS Analytics Group will be able to provide the services businesses need to use the toolsets, he explained.

Doherty also finds the venture “a very strong response” to IBM Corp.’s announcement in the spring of 2009 to start offering advanced analytics consulting services.

IBM “seemed to be ahead of the curve” in recognizing that providing the tools for organizations to perform sophisticated analysis like predictive modeling wasn’t enough, he said. “They realized that they also needed these value-added services on top to make sure they could entrench the tools in the organization,” he said.

SAS is potentially facing its first real major form of competition in the market with IBM, according to Doherty. IBM’s advanced analytical capabilities might not match the degree that SAS provides, but it is “very close,” he said.

“Teaming up with Accenture is essentially, I think, a response to IBM with their product Cognos and their acquisition of SPSS,” he said. Doherty anticipates the joint venture will help SAS “maintain their current standing” in the market.

Sebastien Ruest, vice-president of services and technology research at IDC Canada Ltd., sees the venture increasing SAS’s status in the business community. “SAS has excellent software, but it’s a very specialized type of software that is recognized by specialized users,” said Ruest.

Accenture has “an excellent position” inside the business suites of organizations, which will increase the awareness of SAS as a solution among the non-techie individuals, he said.

Predictive analytics has been a hot area within business performance management ever since the economic meltdown, Ruest pointed out.

Research from IDC Canada, based on conversations with executives over the last 12 months, suggests organizations have not been making additional investments in software upgrades or licenses. Instead, they have been reducing and consolidating their software and focusing on generating revenue or identifying new revenue opportunities within existing business environments and with existing data sets, he said.

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Accenture senior executives recently shared their unique insights on human resources (HR) management at the 46th PMAP (People Management Association of the Philippines) Annual Conference. Benedict Hernandez (in photo), Accenture’s new BPO Service Delivery Operations Lead in the Philippines, discussed the Pinoy Generation Y (those 21-29 years old) and its role in propelling the growth of the local outsourcing sector. Hernandez, who is also president of the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), said that about 16 million young Gen Y Filipinos comprise the majority of today’s workforce, and, today and especially in the future. “Companies must think of new ways to marry time-tested values with Gen Y thinking as a way to engage and manage this increasingly growing and influential employee base.”

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By John Mark V. Tuazon

He may not be fortunate enough to have graduated with a university degree in IT, but for Glenn Ganuelas, nothing too constricting as a formal IT education could stop him from pursuing a bountiful and fulfilling career in the field of Information Technology. Having graduated with a Hotel & Restaurant Administration degree from the University of the Philippines, a professional IT career seemed like a far cry from what he was trained to do in college.

“But I got hooked into the world of PCs and Data communications because of my brother back when 128kb and 300 bps modems were still high tech. I used to log on regularly to the online BBS (bulletin board services) and just search for free downloads. This developed a passion in me for everything computerrelated,” Ganuelas shares. Because he was able to experience the joy of IT, Ganuelas says he leveraged this enthusiasm for a possible career in the field of technology. “I translated [my passion] into a career in IT because I am doing something I don’t consider to be work, but merely pursuing a hobby that pays,” he relates. But before setting off on his quest, Ganuelas trained with IBM on scholarship in 1986 to get a formal feel of the world he’s slowly trying to conquer. Slowly, he climbed up the corporate ladder at San Miguel Corporation (SMC), starting off as an Operations analyst in 1987 to being the Network Manager of its Corporate Telecommunications division until 1998. After his decade-long stint at SMC, he jumped aboard the ship of Sea-Land Asia Administrative Services as Manager of Technology Services in Asia, where he says he “learned to deal with diverse personalities and cultures, having 12 countries in Asia under [his] responsibility.” His out-of-the-box and no-boundaries philosophy rubbed off on all his colleagues, especially when they were trying to pursue new projects.

“Challenges in IT in the many organizations I was privileged to be a part of have always provided opportunities to execute out-of-the-box solutions that can be used as examples for new teams I work with,” he narrates. “The reactions are, more often than not, ‘That’s simple enough!

Why didn’t I think of that?’” This impassioned enthusiasm endeared Ganuelas especially to his mentors, who commended him for his “attitude in accepting new challenges with enthusiasm, the ability to give bad news first, and the willingness to admit that I need help,” he points out. This further propelled him to other IT companies where he landed several top posts, most prominent of which is his stint in the IT division of BPO firm Accenture, where he set up the program for the first Accenture call center in the Philippines. Yet even with all these milestones, Ganuelas found his most fulfilling career venture outside of the IT world.

