“There’s hardly a company in the communications and high tech sector that isn’t busy with a technology transformation project—or at least thinking of one,” says André Nel, who heads up the Technology group within Accenture’s Communications & High Tech operating group in South Africa. “Competition is very strong in this marketplace, and most of them are battling to get the systems in place to accommodate customer demands for more personalised services. Those demands are a shifting target, and to meet them one needs agile business processes and systems.”
Companies in this market, according to Nel, also face the challenge of establishing where profitable growth is going to come from—the local market is already well covered, but geographical expansion carries its own risks.
Accenture, he says, has a real role to play in helping its communications and high tech clients rise to the challenge posed by the market. “We have the experience and tools to help them identify the issues very quickly—and we’re one of the few companies that can then help them transform at speed,” Nel explains. “Our experience with global clients who have faced the same challenges is invaluable, and is built into our methodologies and frameworks. As powerful, our Global Delivery Network provides access to the skills we need when we need them—and at the right price.”
Nel lives the true consultant’s life with several nights a week spent away from home. “To survive that regime, I have to be very strict about my weekends,” he says. “Those are set aside for family—unless there’s a very good reason to work.” He loves to read fiction as a way to get into a totally different mindspace, with planes being great reading venues for him.
André Nel is a member of the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals.