Gigabit Magazine TruePDF-January 2020 PDF

SUSTAINABLE INNOVATIONS AT POLAND’S OLDEST CHOCOLATIER
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JANUARY 2020
GOLDEN HIPPO’S
SUPPLY CHAIN
TRANSFORMATION
TRANSFORMING TRUST INTO VALUE

How NTT DATA’s knowledge and expertise
has made it a marketplace leader
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AT AL-YAQOUT
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WELCOME
W elcome to the January issue

of Gigabit magazine!
Appearing on our cover this month
the company’s anticipated trajectory
into building human-machine interfaces.
Don’t miss our special report in
is NTT DATA. We spoke to Sharath which Harry Menear explores the past,
Burla, CEO of NTT DATA Business present and future of smart cities and
Solutions APAC, and Geuko Bosker, the increasing demand for data centre
senior advisor to the CTO of NTT capacity that they’re driving.
DATA Corporation, about how the In our Top 10, smart cities once
company adds new value to customers’ again draw our attention as we count 03
businesses. down the European and Asian conur-
It’s NTT DATA’s experience that bations which dominate the world’s
draws customers to its services. “Our smart city rankings.
tagline is ‘we transform trust into value’,” Don’t forget to read our other
explains Burla. “Our proven knowledge feature interviews with Golden
and expertise, along with our onsite, Hippo, AXA Gulf, Al-Yaqout Group,
offsite, and offshore methodologies and Aster Hospitals UAE, T2 Tea, LOTTE
execution processes have made us Wedel, CORESTATE Capital Group
a marketplace leader. Success requires and GOIKO.
agility and vision to act decisively.”
Elsewhere, we tested out Medtech Enjoy the issue!
unicorn MindMaze’s suite of neurore-
habilitation technologies, and found William Smith
out from its founder and CEO about william.smith@bizclikmedia.com
w w w. g i g a b i t m a g a z i n e . c o m
innovation
in practice
Sprint and Amdocs have been key partners for over two
decades, delivering together innovative solutions to make
Sprint the success it is today.
Our joint accomplishments include modernizing billing

support systems, introducing a groundbreaking
customer care system, providing cost-effective
payments processing and the optimization of
current and future network capabilities.
This strong Sprint-Amdocs partnership has

won widespread industry recognition, including
the 2017 Global Telecoms Business Award for
Consumer Service Innovation.
Visit www.amdocs.com to learn more about

how you can partner with Amdocs to
innovate successfully.
www.amdocs.com
© 2019 Amdocs. All rights reserved.

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CONTENTS
36
Business Solutions:
leveraging SAP
expertise into
customer value
46
12
56 72
EVENTS
26 TOP 10
Smart Cities
76
Golden Hippo
Media
102
AXA Gulf
116 130
Al-Yaqout Group Aster Hospitals UAE
158
LOTTE
Wedel
144
T2 Tea
174 188
CORESTATE GOIKO
Capital Group
12
JANUARY 2020
Business Solutions:
leveraging SAP
expertise into
customer value
13
WRITTEN BY
SHANNON LEWIS
PRODUCED BY
KRIS PALMER
w w w.gi ga bi t ma ga z in e. com
N T T D ATA B U S I N E S S S O L U T I O N S A PA C
Sharath Burla, CEO of NTT Data

Business Solutions APAC, and
Geuko Bosker, senior advisor to
the CTO of NTT Data Corporation,
discuss the importance of
helping customers add new value
to their business
riginally a part of the Nippon Telegraph
O and Telephone Public Corporation, NTT

DATA has been an independent business
since 1988, focused on creating new paradigms
14 and value by transforming technology into mean-
ingful innovation for its clients, helping people
build newer, smarter societies around the globe.
In 2005, the corporation set its sights on becom-
ing a global IT innovator, embarking on a series of
expansions, mergers, and acquisitions; in 2009, it
acquired itelligence AG and Extend Technologies
Pty Ltd, combining them to form NTT DATA
Business Solutions. The past ten years, have
seen the Business Solutions group grow to more
than 8500 employees in 26 countries, focused
specifically on helping enterprises of all sizes gain
deeper insights and better outcomes through
SAP services and solutions spanning applications,
infrastructure, security, and communications.
Sharath Burla, CEO of NTT DATA Business
Solutions APAC, explains, “the way the company
JANUARY 2020
1988
Year founded
$1bn+
Revenue in
US dollars
125,000
Number of 15
employees
“The way the

has grown is through value creation
and a rich history of self-transforma-
company has grown tions.” NTT DATA is in its 29th year

of revenue growth. Since acquiring
is through value itelligence in 2009, NTT DATA has
creation, through grown phenomenally, from 32,000

employees and 80% of business
a history of self- practice being based in Japan to
transformations” more than 125,000 employees and

over 65% of business based outside
— of Japan. With a strong focus on key
Sharath Burla, client-first, foresight, and teamwork
CEO, NTT Data Business Solutions APAC
values, NTT DATA embraces its
16 Japanese heritage as a trusted global
innovator. As a Platinum SAP partner,
Business Solutions is a market leader,
delivering S/4 HANA Implementation
and Transformation projects globally.
“We work closely with SAP not only
to deliver SAP solutions, but we also
invest significantly more money into
R&D and Innovation than any other
professional service group.” he adds.
Adding value is extremely important
to the corporation. Burla brings with
him 12 years’ experience in tech, with
a focus on growing companies, while
Geuko Bosker worked at itelligence
for 16 years before entering his current
role as senior advisor as the CTO of
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘TRUSTED GLOBAL INNOVATOR “NTT DATA”’
17
NTT DATA Corporation. “Our tagline is knowledge is a highly valuable cur-

‘we transform trust into value’,” states rency at Business Solutions. It aids the
Burla, “Our proven knowledge and knowledge acquisition path by imple-
expertise, along with our onsite, off- menting high-end training, tools, and
site, and offshore methodologies and customer engagement programmes.
execution processes have made us a “Gone are the days when we pushed
marketplace leader. Success requires our solutions and products,” says
agility and vision to act decisively.” Burla. “Now, it’s about taking a step
This is especially important in a world back, understanding what the client is
driven by digital transformation. “The going through, their challenges, their
customer drives the change. They rely desired outcomes and then looking
on our thought leadership to help them at what added value we can bring. We
define themselves,” explains Burla. know that every organisation is at a
With customers more informed about different stage on its digital journey.
their tech needs now more than ever, When navigating the ever-shifting path
E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE
Sharath Burla
Sharath Burla is Executive Vice President and CEO of Asia Pacific
NTT Data Business Solutions and is based in Singapore. In this
role, Sharath is responsible for driving NTT Data Business
Solutions APAC market and business growth, creating value for
customers, employees and stakeholders while coordinating and
leading business activities in the region. Sharath has more than
25 years of business experience including over 18 years of
management experience in information technology, business
transformations, sales leadership, ERP, CRM, supply chain
management and program management.
Prior to joining NTT DBS APAC, Sharath held multiple senior
management positions in sales, practice and strategy at DXC
19
Technology (HPE). In his last role at DXC, Sharath
was responsible for Enterprise Cloud
Applications Business P/L across the region.
Prior to DXC, Sharath held partner and
leadership positions at start-ups and fortune
500 companies. Sharath holds a bachelor’s
Degree in Mechanical Engineering from
Bangalore University, a master’s in business
administration from California State
University and a masters in Sales
Transformation from London. In addition,
Sharath holds multiple industry and
professional certifications including PMP
from PMI, CSCP from APICS, SAP,
Siebel, ITSM, Six Sigma and others.
C O M PA N Y FACT S
• NTT Data has grown from
32,000 employees and 80%
of business practice being
based in Japan in 2009, to
over 125,000 employees
with over 65% of business
based outside of Japan today
• NTT Data is in its 29th
year of revenue growth
20
toward a digital enterprise, you need a to have a project manager focussed

trusted partner to help you make sense on a specific budget and deadline,”
of everything. We help our clients stay says Bosker, “Now, we’re looking into
ahead of what’s coming next to avoid continuous programme management
the minefield of new challenges that with smaller Agile sprints rather than
emerging technologies unearth.” project-based management.” Tech
Digital transformation has forced plays a role as well. NTT DATA’s
Business Solutions to re-evaluate inter- DevOps platform, Altemista, and its
nal processes. Projects that previously low-code, no-code solution CAD (com-
took two years from blueprint to imple- puter-aided design) helps developers
mentation are being broken up into execute projects efficiently. Meanwhile,
smaller pieces through design thinking its research and development (R&D)
and Agile methodology. “We used team is looking into increasing both
JANUARY 2020
21
workflow efficiency and customer up to speed, despite all of our invest-

experience through Digital Managed ments, continues to be a challenge.”
Service solutions. Business practices Burla says, “It’s not easy to form that
are constantly updated in line with cohesive, collaborative, innovative,
customer expectation. “People are high-performing team we are looking
important. Across the group, we have for.” To combat this, Business Solutions
over 15,000 SAP consultants in 35 provides methodologies, guidelines,
countries. They cement the binding of and training that are mandatory across
what we want to do moving forward,” the board. Currently, NTT DATA is
affirms Burla. Establishing governance also rolling out NTT DATA Knowler, a
in the face of global expansion is one knowledge platform based around
of the most difficult tasks for a multi- ontologies, neuro-linguistic program-
national company. “Bringing everyone ming (NLP), artificial intelligence (AI).
Connecting All Parts
of Your Business to
The Best Run
Automation and AI are an important our own processes and enhance our
tech avenue for the company. “People workforce to ensure we actually have
are still looking for the right angles enough resources to keep up with the
in the pursuit of AI,” says Bosker. “You work our growth is developing. This
need to either train people or actu- guarantees we can create the highest
ally find the right talent to implement value for our customers, ensuring on-
it successfully.” Bosker sees this as demand support for every single one
an opportunity. As a global company, of them in the future.”
NTT DATA can attract a talent pool According to Bosker, digital trans-
that most of its customers can’t. “Some formation has encouraged companies
of the R&D assets we are currently to reconsider employee relationships.
focusing on are to be deployed inter- The focus, he says, is on finding the
nally first,” states Bosker. “Although right employees and keeping them
we intend to sell these solutions in in-house. Business Solutions uses a
the future, it’s important to digitalize design-thinking model to be able to
JANUARY 2020
deliver on customer demands. The R&D level as well, from virtual reality
implementation of this model is aided meeting rooms that have real-time
both by cross-training employees language translation capabilities to
across the company and through its the worldwide implementation of
leadership choices. “This is what we SuccessFactors, which supports HRM
call a digital workplace,” says Bosker. processes around employee retention
“It’s about making all the knowledge and long-life learning concepts.
we have available to our people and Looking to the future, NTT DATA
ensuring everyone can collaborate Business Solutions continues to expe-
and communicate with each other, rience significant growth in the APAC
anytime, anywhere.” This is something region, having completed acquisitions
NTT DATA is embarking on from an in Indonesia and Thailand as part of
23
Geuko Bosker
Geuko Bosker is senior specialist in Technology and Innovation
General HQ of NTT Data in Tokyo and acting as senior
advisor to the CTO of NTT Data Corporation. His primary
focus is global technology & innovation management and
Strategy. As part of his role, he is co-leading the SAP
innovations team in NTT Data globally and is a member of
the digital focus area leadership team for Internet of
Things. Before he came to Tokyo he was director for
managed services and innovations at itelligence
Benelux, leading a team that was focused on
combining the strength of long term customer
relationships with introducing and implementing
the latest innovations and technologies of the SAP
product portfolio.
24
“It’s about taking a step AMLAD, the digital archive service developed
by NTT DATA to preserve priceless cultural
back, understanding records for the Vatican Apostolic Library
what the client is going
through, their challenges,
their desired outcomes
and then looking at our
solutions to determine
what added value we
can bring”
—
Sharath Burla,
CEO, NTT Data Business Solutions APAC
JANUARY 2020
its plan to scale into the Indochina
market. By industrialising its industry
templates, best practices, and repeat-
able solutions, the company minimises
the risk traditionally associated with
transformative processes. Business
Solutions’ five focal points are cus-
tomer experience and intelligence,
employee experience and intelligence,
financial intelligence, business intel-
ligence, and systems intelligence. Its
2020 global plan outlines goals to help
it expand its marketplace footprint.
One of these is increasing workplace 25
diversity and inclusion, ensuring the
world within the company looks like the
world without and championing female
leaders. “We want to cross-pollinate
our systems, our leadership and our
talent,” affirms Burla. As a market
leader in utilising SAP portfolios to
help customers achieve intelligent
enterprise, Business Solutions’ sights
are firmly set on achieving continuous
growth over the next few years, both
for itself and for its customers.
D I G I TA L S T R AT E G Y
HARNESSING
THE BRAIN’S
POTENTIAL
26
Gigabit experiences MindMaze’s neurorehabilitation

technology and speaks to Tej Tadi, founder and CEO,
about the future of human-machine interfaces
WRITTEN BY WILLIA M SMITH
JANUARY 2020
27
M indMaze has always had one mission and

that’s to understand the brain,” says Tej Tadi,
founder and CEO of brain technology company
MindMaze. “To decode it and to connect it to the world.
It’s not about building brain-computer interfaces,
but building human-machine interfaces.”
In 2016, that mission was aided by significant
investment from the Indian conglomerate Hinduja Group,
leader of a US$100mn funding round, which saw the
company becomes Switzerland’s first ever tech unicorn.
MindMaze’s UK Market Development Director, Salim
Ghoussayni, showed us two of MindMaze’s products
28 in use: the MindMotion Go and the MindMotion Pro.
The FDA-cleared products are virtual reality devices
intended for use with patients who have sustained a
neurological injury, such as that caused by a stroke.
We started with the Pro. Intended for use in a more
hospital-like setting, the Pro is most effective when
introduced to a patient early in the recovery cycle –
indeed, introduction within days of the original incident
is optimal. “The Pro is supposed to be a platform for
more intensive training,” says Tadi. “When someone
suffers an injury or a stroke, the Pro can be by their
bedside, in the intensive care unit.” Its most obvious
elements are a screen and a motion tracking sensor.
Depending on the severity of impairment, the method
of tracking might involve light up markers attached
to the arms or, when patients have a larger range
of motion, markerless tracking.
JANUARY 2020
29
“THE BRAIN’S EVERY-

