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Case Study: Energy Sourcing Review and Supplier Engagement

Thu, 07 Nov 2024 01:52:57 GMT

edenseven Designs Energy Supply Strategy for H2 Green

By conducting an energy sourcing review and engaging with suppliers

H2 Green are a large-scale hydrogen storage business with a focus onsite close to towns and cities across the UK.

H2 Green’s ambition is to build hydrogen hubs that deliver large amounts of hydrogen, providing security of supply for multiple users across whole regions.

H2 Green engaged edenseven, one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, to build an electricity supply strategy to meet their growth aspirations and environmental requirements.

Project Overview

To provide a clear outline of the contracting structures within the UK electricity market which would support the green credentials of the business. Structures needed to range from REGO back supply contracts to more complex long-term renewables agreements.

All contracting requirements needed to meet the ‘Renewables Transport Fuel Obligations’ and ‘Low Carbon Hydrogen Standard’.

Investigate the commercial opportunities short short-term flexibility of assets and liaise with the supply commodity on product development.

Support in consultations to government departments relating to the proposed price support mechanism.

Skills & Knowledge

An energy expert with a detailed knowledge of the UK energy market, with a specific understanding of the evolving policy landscape and how green hydrogen fits into the government’s forward plans.

An insight into global commodity markets and the various contracting structures currently in place across the supply community.

A clear understanding of how assets can be utilised in the short-term trading markets and the value of ‘optionality’.

An individual who holds key relationships across the supply community to enable product development and the ability to influence existing standardised offerings.

Outcome & Results

Market Analysis : The delivery of a clear and concise view of all the contracting structures currently being provided with the UK electricity market; this included both physical and financial products.
Engagement with Government Bodies : A well-considered submission to the relevant government bodies in response to a published consultation. This outlined the appropriate pricing and support structure needed to accelerate the Green Hydrogen Industry.
Supplier and Investor Relationships : The creation of a strong link to key suppliers and investors within the energy market. Promoting the development of Green Hydrogen and the benefits it can bring to global decarbonisation.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 150 consultants working on projects in 20 countries.

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

An Overview of the Current Satellite Communications Industry

Tue, 15 Oct 2024 20:48:53 GMT

The Satellite Industry is in a Period of Momentous Transformation

The satellite industry is going through a period of momentous transformation with the emergence of new entrants and new technologies in every segment of the value chain.

For decades satellite communications have been dominated by a handful of GEO satellite manufacturers, satellite operators and ground segment manufacturers with almost a cottage-industry-like network of service providers and value-added manufacturers (BUCs, LNBs and antennas). This has been a linear and predictable business model with entirely proprietary technologies.

We now see the emergence of new Non-Geostationary Orbit (NGSO), or multi orbit players in LEO, MEO and HEO building completely vertically integrated systems. This shift has significantly driven down capacity pricing: the price of satellite bandwidth for data services has dropped 77% over five years according to analysts Novaspace, formerly known as Euroconsult.

Starlink, as the first to market, is making waves by disrupting market sectors historically monopolised by the established GEO players such as maritime, aero and enterprise connectivity. Two years ago, the industry would have dismissed Starlink's impact on maritime or aero connectivity segments. The sentiment was that Starlink has ‘no CIR’ (Committed Information Rate) and therefore would not be considered ‘reliable’ for mobile or critical communications. This notion has since been overturned and the naysayers have paid a price with a significant impact to revenues in maritime—the cruise industry in particular—with Starlink now making inroads into aviation and previously inviolable segments like defence.

Starlink has also revolutionised satellite manufacturing, leveraging new technologies such as 3D printing to mass-produce satellites at a phenomenal rate, reducing costs to between $250,000 and $500,000 per satellite.

The race is on, with Elon Musk’s Starlink trying to acquire as many subscribers as possible before the challengers like Amazon's Kuiper and Telesat's Lightspeed emerge. Forrester's Digital has predicted that SpaceX’s Starlink broadband-by-satellite system is likely to end 2025 with around 8 million customers (it ended 2024 with approximately 5 million), a remarkable growth rate when you consider that each of the leading GEO satellite operators typically have around 25,000 enterprise VSAT terminals activated.

We also see the emergence of Small Sat and MicroGEO manufacturers disrupting traditional commercial models with innovations like satellite-as-a-service. This technology provides additional or targeted capacity for defence and government in hotspot areas.

Twenty-five years ago, building and launching a satellite would have cost at least two billion USD. Now we see them being built and launched at a fraction of that cost (circa $60 million), reducing the price per gigabit equal to or below fibre.

Starlink has also been fundamental to reducing launch costs. In 1981, launch costs were $147k per kilogram of payload. Starlink’s current generation of rockets have brought this down to $2300 and with the introduction of their new Starship rocket, Elon Musk is talking about a price as low as $100 per kilogram. This scale of reduction in launch costs is driving the democratisation of space by allowing new use cases for space to emerge.

The satellite industry is also seeing unprecedented consolidation, coopetition and collaboration, creating a range of new offers to consumers, enterprise and governments. Significant transactions include:

In April 2024, SES announced its intention to acquire rival Intelsat. If and when this completes, it will be a significant transaction

In May 2023, Viasat completed its acquisition of Inmarsat

In October 2023, Eutelsat and OneWeb completed their merger transaction

In March 2024, prior to the SES announcement, Intelsat extended its partnership with competitor Eutelsat-OneWeb for LEO services.

We are also witnessing the most significant digital transformation in the satellite industry’s history. The telecommunications industry underwent this transformation years ago, and the satellite industry is fast catching up by digitising and virtualising its infrastructure and moving away from proprietary analogue systems to standards compliant digitised IF and software-defined networking. This convergence will integrate terrestrial and space-based systems.

Indeed, this convergence of terrestrial and non-terrestrial systems is reflected in the 3GPP standards for 5G and 6G. Release 18 will build on the work which began in Release 17 on integrating and optimising satellite access into terrestrial networks. This will continue to push the satellite sector towards greater standardisation and away from its proprietary roots.

The release of the Apple iPhone 14 saw satellite access integrated into a mass market mobile device, providing users with an additional lifeline in the event of an emergency—no longer requiring cellular coverage to send an SOS. A new entrant, AST SpaceMobile, is looking to launch new direct to device satellite mobile services that will ultimately allow users to access mobile internet anywhere in the world. AST SpaceMobile has already established relationships with AT&T and Verizon, as well as being part-owned by Vodafone. Starlink’s latest generation of satellites are also direct-to-device ready as they look to capture a share of this new market.

