With the global economy beginning to show signs of recovery, BPO and consulting firm Accenture has started to rehire about 100 of the 500 employees it laid off in the country recently.
Kenneth Corless, Accenture senior executive for CIO Business Applications, shares the company’s perspective and approach in addressing the many challenges that CIOs face today.
This was disclosed in a recent press briefing by Accenture Philippines country managing director Beth Lui who reiterated that the company remains firmly committed in doing business in the country.
Lui was joined by top Accenture executives Kenneth Corless and Shane Ryan who visited the Philippines to talk in a forum meant to engage local CIOs (chief information officers) to find ways to cut IT costs.
The US-based BPO giant gathered 50 CIOs from various industries in a bid to share its expertise in adopting new business strategies and technologies, among other areas of concern.
“CIOs should not be just technology-savvy but business-savvy as well,” said Lui, adding it was the first time that Accenture held a CIO forum where the company also recounted its own success story in terms of streamlining its IT infrastructure.
Corless said one of the emerging technology trends that CIOs can seriously consider is the hosted or software-as-a-service (SaaS) model for their local operations.
The American executive said that by adopting new computing approaches such as SaaS, CIOs could optimize their IT assets. He said it is wrong to cancel IT and business projects during the downturn as this widens the capability gap.
Ryan, meanwhile, said the tough economic environment is providing the chance for CIOs to shine in their respective business organizations by embracing new technologies or practices that make processes more efficient and reduce expenditure.
“This is one of those times when IT plays a major role in a business organization. CIOs just need to look at the right approach in their IT infrastructure,” Ryan said.
Research firm Ovum recently said in a report that Accenture’s revenue in 2009 is up 10 percent over last year.
Jens Butler, principal analyst for Asia Pacific at Ovum, said Accenture’s “continual ability to realize growth in existing accounts can often be attributable to the strength of its C-level engagement, especially in Asia Pacific where a long-term relationship and trust are the keys to success.”
Thus, Ovum noted that even if Accenture shed 500 workers in the Philippines, it has been able to continue to convince clients that it still has the capability to satisfy their needs.
“Even though Accenture does not rate as the cheapest of providers, clients still choose them to aid with the resolution of complex business problems that cannot simply come out of a box and often return for more,” Butler said.
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