“I believe the one position that shaped my IT career was a non-IT position I held as a shift manager in a Jollibee store in 1986. The position I held taught me the basics of customer focus, service above self, and the sense of urgency I continue to carry with me as my career in IT developed,” he gladly shares. As if by some twist of fate, Ganuelas eventually found himself back to his roots, as he now serves as the head of infrastructure of the corporate information management section of Jollibee Food Corporation.

As a successful IT professional and a fulfilled individual, Ganuelas sees the value of looking outside the box and breaking boundaries to fulfill one’s dreams, even as he looks ahead and gaze at the future before him. “I’ve long wanted to be an entrepreneur, and channel some of the profit from the business to bring computers and the Internet to every barangay in the Philippines.”

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Computerworld Philippines Staff
January 29, 2010

Emerging markets that have weathered the financial storm of 2009 are posing a threat on the economies of developed countries, changing the rules by which the globalization game is played, a survey by BPO firm Accenture found recently.

Because of a robust domestic market, competitive cost structures and low price points for services, emerging markets fared way better than mature economies in the wake of the global financial crisis, the survey added.

This is posing new challenges to companies from developed markets, who are now pressed to adapt to the more efficient, agile, and competitive business environment.

The survey of 400 global business leaders revealed that top executives are not taking this lightly, with 88% of the respondents admitting to lack of strategic planning in preparation for the new business environment, and 41% saying the stellar growth of emerging markets will impact their businesses in the next five years.

“Together, these forces are accelerating the need for companies to master five competitive and interdependent dimensions of business: new consumers, talent, innovation, capital, and resources,” said Mark Foster, Accenture’s group chief executive, Global Markets and Management Consulting. “Our research shows that high performers in both developed and emerging markets are looking to leverage information technology with a certainty and pace that will give them the flexibility to adapt their business models and stay ahead of the competition as new economic circumstances arise.”

The swift economic power shifts among firms, consumers, and national economies brings in more stakeholders in the ecosystem that in turn drives competition, the survey explained. “The effective use of new technologies and strategies can help companies address the new dynamics of globalization,” it added.

“Responding to the newly complex and competitive ecosystem will require businesses to re-evaluate the roles they have played and the sources of value that they have followed traditionally,” Foster said.  “However, organizations also have a great opportunity to harness these new market forces to their advantage to optimize, extend and transform their business models.” — John Mark V. Tuazon

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By Matt Hamblen
Computerworld (US)
December 15, 2009

FRAMINGHAM - Technology consulting firm Accenture yesterday dropped Tiger Woods as a spokesman, about two weeks after reports of the famous golfer’s extra-marital affairs emerged. Woods later admitted to infidelity.

Woods has represented Accenture for the past six years.

Accenture issued a brief statement yesterday concluding that it had “determined that [Woods] is no longer the right representative for its advertising.” The company also wished “only the best” for Woods and his family.

Woods’ most visible contribution to Accenture’s business were billboards placed in strategic locations at airports near gates and baggage claim areas touting the strategies gollowed by Woods to remain the most successful golfer in the sport. Woods appeared in the billboards in still shots from various golfing locations, often in mid-stroke.

One notable print ad for Accenture , which appeared last March, showed Woods contemplating a shot while standing in waist-high grass. The text reads, “It’s rough out there. Economic realites are daunting. And yet, as with every competitive challenge, some businesses will respond proactively and effectively, while others are left behind. The winner will be those who act quickly…” The headline for the ad reads, “It’s not a setback. It’s a test.”

Accenture’s business has improved in recent years and it saw $21.6 billion in revenue for the fiscal year that ended Aug. 31, 2009. It employes 177,000 workers and has clients in 120 companies.

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Computerworld Philippines Staff
December 11, 2009

At least 72% of companies place greater value on IT today than before the crisis, placing technology under the limelight as an essential tool for regaining strength after the crisis, a survey of business and IT executives conducted by Accenture and the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) revealed recently.

The survey of more than 550 executives also showed that almost half of the respondents see an increased investment in IT selectively, while one in ten of the same plan to deploy them across the board.

Surprisingly, non-IT executives have become more bullish about IT investments than those directly concerned with IT, with 61% anticipating more technology spending by next year.