Geopolitical tensions have accelerated the adoption of satellite technologies as countries increase defence spending. According to Novaspace, in 2023 government space budgets reached a record-breaking $117 billion, marking a growth of over 15% compared to the previous year. This trend is set to continue as countries bolster their military capabilities amid ongoing conflicts like Ukraine and regional flashpoints.

With subsea cables being cut in hostile and contested regions, having a satellite-based backup is becoming increasingly vital to security. With the convergence of terrestrial and satellite networking standards, we are seeing the adoption of SD-WAN where fibre links are backed up with an automatic satellite failovers.

Current Challenges

Despite these advancements, the satellite industry faces several challenges. Private equity and venture capital investment in the satellite industry has significantly declined over the last two years in terms of deal value. Investments totalled just $1.19bn in 2023, down more than 87% from $9.48bn in 2022. In 2024, there was a degree of investment ‘cold feet’ and scepticism around so called ‘new space’ entrants.

The lack of financial liquidity is forcing companies to reduce headcount in an attempt to remain profitable and meet shareholder expectations. This creates long-term uncertainties as companies attempt to innovate, adopt new technologies and pivot into the future landscape.

Ground segment manufacturers have been slow to innovate next-generation technologies. For example, software-defined modems were desirable for larger satellite operators in the mid 2010s, and yet this has been a slow reality. Furthermore, power supply and consumption of gateways and data centres is an increasingly significant cost consideration with the growth in distributed satellite access.

Next generation constellations have faced delays partly due to pandemic manufacturing issues, even as Starlink aggressively acquires subscribers.

Political factors like interference, jamming, and geofencing add complexity to the industry. In September 2023 it was alleged that Elon Musk had implemented geofencing in Ukraine thereby thwarting an attack by the Ukrainian armed forces on a Russian military position in Crimea.

Service providers must diversify their offerings to maintain revenue streams and competitiveness, and the industry is exploring the adoption of Generative AI and addressing ongoing supply chain challenges. Increase energy and fuel costs since the start of the Ukraine conflict have further exacerbated supply chain costs from component contract manufacturers.

This cocktail of uncertainty, makes the satellite industry an extremely exciting but also volatile space to operate in the coming years.

Conclusion

The satellite industry is undergoing significant transformation, which will continue throughout this decade. This period of change will bring considerable disruption, with some companies disappearing or being acquired. Cambridge Management Consulting is here to help companies in the satellite industry seize opportunities and ensure they are positioned for success in this evolving landscape.

How Cambridge MC can Help your Business

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we have the expertise and experience to guide companies through this transformative period. Our independent and agnostic perspective helps identify the business case for change and we support you in both strategy and execution to address these challenges.

With our experience in the satellite industry, we help companies to capitalise on new opportunities position themselves for success amid disruption.

If you would like to find out more about our services and talk about your current challenges, please get in touch with the satellite team using the form below.

Building an AI-Ready Infrastructure

Fri, 06 Sep 2024 15:19:36 GMT

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the hottest topic in technology for many reasons, good and bad, but it’s happening and it’s here to stay, so how do we build the infrastructure necessary to support it?

To start with, we should recognise that there are many forms of AI. The one that has created the most buzz is generative AI, as seen in ChatGPT, Meta's LLaMA, Claude, Google’s Gemini, and others. Generative AI relies on LLMs (Large Language Models) which have to be trained using vast amounts of data. These LLMs sit in data centres around the world, interconnected by vast fibre networks.

The data centre industry has not stopped talking about AI for at least 18 months, as it gears up for an ‘explosion’ in demand for new capacity. Some of the most respected voices in technology have predicted immense amounts of growth in data centre requirements, with predictions of triple the current capacity within 10 years being at the conservative end. That’s three times the current global data centre market, which has taken 30 years or more to get to where it is today. And, when we say growth, we’re talking about power. AI systems will require three times more electricity than data centres currently consume. Depending on who you ask, that’s about 2-4% of today’s global electricity production. And we’re talking about tripling that, or more.

Data Centres

So, what is ‘AI-ready infrastructure’ and how are we going to build it? The two key elements are data centres (to house the AI systems) and networks (to connect them with the rest of the world). LLM training typically uses servers with GPUs (the chip of choice for AI) and, for various technical reasons, these work best when in close physical proximity to each other – in other words, GPUs work best in large numbers in large data centres. Not just that, but the new generations of GPUs work best in dense data centres, meaning that each rack or cabinet of AI kit needs a lot of power.

Most data centres are designed to accommodate older kit that is not so power hungry. The average consumption globally is about 8kW per rack, although many still operate at about 2kW per rack. The latest nVidia (the leading GPU manufacturer) array needs a colossal 120kW per rack. The infrastructure inside a data centre designed for these beasts is complex: the cooling systems (GPUs run very hot) and electrical distribution systems are much harder to design and set up, and are also expensive.

So, data centres for AI training systems are mostly going to be new, as adapting older facilities is a non-starter. So, where do you put them? Finding land next to the vast amounts of electricity required is increasingly difficult in many European countries, especially in the UK. Most of the utility grids in Europe are severely lacking in spare capacity, and building new grid connections and electricity generation is a slow and expensive process.

The answer might be to locate these new AI data centres near new renewable energy generation sites, but those are few and far between, so land with access to power now carries a hefty premium. Small nuclear reactors could also be an answer but might take a few years to materialise – we know how to build them (witness the nuclear submarine industry) but getting planning permission to put them on land is another matter.

All in all, the data centre industry seems to be at least a few years away from being able to provide the massive upgrade in capacity that is expected. Even solving the land/power problem leaves the issue of actually building a new scale of data centre, 10 or 20 times bigger than what most would consider to be a gigantic site today. It can be done, we can solve the engineering challenges, but these are huge construction projects.

Networks

What about the networks? Actually, although very little real research has been done on the impact of large-scale AI rollouts on existing networks, we might be in a better position. The fibre networks in the UK and many European countries have benefited from significant investment over the last few years, so coverage is a lot better than it used to be. That does not mean that fast and large fibre routes, which will be a necessity for most AI systems, are all there, but it will be easier to build out new capacity than it will be to find power. Still, what we really need is some serious research into the amount of data that will need to be moved about and how that maps with existing network infrastructure.

All in all, we have more questions than answers. Some people in the infrastructure industry are sceptical that things will ever get to the scale that some are predicting, but most of us do expect it to happen – it’s just a matter of time, and the race has already begun.

Cambridge Management Consulting

Duncan Clubb is a Senior Partner at Cambridge Management Consulting, specialising in data centre and edge compute strategy. Duncan has extensive experience as an IT consultant and practitioner and has worked with many leading organisations in the financial, oil and gas, retail, and healthcare sectors. He is widely regarded as a leading expert and is a regular speaker at industry events.