DAY INTEGRATION OF
MULTIPLE SENSES IS
SOMETHING THAT WE
WANT TO REPLICATE”
—
Tej Tadi,
Founder and CEO, MindMaze
“MINDMAZE HAS
One activity showed an onscreen
representation of the user’s arms,
ALWAYS HAD ONE challenging them to move their hands

to a target along a predefined path,
MISSION AND measuring their accuracy. Another
THAT’S TO UNDER-
showed a representation of the user’s
body, with the challenge being to cut
STAND THE BRAIN” fruit with a virtually wielded samurai

sword. A medical professional is
— intended to be on hand to both
Tej Tadi, interpret the results and provide a
programme of activities for the patient,
and the intent is to stimulate healing.
30 “It’s about training the brain early on to
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘MINDMOTION GO’
31
capitalise on neuroplasticity and the The Go tracks the user’s body

capability of the brain to heal itself.” without the need for markers, leaving
The MindMotion Go is a longer term them to move more freely and interact
solution for a clinical setting. It utilises by using their entire body. A broad
consumer technology, in this case suite of activities is available to target
Microsoft’s motion sensing Kinect different parts of the body, with each
camera, once again paired with having a more deliberately video
a screen. “We still customise from game-like aesthetic.
a software perspective by putting in a “The Go is a portable device that
lot of improved filtering and tracking comes a bit later down the line, targeting
algorithms,” says Tadi. “But the Go specific skill sets that might need fine
shows the capability of off-the-shelf tuning,” explains Tadi. “There’s also
hardware to showcase just what our much more of a gamification focus.”
content can do.” That gamification manifests in the form
32 of collectibles to aim for to increase exercises that are the meat and
your score, and successive levels of potatoes of rehabilitation.
difficulty within each activity. As you That, however, is not Tadi’s preferred
might imagine, considering the term for what MindMaze is doing. “It’s
different capabilities of patients, the not just neurorehabilitation,” he says.
range of motion necessary to control “I call it neurorestoration, because
what is happening can be tweaked, what we’re able to do with our
just as with the Pro. platform is to accelerate the ability of
There’s an intentional symmetry the brain to learn and recover.” That
to the setting of the activities and the philosophy bleeds into MindMaze’s
ways in which they are controlled. future plans. “Both injured brains
You might be tasked with piloting a and healthy brains share similar
plane by stretching out your arms mechanisms. By understanding the
and bending at the hips, or controlling injured brain, we can do a lot for
an animal as it crosses a road by the healthy brain too.” MindMotion
stepping in place. The effect is to products have helped in extraordinary
distract you from the repetitive recoveries, such as that of Andy Ibbot
JANUARY 2020
“BY UNDERSTANDING the brain to better coordinate input
from sensors. “The brain’s everyday
THE INJURED BRAIN, integration of multiple senses is

something that we want to replicate.
WE CAN DO A LOT That’s the cognitive platform. It’s
FOR THE HEALTHY

going to be able to get data from
cameras, from inertial sensors, from
BRAIN TOO” brain sensors, and the CogniChip will

do the work that your brain does for
— you to put it together. There are
Tej Tadi, applications in transport, aviation,
automotive, gaming, communications,
pretty much everything that we do.”
who successfully completed the As MindMaze goes into the future, 33
marathon he had been training for Tadi sees continuing expansion in the
before suffering a stroke. medical arena, but also harbours the
Such successes have left Tadi to broader ambitions inherent to the
ponder future applications. “What CogniChip. “One aim is to consolidate
we’d love is for them to come back to the digital therapy vision for healthcare.
more than what they were originally The other axis is heading towards
capable of. Can we bring someone partnership with multiple industries.
back to 100%? It’s still to be seen. We’ve already been involved in the
They’re obviously much better off motor sport business, in racing and
than where they would be without safety, the gaming industry and virtual
MindMaze, but what we’d love to see reality. We’re looking both ways.”
is an enhancement of their skill set.”
The ambition of harnessing the
brain’s potential lies behind the firm’s
long gestating CogniChip, which
seeks to apply lessons learnt from
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H AV E Y O U S E E N O U R O T H E R T I T L E S ?
D I G I TA L D I S R U P T I O N
In this special report, Gigabit explores

the changing face of smart cities
and how edge computing is key to
meeting the data centre demands of
an increasingly urbanised future
WRITTEN BY
HARRY MENE AR
36
SMART CITY
DATA CENTRES
HEADING FOR
THE
EDGE
JANUARY 2020
37
H
uman history has, you could argue, been
one long, sustained gravitation towards
the city in the search for power, work,
safety, culture, opportunity, fame, fortune, com-
panionship and – increasingly – a better cup of
coffee. The city’s presence in the collective human
consciousness is monolithic and colossal. From
the stark skyscrapers and sleek monorails of Fritz
Lang’s Metropolis to the dancing neon and search-
lights that criss-cross the sky in Katsuhiro Otomo’s
vision of Neo Tokyo, the city has forever been a
38 cumulative expression of humanity’s greatest
achievements and deepest subconscious identity.
In 1950, just over 751mn people lived in cities.
Today, that figure has grown to exceed 4.2bn.
More than half of the world’s population live in cities,
a figure that the United Nations predicts will reach as
high as 68% by 2050, adding a further 2.5bn people
to urban environments around the globe. Our cities
are getting bigger, more crowded and more numer-
ous. Right now, more than 120 new cities are under
construction in over 40 countries. Urban environ-
ments that grew organically to accommodate the
movements of the horse and cart now contend with
the movements of millions of cars every day.
Congestion is far from the only challenge that
the swelling ranks of urban humans face: pollution,
longer food supply chains, crime, climate change,
JANUARY 2020
39
“AT THE HEART OF ALL SMART

CITIES ARE THE DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGIES THAT OFFER
IMPORTANT POTENTIAL
FOR TRANSFORMATION”
—
Daniel Valle,
EMEA Chief Technologist, WWT
income inequality, siloed and unwieldy

“THE ULTIMATE GOAL government bureaucracy, corruption,
FOR SMART CITIES lack of access to healthcare, housing
SHOULD BE TO and education - all these factors and

more contribute to make meeting the
UTILISE THE challenges of the modern city a daunt-
INSIGHTS THAT WILL ing task. This doesn’t mean it’s not
ALLOW FOR THE a task worth rising to.

The midday sun beats down over
IMPROVEMENT AND Dubai, sparkling against the glass tower
DEVELOPMENT OF of the Burj Khalifa and the waters of
THE PHYSICAL the Persian Gulf. A dozen rotors dis-

turb the boiling air as an autonomous,
40 WORLD AROUND US” electric passenger drone lowers itself
— through the sky and onto a docking

Wael Elrifai, station, ready to carry a young family
VP of Big Data, IOT & AI, Hitachi Vantara in the direction of downtown.
In the 3,500 person city of Kala-
satama – which is being built on the
outskirts of Helsinki, Finland – an
elderly man drops a bag of refuse into
a vacuum tube that carries it away to
an underground disposal centre. He
doesn’t have to brave the sharp winter
air and he hasn’t been stuck behind
a garbage truck since he moved here.
Adding up the time reclaimed by anti-
congestion measures and other town
planning, Kalasatama’s developers say
that living there gives every resident,
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘VOLOCOPTER – DUBAI PUBLIC DEMONSTRATION FLIGHT’
41
on average, an hour of their day back All around the world, cities are
that the rest of the world spends in using technology to make their
traffic or in line for goods and services. streets safer and less congested,
Thought to trace its roots back more their air more breathable, and to pro-
than 10,000 years, Matera in southern vide more complete and convenient
Italy is – after Jericho and Aleppo – experiences to the people that live
thought to be the third-oldest city in in them. However, networks of
the world. Today, at the end of a long autonomous vehicles, augmented
and often troubled past, the ancient reality experiences, and AI-powered
stones of the cliffside city are soon digital displays - along with traffic
to be covered by one of the first 5G monitoring systems, facial recognition
networks in Europe. Old meets new, as technology, machine learning enabled
tourists to Matera can experience the garbage collection and virtually every
city using extensive augmented reality other smart city solution – requires
(AR) and virtual reality (VR) offerings. something: data.
“The ultimate goal for smart cities

should be to utilise the insights that will
allow for the improvement and devel-
opment of the physical world around
us,” says Wael Elrifai, VP of Big Data,
IOT and AI at Hitachi Vantara. “Unlock-
ing today’s data centre capabilities will
be a game changer for this success.”
For smart cities to function success-
fully, cutting edge data infrastructure
is a necessity. “It’s no secret that in
order for smart cities to become fully
integrated they need a data-centric
42 solution that will remove the strain
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘WEJO – SMARTER JOURNEYS FOR ALL’
JANUARY 2020
consumers of energy in a modern city,
their construction is highly controlled
in markets like Europe, where cities
like Amsterdam – the region’s largest
data centre hub – are starting to put
the kibosh on any new builds at all.
However, this creates an issue.
Smart cities – particularly those invest-
ing heavily in IoT – are finding them-
selves generating actionable insights
from their data more quickly and
efficiently. “In the event of a serious
car accident, edge computing can
process the vehicle data and alert 43
local services,” adds Ciaran Dynes,
from the existing data infrastructure. SVP of Talend. “Another example of
Data centres will play a pivotal role how smart cities are harnessing edge
here in building the cities of the future computing is with traffic management.
as IoT and smart applications require With the help of connected car start-
improved connectivity, data storage and ups like wejo, relevant organisations
computing power,” Elrifai continues. across the city can get better real-time
The modern data centre landscape predictions and accuracy on routings.
has seen dual trends take hold of it in This can help reduce congestion by re-
the last few years. First, the maxim that routing away from high-traffic routes.
“bigger is better” has seen global adop- This data can also be used to help
tion of hyperscale facilities reach new urban planners design roads and cities
heights. A large driver behind the con- based on movement.”
struction of these large, centralised Ankur Singla, founder and CEO of
facilities is market regulation. Because Volterra notes that “these projects
a data centre is one of the biggest generate huge amounts of data; so
much that it can’t all be sent back to the volume of deployed devices and
the cloud in order to be processed the need for edge computing solutions.
or stored securely. Even though 5G Hosting edge computing nodes closer
will bring real-world bandwidth im- to the network edge where the data is
provements of around four to six generated will be a huge focus for car-
times, the economics still don’t work. riers and digital urban planners alike.
It just doesn’t make financial sense to Network traffic which does not need to
send this amount of data to the cloud flow through a core before being deliv-
for analytics”. ered back to the device leads to faster
In such a climate, though it’s easier response times and more efficient
for enterprises to obtain permission for citizen services.”
a single hyperscale facility than for a Going forward, citizen-centric smart
dozen edge facilities, the economics of cities like Barcelona - which have
44 bandwidth are demanding a new solu- seen sweeping initiatives improve the
tion. Which brings us to trend number
two: the rise of the Edge.
The exponential explosion of data
“EVEN THOUGH 5G WILL
ignited by a smart city, supporting BRING REAL-WORLD
everything from self-driving trash cans BANDWIDTH
to citywide facial recognition technol- IMPROVEMENTS OF
ogy, creates a problem that modern AROUND FOUR TO
networks and hyperscale data centres
SIX TIMES, IT JUST
alike are ill equipped to cope with. For
DOESN’T MAKE FINANCIAL
Daniel Valle, EMEA Chief Technolo-
gist at World Wide Technology (WWT),
SENSE TO SEND THIS
the problem is simple. “As demand AMOUNT OF DATA TO THE
for connected services increases, so CLOUD FOR ANALYTICS”
too does the congestion across the —
network,” he explains. “Therefore, Ciaran Dynes,
SVP, Talend
there is a direct correlation between
JANUARY 2020
quality of every service from water edge computing presents a new
management to transportation - will decentralised way of seizing the
be, the experts believe, driven more opportunities and tackling the haz-
than anything by the migration of data ards brought about by urban transi-
centre infrastructure to the edge. tion. Edge computing allows large
“At the heart of all smart cities are the amounts of complex data to be
digital technologies that offer impor- processed and analysed instantane-
tant potential for transformation. ously at the devices themselves. This
In recent years, edge computing has has been recognised as essential
one of these digital technologies in removing barriers and fulfilling vi-
creating a buzz within the smart cities sions like autonomous driving. Moving
space due to the many IoT-based use forward cities all over the world will
cases it enables,” concludes Valle. be looking for ways to include edge
“Unlike the centralised vision before it, computing into their architecture.” 45
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘BARCELONA – A SMART CITY’
CLOUD
AS COLLABORATIVE ROBOTS – OR ‘COBOTS’ –

46 INCREASINGLY FIND THEIR WAY INTO THE
WORKPLACE, GIGABIT TAKES A LOOK AT SOME
OF THE COMPANIES PUSHING THE INDUSTRY
TOWARDS AN ADOPTION TIPPING POINT
WRITTEN BY HARRY MENE AR
JANUARY 2020
47
CLOUD
48
C
ollaborative robots - ‘cobots’ – coupled with what Harvey Lewis,
are nothing new. Invented in an Associate Partner at EY, calls
1996 by J Edward Colgate and the “transition from occupations to
Michael Peshkin, two professors at task-based work,” wherein division
Northwestern University, cobots are of labour and increasingly specialised
robots designed to function alongside job roles create more and more
a human in a shared workspace, and specialised requirements, may be
are usually built with strict safety pushing the technology towards
measures to ensure the safety of their a mass adoption tipping point.
human coworkers. Today, cobots are the fastest
While cobot technology has been growing segment of industrial
around for over twenty years, recent automation, and a report on a BMW
improvements in the software that assembly plant published in the MIT
supports automated workers, technology review found that, when
JANUARY 2020
49
humans and robots worked side by period, engine and filtration system
side, there was an 85% reduction in manufacturer Cummins announced
workers’ idle time when they collabo- that it would more than double the
rated with robots. When interviewed number of cobots active in its plants by
about the addition of cobots to the the end of the year. Currently, cobots
BMW manufacturing plant in Spartan- and cobot manufacturers present
burg, the VP of Assembly noted that roughly two functional solutions: the
the German automaker believes there arm and the platform.
is no foreseeable day when robots will As cobots begin to take on larger
replace humans entirely on the factory and larger roles, particularly in the
floor. “Ideas come from people, and a manufacturing and logistics sectors,
robot is never going to replace that,” Gigabit Magazine takes a look at a few
he told the MIT Technology Review. of the companies leading the transfor-
In the lead up to the Christmas mation of our workforce.
CLOUD
“CURRENTLY, UNIVERSAL ROBOTS – THE COBOT KING

With 27,000 more units sold than
COBOTS AND COBOT the next-largest manufacturer of

cobots, Danish manufacturer
MANUFACTURERS Universal Robots is a clear leader

in the industry. The BMW plant at
PRESENT ROUGHLY Spartanburg and Cummins, among
TWO FUNCTIONAL
many more leading manufacturers,
currently use the company’s
SOLUTIONS: THE ARM

collaborative robotic solutions.
Universal Robots attributes its
AND THE PLATFORM” success to the fact its robotic arms are
designed with an emphasis on being
50 lightweight and, more importantly, very
JANUARY 2020
CLICK: TO
CLICK TO WATCH WATCH : ‘XXXXXXXXXXX
‘UNIVERSAL ROBOTS – THE XXXXXXXXX
NEW UR16E COLLABORATIVE
XXXXXXXXX’ ROBOT’
51
simple to programme and reprogramme offices for each company, hosts a joint
by people who are not necessarily showroom where the latest technol-
robotics experts. According to the ogy and applications for cobots will
company, “This enables the possibilities be demonstrated.
for small and medium sized companies At the launch, Jürgen von Hollen,
to implement robots into the production, President of Universal Robots said:
even though they do not possess the “We have chosen Barcelona because it
robot expertise inside the company.” gives us access to qualified resources,
In November, Universal Robots and ability to attract talent from around the
fellow Danish cobot manufacturer world, a vibrant business activity and
Mobile Industrial Robotics (MIR) good infrastructure.”
celebrated the opening of a new
(appropriately) collaborative automa-
tion centre in Barcelona. The facility
covers 1,500 sqm and, in addition to
CLOUD
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘LOCUS ROBOTICS –DHL CASE STUDY’