“The results of the survey show that firms recognize the need to invest in technology to defend and accelerate their competitive position, even in difficult times, which has not always been the case in the past,” said Keith Haviland, global managing director for systems integration consulting. “The turmoil over the last 18 months has underscored the need for further flexibility and scalability to stay ahead in business and drive agile business change.”

Among the measures seen as most effective in cutting costs, three came to prominence: ensuring the stability and business relevance of project requirements; the replacement or rationalization of existing systems; and movement to open platforms.

The most pressing IT priorities, on the other hand, lie on virtualizing and consolidating servers (44%), while significant funding for e-business (32%) and service-oriented architecture (SOA) projects (31%) are also expected.

Due to additional technology implementations, IT executives are under increased pressure to deploy more flexibility-delivering projects than was previously required (81%). At least three-fourths, meanwhile, are using metrics to measure the performance of IT investments, yet half of those surveyed say metrics are only partly implemented, while one-third of the firms have no metrics evaluation measures at all.

“Just how indispensable IT has become to business survival and leadership is proven by the anticipated increase in investment over the next year, despite the challenging economic conditions,” Haviland said. “While other operational budgets are being slashed, global firms look towards IT as a way to re-build strength.” — John Mark V. Tuazon

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Accenture senior executives recently shared their unique insights on human resources (HR) management at the 46th PMAP (People Management Association of the Philippines) Annual Conference.

Rahul Varma, global Human Resources strategy director at Accenture, focused on “People Management in a Multi-Cultural Environment,” including the challenges and opportunities of having a diverse workforce and how this has contributed to Accenture’s continued growth and success.

Benedict Hernandez, Accenture’s new BPO Service Delivery Operations Lead in the Philippines, discussed the Pinoy Generation Y (those 21-29 years old) and its role in propelling the growth of the local outsourcing sector. Hernandez, who is also president of the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), discussed “Winning the Generation War: Leading and Inspiring the Gen Y”. He said that about 16 million young Gen Y Filipinos comprise the majority of today’s workforce, and, today and especially in the future, “companies must think of new ways to marry time-tested values with Gen Y thinking as a way to engage and manage this increasingly growing and influential employee base.”

The annual PMAP conference aims to chart directions and strategies to address critical issues in HR. This year’s conference at the Sofitel Philippine Plaza in Manila drew a record number of more than 1,000 delegates from all over the country, mainly HR executives, consultants and professionals.

Photo shows Benedict Hernandez, CCAP president and Accenture’s BPO Service Delivery Operations Lead in the Philippines, who discussed the growing importance and influence of the Pinoy Generation Y in propelling the growth of the local outsourcing industry.

Shown in photo is Accenture’s Human Resources Strategy Director Rahul Varma, who flew in from Singapore to speak at the 46th PMAP Annual Conference. Varma’s talk on “People Management in a Multi-Cultural Setting” zeroed in on the challenges and opportunities of diversity in Accenture.

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By Paul Krill
InfoWorld (US)
July 20, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO - Accenture plans to acquire the unit of Nokia responsible for Symbian customer engineering and support, Accenture said.

Under the acquisition, terms of which were not disclosed, Accenture would acquire Nokia’s Symbian Professional Services unit. The Symbian OS, which is being moved to open source, is used in smartphones. The Nokia unit provides engineering, consulting, and product development services to mobile phone builders, offering technical support, device-tuning techniques to boost performance and memory. Also offered are advanced error diagnosis and repair and turnkey software development services.

[ Also on InfoWorld: "Symbian to start new developers program" | Keep up with app dev issues and trends with InfoWorld's Fatal Exception and Strategic Developer. ]

About 165 Nokia professional services engineers and consultants in the United Kingdom, Finland, Japan, Korea, and Australia are expected to transfer to Accenture.

Nokia is part of the Symbian Foundation, a multivendor venture formed in 2008 to provide the Symbian OS under a royalty-free license. The services unit being sold off by Nokia provides implementations of Symbian for different device builders, somewhat of a conflict of interest because Nokia itself builds devices, said Ted Shelton, head of marketing for foundation. “Accenture’s a perfect home,” for the unit, Shelton said.

“The acquisition of the Symbian professional services unit will enhance Accenture’s existing embedded software, product-development and testing skills to help players in the mobile solutions ecosystem address ever-more-demanding time-to-market and quality requirements,” said Jean Laurent Poitou, managing director of Accenture’s Electronics’ High Tech industry group, in a statement released by Accenture.