If you or your organisation require support preparing your Digital Infrastructure for the emerging AI-industry, you can read about our array of Data Centre services, and get in touch with Duncan Clubb, through our designated Telecoms, Media, and Technology service page.

Legislating AI: A Comparison between the EU and the UK

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 13:05:10 GMT

The EU AI Act

In March of this year, the European Union published their Artificial Intelligence Act, establishing a common regulatory and legal framework for AI across the EU.

Two significant features of this act include the definition and prohibition of AI practices which pose an ‘unacceptable risk’; as well as the requirement for developers and ‘implementers’ to register high-risk AI models and maintain technical documentation of the model and training results.

The AI Act is the first comprehensive AI legal framework in the world. It will help to shape the digital future of the EU and guarantee the safety and fundamental rights of people and businesses.

Who does it Apply to?

The Act applies to any marketing or use of AI within the EU, regardless of whether those providers or developers are established there or in another country. While this effectively makes the act global in scope, this will depend heavily on how effectively authorities can prosecute outside of the EU.

A Risk-Based Approach

The EU’s AI Act adopts a risk-based approach which categorises AI systems into different risk levels (Unacceptable, High, Limited, and Minimal Risk), and imposes corresponding regulatory requirements.

Unacceptable Risk

AI systems that pose a threat to safety, livelihoods, or individual rights will be banned. This includes, for example, government social scoring and voice-assisted toys promoting dangerous behaviour.

High Risk

AI Systems are considered High Risk if they profile individuals, i.e. the automated processing of personal data to assess various aspects of person’s life. Consequently, AI systems used in the following are categorised as High Risk: critical infrastructures like transport; education if it could affect the outcome of someone’s career, e.g., exam scoring; safety components such as AI in robot-assisted surgery; employment, where it affects selection, e.g., CV sorting; essential services like credit scoring which may affect eligibility for a loan; law enforcement, e.g., evidence evaluation; migration services which could affect asylum claims; and democratic processes such as court ruling searches.

High-risk AI technologies will be subject to strict obligations before they are allowed onto the market.

Limited Risk

Limited risk involves the risks associated with AI's lack of transparency. The AI Act mandates transparency to build trust with users. For example, users must know when they are interacting with an AI, for example when they use chatbots. Providers must label AI-generated content, including AI-generated text or media made to inform the public. This also applies to audio and video content that constitutes deep fakes.

Low Risk

The AI Act permits unrestricted use of minimal-risk AI, including AI-enabled video games and spam filters. Low Risk encompass most AI systems currently used in the EU.

Key Objectives of the EU Act

The EU’s AI Act is comprehensive and wide-reaching, however its primary principles and objectives can be summarised under three main purposes: Regulation , Trust , and Innovation .

Regulation

As aforementioned, the AI Act aims to create the first-ever legal framework for AI, addressing the risks and challenges which it has posed within its recent, rapid evolution, including the banning of those that are deemed harmful. This is particularly prescient for high-risk AI systems used in critical infrastructures, including education and employment, with the aim of maintaining their safety through conformity assessments, human monitoring, risk management, and more. Not only this, but the Act accounts for significant penalties for non-compliance, including fines of up to €35m or 7% of global revenue, which will be managed by a governance structure involving multiple entities such as the European AI Office, national authorities, and market surveillance authorities. While this appears to be a relatively complex ecosystem and may require further funding to be successful, the Act overall aligns with existing EU laws regarding data protection, privacy, and confidentiality, ensuring a cohesive regulatory environment.

Trust

In regulating AI, what has become a fast-growing industry, the Act promotes trust and transparency by making it more human-centric and with a revitalised respect for fundamental rights, safety, and ethical principles. It imposes requirements which ensure that AI systems interacting with humans are clearly identified as such, and mandates documentation and logging for high-risk AI systems. This is particularly salient for generative AI models, with specific regulations introduced to ensure compliance with EU copyright laws and ethical standards. This keeps the development of AI models in the right direction, in other words a trajectory which is ethical, beneficial to society, and contributes positively to social and economic well-being.

Innovation

Further to this, the Act maintains the momentum of AI’s development by fostering innovation and competitiveness. This will be beneficial for SMEs and start-ups, including measures to reduce administrative burdens, and promoting international cooperation and collaboration. Furthermore, the Act encourages the use of regulatory sandboxes and real-world testing environments to develop and train innovative AI systems.

The UK Government AI Framework: 5 Core Principles

The UK announced their own response to AI regulation in February of this year, in which the Rt Hon Michelle Donelan MP, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, described her aim to produce a ‘bold and considered approach that is strongly pro-innovation and pro-safety’. As such, the Act acknowledges the rapid growth of AI, while being grounded in a risk-based approach similar to its EU counterpart. In order to address key concerns surrounding societal harms, misuse risk, and autonomy risks, the UK Act puts forward five core cross-sectorial principles to mitigate potential dangers:

Safe, Secure & Robust: AI applications should function securely, safely, and robustly, with risks carefully managed.
Appropriate Transparency: Organisations developing and deploying AI should be able to communicate the context in which it was used as well as the system's operation.
Fairness: AI should comply with existing laws such as the Equality Act 2010 and UK GDPR, and not discriminate against individuals or create unfair commercial outcomes.
Accountability & Governance: Measures are needed to ensure the appropriate oversight and clear accountability for the ways in which AI is used.
Contestability & Redress: People need clear routes through which to dispute harmful outcomes or decisions generated by AI.

In following these values, the UK hopes to fulfil their goal ‘to make the UK a great place to build and use AI that changes our lives for the better’.

Key Differences between the UK and EU AI Legislations

The primary difference between the EU and UK’s respective approaches to AI regulation is that, where the former framework requires the introduction of a new European Agency, National Authorities, and numerous registration/compliance processes in order to operate, the latter is much more flexible. The UK Act works by asking existing regulatory bodies to interpret and adapt its regulations into their sectors.

As such, the UK framework is arguably a more practical approach, given that such entities are likely to already be considering the impact of AI. The EU AI Act, on the other hand, can be considered ‘top-heavy’, and may become bogged down in administration, only able to focus on the very big or scandalous AI incidents. It also risks becoming outdated quickly, as AI evolves and outpaces regulations.

One way to visualise this is that the EU offers a horizonal, top-down approach, while the UK is operating on a more agile, vertical system – in other words, the EU is prescriptive whereas the UK is principles-based.

