IWD 2018

2020 Vision

2020 Vision for International Women's Day

Archana Sridhar

 

Carla Heimbigner

Associate Vice President, Key Alliance Partnership in the US

 

I am responsible for managing Sogeti’s alliance with a key technology partner. In this role, I’ve learned that I have to walk in in another’s shoes: to understand what our partner’s drivers are and then bring these together with our own. It is vital that we find this shared goal. After all, we can both carry out business on our own, but ultimately, we are stronger together and better able to support our clients.

And it is the client who drives everything. My early career saw me trying out various roles in product, public relations, marketing, sales and channels. Ultimately, I found my forte in channel work. That’s where I discovered the importance of keeping the client at the forefront of everything.

Today, a current focus for our clients is cloud – or, more specifically ‘where next’ with cloud? As they consider how to evolve their cloud strategies, they are asking us how best to leverage the power of cloud, for example by moving to a cloud-native approach with applications built in and for the cloud. Should they go down a hybrid-cloud route and are there specific cloud vendors best suited to their journey? As a systems integrator, our role at Sogeti is to understand each client’s business need and support their transformation accordingly.

Of course, cloud is part of broader digital transformation journeys. Year-on-year, as new digital capabilities emerge, we are gradually seeing the potential of true digital transformation. Looking back, the game changing technology development in my life-time has to be the mobile device. From a static desktop PC and phone that you walked away from at the end of your working day, to today’s ubiquitous smartphones, we are now always connected, always online. It’s amazing to think where we have come from and where digital might take us in the next few years.

What’s interesting is the social and cultural shift I’m seeing even now. Millennials love the fact that they can shop online via their mobile devices, receive next-day delivery of their purchases, try them on or test them out, and send them back if they don’t like what they’ve bought. Move forward a generation and the new ‘Centennials’ (Gen Z) appear to be drifting back towards physical stores – but with a difference. They want their store experience to be highly personalized, with retailers able to use big data and smart store technology to deliver a tailored shopping experience.

Unsurprisingly, my 2020 vision is all about the end client. Sogeti and our technology partners must stay client focused and keep asking what the next generation is shooting for. In the face of continually changing user behaviors and customer demands, we need to equip our clients with relevant technology solutions that enable them to respond rapidly.

  • Deepa Bhulescarr
    Deepa Bhulescarr
    Head of Talent Management
    +91 2266 860 500

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  • Carla Heimbigner
    Carla Heimbigner
    Microsoft Alliance VP
    303-256-2500