52
LOCUS ROBOTICS CORPS –

PICKING UP THE SLACK “SPOT UNITS COULD
The holidays are the peak months
for the logistics industry. In the US,
SERVE AS EVERYTHING
companies like XPO Logistics often FROM A METHANE
DETECTOR IN A MINE FAR
bring on as many as 20,000 seasonal
workers in order to handle the Christ-
mas rush. As the scope of ecom-
merce’s impact on the global logistics
UNDERGROUND TO A
sector expands, coupled with lower WORKSHOP ASSISTANT
employment levels across the country,
distributors are struggling to handle the OR EVEN AS A LOCATION
SCOUT FOR MOVIES”
constant growth in demand for labour.
The solution, companies like fashion
JANUARY 2020
retailer Geodis believe, is to bump up lasers, cameras, and other sensors to
the number of cobots in their distribu- aid their human co-workers. They can
tion centres. According to a Wall direct their human counterparts to the
Street Journal report, the French fast proper aisles and shelves, or carry bins
fashion manufacturer is boosting its of items between workstations. Locus
robotic workforce by 75% to cope with claims that a deployment of its fleet
the coming holidays. can increase picking efficiency by as
Supplying more than 500 of these much as 300% and increase accuracy
robots to an array of logistics firms to nearly 100%.
this holiday season is Locus Robotics,
a five-year-old company based in
Virginia. Locus’s robots are designed
to work alongside humans, deploying
53
CLOUD
54
BOSTON DYNAMICS – four-legged, semi-autonomous robot

AN ARM AND SOME LEGS with exceptional balance and agility.
(In)famous for its attention-grabbing The unit’s top speed is 3mph, it can
videos of bipedal and quadrupedal carry up to 14kg and its battery lasts
robots crossing assault courses, doing about 90 minutes. Boston Dynamics
parkour and even opening doors, has started renting Spot units to indus-
Boston Dynamics has been pushing try partners for roughly the cost of
the envelope when it comes to robotics renting a car. The general consensus
for more than a decade. However, the is that, having created something
Massachusetts-based company had undeniably cool, the company is trying
been slow to produce a robot that it to figure out whether or not it’s created
can take to market, until September something useful.
2019 when it launched Spot. At first glance, it’s not explicitly clear
Standing roughly three feet tall and whether or not Spot is a true cobot or
weighing in at about 70lbs, Spot is a a robot designed to replace human
JANUARY 2020
labour, rather than complement it. although Boston Dynamics has
The answer to that question will emphatically stated it will not sell or
undoubtedly lie in the two ports on lease Spot to any organisation that
Spot’s back. These points allow for would use it for harmful purposes, so
modular attachments to be added to a small weapons platform looks to be
a Spot, like the articulated arm that out of the question, for now. Also,
allows it to open doors. The added Spot units fulfil the other main criteria
functionality of these attachments for a robot to have potential as a cobot:
– which users can add to the units harmlessness. The units are cute,
themselves - means that Spot units yellow, and about the size of a labrador.
could serve as everything from a And they dance.
methane detector in a mine far
underground to a workshop assistant,
or even a location scout for movies -– 55
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘BOSTON DYNAMICS – SPOT LAUNCH’
56
JANUARY 2020
Smart Cities
57
Gigabit counts down

the world’s Top 10 smart
cities, with reference to the
IMD Smart City Index 2019
WRITTEN BY
WILLIAM SMITH
T O P 10
1.54mn
POPULATION (2016)
$96bn+
GDP (2016)
58
10 Düsseldorf
GERMANY
Only the seventh-largest German city, Düsseldorf nevertheless

exceeds its peers thanks to a focus on smart mobility and transportation.
This has been achieved in part via collaboration with private enterprise.
In partnership with Deutsche Telekom, the airport has been instru-
mented to examine fatigue. With Siemens, meanwhile, the city has
constructed a testing track for intelligent traffic technologies,
anticipating the future rise of autonomous vehicles.
JANUARY 2020
09 Bilbao
SPAIN
Bilbao is located in the northern Spanish province of Biscay. Its smart

city efforts go hand in hand with its sustainability objectives, which
include a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to
2005 and promotion of cycling. Bilbao is also a member of the EU’s
e-government programme WeLive, targeting the axes of: strategic
vision, smart management, city ecosystem development, infrastructure
development and social cohesion.
59
1.04mn
POPULATION (2016)
$40bn+
GDP (2015)
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1.47mn
POPULATION (2016)
$72bn+
GDP (2015)
61
08 Helsinki
FINLAND
Helsinki explicitly expands the concept of a smart city to encompass the

surrounding countryside, often neglected in such plans. The Helsinki
Smart Region involves projects such as sustainable textile manufacture
and on-demand public transport. The district of Kalasatama is held up
as a specific example of smart city transformation. Previously something
of a wasteland, the area is being redeveloped with in-built smart city
initiatives such as waste management and smart parking.
T O P 10
7.09mn
POPULATION (2014)
$327bn+
GDP (2014)
62
07 Taipei
TAIWAN
Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, runs a governmental project management

office to support the creation of ‘Smart Taipei’. Projects include smart
parking sensors, wireless charging points and smart trash cans that
notify authorities when full. The city also hosts the Smart City Summit
and Expo, which in 2019 attracted over 40,000 visitors with almost
400 speakers. The 2020 event is focusing on AIoT, or the application
of AI to IoT to power the next generation of smart cities.
JANUARY 2020
06 Auckland
NEW ZEALAND
Auckland, in common with many of the cities on this list, is renowned for
both its quality of life, and the cost of such living. Such a combination is
fertile ground for the implementation of smart city initiatives, as the
city’s vision demonstrates. With the aim of becoming the world’s most
liveable city, New Zealand’s most populous conurbation is implementing
environmental monitoring and connecting its citizens through tech-
nologies such as 5G, which can be used to make street lamps smart.
63
1.66mn
POPULATION (2017)
$68bn+
GDP (2018)
How AWS is helping create Silver said. NAB’s Chief Technology
a future-ready Australia & Operations Officer Patrick Wright
said the battle for technology talent
We are at a fascinating point in the in Australia is “fierce”. Wright sees
history and evolution of Australian the NAB Cloud Guild not only as
organisations, where they are using a way to create opportunities for
technology to transform and enhance employees to learn new skills and grow
How AWS
the experiences they bring to their their career in technology, but also
customers.Transformation touches as a means “to attract top talent in
everyone, from government agencies the industry.” “We’re embarking on
including the ATO, Australia Post, a transformation that we think is
is helping
and ABC, digital natives like Atlassian fundamentally changing our ompany,
and Xero, start-ups like Baraja and fundamentally changing the way we
Whooshkaa, to established players work, and launching us into a new era,”
like Qantas, Woodside Energy, NAB,
create a
Wright said. “If you want to build
Linfox, and Fonterra. Having the a company of builders, you have to
right skills in place to drive digital have technology career pathways.”
transformation is critically important, NAB is also taking some cues on best
future-ready
as is a willingness to embrace change practices from AWS as it continues
and shift to a more agile, collaborative on its digital transformation journey.
culture.AWS help organisations of all The bank recently tackled the AWS 50
shapes and sizes with their most critical in 50 program, which involves getting
Australia
issues and opportunities. Together, 50 applications into the cloud in
we create enduring change and results. just 50 days. It was a clear signal of
Let AWS help create enduring change the speed and agility that NAB now
and strategies for you. wants to operate. “AWS’s passion for
customers aligns well with what
NAB’s Cloud Guild drives we are doing at NAB and we’re also
new tech skills learning from them along the way as
NAB is watching a new approach to well,” Silver said. “It’s been a really
learning develop inside of the bank good partnership to work with them.”
as it approaches the first anniversary
of an ambitious program to train its Woodside Energy leveraging
workforce in the ways of cloud. The data to seize growth
program, called the NAB Cloud Guild, opportunities
was intended to enable “more than
Woodside Energy is the pioneer of the
2000” NAB employees to acquire or
liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry
build cloud skills in support of the
in Australia, and the largest Australian
bank’s $1.5 billion “digital-first”
natural gas producer. Woodside’s
transformation.Inside of the first year,
producing LNG assets in Australia’s
the Cloud Guild is already tracking
north-west Pilbara region are among
well ahead of that goal.“The results
the world’s best facilities, renowned
of the NAB Cloud Guild have been
outstanding,” NAB’s Manager Engineer
for their safety, reliability and efficiency.
Now, Woodside is seeking to create
Learn more
and Cloud Guild Founder Paul Silver
an integrated LNG production centre
said. “Within the first 10 months, we’ve
– the Burrup Hub - that would see new
had about 4000 people who’ve gone
Scarborough and Browse gas resources
through the program so far in a one
processed through the Woodside-
or three day course. “When we started,
operated Pluto LNG and Karratha
we had seven people in the whole
Gas Plant. To help realise this vision,
organisation who were certified in AWS
Woodside is leveraging gains from
cloud. There are now over 400 people
its data science and intelligent asset
who are certified”.Silver can already
work programs over weeks and days,
see change as a result of the program.
instead of months and years, allowing
“What we’ve found after people have
the company to make decisions sooner,
done the three-day associate courses
using richer data. Innovation has
is they’re becoming self-learners,
always been part of Woodside’s DNA.
which is fantastic,” he said. “AWS has
Applying cloud technology is helping
great digital content we can consume
Woodside accelerate the traditional
and use inside our organisation. After
oil and gas project innovation cycle
people get their first certification,
from years, down to months. Woodside
they’re actually going off and self-
uses AWS cloud as the foundation for
learning this content with the outcome
optimising production in real time, by
of getting more certifications, in-turn
running high -speed algorithms to
leading to better outcomes for NAB.”
uncover new insights and opportunities
The learning culture is expected to
to deliver extra value. Woodside can
have a strong impact on NAB’s project,
run 10,000 algorithms per hour, taking
which includes a target of moving 35
data from over 200,000 sensors
percent of its 2500 IT applications
attached to its Pluto LNG plant. The
into the cloud within the next three-to-
company remains focused on reaching
five years. “With AWS’ help we’ve
all Woodside employees with this work.
been able to drive outcomes incredibly
Digital at Woodside is not just about
fast. This is helping us meet our
customer expectations a lot faster
‘gear’; it’s honing and changing the Visit awsinsight.com.au to find out more
way people work, with collaborative how AWS is able to help you thrive in
than we have been able to in the past,”
partnerships playing a key role.
today’s digital economy.
2.05mn
POPULATION (2016)
$111bn+
GDP (2016)
65
05 Copenhagen
DENMARK
Copenhagen is pursuing its smart city initiative with gusto, targeting

achievements in the short term such as becoming 100% carbon neutral
by 2025. Other initiatives include the likes of improving access to data,
long term planning to protect the environment and partnerships between
the private and public sector. On that last point, the city says that its efforts
have a clear economic imperative. Some 250 companies are involved
in smart city activities, with two thirds of those being “small” companies.
T O P 10
04 Geneva
SWITZERLAND
The first of two Swiss cities on this list, demonstrating the country’s
focus in this area, Geneva’s smart city ambitions act as a model for
the rest of the world, not least because of its diplomatic clout as the
HQ of UN organisations such as the World Health Organisation.
One initiative saw the installation of sensors throughout the city to
provide information, such as free parking spaces, and measure traffic
noise. The city is partnering with companies such as SIG to transition
to sustainable local energy sources.
66
585,400
POPULATION (2016)
$35bn+
GDP (2015)
JANUARY 2020
1.34mn
POPULATION (2016)
$90bn+
GDP (2016)
67
03 Oslo
NORWAY
Norway’s capital’s Smart Oslo project has the stated aim of making
the city smarter and greener as well as more inclusive and creative.
It offers a large suite of apps for citizens, allowing such diverse activ-
ities as payments for parking, access to statistics and reporting of
local issues. The city is testing initiatives such as electric buses and
the retrofitting of old buildings with greener energy systems, while
also ensuring construction sites reduce their carbon footprints
thanks to zero-emissions tenders.
T O P 10
68
02 Zurich
Switzerland
Switzerland’s largest city has a reputation for smartness matching
the one it has for liveability. Specific projects undertaken at the city
include centralised access to all of the city’s online services, a city-
wide Internet of Things network known as LoRaWAN, and a plan to
electrify most public transport by 2030. Zurich’s programme also
has an explicitly green focus, pondering the issue of emissions from
intra-city transportation. Efforts are also being made to not lose sight
of citizens as new technology comes in.
JANUARY 2020
1.34mn
POPULATION (2016)
$84bn+
GDP (2015)
69
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SMART CITIES – FIA IN ZURICH 2018’
T O P 10
5.7mn
POPULATION (2019)
$364bn+
GDP (2018)
70
JANUARY 2020
01 Singapore
SINGAPORE
The city-state of Singapore is a hub for finance and logistics, allowing it
to punch above its weight to achieve an estimated GDP of $372.8bn in
2019. Singapore is investing serious funds into its Smart Nation Initiative,
the smart city project launched in 2014. In 2017, the city-state’s Finance
Minister Heng Swee Keat said that $2.4bn would be invested in digitali-
sation over the ensuing four years. Pillars of the programme include
digitalisation of the economy, the government and society at large.
71
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SMART CITIES: SINGAPORE’
EVENTS &
A S S O C I AT I O N S
We round up the biggest and best technology events and

conferences from around the world… EDITED BY HARRY MENEAR
16-17 JAN 2020

Microsoft Ignite
[ LONDON ]
Microsoft Ignite, the tech giant’s indus-
07-10 JAN 2020 try-leading conference aimed at
72 CES 2020 bringing together the best and brightest
[ LAS VEGAS ] in the cloud sector for talks, networking
As it does every year, global tech industry events and demonstrations, is on tour.
is kicking off 2020 with an annual rite With the MEA leg beginning in Paris on
that verges on a religious pilgrimage for 13 November, 2019, and ending in
anyone passionate about AR/VR, IoT, Stockholm on 6 May 2020, the multi-
AI, ML and any other number of tech city series of conferences is the best
initials you care to name. The Consumer opportunity for SMEs and corporations
Electronics Show takes place at the tart alike to learn, connect and explore
of each year in the Las Vegas Convention cloud-based opportunities for their
Centre and attracts more than 175,000 business. At the London event, which is
people every year. From sports tech being held at the ExCel, demonstrations
and robotics to advertising and smart and keynote speeches are going to be
homes, the future of tech will be on interspersed with frequent networking
display at CES. opportunities.
JANUARY 2020
20-21 JAN 2020
European Blockchain
Convention
[ BARCELONA ]
The European Blockchain Convention
(which alternates between Barcelona 73
and Copenhagen) is one of the defin-
ing events for all things crypto and
powered by digital ledger. This year’s 24-27 FEB 2020
event is expected to play host to more MWC
than 600 tech leaders, regulators, [ BARCELONA ]
investors, corporations, developers With thousands set to descend on
and entrepreneurs from the industry. Barcelona for the event, MWC (formerly
Its talks, seminars and events are Mobile World Congress) promises to
expected to focus on real-world appli- be an unmissable technology congress.
cations for blockchain and digital Hosting groundbreaking innovations
ledger technology across multiple from almost 2,500 companies and over
industries, including energy, finance, 100,000 delegates, MWC stands as one
supply chain, government, insurance, of the largest conferences in the world
healthcare, retail and mobility. centred around mobile technologies.
EVENTS &
A S S O C I AT I O N S
74
24-26 MAR 2020

Money 20/20 Asia
[ SINGAPORE ]
Asia’s famously grandiose technology “Complacency is the enemy,” warn
and fintech conference focuses the organisers. Money 20/20
on helping entrepreneurs and large carefully curates its content each
enterprises maintain the pace of year in order to present the very lead-
innovation and network with like-mind- ing edge in business and financial
ed individuals and thought leaders. strategy to its host of attendees.
JANUARY 2020
13-15 MAY
ITB China
[ SHANGHAI ] 02-04 JUNE 2020
ITB China is a three-day business to DataCloud World
business travel trade fair that focuses Congress
exclusively on the Chinese travel indus- [ MONACO ] 75
try. As the largest B2B-exclusive travel Next year, Monaco will be home to the
trade show in China, ITB China brings 17th annual DataCloud World Congress,
together top and hand selected buyers bringing together a variety of experts in
with industry professionals from all over the cloud, data centre and IT infrastructure
the world, and provides various net- markets. Touting itself as “the premier
working events and a unique state of leadership summit for critical IT infra-
the art matchmaking system to structure”, the event promises to cover
enhance networking and maximize everything from cloud challenges to
business opportunities. ITB China 2020 edge evolution. Speakers at last years’
will take place from Wednesday to Fri- event included: Michel Fraisse, VP,
day, 13 to 15 May, at the Shanghai World Europe, Huawei, Jeffrey Ferry, Director,
Expo Exhibition and Convention Centre Goldman Sachs and Glenn Fitzgerald,
in Hall 1. The ITB China Conference will Chief Technology Officer, Product
take place parallel with the show. Business, Fujitsu EMEIA.
GOLDEN HIPPO
GOLDEN HIPPO
DRIVING A
76
WORLD-CLASS
SUPPLY CHAIN
WRITTEN BY
MATT HIGH
PRODUCED BY
DENITRA PRICE
JANUARY 2020
77
GOLDEN HIPPO
FAREEN MEHRZAI, THE

ARCHITECT BEHIND GOLDEN
HIPPO’S SUPPLY CHAIN
TRANSFORMATION, TELLS
US HER STORY
T
he most exciting thing about a career in
supply chain is that you’re never done.
You’re always striving to optimise, to
improve, to gain an advantage and understand the
opportunities that are out there in order to get bet-
ter and continue learning,” says Fareen Mehrzai,
Director of Supply Chain at Golden Hippo. For the
78 past year Mehrzai, a highly experienced supply
chain and operations director with a proven track
record for leading integrated operations pro-
grammes for globally recognised brands, has been
doing all those things at Golden Hippo.
The business is one of the United States’ leading
direct response marketing organisations, building
and marketing category-leading brands and unique,
best-in-class products direct to consumers in four
areas: supplements, beauty, and pet and human
food. Each of these is driven by Golden Hippo’s
overarching vision of helping as many people as
possible, capitalising on its unique organisational
culture to provide the highest quality of service, and
focusing on sustainable health and wellness. The
latter is neatly summarised by its tagline – ‘a good
life begins with good health’.
JANUARY 2020
79
A GLOBAL LEADER
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PET FOOD & TREATS
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info@canature.ca
604.856.3886
GOLDEN HIPPO
“THE MOST EXCITING Since 2018, Golden Hippo has been

on a significant supply chain transfor-
THING ABOUT A mation journey built around three key
CAREER IN SUPPLY elements of people, service and cost,

and driven to achieve a supremely
CHAIN IS THAT YOU’RE strong and well-performing opera-
NEVER DONE” tional engine. Mehrzai, who joined the
business in October 2018, has led this
transformation, building, mentoring and
Fareen Mehrzai,
Director of Supply Chain, leading a team that both embodies the
Golden Hippo company’s culture and is resilient and
agile enough to manage the change
process. “The last year has been really
82 exciting,” she states. “You never fully
understand what you’re getting into
when you take on a new role, but the
opportunity to join Golden Hippo at
this point in its evolution was an intrigu-
ing one. We’re on a strong growth
trajectory, and there is an energy and
synergy rooted within the company’s
culture unlike any other. In many roles,
you either join a business to maintain
or to create – here we get to maintain
the foundations we have and build for
the future at the same time.”
Expanding on those foundations,
Mehrzai describes Golden Hippo
as a unique business that owns and
operates its brands and is vertically
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘GOLDEN HIPPO COMPANY VIDEO’
83
integrated. A culture of openness, col- For example, Mehrzai describes an

laboration and innovation underpins environment that fosters ideas and a
every aspect of its operations and has creative approach to operations, and
ensured an enviable level of strength which thrives on values such as test
in depth. “We have experts in every everything and fail fast, allowing the
field,” she affirms. “Whether that’s best idea to win regardless of its origin,
brand ideation and creation, product being responsible for and learning
development, copywriting, media buy- from mistakes, and mentoring and
ing, video production and editing, right educating others.
through to reputation management “When I was building my team, I real-
and SEO, distribution and fulfilment.” ised relatively quickly that I could find
The company’s founders and sen- the best technically sound and profi-
ior management team embody the cient individuals in whichever role I was
culture that has made this possible. hiring for,” Mehrzai comments. “But, if
An experience
so seamless,
you will feel
like we’re
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86
they don’t embody and embrace those strives to be employee-centric.”

aspects of our culture that make us so A lot has changed for Mehrzai in the
strong, then it will be really difficult for 12 months since. Principally, her role
them to thrive here. We’ve built a team has been the driving of Golden Hippo’s
of strong supply chain professionals supply chain transformation in order
who are agile and flexible, and who to take it “from transactional to world-
consistently go above and beyond class” - a task she likens to changing
to service our internal and external the wheels on a car while it continues
customers. I attribute that in part to on its journey. “We didn’t have the
great recruiting, a strong onboard- luxury of stepping back, observing for
ing programme and a culture that three months and developing a plan of
JANUARY 2020
Fareen Mehrzai
Fareen Mehrzai is Supply Chain leader who develops and executes
integrated operations programs to expand her organisations’
footprint while optimising all aspects of commercial operations.
Mehrzai is a strong people leader with a proven track record of
mentoring and developing top tier talent. In order to ensure cost
reduction, she fosters an environment supportive of continuous
network optimisation, maximizing vendor and co-manufacturing
relationships and financial terms for mutual benefit, driving
inefficiencies out of internal and external processes and challenging
norms for step function cost improvements. A staunch proponent
of continuous improvement, as a matter of routine Mehrzai
instills a ‘Zero Waste’ mindset in individuals and teams 87
around her.
Examples of how she has optimised costs, streamlined
process f lows, and led large-scale initiatives include:
Strategic planning: led the re-design and re-launch of
Nestle’s marketing procurement operational master
plan, enabling 150%+ of savings targets.
Process improvement: spearheaded the development
of a framework to adopt business improvement tools
and methodologies by leveraging extensive Six Sigma
knowledge, leading to savings of $60M.
Global team engagement: enhanced efficiency,
transparency, and resources while leading a
diverse team of directors, managers, associates,
and direct and indirect reports including
finance, and sales.
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89
attack, it was all hands on deck from servicing every brand, team and indi-
the very start,” she explains. Initially, vidual.” Golden Hippo’s ownership of
Mehrzai set out the key elements of its brands provides a unique supply
a world class supply chain: people, chain challenge, in that Mehrzai and
service and cost. These factors led to her team’s customers are all present
the forming of defined teams within the in the same working environment.
supply chain group based around plan- A significant part of the transforma-
ning, procurement, analytics and more. tion, she notes, has been around
“Supply chain, in any organisation, changing the supply chain team’s role
is not a revenue driving function, it’s in these relationships from one that
a support function,” she states. “Every was defensive or reactive to being
day, the goal for my team and I is to proactive and forward looking. “The
provide more value to the business approach that we take with all our
and always question how we are vendors or partners is ‘their success
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is our success’,” says Mehrzai. “As “THERE’S A REALLY STRONG
a result, many of the key milestones STRUCTURE IN PLACE,
in our transformation journey so far
AND AN ENERGY AND
have been centered around fostering
SYNERGY ROOTED WITHIN
stronger partnerships, particularly for
our supplier partnerships, and set- THE COMPANY’S CULTURE
ting out a framework and roadmap UNLIKE ANY OTHER”
for progressing from a transactional
relationship to being more agile and
Fareen Mehrzai,
forward-looking.” Director of Supply Chain,
Mehrzai is a highly experienced Golden Hippo
enabler of change, with a proven
record of strategic planning, process for example, I tell them that I absolutely
management and team management don’t want them to go with the flow, 91
at companies including Nestle, where, I want them to create their own waves.”
over her tenure she held various Reflecting on this aspect, Mehrzai
leadership roles in supply chain, pro- credits her varied career experience
curement and process improvement. with providing several skills that are
Despite that experience, Mehrzai transferable to Golden Hippo’s working
concedes that embarking on Golden environment. In particular, she points
Hippo’s transformation journey has to two pivotal moments: having the
provided a new challenge. “What it opportunity to build a strong process
takes to be successful in a 150-year improvement mindset during her early
old organisation is very different to the career, and spending the next years
way in which you apply yourself in a in “one of the best supply chains in the
younger business,” she explains. “You world” at Nestle, which she describes
have to be more flexible in how you as a great training ground. On the
approach problems, but not necessar- former, Mehrzai says that having the
ily with regards to what you’re trying opportunity to earn Six Sigma Black
to achieve. When people join our team, Belt certification early in her career
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“WHEN PEOPLE JOIN OUR TEAM, FOR EXAMPLE,
I TELL THEM THAT I ABSOLUTELY DON’T WANT
THEM TO GO WITH THE FLOW, I WANT THEM TO
CREATE THEIR OWN WAVES”
Fareen Mehrzai, 93
Director of Supply Chain,
Golden Hippo
“forever changed how I think about and foster an environment that is both
approach any problems I face. It’s a par- supportive and collaborative. “I’m lucky
ticularly important mindset to adopt if that this kind of culture already existed
you work in a supply chain-related role”. at Golden Hippo when I joined,” she
Leadership is an important skill to explains. “Our cross-functional collabo-
Mehrzai. As a strong people leader with ration, for example, has been one of the
a record of mentoring and developing key aspects of our success. There’s
top tier talent, she enjoys sharing those little bureaucracy and the timely shar-
skills learned over her career with oth- ing of knowledge and expertise is really
ers at Golden Hippo. When it comes important to how we operate.”
to team building, she is a proponent of On a more personal level, Mehrzai
continuous improvement and a ‘zero enjoys the opportunity to educate
waste’ mindset, and always looks to and mentor new or younger members
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95
of Golden Hippo’s team. Outside of great at producing results, but also

her role, she is a proud faculty mem- teaching and nurturing as they pro-
ber of the California State University gressed; we’re all capable of so much
Northridge, Systems and Operations if we have people around who support
Management Department, where she and educate us.”
teaches future operations leaders. Mehrzai seeks to encourage and
She admits her passion for educating build relationships in an organic fash-
comes as a result of how much she ion. “Really, it should be about having
enjoys her work, explaining that “the people in your life that you can learn
opportunity to translate even a frac- from, go to lunch with or reach out to
tion of that energy and passion to when you have any issues. We have
tomorrow’s supply chain leaders is so an amazing mentorship programme
exciting to me. The best leaders I’ve at Golden Hippo that I encourage
worked for in my career were not only everyone to be a part of. Whether part
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97
of a formal mentorship programme or level of the business has been key to

not, sharing, encouraging and building implementing new practices. “Every
advocates around you that can ignite idea might not always be possible,” she
your passion are so important, what- adds, “but for an employee to really
ever level or role you operate in.” feel free to voice their opinion is part of
With that sentiment in mind, Mehrzai what makes this organisation unique”.
highlights how Golden Hippo’s supply This sentiment is carried over in
chain has been driven by every indi- Mehrzai’s advocacy of Golden Hippo’s
vidual in the organisation. Top-down ‘operational engine’, as she explains.
leadership is naturally a key facet of “Often you look at businesses like
any change management process, she ours from the outside and you see
states, but empowerment across each the obvious success factors, which
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99
are undoubtedly impressive. What’s “E VERY DAY, THE GOAL

not always seen is the work of those
FOR MY TEAM AND I IS TO
behind the scenes, which in many ways
is the fundamental basis on which all
PROVIDE MORE VALUE
other successes are built.” Golden TO THE BUSINESS AND
Hippo’s operational engine, she says, ALWAYS QUESTION
is built for B2C operation. However, HOW WE ARE SERVICING
as part of the wider transformation
EVERY BRAND, TEAM
journey, the company is now exploring
AND INDIVIDUAL”
retail opportunities and actively build-
ing its international presence. “When
you already have an engine that Fareen Mehrzai,
is built with the inherent flexibility Director of Supply Chain,
Golden Hippo
and responsiveness that ours has,
you have a significant competitive
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JANUARY 2020
“FOR AN EMPLOYEE
TO REALLY FEEL
2012
Year founded
LIKE THEIR VOICE IS
HEARD IS PART OF
WHAT MAKES THIS
HQ
Woodland Hills,
ORGANISATION FEEL California, USA
TRULY SPECIAL”
Fareen Mehrzai,
800
Director of Supply Chain, Number of employees
Golden Hippo (nationwide) 101
advantage when exploring new oppor- well on the path to being a world-
tunities. In terms of our evolution, it class supply chain organisation, but
will play a significant contribution to we’ve many milestones ahead. Some
our growth in 2020 and beyond.” examples include looking to continue
On future growth, Mehrzai is a firm building our process for scale, further
believer that a supply chain has no developing and nurturing key sup-
beginning or end and, instead, con- plier relationships and supporting the
tinues to be an evolutionary process. organisations objectives by enabling
There is, she confirms, still some cost competitiveness. There are always
distance to go in Golden Hippo’s opportunities to improve, to learn and
transformational supply chain journey, to work more effectively. That’s what
particularly in terms of improving pro- makes the job so rewarding.”
cesses, digitising more of its supply
chain and continuing to nurture its key
supplier partner relationships. “We’re
102 Driving digital
transformation in the
fintech industry
WRITTEN BY
SEAN GALEA-PACE
PRODUCED BY
JORDAN HUBBARD
JANUARY 2020
103
AXA GULF
AXA Gulf ’s Siddhaarth Iyer,

Head of Digital, and Yannick
Janssen, Head of Technology
and Innovation, discuss their
company’s digital transform-
ation journey
T
ransformation. It’s a word that has
become synonymous with the financial
services industry in recent years. The
influence of new technology has shaken up the
104 fintech world and encouraged companies world-
wide to seek fresh ways to differentiate their
offerings and stand out from rivals.
As one of the leading insurers globally, AXA is
used to embracing change. A major force in the
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), having been in
the region for over 68 years, AXA in the Gulf covers
the UAE, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar markets. AXA’s
strategic ambition is to be a true partner to its cus-
tomers throughout every stage of their life journey
and empower them to live better lives. Siddhaarth
Iyer, Head of Digital, and Yannick Janssen, Head
of Technology and Innovation, are both key com-
ponents of AXA Gulf’s digital journey and believe in
operating with a collaborative approach. “People
from every line of our business come together to
voice their opinions of the digital path we should
JANUARY 2020
105
take,” explains Iyer. “It’s important we

work together to figure out what is
changing the digital world and how we
can leverage that to grow AXA Gulf.”
With change a consistent theme
in both men’s mantra, Janssen adds
that establishing a mindset to drive
transformation is vital. “It’s impor-
tant that we lead by example,” he
affirms. “We should always be looking
for new ways to drive change.” With
customer-centricity a key pillar of
AXA’s transformation, the company
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AXA GULF
E X ECU T I VE P RO FI LE
Yannick Janssen
Raised in a ‘tech family’, I lit my passion for technology with my
first Apple II, programming games at night for my little brother.
From ancient technologies, through to cutting-edge innovation,
I am all in with technology - as my wife tells me: “you’re a geek”.
I graduated from the prestigious Thunderbird and ESSEC
Business Schools and started my career in strategy and business
intelligence. As an entrepreneur, I launched and invested in
cloud companies. I gained deeper experience in leading fortune
500 transformation programmes, rejuvenating their application,
infrastructure, innovation and operation landscape. I am lucky
now to share my knowledge and vision for the future of
technology during public speaking events and always enjoy
108 mentoring startups in their path to success.
I have enjoyed travelling the world thanks to my
professional experiences, crossing the destiny of
leading companies in their distinct industry (Dell,
Air France, ArcelorMittal, Accenture, Bank of Ireland,
Etisalat…), working on e-government strategy (Ras
Al Khaimah emirate), or preparing iconic events like
Expo 2020.
As Head of Technology Acceleration, I am now
responsible for the technology and innovation
roadmaps of AXA Gulf Insurance in UAE, Oman,
Bahrain and Qatar, and determined to go
beyond our transformation in the new.
Passionate about excellence, I have been
blessed with a National Champion title
in Powerlifting.
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘AXA – FUTURE RISKS : CYBERSECURITY’
109
has created a mobile-first approach.

“With the number of devices constantly
“We should always
increasing, there’s a clear shift in the be looking for
amount of people using our applica-
tion,” adds Iyer. “There’s currently a
new ways to
60/40 split in traffic with 60% using drive change”
our services from a mobile device
—
and 40% from a desktop. In the
Yannick Janssen,
future, I believe that we’ll eventu- Head of Technology and Innovation,
ally just focus on mobile because AXA Gulf
people won’t want to access
applications from anywhere else.
The aim is to become an omnichan-
nel player and in order to achieve
that, you need to be available both Iyer believes that the use of data is
online and offline. But, it is important even more influential. “I believe that
to be aware of how all of our audience the way in which data is consumed is
engages with us and ensure we’re going to transform people’s approach
there for everyone.” to systems,” he explains. “The biggest
With a mobile-first approach con- disruptor in the market is going to be
sidered by some in the fintech space data and how we use it. It will define
as the largest disrupter in the industry, our mobile-first approach.” Janssen
Siddhaarth Iyer
I am a startup guy turned corporate with broad experience in
creating amazing digital journeys for customers across industries
like insurance, agriculture, healthcare, government and procure-
ment tech. I have been a digital-tech guy throughout my career, 111
with a keen focus on customer/user experience and business
innovation. I hold three approved US innovation patents
in the utility and tech space. In my short 12-year
career, products built by me have reached and are
used by more than three million users across multi-
ple countries. Being from the startup community, I
support and mentor many startups in the region, and
back in India. I enjoy my evenings and weekends
with my wife helping her in the kitchen. My wife
and I have a mandatory late night drive every-
day where we catch up on what happened
through the day. Having built a music e-com-
merce startup I love to discover latest music
trends and keep an eye for new artists. I read
and listen to podcasts, learning from others’
experiences. I follow inf luencers like Guy
Kawasaki, Tony Robbins and Simon Sinek.
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“Whether you
succeed or fail,
you’ll learn
along the way”
—
Siddhaarth Iyer,
Head of Digital, AXA Gulf
113
affirms that extracting more ways to “The way they have embraced digitali-
harness data is the key. “We must sation has been amazing. We call them
look at how to get more data than the digital champions because they’re the
customer gives you,” says Janssen. ones who will drive change throughout
“How do you track customer behaviour the organisation,” he affirms. “All of our
and provide them with a value-added employees are onboard and eager to
service that they really want? It’s this adapt their way of working to become
behaviour and analysis which is going more efficient. I believe it’s important
to make all the difference.” to be challenged from a digital stand-
At the heart of AXA Gulf’s transfor- point and I’ve seen that cultural shift
mation drive is its employees, which and drive to embrace technology. It’s
Iyer refers to as ‘digital champions’. Iyer extremely important to us.”
believes their mentality and willingness In a bid to accelerate operations,
to embrace change has been a major AXA Gulf believes in forming strategic
factor behind his company’s success. and sustainable partnerships to assist
AXA GULF
in its transformation drive. “As a large

company, we’re dependant on our
partners to help deliver high quality
solutions for us. We can’t do it our-
selves,” says Iyer. “A good partner must
have speed, agility and be adaptable.
These three core values are essential
and contribute to long-term success.”
Janssen adds that forming the right
partnerships is essential to success.
“I believe that the next step is to ensure
that all our partners recognise that
AXA is centered around technol-
ogy,” adds Janssen. “I want to ensure
114 we’re developing the right technol-
ogy partnerships to help us drive this
transformation.”
As AXA Gulf’s transformation jour-

“The biggest disruptor ney continues to gather momentum,
in the market is Iyer recognises that although his
going to be data and company’s shift to digitalisation has

been challenging at times, it has been
how we use it. It will a significant learning curve and he
define our mobile- instructs other leaders in the industry
first approach” to take the ‘leap of faith’. “There’s
never a right time to do it. Whether you
— succeed or fail, you’ll learn along the
Siddhaarth Iyer,
Head of Digital, AXA Gulf way,” he explains. “We’ve had our own
set of failures and learnt lessons. It’s
important that you always question
JANUARY 2020
1816
Year AXA founded
800
Approximate number
of employees
115
why you’re implementing something. be focused around finding new ways

And if you’ve always answered that to increase sales - that’s the ultimate
question, then you always have the aim,” says Iyer. “It’s important to see
justification to do it.” how we can generate more value and
“Change is led by individuals. I believe offer other services to the customers
that in order to succeed, it’s important we already have. If we have a customer
to have an open mindset to lead that signed up to motor insurance, then
change,” affirms Janssen. “You need they might be interested in our health
to be the best you can be to drive a segment. It’s up to us to ensure our
transformation journey such as this.” solutions are streamlined and simple to
Looking to the future, Iyer and Janssen use for our customers.”
both have a clear vision for AXA Gulf
over the next few years. “We have to
The dynamic
digital
transformation
116
at Al-Yaqout
Group
WRITTEN BY
MARCUS LAWRENCE
PRODUCED BY
MICHAEL BANYARD
JANUARY 2020
117
A L-YA Q O U T G R O U P
DR ANIS MATTUR, GROUP INFORMATION

TECHNOLOGY DIRECTOR, DISCUSSES
THE STRATEGIES AND DISRUPTIVE
TECHNOLOGIES HE HAS LEVERAGED
TO OVERHAUL OPERATIONS AT
AL-YAQOUT GROUP
A
l-Yaqout Group, founded in 1954 by
Adbullah Omar Al-Yaqout, has grown to
become one of Kuwait’s most dynamic
118 companies. This dynamism has in recent years
been reflected by the development of fresh busi-
ness units within the group, and its portfolio is now
comprised of an eclectic array of operations across
a myriad of industries. A business environment as
complex as this has necessitated the realisation of
a digital infrastructure capable of managing it. Anis
Mattur, Group Information Technology Director,
joined the company in 2016 and has since enacted
the extensive digital transformation required for
both the expansion’s scope and for future growth
of the business. “Al-Yaqout was expanding in
diverse sectors, opening new businesses in the
food and manufacturing sectors, retail, electronics,
and ecommerce — all businesses that were not
there before,” he explains. “The group started to
have multiple colocations and stores which, without
JANUARY 2020
119
“AL-YAQOUT WAS EXPANDING a digital system, created an environ-

IN DIVERSE SECTORS, ment that was impossible to manage.
On a daily basis, stakeholders need to
OPENING NEW BUSINESSES
know sales information, raw materials
IN THE FOOD AND
consumption, which purchase orders
MANUFACTURING SECTORS,
(POs) to issue, their current cashflow,
RETAIL, ELECTRONICS, what issues they have in business, and
AND ECOMMERCE — ALL stock management. Achieving all of
BUSINESSES THAT WERE this without a proper ERP system in
NOT THERE BEFORE” place is very difficult.”
— The right solution for these issues
Dr. Anis Mattur,
Group Information Technology Director, needed to be flexible, customis-
Al-Yaqout Group able, cost effective and robust: enter
120 Microsoft Dynamics AX. Offering the
much needed visibility for the afore-
mentioned factors, the ERP system
affords Al-Yaqout with a powerful
reporting tool that encompasses its
group-wide operations. Armed
with up-to-date information
on cashflow, stock levels, raw
materials, POs, sales performance
and much more, business decisions
can be made swiftly and with the
weight of information behind them. In
order to maximise Dynamic AX’s effi-
cacy across its various business units,
extensive functional requirement doc-
uments were drawn up for each entity
detailing KPIs, internal workflows and
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘THE STORE “Q” BY AL YAQOUT – INAUGURATION’
121
levels of automation. “We took these, group-wide operations, the company

we studied them, and we enhanced enlisted consultancy firm Mazaya to
the workflows according to the ITIL make the necessary configurations.
(Information Technology Infrastructure Mazaya has been crucial to the ERP
Library) and ISO standards,” says solution’s implementation, Mattur
Mattur. “Through this, we created the explains. “As a Microsoft partner,
final functional requirement document Mazaya delivered the licences for us
for each business and implemented – they sat with us, evaluated the num-
the system accordingly. Under the ber of licences needed, the number
centralised AX server, we have 10 of users, the types of users, and the
subsidiaries. Each of them has its own relevant modules that would need to
workflows, and so we implemented be activated for each company in the
different modules for each of them.” group,” he says. Along with guiding
To facilitate the smooth integration Al-Yaqout through the state of each
of Dynamics AX into Al-Yaqout’s sector and their standard practices,

Mazaya Integrated Company W.L.L

Kuwait - Hawalli - Tunis Street - Alkhair complex - Floor 7
Phone: +96522656006 E-mail: customerservice@mazaya.com.kw
https://www.mazaya.com.kw
MAZAYA IINTEGRATED Company is an End-To-End Information Technology
Business Solutions and consulting company, headquartered in Kuwait with
operations in UAE, Jordan and extending to Qatar and Oman
We have experience in 19 industry verticals, in many countries across 3
continents, with about 60 customer installations
We are Microsoft partners in business solutions and have successfully
delivered many similar ERP AX, GP, CRM and RMS implementations in
different organizations; therefore MAZAYA consultants are familiar
with the complications involved in the successful deployments
By choosing MAZAYA, our customers will be mitigating the risks
involved in undertaking such a project because of MAZAYA’s
best practices and approach, implementation
methodology and knowledgebase drawn from earlier
engagements We have developed unique solutions
on top of Microsoft Dynamics for
various industries

124
the partnership has also been crucial Al-Yaqout with the help of the internal
for bridging the gaps in Al-Yaqout’s development team, infusing it with
digital capabilities. “Mazaya helps us to a knowledge base for sales repre-
identify third-party solutions needed sentatives to refer to during customer
for integration into Dynamics AX in interactions. “It gives them a full insight
order to fulfil the full business cycle,” for each item,” explains Mattur, “along
says Mattur. “It has also provided us with differences between items A and
with a mobile IT custom portal that B such as price and specification, and
handles deliveries, orders and transfer images of each product.” The POS has
orders between branches and the a mobile app function that provides
main warehouse, creating a workflow sales people with the opportunity to
document with email notifications.” show customers such information
The firm also developed a custom- directly from tablets and smartphones,
ised point of sale (POS) system for as well as filling a virtual basket to show
JANUARY 2020
customers the value of their transac- provides that very solution, and its
tions before they reach the cashier. integration also affords employees a
“This has made the customer journey portal through which they can request
easy, fast and flexible,” enthuses leave and salary slips along with other
Mattur. Mazaya’s role extends to inte- HR functions.
grating MenaITech HR functionality In addition to the aforementioned
into Dynamics AX, enabling it to serve boons, Dynamics AX also provides
Kuwait’s particular payroll regulations. Al-Yaqout with a strong foundation for
Where Dynamics AX comes with US paperless operations. Microsoft’s col-
and Canadian payroll capabilities, laborative document sharing platform
Kuwaiti workers do not pay tax on their SharePoint, along with intra-company
earnings and this necessitates a solu- communication software Teams, the
tion that can manage the intricacies ubiquitous software suite Office 365
of Kuwait’s tax system. MenaITech and cloud-enabled OneDrive, each 125
Anis Mattur
Dr Anis Mattur has around 16 years’ experience in different
IT areas, having held several different positions starting
from being a System Engineer, Developer, System
Architect, Consultant and Management.
He has a PhD in Software Engineering, a Master’s in
Computer Science and a Bachelor’s in IT plus many
Microsoft certifications in different IT sectors.
He also worked as a business consultant and
an automation specialist, having vast
knowledge in management accounting,
planning, budgeting, financial analysis
and internal auditing.
“THE STRATEGY INCLUDES THE IMPLEMENTATION”

OF A WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
(WMS) MODULE FOR DYNAMICS AX TO HANDLE
WAREHOUSE OPERATIONS, STOCK MANAGEMENT,
BOOKING DELIVERIES IN AND RETURNING
PRODUCTS – ALL IN-AND-OUT TRANSACTIONS IN
OUR “WAREHOUSES AND INVENTORIES”
—
Dr. Anis Mattur,
Group Information Technology Director,
Al-Yaqout Group
126
JANUARY 2020
compliment the new ERP system with
an array of technologies that relegate
paper to Al-Yaqout’s history. “There
is now no need to have hard copies
stored at your desk – everything is
scanned and stored on Office 365
OneDrive,” says Mattur. “The result is
an almost 90% reduction in hard cop-
ies.” To transfer existing documents
to the new system, the document
scanning element has been handled
by OpenText, a software solution that
leverages AI and analytics to read
paper copies and automatically index 127
them based on their content.
Mattur’s ambitions for automation
at Al-Yaqout do not end there, how-
ever. Upon his arrival at the company,
Al-Yaqout had implemented next to
no automation technology, offering a
blank canvas for Mattur to deploy his
vision for a fully automated system
capable of managing end-to-end
business cycles. “The system needed
to implement workflows, plays and
approvals, because we have policies
and procedures here and a centralised
top management,” he says. “Anything
that happens in any of our subsidiaries
has to be approved, and for that they
must go through an approval cycle to

top management.” With that in mind, 1954
Al-Yaqout implemented the automa- Year founded
tion system through the Dynamics AX
$7.6mn
ERP to leverage its approval system-
ready workflow capabilities. “The
strategy includes the implementation Revenue in
of a warehouse management system US dollars
(WMS) module for Dynamics AX to
handle warehouse operations, stock
management, booking deliveries in
and returning products – all in-and-out
200
transactions in our warehouses and
Number of
128 inventories,” elaborates Mattur. Along
employees
with that, cashflow processes have
also been automated, delivering full
transparency and control over every
“BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION business cycle within the group. “The

IS NUMBER ONE, THIS IS MY systems have played a major role in
BELIEF. IF YOU DO NOT MOVE cutting costs and highlighting weak-

nesses in the system where returns
TOWARDS TECHNOLOGY-DRIVEN
on investment are low,” says Mattur,
OPERATIONS, YOU’LL BE OUT
noting that this allows for strategic
OF THE MARKET SOON”
changes to maximise the efficacy
—
Dr. Anis Mattur, of investments and processes.
Group Information Technology Director, The depth of the digital transfor-
Al-Yaqout Group mation at Al-Yaqout is astounding. On
top of the factors already mentioned,
an order fulfilment system has been
JANUARY 2020
129
integrated within Dynamics AX that coming months and years, Mattur is

provides customers with flexibility, keen for this radical and powerful
visibility and control over various ele- transformation strategy to continue to
ments of delivery processes, as well reap dividends. “Business transforma-
as the ability to raise disputes through tion is number one,” he concludes, “this
the same platform. Mattur is proud is my belief. If you do not move towards
to say that the multifarious quali- technology-driven operations, you’ll be
ties of Dynamics AX have delivered out of the market soon.”
considerable returns, with the order
fulfilment system alone returning a
sales increase of 25% and a leap in
customer satisfaction of 50%. In the
130
JANUARY 2020
DIGITALLY
TRANSFORMING
HEALTHCARE 131
WRITTEN BY
GEORGIA WILSON
PRODUCED BY
MICHAEL BANYARD
A S T E R H O S P I TA L S U A E
Dr. Sherbaz Bichu, CEO,

Aster Hospitals UAE discusses
its digital transformation
journey to improve the
healthcare industry
P
racticing anaesthesiologist and
CEO of Aster Hospital Group,
Dr. Sherbaz Bichu, manages the
132 group’s hospitals in the UAE and Oman.
Dr. Bichu has been a part of Aster Hospitals
UAE since 2014. “I joined as a junior anaes-
thesiologist, and climbed the ladder,” he says.
“My role as CEO started at one hospital, then
further progressed to CEO of the group.”
When asked about the healthcare industry,
Dr. Bichu comments that it “has taken a com-
plete U-turn. Right now, it is not healthcare
that is practiced, it is sickcare. People come
to the hospital when they are sick, rather than
to keep themselves healthy.” However, with
the rise of healthcare technology such
as wearables and teleconsultation, Dr. Bichu
sees this changing and the continuity
of care increasing, “something which
is lacking currently.”
JANUARY 2020
133
“Innovation is very easy in the UAE. If you

want to develop machine learning,
artificial intelligence or robotics, this
region is the best place to be”
—
Dr. Sherbaz Bichu,
CEO, Aster Hospitals UAE
BECOMING A SMART HOSPITAL
“If you look at the countries around
the world, I would say the UAE is one
country where, compared to any other
country, the government runs five
134 years ahead of the private sector in
terms of technology,” says Dr. Bichu.
“Innovation is very easy in the UAE. If
you want to develop machine learning,
artificial intelligence or robotics, this
region is a place to be.”
As a hospital in the UAE the group
is working very closely with Dubai
Quality Group and Dubai Health
Authority to process service innova-
tions, implement changes and make the
UAE the best and safest medical tour-
ism destination.
When asked about the group’s
vision Dr. Bichu comments that, “the
group has a global outlook to drive
an ecosystem of healthcare, which
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘ASTER, WE’LL TREAT YOU WELL’
135
only technology can help us achieve. Dr. Bichu emphasises that “the
Otherwise we risk facing extinction.” world is growing, but if you look at
With this mission driving its operations, technology usage in healthcare, it is
the group has established its four further behind compared to bank-
pillars of digital transformation, with ing and other industries. “In order to
patient care at the forefront. catch up we need to empower our
“It’s mainly about empowering our employees by fostering collabora-
employees by fostering collaboration tion and innovation, in addition to
and innovation,” notes Dr. Bichu. “We looking to other industries to learn
believe that innovation happens from and tailor solutions to the healthcare
the ground up, with our staff being industry.” An example of the group
the best innovators we can think of. applying this method is its adoption
We have monthly innovation meeting of barcoding. “We have barcoded
where people can put forward their medical administration and barcoded
ideas for processes and technology.” blood transfusion to increase patient
“If you ask me what our

strength is, it is our people
and their innovative way
of thinking”
—
Dr. Sherbaz Bichu,
CEO, Aster Hospitals UAE
136
JANUARY 2020
137
138
safety,” says Dr. Bichu. “As a result, our employees the importance of
we were the first to have a completely innovation. We have sessions where
closed loop medication administration we teach them how to think in an innova-
and specimen collection. We know tive way.” In particular Dr. Bichu sees
exactly what medicine has been given automation as the future of healthcare.
to which patient and what time it was “We have looked at our processes
administered. In addition to increased with our employees and came to the
safety, this method reduces time spent conclusion that, whatever can be
on documentation, shifting more time repeated, can be automated.”
for patient care.” Current innovations the
The group as a whole has a pas- group has made, includes
sion for innovation which has been adoption of Microsoft Azure
ingrained into the DNA of its employ- cloud. “We were one of the
ees. “Right from induction, we inform first healthcare providers in
JANUARY 2020
the Middle East to host our business- Azure, data mining has become sig-
critical applications, including the nificantly easier for the group, which
electronic medical record (EMR), allows the group to feed data into
hospital management systems, picture machine learning technology to drive
archiving and communication systems, robotic process automation (RPA)
with Microsoft Azure cloud UAE Data innovation. Other innovations the
Centre. With our recent move to group is looking into includes the use
cloud computing, we are improv- of artificial Intelligence. “We have
ing our services and processes, recently brought diabetic retinopathy
mainly to increase patient safety and screening that operates with artificial
continuity.” Since adopting Microsoft intelligence (AI) in the backend. Now
139
Dr. Sherbaz Bichu
Dr. Bichu is Chief Executive Officer and Specialist in Anaesthesia at Aster
Hospitals, UAE. Having worked in the field of Anaesthesia as well as Hospital
administration, Dr. Sherbaz Bichu is well versed with the medical as well as
the administrative aspects of hospital operations. On the administrative
spectrum, he was actively involved in the development and implementation
of hospital information systems, process re-engineering, talent acquisition,
hospital operations, quality administration, materials and procurement,
as well as other functions related to the delivery of patient care. As
Specialist in Anaesthesia, he managed anaesthetic cases in general
surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatric surgery, head and
neck surgery, neurosurgery, urology, and gastroenterology.
He managed intensive care of postoperative patients,
head injury patients, polytrauma patients. Bringing
together his expertise from India at Malabar
Institute of Medical Sciences, he is a core member
of the founding team at Aster Hospital.
EMPOWERING YOUR
PERFORMANCE EDGE
Zebra is at the forefront of innovating the latest
technology solutions in healthcare, from patient identity
to mobile healthcare and real-time intelligence.
We empower front line staff with a performance edge
to deliver the best patient care where in Techsys
Technology LLC, a Zebra Premium Partner,
is the technology partner in helping clients to
implement Zebra solutions.
EMPOWER YOUR EDGE
contact.emea@zebra.com
141
“We constantly focus on technology

and innovation, but the company can
only grow if our people grow too”
—
Dr. Sherbaz Bichu,
CEO, Aster Hospitals UAE believes that “5G will be the best
opportunity for connected health at
we are also exploring to collaborate Aster Hospital Group. 5G would trans-
with major players such as Fuji to start form us into pioneers in telemedicine
cancer screening centres for occult and connected health for the region.”
blood stool testing, mammograms and Dr. Bichu acknowledges that new
endoscopies, using AI alongside doc- innovations entail risks, in particular
tors to enhance diagnosis.” cyber threats, and highlights that the
Futuristically, Dr. Bichu strongly group is adopting latest healthcare
142
JANUARY 2020
technology to shield the group from
external threats and ensure patient
data security. “Our technology part-
ners include Cisco, Alcatel, Dell
and SonicWall. With the help of our
partners, we periodically carry out
penetration tests to identify potential
security flaws.” The group has also
made recent infrastructure upgrades
to make its environment secure and
is continuously driven to educate
its workforce.
Reflecting on the group, Dr. Bichu
believes that its biggest strengths 143
are its employees, and the innovative
2015 approach they have. To ensure con-

tinued growth Dr. Bichu highlights
Year founded that the group makes sure all its
people are being encouraged to pro-
18,700+
gress to the next level so that they
scale up along with the group. “We
constantly focus on technology and
Number of
innovation, but the company can only
employees
grow if our people grow too.”
144
WRITTEN BY
WILLIAM SMITH
PRODUCED BY
STUART IRVING
JANUARY 2020
Digitally
transforming 145
the customer
experience
at T2 Tea
T2 TEA
T2 Tea’s Global Head of

Technology details the digital
initiatives underway at the tea
retailer pioneering new methods
of customer engagement
T2
Tea is one of the world’s premium tea
companies, operating in tea retail, whole-
sale and tea wares. Started in Melbourne
in 1995, in 2013 the company was purchased by
146 consumer goods giant Unilever. T2 nevertheless
retains its Melburnian identity, while expanding in
international markets, particularly the UK.
Rohan Penman is the company’s Global Head
of Technology, overseeing a systematic digital
transformation as part of his role. “Anything
that involves IT, I am accountable for,” he states.
“That’s all the way from retail through to ensuring
business to business connection capability, as
well as having a website that is running efficiently,
responsively and is always available.”
Penman admits that there “had been a num-
ber of years where significant spend hadn’t
occurred”. Consequently, since joining, Penman
has overseen a comprehensive update of T2’s
systems. “There was a lot of change, to say the
least,” he notes. “To start with, the warehouse
JANUARY 2020
147
management system had become

‘end of life’. So HighJump Advantage
was installed to replace what was
effectively an obsolete warehous-
ing product.” Another system that
received some TLC was point of
sales (POS). “Our point of sale was
end of life and very hard to support in
the Asia Pacific region. So that was
replaced with Triquestra’s Infinity
product. Then we needed a new way
of approaching communications.
Luckily, we were using Microsoft 365,
T2 TEA
so we were able to take advantage

of the upgrade path for SharePoint,
instigate SharePoint Modern and
“We’re giving rebuild our intranet. With that, we
back and were also able to install Microsoft
showing a moral Teams and put in a fairly basic soft-
commitment to ware VoIP system for anyone that
the planet” needed a phone system.”
Systems change reached a new
level of urgency owing to the recent
headquarters move, which was
both an opportunity and a chal-
Rohan Penman, lenge. “From the get-go of starting
148 Global Head of Technology, T2 Tea at T2, we were aware that a move
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘T2 EVERYDAY – HOW TO MAKE MATCHA 3 WAYS’
149
was required,” says Penman. That such as Freshworks. “We started off
effectively gave me 18 months to using Freshworks servers so that we
begin planning. We had priorities in had an ITIL framework for incidents
the business, such as the warehouse and problems,” says Penman. “The
management system and the new Freshworks service desk was so
POS system. It allowed us to do risk good that we then moved to using
management and an assessment of the project management product
what infrastructure we were running called Freshrelease, which is effec-
to make sure that effectively any- tively a Kanban solution that allows
thing on premise could be turned off you to run agile scrum methodol-
for quite a long time and the business ogy.” Private infrastructure was also
wouldn’t notice it.” moved to the Rackspace Intensive
Following that assessment, ser- hosting environment. “Rackspace
vices which had to remain available Intensive allows us to have a gold
were migrated to cloud offerings standard of support, with business
T2 TEA
150
JANUARY 2020
trading 24/7, which we require as
global retailers. Rackspace Intensive
hosting offers that high level of
management and service for all the
applications that are hosted on their
physical hardware.”
The systems the company is imple-
menting are ultimately a component
of providing the best possible level
of ecommerce experience. One such
example is the capabilities of the
newly introduced POS. “Infinity POS
is actively updated,” says Penman.
“It’s a platform you can happily build 151
on, and it’s a very big enabler for us
from a retail and digital point of view.
It allows a unified strategy integrat-
ing the digital world and the physical
store. It’s also let us engage with
alternative payment methods. We’ve
started to do a lot of work with
providers like Afterpay and
Clearpay, which
Breaking the wall between
IT & Engineering teams
Employee issue
4
Assign & work on the

bug in Freshrelease. Happy Employee!
3
Create an incident
in Freshservice.
Solved!
* #%@
IT
Service
Desk
</>Developer hub
Thanks !
IT Service Platform for the Enterprise
sales@freshservice.com
has definitely started to make a dent
in the UK and the US.”
The advanced approach to ecom-
“To give customers
merce opens up new avenues and
the best experience,
new levels of customer interac- a modern retailer needs
tion, as Penman explains. “To give to have consistent
customers the best experience, a offerings and messaging
digitally and in store”
modern retailer needs to have con-
sistent offerings and messaging,
both digitally and in store. That’s the
crux of the approach. That includes
people being able to interact in store
and online and have their details and Rohan Penman,
transactions synchronised so that Global Head of Technology, T2 Tea 153
T2 TEA
1995
Year founded
$1.8mn
Revenue in
US dollars
100%
Sustainably
sourced tea
154
2013
Acquired by
Unilever
JANUARY 2020
155
T2 TEA
156
they have a history of what they’ve