This is not to say that the UK regulation is not without its drawbacks, however. It requires current regulators to quickly become more AI-savvy, and delegates the interpretation of principles to the discretion of each entity. This may produce a series of patchy or inconsistent approaches in different sectors, and it allows companies more opportunities to exploit gaps.

Summary

To conclude, though the respective EU and UK approaches to regulating the swift development of AI share certain similarities while maintaining notable differences, thus equipping them with strengths and weaknesses respective to their goals, what they both represent is a global interest in keeping AI within a strict legal and ethical framework. This is important for maintaining the safety and transparency of an industry which has the potential to introduce irreparable risk, but also seeks to increase its momentum, encouraging innovation in a way that is pragmatic, beneficial, and principled.

How we Can Help

With increased regulations comes further considerations and heightened scrutiny upon your business. AI is an increasingly prescient and useful tool, so to make sure you are utilising it to its full potential, while remaining compliant with worldwide standards, contact Cambridge Management Consulting. Our Digital & Innovation team is equipped with combined decades of real-world experience, and an acute and up-to-date knowledge on market trends, regulations, and technologies, to ensure your business is making the most of our evolving digital landscape. Contact Rachi Weerasinghe to learn more.

Supporting Unpaid Carers: Spotlight on the Carers Network

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:21:47 GMT

On average, 600 people a day leave work to care and there are an estimated 5.7 million carers in the UK ( https://www.carersuk.org/policy-and-research/key-facts-and-figures/ ).

The value of unpaid care to our economy is equivalent to a second NHS in England and Wales — about £164 billion (2020/21 funding levels - Petrillo and Bennett, 2023). This silent and unseen workforce cares for our sick and boosts the economy, yet they receive very little recognition and endure both poverty and social isolation.

We recently spoke to the Carers Network in London, an independent charity which has been supporting unpaid carers in some of the most isolated and deprived pockets of the City of Westminster, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, since 1991.

Cambridge Management Consulting recognises and supports the important work done by the Carers Network, and David Lewis, Managing Partner for Digital & Innovation, is a trustee of the charity.

Nadia Taylor, Chair of the Trustees of the Carers Network, was kind enough to speak to me about her personal experiences as a full-time carer and her role for the Carers Network. She is a passionate campaigner for carers in the UK and devotes what free time she has, outside of caring for three family members, to improving the lives of carers in the UK.

About Carers Network

The Carers Network was founded with a wish to raise the profile of carers in Westminster. It now supports over 6000 unpaid carers in three London Boroughs, 3210 of whom live in Westminster.

Today, their vision is that every unpaid carer has recognition for their work and is able to lead a healthy, fulfilling life with control over their caring role.

Unfortunately, this is rarely the case in a society that fails to recognise or reward the vital work carried out by carers — leaving them feeling isolated, overwhelmed, and often in economic ruin.

Carers Network was established in early 1991 following two public meetings with carers and professionals. By September 1991, a steering committee was formed, and the first Coordinator was employed part-time, funded jointly by the health authority and Westminster City Council. The first Annual General Meeting took place in October 1991.

The charity's initial efforts focused on reports, surveys, and political lobbying to raise awareness about carers' urgent needs. A significant increase in funding in 1997, following a change in government, allowed the organisation to expand its support services. Carers Network became a registered charity in December 1997 and a Company limited by guarantee in March 2003.

The Carers Acts of 2004 and 2014 further solidified the organisation's role by mandating local authorities and health authorities to assess carers' needs and provide support plans. Over the years, Carers Network has introduced various projects, including support groups for Arabic and Bengali-speaking carers, the Carers Emergency Card Scheme, and the End of Life Project, among others.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the charity adapted quickly by moving many activities online, continuing to provide essential services to vulnerable carers. The charity’s efforts have been recognised nationally, including a video call with Her Majesty the Queen and The Princess Royal during Carers Week in 2020.

Today, Carers Network continues to innovate and expand its services, thanks to the dedication of its staff and trustees, volunteers, and generous funders.

Nadia’s Story

Nadia Taylor, Chair of the Trustees for Carers Network, has dedicated her life to caring for her parents, a role that has brought significant hardships. As an unpaid carer, Nadia has faced a trial of both physical and mental exhaustion. She has also been forced to accept an economic reality that presents numerous challenges, including a period of time where she sustained her family entirely on discounted potatoes, bought end-of-the-day from a local market.

Over the years, Nadia has navigated the bewildering complexities of adult social care, financial difficulties, and housing issues. Despite her education, extensive professional experience, and knowledge of available resources, she has found the support system for unpaid carers to be severely lacking.

The financial assistance she receives is minimal, with Carers Allowance being just over £80 a week, an amount that has seen only modest increases over the years.

Nadia’s story is illustrative of the general conditions faced by full-time carers across the UK. The economic strain is profound, and the stringent evaluation system often disqualifies carers from receiving additional state benefits, leaving them in a precarious situation.

Nadia's personal income is limited to the Carers Allowance, and she does not benefit from other entitlements such as free prescriptions, dental and eye care and transport, which are available to those over 60. This financial hardship is compounded by the high costs of essential medication and the lack of respite — Nadia has not had a holiday or a proper rest in over two decades.

The lack of recognition and support from the state exacerbates the mental heath burden, leaving carers feeling marginalised and undervalued despite their substantial contributions to society as both caregivers and a labour force that saves the NHS billions of pounds.

The Financial Burden

Due to the prevailing cost of living crisis, carers are under severe financial strain; 25% are cutting back on essentials like food or heating, and 63% are highly concerned about managing their monthly expenses (Carers UK, State of Caring 2022).

Carer's Allowance, the primary benefit for carers, is £81.90 per week, increased from £76.75 (2023/24) for a minimum of 35 hours of care, making it the lowest benefit of its kind —equivalent to, at most, £2.34 an hour or less for those providing full-time care.

Furthermore, the system penalises single parents. A carer who looks after more than one person can claim only one allowance, but a couple caring for two people can each claim respectively.

A recent Guardian article highlights additional problems with Carers Allowance, namely its complexity and restrictions placed on the ability to work. New estimates show that almost half a million unpaid carers in the UK are failing to claim the £4,200-a-year benefit.

There are a few causes for this. Firstly, many do not claim Carers Allowance because of the strict limitation on weekly earnings, currently £151. Carers risk stringent penalties if they earn more than this sum, even by £1. Baseless fraud prosecutions have been heaped on carers due to overpayments from the DWP that are largely the result of a badly designed system and administrative failures. Honest mistakes that should have been picked up quickly by DWP have led to months or even years of overpayments and debts that run as high as £40,000.

40% of carers surveyed in the 2023 State of Caring report by Carers UK have quit their jobs to provide unpaid care, while 22% reduced their working hours. Women, who constitute 59% of unpaid carers, are more impacted financially, with female carers being three times more likely to work part-time compared to male carers (Carers UK).

Reducing hours or quitting work means losing your salary, employer pension contributions, and national insurance credits needed for the full state pension. The average private pension income in the UK is £7,750 a year, but for carers, it is only £5,600, according to the Pensions Policy Institute.

“It’s a full-time job that involves raiding your savings, dancing through bureaucratic hoops and sometimes sacrificing your own career.” — Emma Duncan, a Times columnist

What Needs to be Done

Nadia advocates for a change in the socioeconomic climate to better support unpaid carers, who save the state and local authorities millions, if not billions, annually. This contribution is quantifiable, and could be included in GDP, yet the support provided to carers remains insufficient.

To address these issues, Nadia calls for several changes:

Increased Financial Support: Extension of the Minimum Living Wage provision to unpaid carers to allow them life in dignity, or at the very least raising the Carers Allowance to a more substantial amount that reflects the true contribution of caregiving to our economy.
Access to Benefits: Simplifying the assessment process to ensure more carers qualify for state benefits and entitlements; and allowing unpaid carers, including those in receipt of Carers Allowance only, free access to basic healthcare such as free prescriptions, dental and eye care.
Recognition and Awareness: Greater public and governmental recognition of the vital role unpaid carers play in the economy and society through a Carers Passport to allow access to basic health care, transport and additional concessions.
Respite and Mental Health Support: Providing more opportunities for carers to take breaks and access mental health resources to alleviate the constant strain they face.
Access to free education and training courses, as well as flexible employment opportunities for carers or those transition from a caring role following the loss of the cared for.

Nadia's experiences underscore the urgent need for systemic changes to ensure that unpaid carers receive the support and recognition they deserve. By addressing these issues, society can better acknowledge the invaluable contributions of carers and improve their quality of life.

How You can Help

Supporting Carers Network is a powerful way to make a tangible difference in the lives of unpaid carers. There are multiple ways you can contribute:

Donate to Carers Network
Volunteer with Carers Network
Spread awareness
Corporate sponsorships

"Your support means the world to us and to the carers we serve. Every donation and every hour volunteered brings us closer to a community where unpaid carers are fully supported." — Carers Network

Go to https://www.carers-network.org.uk/support-us/support-us to find out more.

Conclusion

About 4 in 10 unpaid carers are in poverty. Recognising the tireless work of unpaid carers is a collective responsibility. Every one of us has a part to play in ensuring they receive the recognition and assistance they so rightly deserve. Carers Network stands at the forefront of this mission, offering a lifeline to those who find themselves overwhelmed by their caregiving roles.

By supporting organisations like Carers Network and the campaign work of Nadia and others, we can all make a tangible difference. Whether through donations, volunteering, or simply spreading awareness, each action contributes to lightening the load on these unsung heroes of our society.

Stand with unpaid carers today and in the future, and together we can build a society that values one of its most essential pillars.

Case Study: Market Evaluation and Go-to-Market Proposition Creation

Tue, 23 Jul 2024 22:02:05 GMT

edenseven Helps ISS to Decarbonise their Operations

By conducting a review of their market and target audience to align their organisation with their sustainability goals.

ISS is a leading workplace experience and facility management (FM) company which provides placemaking solutions that contribute to better business performance and make working life easier, more productive, and more enjoyable. With a significant presence in the build environment, ISS has a clear focus on delivering sustainable services to their customer base, helping them to achieve their net zero ambitions.

edenseven , one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, were commissioned to review ISS’ current sustainability market offering, and, through an engagement programme, make sure that it was aligned to the requirements of their customers’ long-term sustainability ambitions.

Project Overview

To review the current market relating to sustainability services within the sector and outline the different types of structures and products being offered.

Assess the current product and service positioning of ISS and review how they are being presented and articulated to the internal delivery teams and customer base.

Create a clear and concise value proposition which outlines ISS’ breadth of services, and which can be communicated to customers by a broad cross section of the ISS team.

Through a customer engagement programme, test the value proposition with a set of key accounts and record areas where refinement would be needed to align it to their requirements.

Present findings to the ISS UK board and provide clear feedback and next steps.

Skills & Knowledge

Data Analysis: A broad knowledge of both the FM and sustainability sectors, and an ability to articulate findings from market research and stakeholder/customer interactions in an effective manner.

Report Generation: Create documentation and reports which deliver complex requests and findings in a concise and clear manner to senior stakeholders and customers.

Stakeholder and Customer Engagement: Build a continuous feedback loop to senior stakeholders within ISS and across key customer accounts. edenseven captured and reviewed customer needs and service requirements to produce effective and timely decision making.

Outcome & Results

Market Awareness: A clear understanding of market trends and contractive characteristics relating to sustainability services in the FM sector.
Organisational Clarity: An outline of current services and how they are delivered through the sales process.
Value Proposition: A clear and relatable value proposition which captures all services in a format which can be delivered by a broad cross-section of the ISS workforce.
Forward Planning: A board-level presentation and report outlining key findings and next steps to deliver existing and new services which are focussed on meeting key customer requirements.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

The Funding Crisis in Local Councils in the UK: Causes & Consequences

Thu, 11 Jul 2024 00:11:52 GMT

It is no secret that Local Authorities throughout the UK have found themselves in a period of economic turmoil; struggling with a lack of funding and how to distribute it - or, often, deciding to withhold it.

Since Northamptonshire County Council issued section 114 (the local council equivalent to declaring bankruptcy ) in 2018 – the first to be issued in nearly two decades – an average of two regional authorities have issued their own section 114 notice each year since. Three local authorities issued section 114 notices last year alone, including the largest in Europe, Birmingham City Council .

Referring to this escalation, Jonathon Carr-West , Chief Executive of the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU), said: “This year’s State of Local Government Finance report reveals the desperate, ruinous financial situation councils find themselves in.

“With over half of councils warning us they are at risk of bankruptcy within the next Parliament, it is no longer possible to blame individual governance issues.”

What are the Causes?

Funding

The key driver is lack of central government funding. Council’s cannot borrow to run services and so rely on income and reserves in order to pay for day-to-day services. Central government funding cuts have seen councils lose nearly 50% of their government funding since 2010. This has been partially offset by council tax rises, but still means local authorities have lost nearly 20% of their funding in real terms since 2010, with those representing the most deprived areas reaching nearly 30% .

Adult Social Care

During this time spending on Adult Social Care (support provided to adults, including both older people and people of working age, with physical disabilities, learning disabilities, or physical or mental illnesses) has increased dramatically. An ageing population is driving increased demand while the cost of care home placements has increased by 35% .

Child Social Care

Spending on Children’s Social Care has increased significantly, particularly since COVID-19 with the number of children in secure units and children’s homes and the number with Education, Health and Care plans both increasing by over 30% between early 2020 and early 2023.

The cost per placement has increased by almost 20% over that time period. Both Adult and Children Social Care costs have increased far above inflation over this time, coming on the back of a huge reduction in core spending power.

Temporary Accommodation

Finally, the cost of providing Temporary Accommodation has risen sharply over the past few years. An LGA report revealed that local councils were spending at least £1.74bn to provide temporary accommodation, with a severe shortage in social housing resulting in a portion of this going to private alternatives including hotels and B&Bs.

These figures represented the current situation as of March 2023, when 104,000 households were living in temporary accommodation, an 89% increase over the past decade. Only 8 months later at the close of 2023, this had risen to 112,660 households in temporary accommodation—with the funding required to balance this increasing exponentially, pushed higher by a cost of living crisis and inflation.

What are the Consequences?

The most immediate and simple way look at this is that while bills have increased significantly for the average council tax-payer, services have been significantly scaled back.

Cuts to park budgets, economic development, culture services, and the reduction in spending on Public Health, education, housing services, children's centres and everything else that local government is responsible for have left many cities, towns and villages looking neglected and often struggling with anti-social behaviour and boarded-up high streets.

Behind the scenes, many of the essential back office functions have been stripped to the bone in order to protect frontline services: call centres are understaffed; planning services unable to cope with demand; not enough project managers, accountants or procurement staff to deliver on council ambitions or the transformation projects to reduce costs on essential services; not enough HR staff to support those on the frontline and not enough administrative staff to support the social workers, education & skills teams, the transport teams and the rest of local government trying to prop up essential local services.

Local government is the government that touches all of us every day, even if we don’t always realise this. The new Labour government will need to focus on this issue for the benefit of every individual, community and region.

How Cambridge MC can Help Local Councils

If you are currently working in local government and are feeling the impacts of the economic crisis as outlined here, the Public Sector and Education team at Cambridge Management Consulting can work with you and your council to alleviate some of this pressure in both the short- and long-term.

Our skilled procurement and contract management team can help you reduce costs; our programme and project management function offers fractional or interim leadership and full lifecycle support for challenging transformation projects; and our process and change management teams can help with process re-design and automation.

We can also support your organisation with a range of cyber security issues you may be facing; potential or live, and our Digital and Innovation team can help solve your problems in new ways, using the latest technology to improve outcomes for your residents as well as reducing costs.

Led by Craig Cheney, previous Deputy Mayor of Bristol City Council, our service combines an in-depth knowledge and awareness of the Public Sector, its operations, and challenges, with a business approach to help you identify and evaluate obstacles and opportunities for movement within your budget.

Learn more about Craig and our Public Sector & Education service, and get in touch with our professionals at https://www.cambridgemc.com/public-sector-and-education , or use the form below.

Smart Schools, Bright Futures: The Role of ICT in Africa's Education

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 23:35:18 GMT

Since the 1960s, significant strides have been made to provide and increase access to quality education for children and young people in Africa. The educational environment has not remained stagnant, and the continent is all the better for it. However, this unfortunately does not paint the whole picture, and there is a poignant reality that lies just behind the statistics. In short, merely having access does not guarantee an improvement to the actual quality of this education; as rightly noted by Faturoti, “Although all African countries have legal provisions recognising the right to education, there is no corresponding law on access to the Internet.”

Yet, Africa’s unique combination of challenges has left more than just gaps in knowledge: 2019 saw 17% of African children not attending primary school, and 53% of teenagers not attending upper secondary school . The harsh blow dealt by COVID-19 has only deepened the educational crisis globally. Yet, despite these challenges, there is a resilient spirit that refuses to be extinguished. The pandemic has underscored a powerful lesson: technology, when harnessed with the right connectivity, can be a transformative force, offering a ray of hope in the quest to overcome educational barriers.

In this article, we will explore how we can take the barriers blocking this intelligent future and support the growth of a digitally connected classroom, ensuring that no one is left behind in the continent’s transformation. The ways in which learning is conducted has never been more important: to learn is to grow and the progress which begins in the classroom will soon be reflected across the continent.

From Challenges to Change: Barriers to a Connected Classroom

In the expansive landscape of Africa, a sobering reality appears –only 39.7% of the population is woven into the digital fabric, standing in stark contrast to the global average of 66.3% as reported by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). This digital divide is not just a technological hurdle but a societal challenge, one that deepens when faced with the simultaneous necessity to invest not only in advanced technology but also in financial literacy. As we grapple with the intricacies of digital inclusion, the first bridge we must construct is one that spans connectivity disparities: the use of online educational platforms can ensure that students not only have access to educational material relevant to their studies, but also that this material is the latest available.

Electrical reliability stands as a foundational must-have for the successful implementation of digital learning initiatives. Investment in expanding telecommunications infrastructure , such as laying fibre-optic cables and deploying wireless networks, is crucial to bridge the digital divide and ensure widespread connectivity. Furthermore, enhancements in power generation including the use of traditional and renewable energy sources and distribution systems are essential to guarantee uninterrupted access to online educational resources. Uninterrupted power supply ensures that students can access online lectures, assignments, and collaborative activities seamlessly, fostering a conducive learning environment. Put simply, enhanced learning makes for more engaged and enlightened students.

Furthermore, technical support is indispensable for ensuring the effective implementation and maintenance of digital learning infrastructure. However, limited access to skilled technical personnel, inadequate training, and insufficient resources present significant challenges. Training and capacity-building programs must be enhanced to equip individuals with the necessary skills to support complex ICT infrastructure effectively. There are many projects already underway which promise to forge this change and training. Investing in training programs, certification courses, and apprenticeship initiatives promise to cultivate a skilled workforce capable of delivering and, importantly, sustaining these changes.

Addressing these interconnected challenges requires a holistic approach, encompassing political commitment, infrastructure investment, educational reform, and skills development initiatives. Without sustained political commitment and investment, efforts to expand internet access and improve electricity reliability risk being compromised, perpetuating the digital divide. The strategy was endorsed by the Thirty–Sixth Ordinary Session of the African Union Executive Council held in February 2020 , who recognised this: only through collaborative efforts and sustained investment can Africa bridge the digital divide and unlock the transformative potential of digital learning for all its citizens.

Looking Forward and Building Change

Yet, by overcoming these challenges, the future is bright and worth investing in. We must recognise what is at the core: education is a basic right to all communities, globally.

Results are already beginning to bear fruit: UNESCO’s forum on quality public digital learning reveal how bright the prospects could be. Van Manen et al. (2021) emphasise the remarkable impact of digital learning on advancing SDGs , highlighting how it enables countries to address key challenges such as poverty, inequality, and access to quality education without the need for extensive physical infrastructure investments. By leveraging digital technologies, governments can reach underserved populations, bridge educational divides, and empower individuals with the knowledge and skills needed to uplift themselves and their communities.

The continent’s digital uptake has also been staggering and speaks to a unique adaptability and adoptability when faced with change. In a 2020 study conducted by GSMA, it was revealed that over 1.4 billion subscribers on the continent utilise their mobile phones as powerful tools for educational enrichment , underscoring the widespread recognition of digital learning's value in shaping the future of African youth. From accessing online courses and educational apps to engaging in virtual classrooms and interactive learning platforms, mobile devices have become indispensable companions on the journey towards academic achievement. This should not be ignored: beyond mere convenience, this shift represents a democratisation of learning, where access to knowledge is no longer limited by physical proximity or socioeconomic status. Instead, digital learning empowers individuals to take ownership of their educational journey, enabling them to learn anytime, anywhere, and at their own pace.

Yet, the role of ICT initiatives in classrooms can go even further, providing a visionary tool for tackling existing education inequalities. Behind stark statistics lie the stories of over 129 million girls’ dreams , which are deferred by the harsh realities of poverty, gender-based violence, and early marriage. Each day, countless young minds are forced to miss out on the transformative power of education: girls miss up to 50 days of schooling each year due to the lack of sanitary wear according to Life Healthcare . ICT-equipped classrooms do not promise to solve these issues but bridge the gap: if remote learning becomes a possibility, so does change.

Key stakeholders are also ready, able, and actively engaging with the modern education landscape to make the path to learning easier. We’ve seen initiatives take root here in the UK, with Mobile network operators (MNO’s) offering zero rated connectivity packages for education platforms such as BBC Bitesize . Yet, these changes can be seen across the globe and felt deeply: in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, initiatives have revealed whole new possibilities for access to information . With software providers also offering free subscription platforms with available content and data, it is clear that the future is brighter than ever.

Amidst these challenges, digital learning platforms emerge as powerful allies, tearing down barriers and extending the hand of opportunity to every corner of the globe. Through the magic of digital tools, students are no longer confined by the limitations of geography or circumstance. Instead, they can connect with specialists and mentors from across the world, unlocking new realms of knowledge and inspiration.

Conclusion

Connected classrooms provide a bridge to change, change which is exciting and necessary. Access to a learning which is digitally engaged promises to enrich education opportunities and better the outcomes for future students. Yet, beyond mere access, digital literacy becomes a lifeline, empowering individuals to navigate the complexities of the modern world with confidence and resilience. In the midst of a rapidly evolving digital landscape, these skills serve as a passport to a future where no dream is too big and no obstacle too daunting.

How We Can Help

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we stand out from the crowd, particularly in the dynamic and intricate landscape of Africa. Our commitment goes beyond quick fixes; it's about crafting tangible and enduring impacts that resonate with the unique challenges and opportunities present in this diverse continent.

Just as digital education offers a cost-effective avenue for countries to enhance their performance on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) without the need for expansive physical infrastructure, our consulting philosophy embraces innovative solutions that recognise and leverage Africa's unique dynamics.

At the heart of our approach lies our handpicked team of experts, deeply passionate and intimately connected to the pulse of Africa. With a nuanced understanding of the challenges and opportunities this diverse continent presents, we strive to positively impact businesses in the most authentic and sensitive manner, echoing this article's recognition of the transformative potential of digital education in Africa.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 160 consultants working on projects in 22 countries.

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

PSTN Switch-Off Delayed to 2027: What this means for You

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 20:21:44 GMT

Authors

UPDATED: February 2025

In this article we look at the extension to the PSTN Switch-Off date and explain why it is happening. We consider why businesses and local authorities should not delay in their PSTN migration plans. Then we look at three UK sectors—the Public Sector, SMEs & Large Enterprises, and Property & Real Estate—and assess the challenges they face and what they can do to avoid costly pitfalls.

What is the PSTN Switch Off?

The Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is the traditional analogue network in the UK that uses copper cables to carry landline voice calls between users. It has been the backbone of the UK's telephony network since Victorian times. The PSTN is an aging network that is becoming harder and more expensive to maintain. It is not capable of handling the speeds and data volumes demanded by modern telecommunications

By the end of January 2027, BT and Openreach, along with other phone companies, plan to decommission the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). This transition marks a shift towards digital services, such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), which will replace traditional landline services.

The PSTN supports over 300 recognised use cases, including alarm systems, medical devices, and monitoring equipment. The implications of this transition will be far-reaching, affecting residents, businesses, public services and all industries in the UK.

Please note: This article is written for a range of audience familiarity. Discussion of the PSTN switch off often uses some technical language—please see the Appendix below for a glossary of terms.

When is the New Date?

BT has recently announced an extension to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) switch-off in the UK. The previous deadline of December 2025 has been postponed to 31 January 2027.

Openreach (a subsidiary of BT) has reacted to this announcement by extending the withdrawal timeline of their Wholesale Line Rental family of products (landline and ISDN services) to the same date.

Why is the PSTN Switch-Off being Postponed?

This delay is primarily due to the difficulties in securing the smooth transfer of vulnerable customers, such as the complex migration issues that could disrupt continuity for safety-critical devices, such as telecare devices, including personal alarms, which in some cases were found to stop working during the initial stages of the switch-off. It is estimated that 2.3 million people in the UK currently use personal alarms that rely on the telecommunications network.

Act Now before Time & Resources Run Out

It is wrong to think that the extra 13 months given by the delay means pushing back your plans for action. We highly recommend that you continue to focus on December 2025 in order to achieve risk free migrations that ensure continuity of services from the simple to the complex. BT recently made the same recommendation, urging its business customers to act before the end of 2025.

The transition to digital alternatives could take at least 6-9 months, with additional time needed for testing and a break-fix approach to solutions. A critical first step for all businesses is to comprehensively audit all your phone lines and identify systems that rely on the PSTN.

Transitioning early is critical for the public sector and other organisations that provide a duty of care to vulnerable people and the elderly. We look at those responsibilities in more detail below.

We also make a case for urgent action by property owners and building operators—to address service continuity, fire safety and security issues.

