Staying ahead of the technology curve is paramount for a successful Consulting firm with a strong IT focus. Not always easy when disruptive technologies such as cloud, "as-a-service" models and other new technologies are moving the earth beneath our feet at an ever-increasing pace. Started in 1995, boutique advisory firm WGroup (formerly The W Group) has undergone a recent brand identity transformation, shifting the way it thinks about the service model of IT in an effort to meet clients' changing needs as smart application of these transformative technologies becomes more and more essential to a company's bottom line. Enter Harry Wallaesa, President and CEO of WGroup, who shared his insights on this brave new IT world.
Consulting: Talk a little bit about WGroup's new brand identity? What was behind the timing for this?
Wallaesa: We believe the industry is going under more change now than perhaps ever before. We think that CIOs in particular are faced with a number of things that are changing, a number of trends in the industry that all drove us to reconsider how the company is branded. This is an unparalleled time for IT. As a boutique firm, it's important for us to get out message out to the marketplace clearly. We feel we have some differentiating factors in our firm that make the services we provide very interesting to CIOs and CEOs at this particular time of such transformation.
Consulting: What impact are these disruptive technologies having on the industry?
Wallaesa: Obviously there are more choices, and those choices are global. But I think the fundamental change is the business model. I don't think you've heard people refer to IT as a business model within a company, but the business model that CIOs are managing is one. Even though they're an internal corporate provider, they're competing with other global providers to offer services to their customers. I think they're competing on a number of different levels, for the quality of the services, on price, but also speed and innovation. I think this a situation that CIOs have not necessarily faced in the past where in many cases they've been the only game in town, but now are competing with global providers such as Accenture, Infosys and others because of the maturity of outsourcing. It is now contributing to both top line growth as well as finding an operating model that offers efficiencies. I think that's unprecedented, at least in our time.
Consulting: What are clients demanding?
Wallaesa: Clients are looking for how to navigate this change, how to deliver it quickly and how to demonstrate a clear understanding of value for the organization. We offer IT strategy and transformation, governance and vendor management to align to this change. The business of IT is now within the actual business which is posing another interesting problem on the business side: business people need to not abdicate that responsibility, but actually work closer with IT to get the greatest value. The aspect of IT service delivery that seems to be most important to business is speed of delivery. They're looking for it fast and to be delivered quickly. The business is changing rapidly and the reaction time is critical for the business. They can't wait 6 months to have a server deployed, they can't wait 9 months to have an application deployed. Secondly is a clear understanding of what kind of value is going to be driven for the corporation before they make the investment. I think there are governance implications around what choices the business makes, which is actually an opportunity for IT to be a leader and help people understand which services should be deployed.
Consulting: What are some of the market opportunities being created by all this disruption?
Wallaesa: Market opportunities that exist now are value focused. I think providers have an entre into businesses they've never had before. Generally most of the providers worked through the CIO, now they can work through the entire business. And their value propositions, regardless of the size of the company, are things that will resonate within the business. If you can prove that you can drive revenue and cost savings, you're going to be able to create an opportunity for yourself. There are some cloud solutions, there are some Software-as-a-Service solutions out there from small companies that are making a significant impact in the Fortune 500.
Consulting: What does the future hold given all of these transformative technologies?
Wallaesa: One of our core competencies is about advising clients about sourcing opportunities. We've always been a value-focused firm when it comes to sourcing rather than a procurement firm that focuses on price. One of the things I think is unique about WGroup is that we are all former IT executives and really understand how to manage IT. We have a wonderful opportunity to work with some of the most innovative and best CIOs in the industry. We're continuing to update our intellectual property with in the firm and ride the waves of innovation by working with such innovative clients and by being curious and passionate about what we're doing in the industry today. Understanding how IT works, how IT creates value and understanding the actual operations of IT we think is a prerequisite to being able to advise someone about sourcing opportunities.
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