“There was a lot done, so they can access that
of change, to however and whenever they wish.
say the least” It also allows the customer to shop
where, how and when they want.
“Ecommerce also allows us to pre-
sent the premium product that is T2
as a lifestyle. Looking on the website,
customers can see that T2 is a brand
that is trying to wear its heart on its
Rohan Penman,
Global Head of Technology, T2 Tea sleeve, do good and give back.”
JANUARY 2020
157
That sense of giving back is wastage is a huge focus for the busi-
reflected in sustainability initiatives ness, and has been for a couple of
undertaken by T2 and its parent, years. We’re giving back and showing
Unilever. While Unilever has pledged a moral commitment to the planet.”
to halve its use of new plastic by As T2 balances internal change with
2025, T2 itself is focused on such new methods of external engage-
initiatives as removing polyplastics ment, this ethos remains at the fore.
from its packaging. “There’s a lot of
people in the business that are pas-
sionate about sustainability,” says
Penman. “Packaging and reduced
158
Driving innovation
for a sustainable
business WRITTEN BY
GEORGIA WILSON
PRODUCED BY
MANUEL NAVARRO
JANUARY 2020
159
LOTTE WEDEL
Poland’s oldest chocolatier

shares its innovation
journey, focused on
ensuring a sustainable
business model
S
upply chain is a challenging role; complex-
ity constantly grows to reflect business
needs, products, developing technol-
ogy, optimisation and efficiency,” says Sławomir
Kluszczyński, Chief Operating Officer (COO)
at LOTTE Wedel. For a business that has a vast
160 amount of history and tradition, it is important to bal-
ance innovation with a legacy that has seen it win the
hearts of chocolate lovers worldwide since 1851.
“Our industry is continuously changing,” notes
Kluszczyński, “in particular our consumers are
becoming increasingly aware of the impact of not
having a sustainable business. The industry is not
waiting, it is doing everything it can to support sus-
tainability, and so is Wedel. It is a core part of our
company values, a lot of our activities are focused on
our impact on the environment,” he continues.
When it comes to those company values, Wedel
underwent a cultural transformation this year: “We
have recently undertaken a number of activities in
this area: we have redefined the mission and vision
of Wedel and we have redefined organisational
values. We began to build employee awareness in
JANUARY 2020
161
LOTTE WEDEL
this area, both at the level of the entire business include, water and energy
organisation (culture research) and at saving solutions, zero-waste activities
the individual level. The next steps are and reduced plastic and paper usage.
to support employees with the tools “We have a zero-waste policy, sensors
and systems that will help us to oper- that limit the use of both water and
ate in accordance with the the new electricity have been implemented
organisational culture. All of this is to throughout the business. In addition, we
develop the competencies that will pro- use mobile solutions and applications
vide Wedel with an innovative view, and to reduce the need for paper printing,
quick solutions that will help achieve as well as streamlining the amount
the goals set in our long-term strategy,” of printing machines available,” says
Kluszczyński explains. Kluszczyński. “When it comes to plas-
Current ways in which Wedel is tic waste, we have eliminated it from
162 driving sustainability throughout its our canteens, replacing plastics with
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘WEDEL CORPORATE VIDEO’
163
“We value our

people at Wedel,
our Wedel family’s
dedication to
‘Kaizen’ is what
drives our success”
—
Sławomir Kluszczyński
Chief Operating Officer
LOTTE Wedel
LOTTE WEDEL
“Wedel is very
proud to partner
with big
international
and local
networks and
suppliers”
—
LOTTE Wedel Wedel’s workers help in
164 building educational farm
biodegradable substitutes. Where we developing its CSR strategy, which will

still need to use it, we reuse as much as incorporate a long-term sustainability
possible in order to reduce our impact plan. It is expected to be announced in
on the environment.” early 2020.
However, it is not only company Besides that, Wedel already under-
implementations that are driving takes many social responsible activities.
Wedel’s sustainability focus. “We work For example, the company cooperates
with suppliers and partners in logistics, with NGO’s, partners and institutions:
that share our environmental goals “We are very close with Praga-Południe,
as well as educate our employees on where our factory has been located
environmental best practices, includ- since 1930. As a result, we are involved
ing workshops detailing correct waste in many local activities: we support
segregation,” explains Kluszczyński. our neighbour, The Praga Museum of
Wedel is currently in the process of Warsaw; we participate as a strategic
JANUARY 2020
partner in Polish-German Gardens,
which works to revitalise the park near
our factory; and we are titular sponsor
of ‘Wedel’s Run’, which has run for 15
years,” Kluszczyński says.
“We appreciate long-term coop-
eration. An example of this type of
work and partner is Stowarzyszenie
Serduszko dla Dzieci (Heart for
Children Association), with which
we’ve already done many interesting
projects,” he continues. “For example,
Bee hives on the the foundation’s proteges take care
Wedel factory rooftop of hives located on Wedel’s factory 165
Sławomir Kluszczynski
Sławomir is a manufacturing and supply chain professional
with 20+ years of experience and focused on continuous
improvement, operational excellence and effective
leadership. He graduated from the Warsaw University
of Technology, Mechanics of Energetics and Aviation
faculty. He has also obtained an MBA degree from the
Warsaw University/ University of Antwerp. He has
gained his professional experience in companies such
as: Master Foods, L’Oreal, GlaxoSmithKline, Avon and
Cadbury Wedel, getting wide manufacturing and supply
chain expertise. Currently, Sławomir holds the position
of Chief Operating Officer at LOTTE Wedel
rooftop while learning the basics of Wedel, this way of thinking is ingrained 167
entrepreneurship and sensitising to in the mindset of our people. We call
environmental issues. We also support this process ‘Kaizen’ – to change for the
the construction of a city farm in Wawer better. Wedel is in the early stages of
(Warsaw’s district), which will be a its industry 4.0 development strategy,”
friendly educational space enabling chil- Kluszczyński continues. In the last cou-
dren and adults to enjoy the benefits of ple of years the company has begun to
nature as part of gardening and farming develop and implement innovative tech-
workshops. Our employees are involved nology to transform its operations.
in gardening and construction works, To compete with increasing quantity
including those related to the construc- demands of its ‘Ptasie Mleczko®’ prod-
tion of the playground.” ucts, Wedel has developed innovative
When it comes to having a sustainable industrial-sized technology to allow a
business for long-term growth, “innova- faster decorative process. In addition, it
tion is needed to bring increased value utilises sophisticated machinery to per-
to changing customer demand and fect its packaging process to remove
industry trends,” says Kluszczyński. “At preservatives: “We have developed a
LOTTE WEDEL
“Innovation is needed to
bring increased value to
changing customer demand
and industry trends”
—
LOTTE Wedel
168
JANUARY 2020
tray with a unique foil that prolongs the
freshness of the product inside,” says
Kluszczyński. The company has also
been utilising iTRAK, the Intelligent
Track System by Rockwell – the most
innovative motion solution on the mar-
ket today – to standardise its product
cartoning process by implementing
magnetic drives.
When it comes to digital transforma-
tion of its systems, Wedel is working
on a scheduling tool to strengthen the
company’s production line. “We are
currently in the last development stage 169
to digitally transform our scheduling
system used for inventory manage-
ment. With this new technology – which
we have begun to use some aspects
of – we will be able to optimise our
processes to reduce cost and achieve
a more efficient production line. To
develop this system we have been
utilising IBM’s sophisticated algorithms,”
Kluszczyński notes.
For Wedel, Artificial Intelligence (AI)
and machine learning, is still conceptual,
with discussions for using automation
in its packaging processes underway.
However, Wedel has begun gathering
data to build the foundations for rolling
LOTTE WEDEL
out these innovative technologies. In

addition, it is utilising 3D printing for its
products. “We currently use the tech-
nology for sample products and the
manufacturing of spare parts for some
equipment,” highlights Kluszczyński.
We use advanced technologies during
consumer research in order to get to
know our present and future clients’
needs in the best way. By analysing the
micro-expressions of the face, or the
brain’s areas of activity, we are able to
understand the types of emotions and
170 reactions that our products awaken.
Knowledge acquired in this way has
been used to redesign of Ptasie
Mleczko® packages, for example,”
explains Kluszczyński.
Other key areas the company is
focused on include factory expansions
and exporting products. Currently,
export makes up 10% of the com-
pany’s turnover and Wedel’s products
can be found in over 60 countries. The
company also looks to other direc-
tions, for example, Russia. “We are
spending a lot of resources and efforts
to achieve our investments,” says
Kluszczyński. “Our factory expan-
sions have included new products,
JANUARY 2020
1851
Year founded
HQ
Warszawa, Poland
hybrid warehousing, IT systems and

production machinery; this expansion 171
is scheduled to be complete in 2021.
In addition, we are continuing to work
on exporting to Russia. Today the
economic climate is much better now,
both in terms of currency rate, custom
duties and increased acceptance of
foreign products.”
When it comes to partners, Wedel’s
key long-term partnership is with its
owner LOTTE. For both LOTTE and
Wedel this partnership is mutually ben-
eficial in that it provides further market
access and helps to develop innovative
products and business operations. At
the same time, cooperation between
Wedel and LOTTE is based on
LOTTE WEDEL
partnership. Wedel is autonomous

and is locally managed: “The reason
for this is that LOTTE trusts us and
knows that we have the best knowl-
edge of the Polish confectionery
market and the most experience in
running a legendary chocolate com-
pany. People create Wedel. This is
why they continue to have the great-
est impact on our organisation, our
products, our communication and our
relationship with the environment. The
company’s long-term strategy is being
172 developed and enforced in Poland,”
explains Kluszczyński.
He also emphasises that “Wedel is
very proud to partner with big interna-
tional and local networks and suppliers.
We collaborate with pride, achieving
sophisticated solutions and tailor-made
offers for customised products. In
return we are present in a wide network
and benefits from long-term sustain-
able business partners.”
Reflecting on the company’s
transformation to date, Kluszczyński
believes Wedel’s biggest success is its
ability to maintain its heritage products
while continuing to innovate and trans-
form in order to keep up with changing
JANUARY 2020
173
industry trends. This is reflected in the quality and the best taste. At this point,
company’s mission: “We are constantly I would like to mention our other value:
changing to make us and our clients ‘I provide quality’. However, Wedel
happy’. Kluszczyński attributes the wants to continue to strive towards a
company’s overall ability to achieve more sophisticated factory that has
this to its people, explaining that “we the capacity to harness innovative
value our people at Wedel. Our Wedel technology. As a result we will have
family’s dedication to ‘Kaizen’ is what the ability to keep up with customer
drives our success. Also, continuous demand and changing trends, to fur-
improvement is inscribed in one of our ther drive a sustainable business both
organisational values - I question the environmentally and operationally,”
status quo.” concludes Kluszczyński.
“Ultimately, at Wedel, we always want
to have our heritage of guaranteed
CORESTATE CAPITAL:
OPTIMISATION
174 AND AUTHENTIC
ESG INTEGRATION
WRITTEN BY
MARCUS LAWRENCE
PRODUCED BY
BEN MALTBY
JANUARY 2020
175
C O R E S TAT E C A P I TA L G R O U P
Justus Wiedemann, Group

Sustainability Officer at Corestate
Capital, discusses the Environmental,
Social, Governance practices that
are being infused into the firm’s core
functions as it delivers value through
data-driven optimisation
A
s a leading independent invest-
ment manager for real estate
in Europe, Corestate Capital
has experienced substantial growth in
recent years. Since 2016, Corestate
176 has brought the total value of its assets
under management (AUM) to €26bn,
translating to a compound annual
growth rate of 110%. This growth is
matched by the scale of its Environmental,
Social and Governance (ESG) ambitions.
Intending to integrate its ESG framework
into its operations, Corestate appointed
Justus Wiedemann to lead the charge
as Group Sustainability Officer.
The reasons for Corestate’s ESG ambi-
tions are clear. “Investors are increasingly
keen to invest in progressive opportunities,
particularly as the European Union (EU Green
Deal) and United Nations (PRI) have laid out ambi-
tious but vital frameworks for the development
JANUARY 2020
177
“Value creation and of sustainable societies, supply chains

and economies,” says Wiedemann.
trust are getting more ”From a market potential point of
and more important view, there is an apparent demand
for our clients and for authentic sustainable products.”
the wider stakeholder Moreover, ESG criteria are becoming
group of employees, increasingly important for employees.

Deloitte’s 2019 Global Millennial Survey
politicians and society found that 74% of those born between
as a whole” 1983 and 1994 would leave their com-
— pany in the next five years if they hadn’t
Justus Wiedemann, committed to environmental and social
Group Sustainability Officer,
Corestate Capital stewardship practices; an attitude
178 reflected by wider consumer attitudes
to sustainability in business.
Wiedemann began his time at
Corestate in the post-merger integration
department. “When we started with ESG,
it was part of our wider institutionalisa-
tion plan, which also includes reporting
standards, compliance and governance
on a group level,” he says. Until then,
the company had strategically acquired
along the value chain. “Corestate started
as an asset and investment management
firm, and has acquired property manage-
ment firms such as CRM Students, which
is a leading provider of student housing in
the UK, a mezzanine financing firm, HFS
which is the market leader in Germany,
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘CORESTATE CAPITAL MARKETS DAY 2019
– Q AND A SESSION CLIENTS’
179
Austria and Switzerland, and a large how we have optimised real estate
institutional asset manager, Hannover assets along with reductions in utility
Leasing,” he explains. As a result, consumption and carbon emissions.
Corestate now offers the whole invest- In the end, we can manage on the
ment management chain for real estate, ground each and every part of the
including financing, structuring, asset investment value chain according to
management and property management. our ESG strategy.”
“Out of our holistic view comes As data forms the backbone of the
the strength of our ESG integration company’s strategy, Wiedemann’s
approach,” says Wiedemann. “We are background in project management
operatively capable of reflecting what and data science is proving instru-
the EU wants in their Green Deal and mental in the rollout of ESG principles
Action Plan on Financing Sustainable across the company’s operations.
Growth, conforming ESG with sustain- Particular emphasis is placed on
able investments to transparently show buildings management. “Looking at
180
overall carbon dioxide emissions in the By acting on the insights that data
EU, the highest polluting factor is real provides, Corestate is able to amortise
estate buildings. 36% of CO2 emissions, a part of the cost of building optimisa-
within the EU, come out of real estate,” tion with funds saved through reduced
Wiedemann highlights. By comparison, energy consumption. A key partner
manufacturing accounts for 25% of for Corestate’s transformation is ESG
emissions. “We should all have a clear software leader Measurabl. On this
focus on optimising buildings. We see platform, with around 45,000 assets
enormous potential in that field because from a global bank of asset managers,
we find so many opportunities that we a digital twin of each of Corestate’s
gain through our data-driven approach. property asset is created. Then
However, data is always just a vehicle the platform is fed with utilities
that’s not an end in itself.” It does, how- and emissions data from myriad
ever, enable operational optimisation sources to maximise its capacity
on a scale not previously seen. for buildings optimisation.
JANUARY 2020
It then enables Corestate to bench- world. As these cost drivers are gen-
mark its buildings’ performance erally a result of utility management,
against their peer group of similar addressing them with an approach
structures. By establishing benchmark geared towards efficiency simultane-
scores through such means, Corestate ously creates value and minimises
circumvents the traditional limits of the environmental impact of each
depth imposed by the labour-intensive building. Combining Measurabl’s
nature of data collection. data with its own utilities and energy
The result, Wiedemann says, is the consumption information, driven by
revelation of hidden cost drivers the proliferation of data points such
across the Corestate portfolio, ena- as smart meters, offers Corestate a
bling cost cutting and value creation powerful capacity to enact changes
that would have been far more chal- that empower both its financial bot-
lenging to realise in a pre-data driven tom line and the environment. 181
Justus Wiedemann
Justus Wiedemann is Group Sustainability Officer at Corestate.
He is responsible for the overall ESG framework as well as the
operational integration of ESG criteria at corporate, product
and asset levels. Prior to joining Corestate, Justus was
a consultant in a digital and banking unit and an executive
consultant within the automotive supplier industry. Justus
earned a BA in International Business and Finance from
DHBW Stuttgart, a BA in International Accounting
from the University of South Wales and an MSc
in Management and Economics from Zeppelin
University, where he wrote his master’s thesis
on machine learning in conjunction with
WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management.
183
Wiedemann adds that the increased “Looking at overall carbon