“This agreement allows the Symbian professional services team to realize its full potential in the supply of independent services to the open-source ecosystem,” said Peter Ropke, senior vice president of devices at Nokia, also in a statement.

The deal is expected to close in 60 to 90 days.

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Computerworld Philippines Staff
July 16, 2009

International BPO firm Accenture recently signed a five-year application co-sourcing contract with British American Tobacco in its bid to improve the design, development and implementation of IT solutions.

The two companies will jointly design a series of application that will address the finance, supply chain, sales and marketing needs of the tobacco company, the agreement said.

“We believe that this co-sourced program will make us considerably more effective across our global enterprise,” said Craig Wallace, head of solution delivery, British American Tobacco. “Collaborating with Accenture on this program will greatly enhance our knowledge, skills and capabilities and enable us to more quickly reshape and transform solution delivery within our business.”

Accenture, for its part, will deliver the output services through its Global Delivery Network, which calls for use of facilities in the Philippines and India.

“This project will help British American Tobacco deliver IT solutions in a more focused, coordinated and efficient manner across its global operations,” said Koen Van Bockstaele, senior executive in Accenture’s Consumer Goods & Services practice.

The amount of investment made for the joint venture, however, was not disclosed by the two parties. –John Mark V. Tuazon

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By Jenalyn Rubio
Computerworld Philippines

In a world still significantly dominated by male leaders, Accenture top executive Beth Lui, was among the first few women who have managed to prove that IT is, indeed, also a woman’s world.

Although gender is no longer an issue in this type of work nowadays, Lui shares that her manager back when she was just starting her career told her to “be better than the guys to clearly stand out.” “The advice worked because I learned to aim higher,” the IT veteran discloses.

A certified public accountant (CPA) by profession, Lui graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from the University of Sto. Tomas and has been in the IT industry for more than 20 years now. Right after taking the CPA board exam, Lui applied with the audit division of what was then Arthur Andersen (what is now the IT and outsourcing firm, Accenture) and was offered to join the management consulting division. She started as a software developer and eventually moved up the ranks to designer, team manager, and senior executive.

Today, Lui is the country managing director and concurrently the lead for technology of Accenture Delivery Centers in the Philippines, overseeing the overall delivery of technology services such as systems integration, application outsourcing and infrastructure outsourcing.

NO MAGIC FORMULA
According to Lui, when she started her career, she never imagined that she would someday be the country managing director of a giant IT and outsourcing firm like Accenture, sharing that she just took each challenge one day at a time.

“I do not think there is a sure route or magic formula for success. When I started working, my manager told me that in order to stand out; I should strive to be the best. And some 20 or so years later, I still continue to strive to be the best in everything that I do,” Lui says, adding that even in her current position, she still looks forward to learning new things.

According to her, the opportunities to find solutions to problems, to meet, interact and learn from people, and to experience life in various situations are what inspire her to get up each morning and go to work.

Her biggest challenge professionally, the veteran shares, is to constantly look for ways to do better. On the personal side, meanwhile, she says it would be striking a work-life balance. The executive also acknowledged that without a steadfast commitment to client service and a great team to work with, she would not be where she is today.

“At Accenture, we tell our people that there is great power in our personal expectations – we achieve what we believe we can achieve. It is also very important to have a work-life balance so that we can sustain the time and energy commitment to achieve high performance, everyday,” she further shares.

Looking forward, Lui says she wants to continue growing Accenture in the country, for it likewise continues making significant contributions to the outsourcing industry and the Philippine economy.

Asked what legacy she wants to leave behind, Lui says she wants people to realize that Accenture is capable of achievements and industry leadership in the Philippines. “I would like to be remembered as a leader that demonstrated a ‘can do attitude’ and this is something that I would also like my colleagues to espouse. For the industry, I hope that one day, the Philippines will become the globally preferred location for IT and BPO outsourcing.”

SIDEBAR
Favorite Technology: cellphone and laptop (Both allow me to stay connected while allowing me to stay back.)
Favorite non-work pastime: Traveling, playing piano, and being with my pets (of course in addition to my family and friends)
Philosophy in a nutshell: Embrace change. Because change signifies a new beginning.
Something people don’t know about you: I still have to think about this.

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