Capgemini

News: Capgemini global study calls on automotive sector to take measures to ensure stable future for established players

Capgemini — 2012-02-01T02:30:00+01:00

e-mobility report shows 80 per cent of respondents agreed that the future of their industry lies in technological innovation and electric vehicle services

Paris, 1 February 2012 – Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced the findings of its 2012 e-mobility report examining how the automotive industry is responding to the technological shifts driven by e-mobility – or electric vehicle - services. With the emergence of new technology the automotive industry has encountered fundamental changes unlike those seen for decades however Capgemini today warns that the automotive sector is in a vulnerable position and the move that is occurring is of huge significance and is extremely complex. While this can result in strong economic growth across industries, it can also lead to the disappearance of numerous formerly successful companies.

The study, entitled “Managing the Change to e-Mobility,” shows that while demand for electric vehicles is growing across all modes of transportation and provides exciting growth opportunities for automotive companies, it also creates a need for existing business models to be overhauled. Capgemini highlights the need for a ‘new network’ to be deployed to bring together established and new stakeholder players (such as e-mobility and IT providers, and battery charging/changing services) to shape the industry with innovative products and services. Historically, past technological changes, such as the move from typewriters to personal computers, from mobile to smart phones, have shown that some formerly successful companies were not prepared for change, and their disappearance highlights patterns of failure that the automotive industry must avoid.

Based on its 40 years of experience providing solutions for automotive companies, Capgemini recommends the following core areas of focus when it comes to managing e-mobility change:

Encourage an ongoing innovation process and move away from established structures. 79 per cent of respondents agreed that innovation, business flexibility and strong partnerships outside of the existing automotive ecosystem are essential in order to succeed. For example the traditional car manufacturer Daimler was founded in the eighteen hundreds, but in 2011 it launched a successful electric car sharing service called ‘Car2Go’ in Texas, USA.
Clearly define the company’s present and future positioning in relation to the competition. Survey respondents were split on whether they expect to see the emergence of an entirely new competitive structure (cited by 47 per cent) or a continuation of traditional competition among known organizations (53 per cent).
Embrace new partners. Seventy per cent of executives expect new partnerships from different industries to be important for e-mobility. For example, weak OEMs who establish strong partnerships can flourish alongside new OEMs from emerging markets.
Identify the real benefit of the new technology for the customer and develop products and business models that support it. More than half of respondents said customer requirements are drivers for the technology change and 52 per cent believe e-mobility is a customer need. Organizations must be prepared to quickly adapt to customer demands as they shift.

The global survey was conducted in late 2011 with 66 automotive industry experts completing a two-part online questionnaire about e-mobility to gain insights into the current situation faced by the automotive industry, and the future prospects for the use of electric vehicles.

“Data from the study supports the widely held view that e-mobility will be the most important technological development in the automotive industry in recent years. It will demand fundamental changes to existing business models, and expertise from other sectors outside of the traditional automotive space,” said Kai-Olaf Dammenhain, Study Director from Capgemini. “To fulfill consumers’ new mobility needs, automotive companies must come to terms with the idea of integrating the car and services as part of a bigger system instead of focusing just on vehicle manufacturing. Only companies that consciously adapt will maintain their dominant market position and continue to play a major role in the growth of the industry as a whole.”

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business Experience^TM, and draws on Rightshore^®, its worldwide delivery model.

Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore^® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

About Capgemini’s Automotive Practice

Capgemini’s Automotive practice serves 14 of the world’s 15 largest vehicle manufacturers and 13 of the 17 largest automotive suppliers. More than 3,000 automotive specialists generate value for companies through global delivery capabilities and industry-specific service offerings such as Integrated Lead Management, B2C Web Strategy, Service and Parts Management, Supplier Transformation, Optimization of Dealer-Focused Operations, Electric Vehicles and e-Mobility Services, Application Outsourcing for Automotive OEMs and Global Emerging-Market Sourcing. For more information: www.capgemini.com/automotive

News: Capgemini positioned in Leaders Quadrant for SAP Application Service Providers, Europe

Capgemini — 2012-01-31T17:01:00+01:00

Paris, 31 January 2012, Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced that it has been positioned by Gartner, Inc. in the leaders quadrant in the latest “Magic Quadrant for SAP Application Service Providers, Europe” 1.

Capgemini has been positioned based on “ability to execute” and “completeness of vision.” According to the report, “The positioning of vendors in this Magic Quadrant is based on factors determined by Gartner to be relevant to this market. We analyze consulting and system integration projects and multiyear IT management engagements that may require a blend of business, industry, technology, program and project management, process and delivery capabilities aligned with end-user organizations’ objectives, institutional and business culture, and employees.”²

Christophe Lacroix, SAP Alliance Lead for Capgemini, said: ““We believe our leaders positioning by Gartner is a result of our dedicated endeavors to exceed client expectations. It fully recognizes our capabilities to drive technical expertise and innovative software lifecycle services in support of SAP® solutions successfully into the European market, with high client satisfaction.”

Capgemini has nearly 11,500 practitioners focused on SAP solutions globally and provides application lifecycle services in support of SAP solutions, including on-premise, on-device and on-demand projects to thousands of clients worldwide. It has developed best practices, global tools, templates and accelerators supported by solution centers, such as its Crescent center for the Consumer Products, Wholesale and Retail market. Capgemini serves its clients end-to-end along the entire application lifecycle comprising design, build, run and innovate by providing licensing, implementation, hosting, system maintenance and management under one contract.

[1] ^{& 2}Gartner Inc.: “Magic Quadrant for SAP Application Service Providers, Europe,”Gilbert van der Heiden / Khalda de Souza / Christopher Ambrose, 14 December 2011

About the Magic Quadrant
Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in our research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About Capgemini

Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

# # #

Rightshore^® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

SAP and all SAP logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries.

All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies.

News: Capgemini Receives Positive Rating in Leading Analyst Firm’s Business Intelligence and Information Management Services in North America MarketScope Report

Capgemini — 2012-01-17T21:52:00+01:00

New York, January 17, 2012 – Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced that its information analysis, project management (PM) and information management (IM) solutions received a positive rating in Gartner’s report entitled “MarketScope for Business Intelligence and Information Management Services in North America” ¹.

According to the report, “The 2011 MarketScope for BI services in North America analyzes the consulting and implementation service market for projects spanning Gartner’s perspective on the BI, analytics and IM market.”

Scott Schlesinger, North America Business Information Management lead at Capgemini, said: “We believe Gartner’s positive rating speaks volumes of the company’s sizeable and strategic investment in strengthening our Business Information Management practice, including our recent acquisition of U.S.-based BI Consulting Group. In 2012, we will continue to closely collaborate with our key technology partners to expand our presence in key sectors by developing new, integrated solutions tailored to our clients’ specific business intelligence needs.”

Capgemini was also positioned by Gartner, Inc. in the leaders’ quadrant for Global Business Intelligence and Performance Management Service Providers [2]. Capgemini’s Global Business Information Management (BIM) Service Line has over 7,000 BIM consultants, with a dedicated Center of Excellence in Mumbai, India. The BIM services provided by Capgemini include strategic information management blueprinting; data architecture, warehousing and management; business analytics and performance reporting; electronic file management and retrieval, and collaboration portals.

[1] Gartner Inc.: “MarketScope for Business Intelligence and Information Management Services in North America,” Alex Soejarto, Susanne Matson, Neil Chandler, 18 November 2011

[2] Gartner Inc.: “Magic Quadrant for Global Business Intelligence and Performance Management Service Providers,”Alex Soejarto, Neil Chandler, 27 January 2011

Disclaimer

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in our research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business Experience^TM, and draws on Rightshore^®, its worldwide delivery model.

More information is available at www.us.capgemini.com

Rightshore^® and Collaborative Business Experience^TM are trademarks belonging to Capgemini

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News: Capgemini Group Receives HP Award for Innovation in EMEA

Capgemini — 2011-12-22T06:42:00+01:00

The Capgemini Group, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, has announced that it has been awarded ‘HP Software Most Innovative Alliance Partner of the Year’ for EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa). The award recognizes the role of the Capgemini Group (Capgemini and Sogeti) as a leading and innovative technology partner and its position as one of the largest global systems integrators for HP Software in the EMEA region. The award was given at the recent HP Discover conference in Vienna, Austria, and was accepted by Murat Aksu, VP, Global Head of HP Software Alliance, Capgemini and Richard Terry, Deputy CEO of Sogeti UK.

Capgemini Group won the award thanks to the strength of its collaboration on application lifecycle and testing thought-leadership initiatives, joint solutions such as the TMap® Accelerator for HP Quality Center, Go-To-Market activities and demonstrative results with customer wins in both the public and private sectors. Of note were key reports launched jointly with HP including this year’s World Quality Report and the new Application Landscape Report. The award is recognition of the continued strength of the HP-Capgemini collaboration, and follows Capgemini Group’s HP Software Alliance Partner of the Year award for EMEA in 2010.

Murat Aksu, VP, Global Head of the HP Software Alliance, Capgemini said: “We are delighted to be recognized with this important award from one of our key strategic partners and to receive validation as one of the premier systems integrator for HP Software in EMEA. The award is testament to the dedication of our teams and our collaborative efforts to deliver thought-leadership and tailored solutions that have provided significant customer results to business challenges. We look forward to continuing our strong relationship with HP Software in the years to come.”

The HP Software Awards are given to partners and resellers every year to recognize outstanding achievement, and take place each year during the HP Software Partner Executive Summit.

# # #

About Capgemini and Sogeti

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, The Capgemini Group is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Sogeti, its wholly-owned subsidiary, is a leading provider of local professional services, bringing together more than 20,000 professionals in 15 countries and is present in over 100 locations in Europe, the US and India.

Together, Capgemini and Sogeti have developed innovative, business-driven quality assurance (QA) and testing services, combining best-in-breed testing methodologies (TMap® and TPI®) and the global delivery model, Rightshore®, to help organizations achieve their testing and QA goals. Capgemini and Sogeti have created one of the largest dedicated testing practices in the world, with over 8,200 test professionals and a further 12,500 application specialists, notably through a common center of excellence with testing specialists developed in India.

For more information, please visit: www.capgemini.com

www.sogeti.com

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini.

TMap®, TMap NEXT®, TPI® and TPI NEXT® are registered trademarks of Sogeti.

News: Capgemini Government Solutions’ Susan Morrison Selected as Recipient of Leadership Award at TechAmerica FoundationVision Conference

Capgemini — 2011-12-19T18:50:00+01:00

Morrison recognized for outstanding leadership in analysis and forecasting

Herndon, Va., December 19, 2011 – Capgemini Government Solutions LLC, a member of the Capgemini Group, one of the world’s leading providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, congratulates Susan Morrison for her recognition by the TechAmerica Foundation as a recipient of the “Outstanding Leadership in Analysis and Forecasting” award at the 47th annual Vision Conference held in Springfield, Virginia.

Morrison, who leads Business Development for Capgemini Government Solutions’ Public Sector Health IT practice in the U.S., received the award for her presentation of the group’s Military Health System forecast. Morrison highlighted the state of the health care market for the U.S. military, as well as the challenges and opportunities for delivering health care to the public sector market over the next ten years.

“Capgemini is at the forefront in providing government clients with quality and efficient IT solutions,” said Morrison. “I am honored to have received this award on behalf of Capgemini as we consider future challenges and opportunities in Federal IT, and continue to be a trusted partner in military health solutions.”

The Vision Conference, an annual event hosted by the Tech America Foundation, convened over 200 industry members to analyze federal spending plans, and develop a long-term forecast of the Federal IT and U.S. Defense markets. The conference included findings from non-attribution interviews with leadership within different agencies to discuss current trends and offer insight on future government requirements for technology, services and equipment.

This award highlights Capgemini Government Solutions’ capabilities to address key issues and deliver high-value results to federal organizations. Morrison’s team plays a vital role as a premier consulting, technology and services provider for today`s government agencies.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion (approximately USD $11.5 billion). Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business Experience^TM, and draws on Rightshore ^®, its worldwide delivery model.

Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini.

About Capgemini Government Solutions

Capgemini Government Solutions is committed to working with government clients to support them in their strategic, tactical and transformation initiatives. Capgemini helps organizations create sustainable value by employing innovative business process improvement strategies and applied solutions that utilize a unique method of engagement: the Collaborative Business Experience (CBE). By providing public and private sector experience, best practices, and proven tools and methodologies tailored for the U.S. government’s unique requirements, we help clients build knowledge and capabilities as we work together to drive transformation agendas. With a dedicated core team of professionals in Herndon, VA, Capgemini Government Solutions was formed in 2002 as an independent operating division of Capgemini to offer U.S. Government agencies deep transformation, consulting, and IT expertise. More information is available at www.capgemini-gs.com.

News: Capgemini Survey Reveals More than 25 Percent of Fortune 1000 Companies’ Hiring Capabilities May Suffer Due to Delayed Cash Flow

Capgemini — 2011-12-13T12:09:00+01:00

Findings Show that Delayed Cash Flow May Stunt Growth, Prevent Hiring and Hurt Revenue

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today released the findings of its most recent Executive Insight Survey that found Fortune 1000 companies are feeling the pressures of late payments on their bottom line. The top three areas affected by delayed cash flow, as cited by the surveyed executives, include growth (29 percent), hiring (27 percent) and revenue (20 percent).

The survey, commissioned by Capgemini and conducted online in September 2011 by Harris Interactive, polled 304 executives from Fortune 1000 companies and found that nearly half (45 percent) have seen an increase in late payments from their clients. Fifteen percent of executives noted a major increase (a jump of 25 percent or more) in late payments within the past year. Nearly a quarter of those affected by payment delays said that this trend has had a significant impact on their business.

Some companies may adopt tactics to mitigate the impact of late payments from their customers, including outsourcing cash collections. Of those companies that currently outsource the collections function, more than half said it reduced bad debt loss. In addition, companies noted an increase in profitability (34 percent) and increased efficiency on all points of the revenue cycle (32 percent).

“The survey shows a worrying trend, as many top firms are being impacted by an increase in late payments. Our experience in working with some of the world’s largest companies has shown that those organizations that outsource their accounts receivables processes to third-party specialists may significantly reduce their bad debt losses,” said Chris Stancombe, Head of Finance and Accounting Outsourcing at Capgemini. “In this market, the need to stimulate cash flow is critically important to companies looking to remain competitive and sustain a strong workforce.”

The survey highlighted other areas affected by delayed cash flow, including the ability to offer wage increases, support innovation and invest in research and development.

Capgemini’s Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) unit works with clients to help their Order-to-Cash function efficiently generate profitability and increase cash flow. Capgemini has recently enhanced its credit management and collections outsourcing service with the acquisition of the Order-to-Cash business of leading specialist provider, Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. Capgemini realizes over $39 billion in account receivables collection value annually for its clients. For more information and to download a summary of Capgemini’s survey results, please visit /OTCinsightsurvey/.

Survey Methodology

This executive survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Capgemini between September 14 and 16, 2011, among 304 senior executives at Fortune 1000 companies. Company revenue and number of employees were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the larger universe of Fortune 1000 companies.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with no response, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words “margin of error” as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100 percent response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion (approximately USD $11.5 billion). Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model.

Learn more about us at www.us.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini.

Capgemini’s expertise is recognized in Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) with a solution portfolio that spans Finance & Accounting, Customer Care & Intelligence, Procurement, Assurance Management, Human Resources and Knowledge Process Outsourcing services. As part of Capgemini’s Rightshore® delivery network, BPO professionals provide services to clients worldwide 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in 36 languages, from centers located in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Guatemala, India, Poland, and the United States. For more information: http://www.capgemini.com/services/outsourcing/bpo/

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is one of the world’s leading custom market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers expertise in a wide range of industries including healthcare, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Serving clients in over 215 countries and territories through our North American and European offices and a network of independent market research firms, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us - and our clients - stay ahead of what’s next. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.

News: Capgemini is selected by Unilever for Major Global Transformation Programme

Capgemini — 2011-12-05T09:08:00+01:00

Enterprise Data Warehouse will integrate global data for fast, informed and fact-based decision-making

Capgemini UK plc, part of the Capgemini Group, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, has been selected as Unilever’s global business intelligence partner, to work alongside Unilever IT and business teams in delivering a major transformation programme over the next three years. Unilever is one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies, with 2 billion people using its products every day across 180 countries, and this major global programme will create its first Enterprise Data Warehouse (EDW), providing real-time data on its customers, markets and operations worldwide to support decisions on all the company’s plans and activities.

The programme will involve migrating legacy data warehouses into the new EDW and providing new data-mining and analytical tools to support Unilever management at all levels in achieving fast, informed and fact-based decision-making based on comprehensive and up-to-date data. It is also expected to deliver significant sustainable cost savings both in IT and across Unilever business operations worldwide.

Willem Eelman, Unilever’s Global Chief Information Officer, said: “This programme is one of our top strategic initiatives, not just for IT but for the Unilever business worldwide. It will transform the way our businesses around the world access and use information, bringing enhanced insight and consistency. Capgemini was the natural partner for us given their strong global Business Information Management experience and understanding of our business.”

The programme reinforces Capgemini’s position as one of the world’s leading Business Information Management service providers. Capgemini was positioned by Gartner, Inc. in the leaders’ quadrant for Global Business Intelligence and Performance Management Service Providers . Capgemini’s global Business Information Management (BIM) service line was established in 2009 with the aim of serving its global customers better, and brings together over 7,000 specialist consultants supporting a global BIM delivery model.

Paul Nannetti, Capgemini’s Global Leader for Business Information Management, said: “Unilever is already one of our most important global customers and we are delighted to be working with them to deliver this new and critical programme which aims to release the full power of information to the benefit of their business. We look forward to applying our experience of global BI transformations to this programme combining our skills in technology, programme management and business consulting.”

Capgemini was selected by Unilever following competitive bids from several leading multinational IT providers. The main reasons include Capgemini’s in-depth knowledge of global BIM challenges and proven BIM methodology, its track record in major BIM assignments and in the consumer goods sector, and its five-year history of successful engagements at Unilever in finance business process outsourcing. Capgemini’s proven commitment to sustainability, matching that of Unilever, was a further important point in favour.

Capgemini will deploy its Rightshore® global delivery model on the Unilever programme. The Capgemini team working on the project will be led from the UK and based at a number of locations around the world including Continental Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia Pacific, and with core support from a development centre in India.

-ENDS-

1 Gartner Inc.: “Magic Quadrant for Global Business Intelligence and Performance Management Service Providers,” Alex Soejarto, Neil Chandler, 27 January 2011

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

News: Capgemini Group Ranked Number One for Outsourced Testing Services by Ovum Benchmarking Study

Capgemini — 2011-12-02T10:37:00+01:00

Capgemini Group, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, has announced it has topped Ovum’s 2011 benchmarking study of Testing Services, ranking above other world-leading technology service providers. The combined Testing Practice of Capgemini and Sogeti business units was recognized particularly for its test process expertise as well as its customer intimacy and responsiveness.

Ovum in particular noted its structured approach to testing through Sogeti’s Test Management Approach (TMap®) and Test Process Improvement (TPI®) methodologies, which are even used by other (competitive) testing services vendors. Furthermore, in many organizations worldwide, TMap® is viewed as the standard for testing, containing practical methods for a risk-based testing approach, allowing testers to optimize the cost and benefits of testing and making it easier for CIOs and test managers to obtain buy-in from C-level decision-makers.

The Ovum Services Guide: Outsourced Testing benchmarks software and systems testing services providers across the world. Ovum bases its study on 20 key criteria ranging from cost and value, service portfolio, domain expertise, innovation and talent pool. Ovum benchmarked 13 software and systems testing services providers, ranking Capgemini Group at number one, ahead of other major players in the market.

Ovum noted in particular how Capgemini Group works collaboratively with customers at an operational level in joint customer-Capgemini/Sogeti teams to agree Service Level Agreements and Key Performance Indicators to combine decision making, and share accountability. Capgemini Group was also noted for its ability to accommodate the linguistic and cultural requirements of its customers, a result of a high proportion of Capgemini Group’s testing practice being based onshore or nearshore – enabling local teams to assimilate with and work alongside the customer’s own IT professionals.

Hans van Waayenburg, Leader of the Testing Global Services Line said “ We are delighted to have been recognized by Ovum as heading the leaders board for testing, ahead of tough competition. We have just marked 25 years of providing leading quality assurance and testing services. From small beginnings in 1986 in Sogeti Netherlands, our world-class testing service has been growing at a rate of over 29% per year, with a sizeable combined team of Sogeti and Capgemini dedicated testers, active in nearly 40 countries. Our aim then and now has always been to help clients lower their costs of new and existing IT applications and to enable faster delivery with higher quality.”

Dr. Alexander Simkin, Lead Analyst at Ovum and author of the study said: “For a vendor of Capgemini Group’s size, its ability to build deep, enduring customer relationships with its testing customers is impressive. No other testing services vendor has managed to establish a global presence and strong connections with its customers the way Capgemini Group has.”

# # #

About Capgemini and Sogeti

For more information, please visit:

www.capgemini.com/testing

www.sogeti.com/testing

www.ovum.com/mediacenter

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini.

TMap®, TMap NEXT®, TPI® and TPI NEXT® are registered trademarks of Sogeti.

News: Capgemini Awarded Globalization Excellence Award in Financial Management Services by global research firm Frost & Sullivan

Capgemini — 2011-12-01T10:52:00+01:00

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced it has been awarded the 2011 The Excellence in Globalization Award by Frost & Sullivan - a global research organization. This award is in recognition of Capgemini’s international business accomplishments in the Financial Services and Insurance industries.

For the Excellence in Globalization Award, the following criteria were used to benchmark Capgemini’s global delivery performance against key competitors:

Processes a Strategic Global Footprint
Leverage of Global Assets
Global Integration of Processes/Systems
Enhanced Global Value to Customer
Exhibits a Global Perspective

According to Frost & Sullivan’s research findings, Capgemini has emerged as a leader in the financial management services through its deep domain knowledge, expertise and experience Arnab Nath, Research Associate from Frost & Sullivan said “The company has a diversified client base spread across the globe, served by high quality professionals. Through acquisitions Capgemini has expanded its footprint over the years and is targeting the emerging markets of Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. The experience that Capgemini has, complemented by its global process strategy, technological capability and domain expertise, keeps the company ahead in the market compared to its peers.”

Shane Cassidy, VP - Financial Services Global Business Unit at Capgemini said “This award for globalization excellence fully recognizes the success of our strategic methodologies including our Global Process Model and Global Delivery model, Rightshore®. We have leveraged the right balance of locations, our streamlined processes and innovative customized business models to help our clients reduce cost and ultimately improve their bottom line.”

Frost & Sullivan is in its 50th year in business as a global research organization of 1,800 analysts and consultants who monitor more than 300 industries and 250,000 companies. The company’s research philosophy originates with the CEO’s 360 Degree Perspective™, which serves as the foundation of its TEAM Research™ methodology. This unique approach enables it to determine how best-in-class companies worldwide manage growth, innovation and leadership.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

Capgemini’s Financial Services Global Business Unit brings deep industry experience, innovative service offerings and next generation global delivery to serve the financial services industry. With a network of 17,000 professionals serving over 900 clients worldwide, Capgemini collaborates with leading banks, insurers and capital market companies to deliver business and IT solutions and thought leadership which create tangible value. For more information please visit www.capgemini.com/financialservices

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, enables clients to accelerate growth and achieve best-in-class positions in growth, innovation and leadership. The company’s Growth Partnership Service provides the CEO and the CEO’s Growth Team with disciplined research and best-practice models to drive the generation, evaluation, and implementation of powerful growth strategies. Frost & Sullivan leverages 50 years of experience in partnering with Global 1000 companies, emerging businesses and the investment community from more than 40 offices on six continents. To join our Growth Partnership, please visit http://www.frost.com.

News: Southern California Gas Company Awards Smart Metering Contract to Capgemini

Capgemini — 2011-12-01T10:11:00+01:00

Automated Metering Project -- a U.S. First for Gas-Only Distribution Company

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced it has been chosen by the Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas), a Sempra Energy utility, to support them in the delivery of a comprehensive advanced meter solution, a first for a large North American, gas-only distribution company. The work is planned to extend to the end of December 2013, with an initial ‘go live’ date of October 2012.

Capgemini will provide SoCalGas with a spectrum of advanced meter project services including developing processes for and staffing a project management office, developing detailed technical and business requirements for the project, managing multiple system releases and developing project strategies for the test and organizational change management aspects of the project. In addition, Capgemini will provide support to the systems integration, architecture, testing, and deployment efforts.

Capgemini was selected for this project by SoCalGas following a competitive tender process involving major vendors.

This project is part of a breakthrough year for Capgemini Smart Energy Services (SES). Since February 2010 when Capgemini launched the SES global service line, Capgemini has grown its smart energy client base from 5 customers in North America to a total of 39 active accounts representing triple-digit growth and all major geographies across the globe. Capgemini continues to expand its SES portfolio focusing on SES Platform, a “software as a service” solution for metering operations as well as Home Energy Management. Capgemini provides the full spectrum of smart metering, smart grid, smart home and smart analytics solutions through leveraging best practices developed successfully over the last 10 years with some of the world’s leading utilities.

Perry Stoneman, vice president and global leader, Smart Energy Services, Capgemini comments: ‘We’re delighted to have the opportunity to work with a leading utility like Southern California Gas Company on a project of such scale, with such potential. This is the latest in a line of important milestones for Smart Energy Services and of strategic importance to Capgemini as we build our capabilities and expand from electricity into gas metering programs. With each landmark program, we gather more skills and experience to analyze and share for the benefit of our global utility clients.”

-ENDS-

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at http:// www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

News: Capgemini wins €42m five-year contract extension with International Paper

Capgemini — 2011-11-30T07:32:00+01:00

Business Process Outsourcing collaboration now extends to 19 years

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, has announced that it has won a €42 million contract renewal with International Paper, a global paper and packaging company. The contract extension until 2018 covers the existing full scope of Finance and Accounting (F&A) services and will bring the total collaboration period to 19 years – one of the longest relationships in the BPO sector.

International Paper, a Fortune 500 company and a global leader in the paper and packaging industry, operates in more than 20 countries, employs over 60,000 people and serves customers worldwide. The company’s businesses include uncoated papers and industrial and consumer packaging with primary markets and manufacturing operations in North and Latin America, Europe, Russia, Asia and North Africa.

Capgemini’s relationship with International Paper began in 1999, when 40 Capgemini associates served the needs of International Paper’s European entities. In 2002, the contract extended to cover the United States and the account has grown ever since. Currently 480 Capgemini associates serve more than 240 locations, working out of Krakow in Poland, Nanhai in China and Guatemala City, providing full scope F&A services including Order to Cash, Procure to Pay, Record to Analyze and Treasury in seven languages, serving multiple customer locations across the globe.

Key to Capgemini’s success in winning the contract extension was its consistently high quality service delivery, its innovative and flexible solutions and its response to International Paper’s needs. Capgemini was viewed as an important driver of process improvement using its Global Process Model© and worked collaboratively with International Paper to achieve process standardization and higher operational performance.

Harry Wauters, Director Global Financial Shared Services Centers from International Paper: “We were looking for a company with a robust F&A platform to support our objectives which could be flexible and scaled up and down according to our business needs. We chose to extend our relationship with Capgemini because of their outstanding collaborative approach, their added value beyond the agreed service scope and their strong focus on continuous improvement. They have demonstrated to us over numerous years their dedication to deliver innovative and adaptable solutions.”

Hubert Giraud, CEO for Capgemini Business Process Outsourcing said: “We are delighted to have won this landmark contract extension with International Paper, which is recognition of their trust in our collaboration, commitment and delivery of these important services. The Capgemini engagement team has demonstrated their exceptional capabilities to deliver industrialization and innovation. We look forward to extending this important strategic partnership to our mutual benefit.”

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at http://www.capgemini.com

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

Capgemini’s expertise is recognized in Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) with a solution portfolio that spans Finance & Accounting, Customer Operations Management, Procurement, Supply Chain Management, Human Resources and services for banking & Insurance sector. As part of Capgemini’s Rightshore® delivery network, BPO professionals provide services to clients worldwide 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in over 36 languages, from centers located in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Guatemala, India, Philippines, Poland, Sweden and the United States. Capgemini, is a recognized player in BPO in Poland, Latin America and Brazil, with more than 2,000 BPO professionals managing BPO processes in Latin America and 12.000 globally. www.capgemini.com/bpo

News: Capgemini Consulting Global Trade Flow Index Reveals Downward Trend in Global Trade Levels in Q3 2011 as Local Domestic Consumption Continues to Rise

Capgemini — 2011-11-28T12:45:00+01:00

Growth in emerging market economies not leading to growth in global trade, suggesting local production is increasingly being favoured above imported goods and services

Capgemini Consulting, the global strategy and transformation consulting brand of the Capgemini Group, today announced figures from the latest edition of its Global Trade Flow Index*. Capgemini Consulting’s analysis reveals a slight decline in global trade levels quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) in Q3 2011 (1.3 percent), indicating a downward trend in global trade levels in Q3 2011, heavily impacted by challenging global economic conditions, including a weakened US economy and Eurozone debt crisis. At the same time, local domestic consumption around the world continues to rise, growing by 7.6 percent between Q3 2010 and Q3 2011, suggesting locally produced goods and services are being increasingly favored above imports.

Capgemini Consulting’s Global Trade Flow Index tracks the trade of goods and services by quarter based on an analysis of a number of trade and market-related parameters from the latest available official data (related to the import and export of goods and services) from national agencies of the 23 top countries in terms of global trade.

The Index highlights an increasing gap between trade levels in mature and emerging markets, with deceleration in import and export growth affecting all the G7 nations. Trade levels in Europe, heavily impacted by the debt crisis in the eurozone and constrained by an appreciating euro, fell by 2 percent in Q3 2011. Similarly, US trade levels also declined by 2 percent q-o-q, with a weak dollar leading to a decline in its foreign market growth and rising commodity prices further reducing its domestic consumption. Japan saw a decline in trade levels of 1.6 percent in Q3 2011, although this follows a reduction of 5.7 percent in Q2 2011, suggesting signs of recovery in the Japanese market following the continued impact of the earthquake and tsunami disaster earlier this year.

In contrast, trade levels in emerging markets were more stable, with both India and China seeing increases of 1.2 percent and 0.4 percent respectively q-o-q. Similarly, Russia saw only a slight reduction in trade levels of 0.26 percent. Overall, GDP in the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) continues to grow and increased by between 2.7 and 3.5 percent in Q3 2011. However, this is not reflected in global trade flow levels which show that exports to mature markets are only declining. This suggests import volumes into these regions are heavily substituted by locally manufactured products and services.

“Due to a particularly tough economic climate, we have seen a slight decline in global trade levels this quarter,” said Roy Lenders, Vice President Supply Chain Management at Capgemini Consulting. “However, growing GDP levels in the BRIC markets are not leading to increased global trade, suggesting this local economic growth primarily benefits companies operating locally. For companies looking to benefit from growth in the BRIC countries, local operations should be the preferred way to market.”

Looking ahead to Q4 2011, global trade flows are expected to increase, driven largely by the traditional end of year seasonal upswing in trade due to the holidays. However, inflation, caused by high food prices and volatile commodity markets is a key risk for both emerging and developed markets. Ongoing US fiscal imbalances also run the risk of creating instability in financial markets, although the biggest risk to the overall outlook of the global business environment remains the sovereign debt crisis in the eurozone.

APPENDIX - Capgemini Consulting Global Trade Flow Index (extract of the ranking with the 12
leading countries)

Country	RANK Q3-2011	RANK Q2-2011	Trade Volume Score (A)	Q-o-Q Growth Score (B)	Foreign Market Score (C)	Domestic Market Score (D)	Global Trade Index Score*
China	1	2	3.92	3.97	3.95	3.98	15.55
United States	2	1	4.00	3.87	3.89	3.87	15.50
Germany	3	3	3.04	3.88	3.86	3.87	11.77
Japan	4	4	1.73	3.88	3.81	3.84	6.64
France	5	5	1.42	3.86	3.84	3.87	5.47
Netherlands	6	6	1.40	3.90	3.87	3.87	5.42
Italy	7	7	1.22	3.87	3.84	3.86	4.72
United Kingdom	8	8	1.17	3.84	3.87	3.87	4.52
Korea	9	9	1.12	3.92	3.95	3.90	4.39
Belgium	10	10	1.04	3.87	3.85	3.88	4.02
Russian Federation	11	12	0.97	3.94	3.94	4.00	3.82
Canada	12	11	0.97	3.86	3.81	3.89	3.73

Note: Global Trade Index Score = A x (average of (B,C,D))

*About the Capgemini Consulting Global Trade Flow Index

The Capgemini Consulting Global Trade Flow Index is calculated for the 23 countries with the highest levels of global trade, assessing changes in competitive position of each country individually. Q3 2011 figures are based on estimates (methodology detailed below) ahead of official data for all 23 countries being fully available, in December 2011, to give a robust analysis of the quarter’s performance, while Q2 2011 figures are based on official government data.

The Index tracks global trade levels by quarter, based on Capgemini Consulting’s own analysis of trade and market-related parameters from the latest available official data from national agencies. This analysis is performed by applying the LOGEST formula to historical trade, GDP, domestic and foreign market data. As such, there may be a variance between estimated data and actual data of -3 to 6 percent, which is within standard forecast tolerance levels (10 percent).

The index will be updated and published each quarter to reflect developments in global trade flows. The latest version of the Index covers the period July to September 2011. The Index analyses four sub indicators for each country:

Total trade, including both imports and exports
Q-o-Q growth in trade
Foreign markets for goods produced in a country
Domestic market

The Capgemini Consulting Global Trade Flow Index is also supported by:

Holland International Distribution Council (HIDC)
Global Supply Chain Council in China and India
Supply Chain Movement
Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals’ (CSCMP) Supply Chain Quarterly

A full copy of the report can be downloaded from:

http://www.capgemini.com/insights-and-resources/by-publication/global-trade-flow-index-q3--2011/

Capgemini Consulting is the Global Strategy and Transformation Consulting brand of the Capgemini Group, specializing in advising and supporting organizations in transforming their business, from the development of innovative strategy through to execution, with a consistent focus on sustainable results. Capgemini Consulting proposes to leading companies and governments a fresh approach which uses innovative methods, technology and the talents of over 3600 consultants worldwide. For more information: http:// www.capgemini-consulting.com.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore ® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

News: Capgemini and Dassault Systèmes Sign an Innovative Services Partnership

Capgemini — 2011-11-21T07:03:00+01:00

Capgemini becomes Dassault Systèmes PLM solutions integrator

Dassault Systèmes (Euronext Paris: #13065, DSY.PA), one of the world’s leading 3D and PLM solutions providers; and Capgemini, a world leader in IT consulting, technology services and outsourcing, today announced the signature of an alliance around the integration of Dassault Systèmes’ PLM Version 6 solutions. The partnership will allow Capgemini to significantly widen its PLM integration offering for current clients in different industries such as aerospace, defense and automotive, as well as transport and energy. Capgemini intends to provide its clients in these sectors with the most innovative PLM solutions, to enable faster, more efficient transformation of their industrial processes.

This collaboration will accelerate the implementation and deployment of PLM solutions based on the value of Dassault Systèmes’ Version 6, an open online platform allowing an expanded user community to create, collaborate and experience products virtually in a 3D environment, throughout the innovation cycle, ensuring IP protection. It will also strengthen the capacity to integrate PLM technologies in more complex client environments, such as ERP applications, or proprietary application development.

Patrick Longuet, Capgemini France Aerospace & Defense, explains, “Through this partnership, we are aiming to position ourselves as European leader in the PLM solution integration market in different sectors, in particular aerospace and defense. Our unique expertise as a global integrator, will be enhanced with greater PLM skills, plus expertise around Dassault Systèmes solutions to better meet clients’ needs. At first, this global partnership will focus on France and Europe.”

Philippe Besse, Vice President, Industry Services EMEA at Dassault Systèmes, says, “We are proud to be able to sign this strategic partnership with a tier one European technology services player, which has widely demonstrated its skill and professionalism in consulting as well as systems integration. This will undoubtedly act as a catalyst for a wider integration of our PLM solutions for clients, while providing them with greater project and process management capabilities, and expertise around our PLM solutions.”

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

About Dassault Systèmes

As a world leader in 3D and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, Dassault Systèmes brings value to more than 130,000 customers in 80 countries. A pioneer in the 3D software market since 1981, Dassault Systèmes applications provide a 3D vision of the entire lifecycle of products from conception to maintenance to recycling. The Dassault Systèmes portfolio consists of CATIA for designing the virtual product - DELMIA for virtual production - SIMULIA for virtual testing - ENOVIA for global collaborative lifecycle management, EXALEAD for search-based applications- SolidWorks for 3D mechanical design and 3DVIA for online 3D lifelike experiences. For more information, visit http://www.3ds.com.

CATIA, DELMIA, ENOVIA, EXALEAD, SIMULIA, SolidWorks and 3D VIA are registered trademarks of Dassault Systèmes or its subsidiaries in the US and/or other countries.

News: Capgemini invests in Duet® Enterprise through new ERP+ solution

Capgemini — 2011-11-21T14:04:00+01:00

Includes creation of new center in India and development of custom-business packages; Capgemini’s first Duet Enterprise customer - GT Advanced Technologies – already benefiting

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced that as an early participant in the SAP-MICROSOFT Unite Partner Connection program, which drives interoperability and collaboration among SAP, Microsoft Corp. and participating partners, has re-launched its ERP+ solution portfolio and has created a dedicated development center in support of Duet® Enterprise software. Located in Mumbai, India, the engineers at the center will help build IP sector and industry solutions in the form of business packages, tailored to clients’ specific needs to run on the Duet Enterprise platform. Through these custom-made business packages, Capgemini aims to help customers drive sales productivity, develop market opportunities, streamline processes and reduce costs by extending and leveraging SAP® applications through Microsoft SharePoint 2010.

One customer already taking advantage of Capgemini solutions on the Duet Enterprise platform is GT Advanced Technologies, a global supplier of polysilicon production technology and crystalline growth systems for the solar and LED markets. Tom Doyle, vice president of Information Technology at GT Advanced Technologies said: “We worked with Capgemini to leverage Duet Enterprise’s interoperability to allow our executive teams and mobile users the ability to review and approve purchase orders outside of the SAP environment while travelling. This greatly improved the purchase order approval process.”

Capgemini has already developed two sector-specific solutions integrated with Duet Enterprise, with more in development at its new center in Mumbai:

Capgemini Hiring Manager Portal 1.0 certified by SAP for integration with Duet Enterprise 1.0, simplifies and speeds up HR processes using one single application to automate the creation and approval of new jobs
Capgemini Purchase Requisition Cockpit provides customers with high data quality and a streamlined business process, reducing the amount of manual work required in the purchase requisition process. It provides a quicker service by improving user experience and manual form processing through a user-friendly Web form and integrated workflow functionality. It also provides potential cost savings by reducing the need for staff requisition mailboxes and by simplifying the overall process, to realize time and staffing savings

“This cooperation between SAP, Capgemini and Microsoft will deliver business packages to the marketplace that meet specific industry and business needs, while further aligning our teams,” said Pascal Gibert, general manager, Information Worker Product Technology Unit, SAP AG. “Our collaboration is ultimately about providing the best outcomes for customers so that they can automate both their structured processes and support their unstructured workloads through integrated solutions. This integration is vital in order to drive productivity and cost reduction, while maintaining IT control, within an ever-challenging business environment.”

As one of the few global partners with a dedicated sales and delivery team focused on interoperability of solutions from Microsoft and SAP, Capgemini was the first IT services provider to build core expertise with both onshore and offshore capabilities, to provide a dedicated portfolio of solutions called Capgemini ERP+, launched in 2009. Now using Duet Enterprise, a platform jointly developed by SAP and Microsoft as a foundation for interoperability between SAP applications and Microsoft SharePoint and Microsoft Office, Capgemini ERP+ provides enhanced services to work with business processes from SAP with front-end Microsoft collaborative platforms such as SharePoint 2010, Microsoft.NET and Microsoft Office 2010. It helps companies improve compliance, maximize user adoption, reduce complexity, increase business speed and provides more accessible and secure data.

“Capgemini’s ERP+ solution helps maximize employee productivity, extend SAP utilization, and further increase value for SharePoint customers,” said Jeff Teper corporate vice president, Office Business Platform, Microsoft Office Division.

Jean-Claude Viollier, global head of Channels and Partners, Capgemini Group said: “We have long-standing relationships with both Microsoft and SAP, using their technology software to aid our customers. With over 18,000 Microsoft and SAP practitioners around the globe we aim to coordinate with our partners to continue to provide the latest cutting-edge solutions to help reduce cost, while also increasing flexibility and user adoption.”

For more information about Capgemini’s ERP+ service offerings in support of Duet Entreprise, go to: http://www.capgemini.com/services-and-solutions/technology/microsoft/solutions/erp-plus

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

# # #

SAP, Duet and all SAP logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP AG in Germany and in several other countries.

All other product and service names mentioned are the trademarks of their respective companies.

SAP Forward-looking Statement

Any statements contained in this document that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” “should” and “will” and similar expressions as they relate to SAP are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. SAP undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations The factors that could affect SAP’s future financial results are discussed more fully in SAP’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including SAP’s most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of their dates.

News: Global Study Reveals Only One Third of Large Companies Are Succeeding in Reshaping Their Business Through Digital Technologies

Capgemini — 2011-11-17T10:55:00+01:00

New research from Capgemini Consulting and the MIT Center for Digital Business examines how companies around the world are managing and benefiting from digital transformation

Capgemini Consulting, the global strategy and transformation consulting brand of the Capgemini Group, in partnership with the MIT Center for Digital Business, today announced the findings of its in-depth research into ‘digital transformation’ – the use of technologies to improve performance or reach of business. The study, ‘Digital Transformation: A Roadmap for Billion-Dollar Organizations,’ examines how digital technologies are changing the business of some of the world’s leading firms but reveals that only one third of companies globally have an effective digital transformation program in place. Despite the pervasive influence of digital technology in everything from delivering enhanced productivity and efficiency to improving customer experience and the way people interact and collaborate within an organization, the majority are still not taking advantage of its transformative potential and, therefore, risk falling behind more forward-thinking organizations.

Interviewing over 157 senior executive-level respondents from across 15 countries at global companies with more than $1bn in annual sales, the study highlights the fluctuating pace at which digital transformation is taking place and the varying levels of success experienced. The research assesses the maturity of organizations in terms of their digital transformation, with maturity made up of two dimensions characterised as the ‘what’ and the ‘how’. The what is the specific digital transformation elements being implemented by the organization, made up of their specific investments in customer experience, operational processes and worker enablement. The how is the way organizations are driving the transformation, made up of aspects such as project governance, workforce engagement, and measurement mechanisms.

For MIT’s George Westerman, Research Scientist and a co-contributor to the report: “These two elements are at the heart of the alchemy of digital transformation. Firms that are mature on both these dimensions can drive powerful digital transformation that yields significant business value. These mature few have mastered not only the style of digital transformation but also the substance.”

Very mature exponents of digital transformation have a sophisticated grasp of both the what and the how, but overall the study characterises 4 levels of maturity:

Digital Beginners: These companies are doing very little with advanced digital capabilities, although they have more traditional digital capabilities such as internet, e-mail or ERP. Companies may be in this category by choice but many are either unaware of the possibilities of new digital technologies or are starting to invest here without effective transformation management in place.
Digital Fashionistas: These companies have implemented digital tools, some of which may be creating value, but some may not. These companies are motivated to bring on digitally-powered change, but their digital transformation strategy is not founded on real knowledge of how to proceed. Many of these companies believe they must move fast to keep up with demand for digital capabilities, but do not necessarily have a clear vision of how the elements will collectively create value.
Digital Conservatives: These companies understand the need for a strong unifying vision and for governance and internal engagement activities to ensure prudent investment management. They understand where the company should be going and how to master digital challenges, but they can’t always build organizational momentum to carry out an ambitious program. As a result, though aiming to spend wisely, their careful approach may cause them to miss out on valuable opportunities.
Digirati: These companies truly understand how to drive value from digital transformation. They combine a strong shared vision for transformation, careful governance and engagement with sufficient investment in new opportunities. They have developed a digital culture that can envision further changes and have the ability to implement them wisely for competitive advantage.

For MIT’s Andrew McAfee, report co-contributor: “Despite the hype around innovative new technologies such as social media or mobile, most companies still have a long way to go on their digital transformation journeys. Whether using new or traditional technology, the key to digital transformation is changing how the company operates and that is a management and people challenge, as much as a technology one.”

The study highlights the external factors that are driving digital transformation. Pressure from competitors (72%) and customers (70%) were the biggest drivers of change, as companies strive to find new ways of ensuring competitive advantage and meet changing customer expectations. It also highlights the main internal barriers to achieving digital transformation: missing skills (77%), culture issues (55%), ineffective IT (50%).

For Capgemini Consulting’s Didier Bonnet, a co-contributor to the report: “Digital technology has the potential to improve corporate performance and reach radically, but this transformation will be as much about organizational change as it is about implementing new technologies. What this research has shown us is that while many are convinced of the power of digitally-enabled business practices, success will only come with strategic vision and leadership of a cohesive program of transformation.”

About the study

In a three-year joint research collaboration with the MIT Center for Digital Business, Capgemini Consulting is conducting a joint research study into digital transformation through interviews with senior executives from leading companies around the world. The findings outlined here are from the first phase of this research, involving 157 senior executive-level interviews in 50 companies in 15 countries. These companies are large firms, each having more than $1bn in annual sales. Approximately half of the interviewees were business leaders such as CEOs, business managers and COOs and the other half were with IT and technology leaders. The interviews covered a broad range of geographies and industries with participants from Europe, the USA and Canada and Asia Pacific and across industries including public sector, pharmaceutical, transport, manufacturing, retail, energy and utilities, financial services and telecoms, media and entertainment. This study is the culmination of the first year of the collaboration and further analyses will follow in 2012 and 2013.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore ® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

The MIT Center for Digital Business

Founded in 1999, the MIT Center for Digital Business (http://digital.mit.edu) joins leading companies, visionary educators, and some of the best students in the world together in inventing and understanding the business value made possible by digital technologies. We are supported entirely by corporate sponsors with whom we work in a dynamic interchange of ideas, analysis, and reflection intended to solve real problems. The Center has funded more than 50 faculty and performed more than 75 research projects focused on understanding the impact of technology on business value, and developing tools and frameworks our sponsors can use for competitive advantage.

News: Capgemini opens first Centre of Excellence for Smart Energy in Australia

Capgemini — 2011-11-17T10:46:00+01:00

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services today opens its Smart Energy Centre of Excellence (COE) in Australia for its Energy and Utilities sector, located in the heart of the Melbourne central business district (CBD). Building on a wealth of experience and thought leadership gathered from Capgemini’s global Smart Energy Services practice, the COE will act as a hub for Capgemini Australia to showcase, develop and present the latest business and technology advancements in Smart Energy solutions. Capgemini will leverage its capabilities from the Smart Energy COE in collaboration with its partners, including but not limited to the Smart Energy Alliance , to deliver solutions and services in partnership with its customers.

Capgemini’s Smart Energy Centre of Excellence is part of an ongoing market leadership initiative aimed at improving awareness and understanding of today’s smart energy developments. The COE is equipped with examples of the latest smart energy operations in Australia and around the world, which will help demonstrate how local Energy and Utilities organisations can apply smart solutions to deliver value to their businesses.

Perry Stoneman, Vice President and Global Leader of Capgemini’s Smart Energy Services line says, “The Energy and Utilities sector is important for Capgemini worldwide. We have a strong presence globally and our new Centre of Excellence in Australia complements our market leadership and will play squarely to help strengthen our solutions offerings. One of the major challenges Australia has with smart energy solutions is understanding how it might benefit the country; this new centre will help local companies tangibly understand the benefits for their business.”

The Energy and Utilities sector is a focus for Capgemini’s business in Australia. Capgemini is making investments to support its clients’ business and technology priorities. The Smart Energy COE will support Energy and Utilities clients through access to thought leadership, innovation and smart solutions leveraged from the global COEs in India, Europe, Nordics and North America and developed for the Australian marketplace. Local customers will benefit from reusable assets and collaborative methods to accelerate delivery of solutions across focus areas including Smart Grid, Smart Metering and Smart Home.

Ash Peck, General Manager, Information and Communication Technology at SP AusNet added, “I’m delighted to see Capgemini bring their global capabilities and thought leadership to the Australian Utilities marketplace, through investment in their Australian Smart Energy Centre of Excellence. SP AusNet looks forward to leveraging Capgemini’s Centre of Excellence to assess business and technology scenarios in the Smart Grid arena.”

Glen McLean, General Manager of Information Technology at Powercor Australia said, “Capgemini’s launch of their Australian Smart Energy Centre of Excellence is testament to their commitment to the local Utilities sector. At Powercor and CitiPower we look forward to leveraging Capgemini’s innovations and thought leadership through their Smart Energy Centre of Excellence.”

- Ends -

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

News: Capgemini enhances its leadership in Finance & Accounting BPO through the acquisition of Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. Order to Cash business

Capgemini — 2011-11-15T07:00:00+01:00

Capgemini, one of the global leaders in consulting, IT services and outsourcing, today announced the acquisition of the Order to Cash (OTC) business from US-based Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. (and certain of its affiliates), a leader in the accounts receivable collections market worldwide. This niche acquisition is in line with Capgemini’s strategy to complement its footprint with selected expertise. Run under the brand ‘VWA’, the Order to Cash business delivers consistent financial performance in terms of both growth and profitability, and will be accretive to the BPO and Group margin. The acquisition – which fits in with Capgemini’s profitable growth strategy - will enable Capgemini to build on its Finance and Accounting BPO services through enhanced offerings in the Order to Cash (OTC) market worldwide. Capgemini gains onshore OTC capabilities, mainly in the United States, as well as process expertise. The acquisition brings over 300 VWA experts to Capgemini’s 12,000 skilled staff BPO organization. Capgemini and VWA have already been partnering for over a year with considerable success. The transaction is financed by the Capgemini Group’s net cash and has just been finalized. In addition, Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. owns state of the art technology software which is already being integrated into Capgemini’s BPO service, strengthening Capgemini’s platform-based solutions for comprehensive Finance and Accounting outsourcing.

OTC BPO services can help clients reduce revenue leakage, accelerate the cash-flow cycle and limit bad debt expense – outcomes that clients are increasingly demanding. Revenue leakage from cash collections can account for up to 5% in some firms. Capgemini will be ideally positioned to address these needs and deliver best in class accounts receivable functions to clients across the globe. The OTC and collections BPO market size is expected to reach $31bn by 2012 and is growing by more than 10% per annum according to NelsonHall, an industry-leading BPO analyst firm.

F&A has been the main growth engine for Capgemini’s BPO business, driving over 60% of its revenue last year. Capgemini is a recognized leader in F&A BPO. Gartner positioned Capgemini in the Leaders Quadrant for Comprehensive F&A BPO, Global .

With over 300 experts, mainly based in the United States, VWA has eight outsourcing delivery centers - two in the United States and six in Europe: UK, Germany, France, Netherlands, Spain and Italy. VWA supports global Fortune 100 and Mid-Market enterprises. It boasts world-class credit analytics, cash application, and an impressive record in collections, supported by leading dispute and deductions toolsets.

Capgemini also acquires a significant equity stake in the Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. subsidiary that owns the Webcollect O2CPro software, with Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. retaining a majority equity stake in it. It is anticipated that this subsidiary will continue to be run as an independent entity and that the software will continue to be licensed to clients and other service providers.

Capgemini BPO has already integrated Webcollect O2CPro software into its BPO F&A offering and has thus extended its software and services platform-based BPO strategy that was developed through the earlier acquisition of the IBX Procurement platform in 2010. This allows Capgemini to deliver global, standardized services and faster time to value for BPO clients, as well as offer new software-rich business services.

Robert G. Williams, Chairman at Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc., who joins Capgemini as Head of the BPO Order to Cash service, commented, “We are thrilled to join a global team which has a great reputation in the market for Finance and Accounting BPO and which seems a perfect fit for our business. Capgemini’s BPO business has global scale and reach, together with great vision in BPO. This combined with our deep expertise in OTC and collections should prove to be a winning combination. Meanwhile, Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc. will continue to develop its business, notably 3rd party collections and specialty audit.”

Hubert Giraud, CEO Business Process Outsourcing at Capgemini, commented, “This acquisition is a perfect next-step for our growth strategy. It will further strengthen our global BPO offering through VWA’s domain knowledge, on-shore center capabilities and US presence. Capgemini’s BPO service is focused on delivering the best outcomes and real benefits to our clients. VWA will bolster our offering in the Order to Cash arena, giving more value for our existing clients and a strong new entry point for new customers. Combined with VWA, Capgemini strengthens its position as a leading player in this field.”

Note about the Magic Quadrant

The Magic Quadrant is copyrighted 2011 by Gartner, Inc. and is reused with permission. The Magic Quadrant is a graphical representation of a marketplace at and for a specific time period. It depicts Gartner’s analysis of how certain vendors measure against criteria for that marketplace, as defined by Gartner. Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in the Magic Quadrant, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors placed in the “Leaders” quadrant. The Magic Quadrant is intended solely as a research tool, and is not meant to be a specific guide to action. Gartner disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About Capgemini

With more than 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini

About Vengroff, Williams & Associates, Inc.

VWA is the global domain provider of order to cash business process outsourcing for optimizing working capital. Founded in 1963, with over $23 billion dollars under management and 3,000 global customers, VWA strategically designs Order to Cash BPO solutions with an emphasis on technology innovation and partnership to drive ROI across the entire order to cash cycle, maximizing working capital.

Combining unequaled experience and comprehensive capabilities across a number of vertical industries and business functions, VWA has extensive industry expertise in Order to Cash outsourcing and provides a broad and evolving spectrum of service offerings including O2C, starting with credit, revenue cycle management, Deduction Management, Dispute Management, 3rd party collections, Subrogation, Credit Risk Mitigation Services and A/R technology solutions.

For more information, please visit www.vwainc.com

News: Capgemini Recognized for Strategic Vision, Leadership and Innovation by Top Industry Organizations

Capgemini — 2011-11-14T13:09:00+01:00

CRN VAR500, InformationWeek 500, Inc. 500/5000, HE&IT’s Most Admired Employers and Global Services’ GS100 acknowledge Capgemini’s achievements in North America

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, today announced that it has been recognized by five leading industry organizations for its strategic vision, leadership and innovation in North America. For the fourth year in a row, Capgemini was recognized by Everything Channel as part of CRN’s 2011 Annual VAR500 list, ranking this year as the 6th top solution provider organization in North America. For the seventh year in a row, InformationWeek also recently named Capgemini to its annual listing, the InformationWeek 500, ranking this year amongst the top 100 companies. In addition, Inc. magazine named BI Consulting Group, acquired by Capgemini earlier this year, to its 30th annual Inc. 500/5000 list. Capgemini was also chosen as the nation’s 6th most admired employer for minority technology professionals by Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology (HE&IT) magazine’s 2011 Most Admired Employers survey. Lastly, Capgemini was included in Global Services’ GS100, an annual survey and analysis of the global IT Outsourcing and Business Process Outsourcing industry.

“It is an honor to be recognized by such prestigious organizations for our achievements in helping our clients and partners drive business transformation through technology, as well as our dedication to continual innovation and diversity that enables our employees, and by extension our clients, to be successful,” said Lanny S. Cohen, chief executive officer, Capgemini U.S. LLC. “At Capgemini, we believe that collaboration is the foundation for our sustained success and these accolades reinforce that our teams are working in the collaborative spirit, both internally and externally, to ensure that we’re providing effective and efficient solutions for all of our stakeholders.”

CRN Magazine’s annual VAR500 list highlights the top performing technology integrators in North America, ranked by revenue. The award reinforces Capgemini’s role as a trusted business advisor, integration leader and invaluable partner in helping clients address their most complex IT business problems.
InformationWeek identifies and honors the nation’s most innovative users of information technology with its annual 500 listing, and also tracks the technology, strategies, investments and administrative practices of America’s best-known companies. The award acknowledges Capgemini’s successful deployment of a Group Instant Messaging Service (GIMS) for use by its nearly 115,000 employees worldwide. Through the use of the GIMS solution, Capgemini’s employees have increased their levels of collaboration with colleagues around the world, and the company expects to realize nearly $1 million in annualized cost reduction to the business.
Inc. magazine’s Inc. 500/5000 list compiles an annual list of the fastest-growing private companies in America. With a focus on Oracle Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) and Oracle Business Intelligence (BI) technologies, Capgemini’s acquisition of BI Consulting Group enhances the company’s Business Information Management capabilities in North America and signifies the company’s commitment to sustained growth.
Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology magazine’s annual Most Admired Employers list surveys minority technical managers and business leaders with advanced degrees in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The award showcases Capgemini’s commitment to cultivating a diverse workforce and the recruitment and retention of exceptional talent within scientific and technical fields.
Global Services’ GS100 survey, conducted in association with NeoGroup, recognizes service provider excellence and maturity to serve the global ITO and BPO industry. Capgemini was recognized within 10 categories spanning ADM, BPO, FAO, HRO and ITO, as well as delivery leadership in Latin America and China. Capgemini’s inclusion in the GS100 list is a testament to the company’s Rightshore® global delivery model, breadth of capabilities and services offerings and continual focus on client needs and process improvement.

About Capgemini

With around 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion (approximately USD $11.5 billion). Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit their needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model.

Learn more about us at www.capgemini.com.

Rightshore® is a trademark belonging to Capgemini.

News: Capgemini launches IBX Spend Capture Cloud

Capgemini — 2011-11-10T10:18:00+01:00

Online procurement solution to help businesses realize savings and capture spend in real-time

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services has announced the launch of its IBX Spend Capture Cloud solution to help customers enhance their procurement processes using an easy to deploy cloud solution. From implementing contracts, monitoring procurement KPIs and offering the best procurement choices to track all costs across products and services, the new IBX Capture Spend Cloud streamlines the procurement process and allows organizations to capture the benefit of on-line spending, which is often wasted due to lack of compliance with procurement standards. The pioneering solution, that combines a consumer-like experience with scalability for global roll-outs, integrates with all major eProcurement systems and links contracts to operational processes to provide improved contract compliance. It will be available across all key markets including the United States, the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands and the Nordic countries.

According to Capgemini’s CPO Survey 2010, many businesses have not yet realized the full potential of on-line procurement ,with 67% claiming that less than a fifth of their spend is through eProcurement. But cloud services have the advantage of being quick, easy-to-use, ready for use, and not requiring any data integration or customer installation. Capgemini’s IBX Spend Capture Cloud can be up and running in 90 days offering cost benefits of up to 50% compared to an on-premise implementation. The solution integrates with all major eProcurement systems and has pre-built integration package for SAP SRM.

The solution provides a ‘one-stop-shop’ to guide users simply through an online order system via an intuitive approach. The Portal start page displays most frequent suppliers, contracts and items for speed of use. Supporting multiple call-off methods to capture any spend, from IT services to products. It comes pre-integrated with the IBX Supplier Network that provides connectivity to businesses’ entire supply base through one channel which provides access to all contracts, frame agreements and preferred suppliers in one place, with one search screen for all contracts, vendor forms, price check, order tracking and catalogues. It also includes a system to track key performance indicators to show procurement value contribution.

According to the recent Gartner Inc. E-Procurement Market and Vendor Landscape report covering 32 vendors, the Capgemini IBX solution was rated as a top five vendor in the categories of Electronic Catalogue, Supplier Integration and Technology platform.

Capgemini is already delivering the IBX Spend Capture Cloud solution to a number of blue-chip companies including major companies in the airline, telecommunications, manufacturing and consumer goods and retail sectors. “Since we’ve started to use the IBX Spend Capture Cloud to procure consulting and other services, we have received a higher degree of contract compliance and we have the ability to easily and properly send requests to our suppliers. After 6 months we now have a more structured procurement process and our users are happy that the time from specifying our needs to ordering is much quicker”, says Jörgen Augustsson, Procurement Director at Saab.

“The new user interface of the IBX Search Engine has been very well received by our end users. The design is improved and much more intuitive. This has also improved the end users experience of the entire procurement process”, says Gunnar Tvilling, Content Manager, Copenhagen Airports A/S.

Pontus Björnsson, vice president for Capgemini Procurement Services said “We are excited about the launch of the IBX Spend Capture Cloud. Struggling with bad usability and low levels of spend through eProcurement will now be history. The IBX Spend Capture Cloud will enable customers to truly improve their compliance and increase bottom line cost savings.”

Capgemini acquired a Swedish e-procurement vendor, in February 2010 gaining access to IBX Platform. The Capgemini IBX product portfolio is an extensive eProcurement suite, offering BPO and hosting services for SAP’s procurement product line. IBX Spend Capture Cloud including IBX’s Content Platform for content management, IBX Search Engine, IBX Procurement Intelligence, IBX Supplier Network and IBX eRequest are the intellectual property of Capgemini. With the IBX Platform, Capgemini is the only vendor to offer a complete procurement suite with all three operating models including 100% on-demand delivery, hybrid delivery – with the IBX Spend Capture Cloud connected to an on-premise eProcurement solution and finally the ability to build and run businesses’ procurement suites on-premise behind firewalls.

eProcurement is electronic procurement which provides an end-to-end process from the selection of suppliers to purchase, tracking costs and overall supplier management. This is done through the Internet or other networking systems such as Electronic Data Interchange or Enterprise Resource Planning.

2 Gartner Inc. E-Procurement Market and Vendor Landscape, Deborah R Wilson, Nigel Rayner, 2 September 2011

News: Capgemini and POI Study Shows Significant Opportunities for Brand Manufacturers to Meet Consumer Shopping Expectations

Capgemini — 2011-11-09T14:54:00+01:00

Majority of Companies Lack Integrated Processes, Technology and Capabilities to Effectively Promote Products

Capgemini, one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services, in cooperation with The Promotion Optimization Institute (POI), today announced the findings of a study, The Financial Framework for Trade Promotion Optimization Success, examining the impact of financial and planning processes on trade promotion. The study found that regardless of company size, a majority (67 percent) of consumer product manufacturers in North America do not feel their current trade planning processes can support the delivery of a customer-centric shopping experience.

“The way consumers buy and make purchasing decisions today has changed dramatically due to the rise in social media, mobile applications, online shopping and the economy. Brand manufacturers, conversely, continue to operate in the same ways they have for decades, making top-down decisions from the boardroom rather than acting as a demand-driven enterprise,” said Bob Fassett, vice president, North America Consumer Products, Retail and Distribution Leader, Capgemini. “Manufacturers have an opportunity to better leverage data, analytics and integrated systems to significantly improve their marketing.”

The study results indicate that budgeting, planning and forecasting on promotions are the biggest challenges faced by consumer goods companies in determining effective marketing spend and activities. Only 21 percent of the respondents completely agreed they have an effective, integrated process to analyze promotional success, and a meager 9 percent indicated that promotion lift models were accurate to an acceptable degree. Moreover, most companies agreed (70 percent) that system support for unified decision making lags behind. These findings demonstrate that consumer brand companies need to tie marketing investments to a financial framework that is integrated across internal sales, marketing, finance and IT organizations as well as retail partners.

“In our experience working with some of the world’s largest consumer product companies, too many trade promotion efforts fail due to a lack of visibility into promotional investments,” added Fassett. “By implementing a unified predictive financial framework, consumer product companies can more accurately and effectively budget and even react to unforeseen changes in consumer demand, enhancing promotional return on investment.”

“Collaboration isn’t easy but it matters more than ever in today’s environment. Building on a solid foundation of measurement and accountability, movement to Trade Promotion Optimization (TPO) is no longer just a business differentiator, but an essential requirement to compete effectively,” said Michael Kantor, chief executive officer, The Promotion Optimization Institute. “As the survey indicates, greater success can clearly be tied to those organizations that are better aligned internally and with their retail partners, taking an integrated approach to developing processes and funding strategies to support their goals of driving revenues and margin increases.”

The survey addresses a number of key issues and emerging themes that consumer brand companies need to take into consideration as they look to optimize their operations and marketing efficacy. Highlights of these include:

How current budgeting processes and effectiveness vary across consumer goods segments
Effective trade funding methods that help drive profitable growth
How companies and trading partners execute against plan to achieve success
Developing KPIs to better understand the impact of adding value or destroying value for brands
A lack of communication between internal and external partners
The impact of siloed decisions and disparate methods and tools used in decision making

For more information and to download a copy of the survey results, please visit www.us.capgemini.com/TPO.

Survey Methodology

Capgemini worked with The Promotion Optimization Institute (POI) to conduct the study, The Financial Framework for Trade Promotion Optimization Success. All analysis and interpretation of the data has been made by Capgemini in collaboration with POI. In total, more than 55 tier-one and tier-two North American consumer products companies in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) and food and beverage industry were surveyed. Capgemini and POI also conducted an extensive survey, which included Trade Marketing, Sales/Sales Strategy, Finance, Planning and Category Management executives to gain a cross-functional understanding of the issues.

About the Promotion Optimization Institute (POI)

POI is a membership organization that brings together manufacturers, retailers, solution providers, analysts, academics and other industry leaders. Members of POI learn and share cross-functional best practices in both structured and informal settings. Additionally, members benefit through our industry alliances, the Certified Collaborative Marketer (CCM)™ program, and the Promotional Collaboration Capability Matrix (PCCM).

POI aims to instill a financial and metrics-based discipline not typically found with other trade groups. The goal of our innovative approach is collaborative promotion optimization. The focus is on the customer/shopper through sales, marketing, and merchandising strategies. Executive advisory boards keep us apprised of industry needs and help us provide desired outcomes for members, sponsors, and academia. For more information: www.P-O-I.org.

About Capgemini

With around 115,000 people in 40 countries, Capgemini is one of the world’s foremost providers of consulting, technology and outsourcing services. The Group reported 2010 global revenues of EUR 8.7 billion. Together with its clients, Capgemini creates and delivers business and technology solutions that fit needs and drive the results they want. A deeply multicultural organization, Capgemini has developed its own way of working, the Collaborative Business ExperienceTM, and draws on Rightshore ®, its worldwide delivery model. More information is available at www.us.capgemini.com

Rightshore® and Collaborative Business ExperienceTM are trademarks belonging to Capgemini.

About Capgemini’s Consumer Products and Retail Practice

Capgemini’s global Consumer Products and Retail practice works with 27 of the world’s 30 largest consumer products companies, 27 of the world’s top 30 retailers and hundreds more. Our team of approximately 5,000 specialists throughout the world helps these clients reap the benefits of industry-specific solutions such as Global ERP Integration, Commercial Leadership and Retailer Collaboration, Demand and Supply Chain Management, Multi-Channel Integration and Global Data Synchronization. More information is available at www.us.capgemini.com/consumerproducts