digitalisation of energy data collection dioxide emissions in the
in Germany also offers an opportunity EU, the highest polluting
for improved vendor management. factor is real estate
“We have started a group-wide process buildings. 36% of carbon
with major German operational cost dioxide emissions, within
advisory Westbridge to tender out our the EU, come out of real
complete energy consumption of all of estate. We should all
our managed assets,” he says. “We will have a very clear focus
then be left with a very consolidated on optimising buildings”
vendor market, making it much easier
—
to go ahead with smart metering at Justus Wiedemann,
scale. If you have 33 fragmented Group Sustainability Officer,
energy vendors, you end up with 33 dif- Corestate Capital
ferent hardware components to install.”
184
JANUARY 2020
“Data is always just
a vehicle that’s not
an end in itself”
—
Justus Wiedemann,
Corestate Capital
In a consolidated market with fewer

vendors to consider, the amount of
data noise is reduced significantly,
offering higher quality data that eluci-
dates multifaceted opportunities for
optimisation. “Seeing what’s happen- 185
ing in each of our buildings on such a
granular level is an immense advantage
because we’re not in the dark about
possible energy waste anymore,”
enthuses Wiedemann.
Outside Corestate’s focus on the
environment, it is also fostering social
change. One broader issue in this
area that Wiedemann highlights is the
lacking representation of women
in management across Germany.
Corestate is therefore committed
to expanding the representation of
women in top-level management, a fig-
ure which, according to Wiedemann,
stands at only 14.7% in German DAX 30
“ESG is an imminent
component of investing
which creates value; it’s
a holistic and brighter
view that is more fitting
for today’s and
tomorrow’s world”
—
Justus Wiedemann,
Corestate Capital
companies. “Our goal is to attract,

retain and develop talented women.
As one of the first measures, we have
become a sponsoring member of the
Fondsfrauen association — a German
initiative with over 2,000 female mem-
bers — the majority of whom hold
senior-level positions in the finance
industry.” Fondsfrauen offers a mentor-
ing programme which Corestate
Women can leverage, providing the
opportunity for training, networking
and growth, and equipping female
2006
Year founded
€204.4mn
Revenue in (2018)
euros
730
Number of
employees
187
employees with the tools to progress becoming more and more important
within the organisation. for our clients and the wider stake-
Wiedemann’s passion for these holder group of employees and
strategies, and indeed those beyond society as a whole,” he says. “ESG is
the scope of this profile, is glaringly an imminent component of investing
evident. It is important, he says, for which creates value; it’s a holistic and
businesses not only to adopt envi- brighter view that is more fitting for
ronmentally and socially progressive today’s and tomorrow’s world.”
initiatives but to do so authentically,
as it cannot be a simple box-ticking
exercise done to reflect the sociopo-
litical climate of the modern day.
“Value creation and trust are
188
JANUARY 2020
SIGNIFICANT,
SUSTAINABLE
189
GROWTH
WRITTEN BY
HARRY MENEAR
PRODUCED BY
LEWIS VAUGHAN
GOIKO
JOSÉ RAFAEL BARRETO IBARRA,

CIO OF GOIKO, EXPLORES HOW
THE GOURMET BURGER BRAND
IS USING INTELLIGENTLY-
SELECTED, TECHNOLOGY-
DRIVEN CHANGE MANAGEMENT
STRATEGIES TO SUPPORT RAPID
AND SUSTAINABLE GROWTH
n the 21st century, every company is a
I technology company. A global digital

transformation is sweeping across the
business landscape, prompting radical change
190 as companies reevaluate best practices and
embrace cutting edge solutions to create value.
Nevertheless, a digital transformation for digital
transformation’s sake is more likely to hurt your
company than help it. As many as 70% of large-
scale digital transformation efforts end in failure,
so how can companies ensure that their move
towards Industry 4.0 is a successful one?
“Nothing is more dangerous than a repetitive
and hectic task with little purpose. If people get
stuck doing these manual things, then they’re
being prevented from living up to their full potential,”
explains José Rafael Barreto Ibarra, CIO of GOIKO.
“Technology grants you the superpower of giving
you more time to come up with ways to delight the
customer. You spend less time keeping the business
running and more time designing, creating and
JANUARY 2020
191
2013
Year founded
€66.2mn
Revenue in
euros
1,200+
Number of
employees
GOIKO
“TECHNOLOGY analysing.” For Barreto and GOIKO,

ensuring that technological adoption
MEANS YOU CAN is aligned with the company’s goals
SPEND MORE and values is essential, especially as
it enters a period of dramatic growth
TIME COMING UP driven by those values. “Basically,
WITH NEW WAYS since 2017, we’ve been growing at a
TO DELIGHT THE rate of 2.5 new locations every month,”

he says. “Now, we have almost 80.
CUSTOMER” It’s been crazy and quite fun.” We sat
down with Barreto to discuss how
José Rafael Barreto Ibarra, GOIKO is using intelligently-selected,
CIO, Goiko technology-driven change manage-
192 ment strategies to support rapid and
sustainable growth.
The GOIKO story starts in 2013, when
Andoni Goicoechea, a doctor from
Venezuela working in Hospital La Paz
in Madrid, decided to deliver a gourmet
burger restaurant concept in Madrid
(Goiko Grill) with the financial support of
his father. Its current menu is influenced
heavily by both Spanish and Venezuelan
cuisine, and the company is dedicated
to ensuring its burgers are of the highest
quality. “Our quality hasn’t decreased
since the day we opened, and it never
will,” claims Andoni, who serves as
GOIKO’s CEO. “We’re only as good as
the latest burger coming off our grill.”
JANUARY 2020
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘MADE IN GOIKO’
193
Andoni and Barreto have known already grown from its original single-
each other since school. Their pro- room, 30-seat restaurant in Madrid to
fessional relationship began back in nine locations managed from a central
Venezuela, where Barreto ran a small office with a staff of fewer than five and,
boutique hotel business. “It was 2011, even though Andoni is a self professed
when marketers were just starting to tech geek, the company was without
recognise the potential of Instagram. a dedicated technology expert. “I
We wanted to use it to showcase our remember the call,” laughs Barreto.
beach hotel in Caruao” recalls Barreto. “He said, ‘the original store has an issue
“We ended up hiring Andoni and his sister with the router. Can you fix it?’ and the
Daniela – who then became CMO in rest is history. My friends used to joke
GOIKO – to be our community manag- about it because, from day one, I was
ers. Fast forward five years and we made CIO of a company and I was
meet again in Madrid, where I get a call basically the IT consultant, the wiring
from Andoni.” At that time, GOIKO had guy, the support team, the printer guy
GOIKO
194
and the CIO. That, along with shifts burger buns, to the Aita burger, filled
and dealing directly with customers, with Idiazábal cheese and piquillo
was key to live and understand the peppers, GOIKO takes great pride in
whole thing.” the fact that its menu is fresh, made
Barreto attributes GOIKO’s success in-house from locally-sourced ingredi-
since that time to a marriage of technology ents and always cooked to order.
and the company’s core values: quality, “We take great care of the details of
efficiency, disruption, growth, good vibes, every process, product and service,
family, integrity and Mucho Kevin. so we can be sure that we’ve exceeded
expectations every single time,” says
QUALITY AND EFFICIENCY Barreto. “Then we have efficiency.
From teques, Venezuelan style moz- We always make sure we’re comparing
zarella fingers, and artisanally made and evaluating our performance
JANUARY 2020
to achieve efficiency and sustainability.” DISRUPTION AND GROWTH
In order to help ensure that efficient “We’re never finished; we’re always
operations are supporting the delivery aiming for better,” says Barreto. “The
of a top quality product, GOIKO is ability to grasp huge amounts of infor-
using an intelligent integration of third- mation that technology provides is
party solutions that enable point of allowing us to constantly get better
sale (POS) support, online ordering and better.” To ensure that the benefits
and, perhaps most importantly, stock of digital transformation are being felt
control. “These pieces of software across the company, Barreto is taking
work together in the background to great care to democratise and make
automatically give us great visibility information-based insights accessible
of our stock levels, which supports to a wider range of GOIKO employees.
smart ordering so that we don’t order “I’m not a huge fan of terms like Big Data,
too much or too little,” says Barreto. data science, KPIs and the like 195
José Rafael Barreto
Barreto has been GOIKO’s CIO since May 2016.
He graduated from Universidad Metropolitana (VE)
in 2007, obtaining a Degree in Systems Engineering.
He also has an MBA by IESA. Barreto’s career started
in Accenture, where he worked for almost three years
as SAP Business Consultant, being involved
in salesforce transformation projects.
Then, he co-founded Sitioswao.com,
a collection of small boutique hotels
and convention center in Venezuela,
and was Managing Director for seven
years until 2016, when he joined GOIKO.
GOIKO
Deliverect
“We have invested deeply in of Sale (PoS) system and a
making the customer journey delivery provider. By integrating
online smoother and with as few into Goiko’s existing PoS and
clicks as possible,” says Ibarra. ordering system, Deliverect
“We are working with a third is allowing the company to
party called Deliverect to handle automate ordering processes,
our takeaway orders.” Founded saving time, money and giving
in 2018, the Belgian startup a better, smoother experience
bridges the gap between a Point to its valued customers.
Making delivery easy.
Deliverect connects the restaurant’s POS system with delivery

platforms like Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Glovo, etc., automating
online order management for optimum efficiency. marketing@deliverect.com
Learn More Request a demo

197
because I believe they create an “IT’S NOT LIKE THE

instant barrier between ‘tech people’
and the waiters, chefs and managers
OLD DAYS WHEN
in our locations,” Barreto explains. THE MANAGER
One way in which he’s worked to WOULD GET A PDF
demystify the process of drawing
OR A SPREADSHEET
actionable insights is through a change
of delivery method. “We’ve shifted over
EMAILED TO THEM
to using word clouds and very simple EVERY TWO WEEKS”
graphs in order to make customer
feedback trends understandable,” he José Rafael Barreto Ibarra,
says. “We take customer feedback and CIO, Goiko
use machine learning to put it through
our platform in a way that is easy for
anyone to access at any time. It’s not
GOIKO
“IF WE’RE GOING

TO RELEASE AN
APP, IT’S GOING
TO BE CRAZY”
José Rafael Barreto Ibarra,
CIO, Goiko
198
JANUARY 2020
like the old days when the manager
would get a PDF of a spreadsheet
emailed to them every two weeks.”
This dedication to enabling every
member of the GOIKO family to use
technology quickly and intuitively is
present in every technological decision
that Barreto makes, and he considers
it to be a central element of the role of
any CIO. “You’ve got to sell people on
usability. We’ve seen a lot of systems,
software and solutions that are like
science fiction rocket ships. There are
really complex algorithms that will do 199
this and that, but when you get to the
nitty gritty things, like you are sitting in
front of it and you’re going to use it, you
need to pay serious attention to usabil-
ity,” he says. “You need to think of a
waiter with 30 people in line. There are
kids crying in the dining room. The res-
taurant is completely packed. Can you
use this software easily on a day-to-
day basis or in an emergency? That’s
basically the final deciding factor. If it’s
not intuitive, then what’s the point? UX
is so important, because you can have
amazing functionality, but it doesn’t
matter if it’s behind a poor interface.”
GOIKO
GOOD VIBES, FAMILY AND INTEGRITY

This attentiveness to the needs of real 3.2mn
people in the GOIKO family is at the Customers served
heart of the company’s entire ethos. (2018)
“We treat people with respect, and
4.4mn
cultivate joy, patience and enthusiasm,”
says Barreto. “That was the key ingre-
dient I detected on day one, so taking Burgers sold
the job was a no brainer. I think a lot of (2018)
our growth has to do with the type of
people that are serving the food and
how we treat customers.”
200 MUCHO KEVIN

“This one is a little more ethereal than
good vibes, but we try and embrace the
idea of Mucho Kevin,” Barreto explains. trend,” says Barreto. If GOIKO makes an
“The Kevin Bacon Burger is our number app, Barreto is certain that it has to be
one product and the value that we Mucho Kevin. “If we’re going to release
associate with it is that we’re not afraid an app, it’s going to be crazy,” he
of doing things a little differently. We’re enthuses. “We’re really thinking out of
not afraid of a little weirdness.” the box and want to create something
This readiness to step away from really special and cool – that obviously
the herd and embrace kooky, different lets you order food as well of course.”
ideas is one of the reasons why, until
now, GOIKO hasn’t released its own app. THE FUTURE IS FRESH
“A lot of chains offer you an app with the Looking towards 2020, the develop-
classical functions like ordering, loyalty ment of an app is a key area of focus
programmes, and so on. We didn’t want for Barreto and his team (he confirms
to walk that road just to be a part of the that he’s no longer spending his days
JANUARY 2020
201
fixing printers and debugging the wifi) the boring bits”. More than anything,
as the company continues to expand however, Barreto and Goiko will con-
at lightning speed. With more than two tinue to deliver on the core values that
new GOIKO opening their doors every have made the company a genuine
month, embracing employee-centric, success story.
intuitive technology that supports
the automation of processes and lets
the company’s employees focus on
delighting every customer is going to
be essential. Barreto will keep explor-
ing new ways of making GOIKO’s
dashboards more friendly and making
the information more digestible, as well
as finding new ways to “apply RPA to
Reimagine
the impossible
Bring together people, data, and processes to transform

your organization.
With the latest in AI technologies, you can engage your customers

in new ways, empower your employees more than ever before, and
optimize operations to become an industry leader. Start your digital
transformation today.
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AS COLLABORATIVE ROBOTS – OR ‘COBOTS’ –

WRITTEN BY HARRY MENE AR

“CURRENTLY, UNIVERSAL ROBOTS – THE COBOT KING

COBOTS AND COBOT the next-largest manufacturer of

MANUFACTURERS Universal Robots is a clear leader

SOLUTIONS: THE ARM

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘LOCUS ROBOTICS –DHL CASE STUDY’

LOCUS ROBOTICS CORPS –

BOSTON DYNAMICS – four-legged, semi-autonomous robot

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘BOSTON DYNAMICS – SPOT LAUNCH’

Gigabit counts down

Only the seventh-largest German city, Düsseldorf nevertheless

Bilbao is located in the northern Spanish province of Biscay. Its smart

Helsinki explicitly expands the concept of a smart city to encompass the

Taiwan’s capital, Taipei, runs a governmental project management

Copenhagen is pursuing its smart city initiative with gusto, targeting

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SMART CITIES – FIA IN ZURICH 2018’

CLICK TO WATCH : ‘SMART CITIES: SINGAPORE’

We round up the biggest and best technology events and

16-17 JAN 2020

24-26 MAR 2020

FAREEN MEHRZAI, THE

With our designated in-house R&D

The benefits of freeze-drying is that

“The way the

“AT THE HEART OF ALL SMART

“CURRENTLY, UNIVERSAL ROBOTS – THE COBOT KING

“THE MOST EXCITING Since 2018, Golden Hippo has been

are undoubtedly impressive. What’s “E VERY DAY, THE GOAL

“AL-YAQOUT WAS EXPANDING a digital system, created an environ-

“BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION business cycle within the group. “The

“Innovation is very easy in the UAE. If you

“If you ask me what our

“We constantly focus on technology

“We value our

“Value creation and of sustainable societies, supply chains

Wiedemann adds that the increased “Looking at overall carbon

“TECHNOLOGY analysing.” For Barreto and GOIKO,

because I believe they create an “IT’S NOT LIKE THE

“IF WE’RE GOING