List of Affected Equipment

Many businesses still rely on PSTN service-based technologies and will be severely impacted by the switch-off. We have provided a quick reminder of affected services other than your landline below to help with general awareness (please note, this is not an exhaustive list, and you should contact your Communication Provider (CP) and conduct a thorough review of your equipment and PSTN lines):

Air Con Units
ATM (cash machines)
Broadband services using ADSL or FTTC
Broker/Dealer circuits (see also: Secure Phones)
Bus Stops
Cardiac Arrest phones
Car Parks (including lifts, CCTV and alarms)
CCTV
Centrex telephone systems
Dial-Up and DSL Modems
Dialysis Machines
Door Entry systems (and similar systems running on ISDN)
Electronic Points of Sale (EPOS)
EV Charging Hubs
External Bells
Fax
Fire & Smoke Alarms
Flood Monitoring
Franking Machines
Hazardous Environment Phones
Intruder Alarms
Lift Emergency Lines/Alarms
Medical Equipment
PDQ Machines
Printers
Emergency Pull Cords
Railway Level Crossings
Redcare (a security monitoring service provided by BT)
Roadside Telephones
Road Signs
School Security
Secure Phones (Brent phones)
Shop 3rd party terminals
Smart Meters
Telecare (and other healthcare monitors)
Telemetry equipment (data loggers, remote sensors etc.)
Traffic Lights
Train Station Call Points
Travel Card technology
Utility Monitoring
Vending Machines

How the PSTN Switch-Off Impacts Different UK Sectors: What You Need to Do

We will now look at how the PSTN Switch-Off will impact the Public Sector , SMEs & Large Enterprises and Property and Real Estate .

Public Sector

Given the lack of a national plan or central funding for the necessary infrastructure upgrades, responsibilities for welfare and safety will impact at a local level on councils, healthcare services, social housing, fire departments and third sector organisations (charities and community groups). If these upgrades do not get funded and planned in detail (and if alternative digital solutions are not adequately tested under real scenarios) then emergency services could fail at a critical moment, putting vulnerable people at risk.

Key areas impacted by the PSTN switch off that are acutely relevant to Local Authorities (LAs) are as follows:

Telecare devices

Fire and security alarms

Specialist housing and care homes

To help public bodies plan and budget their migration strategy, we have grouped the major responsibilities into five areas:

1. Funding & Planning

Councils will need to work with hospitals, schools and other public bodies, alongside Communication Providers (CPs), to share resources, overcome common problems, and model future costs. Councils can also help to secure funding from government schemes and may be able to provide other means of financial support to help local bodies.

2. Protecting the Vulnerable

Ofcom has ruled the following: ‘If you are dependent on your landline phone – for example, if you don’t have a mobile phone or don’t have mobile signal at your home – your provider must offer you a solution to make sure you can contact the emergency services when a power cut occurs. For example, a mobile phone (if you have signal), or a battery back-up unit for your landline phone. This solution should be provided free of charge to people who are dependent on their landline.’

Councils should continue to work with CPs to provide these services free-of-charge as well as providing a smooth transition and clear communication for vulnerable people.

3. Continuity of Public Services

Understand how the PSTN supports the services offered in the local community, for example: emergency lift lines in council buildings, payment machines in cafes, and local call centres/help desks. Involve all impacted departments as this minimises blind spots and facilitates the sharing of best practices. Affected departments include adult social care, highways, flooding, estate management, and risk management. View the migration as a Business Continuity challenge as this has already helped some LAs to galvanise local parties. The Government has set up a Working Group for the digital switchover to share information: https://www.local.gov.uk/our-support/cyber-digital-and-technology/digital-switchover/working-group

4. Digital Inclusion

Ensuring adequate internet infrastructure is a key responsibility of local councils. They need to work with Communication Providers (CPs) to address digital exclusion in their jurisdictions, particularly in rural and underserved areas, to support new IP-based communication systems. Wireless-based solutions, such as 5G, IoT, or LORaWAN, and low orbit Satellite communications will also offer an option for the hardest to reach locations.

5. Awareness

Unlike the shift to digital TV, which was government-initiated, the phase-out of the PSTN is industry-driven because the network is privately owned. Consequently, it is unlikely there will be a government-sponsored national campaign to spread awareness of these changes and the risks involved. It therefore falls to local authorities, in conjunction with CPs and local groups, to try and disseminate this information to their communities, and in particular to vulnerable people.

Of particular importance is the response to telecare devices in supported housing and care homes run by Local Authorities (LAs) or third-sector organisations.

Telecare National Action Plan

At the end of 2024, Telecoms Minister Chris Bryant convened a roundtable in London with telecoms companies to address concerns surrounding the digital switchover and its impact on telecare users. The meeting, which included representatives from BT, Virgin Media, Vodafone, and Sky Broadband, focused on safeguarding vulnerable telecare users during the upgrade from analogue phone lines to digital networks.

Key outcomes from the roundtable included:

Telecare National Action Plan: Bryant agreed to a new 'Telecare National Action Plan' with major UK broadband and phone providers. This plan, slated for publication before the end of 2024, is designed to offer more protection to vulnerable telecare users as phone lines are upgraded to digital (IP-based) networks.

Checklist of Safeguards: Telecoms companies were directed to complete a strict checklist of safeguards before transferring customers from analogue to digital phone lines.

Engineer Visits: Companies will be required to offer engineer visits to vulnerable customers. These engineers will personally test the telecare alarms to ensure they continue to function after the household transitions to the digital network.

Battery Backup Solutions: Bryant urged companies to extend the power of battery back-up solutions beyond the existing one-hour minimum. This is aimed at maximizing resilience and ensuring access to emergency services during power outages

How we can Help

Our Public Sector team can help local councils and other public bodies by providing strategy, financial planning, procurement and project management services as and when you need them. Get in touch with Craig Cheney, Managing Partner and lead for Public Sector & Education, to discuss a range of services which might suit your needs: ccheney@cambridgemc.com .

View our Public Sector & Education services .

SMEs & Large Enterprises

Surveys indicate that around 9 out of 10 UK businesses have essential services that rely on the PSTN. Your business needs to prepare for the 2027 switch-off by transferring your tradition phone line, and any device that uses it, to a digital alternative.

While communication providers (CPs) are aware of which organisations are using PSTN services and should contact them directly, the overall responsibility for upgrade and hardware updates falls to the customer. Many businesses potentially require new phone handsets and may need to retrain staff on new service dashboards.

Larger businesses should conduct a thorough analysis of the potential impact and identify outdated equipment to replace. This is also an opportunity to leverage the benefits of IP by incorporating call analytics and other AI or cloud-based tools. We highly recommend you start now to prevent a costly and stressful transition or worse, a last-minute overhaul that creates service disruption.

You may wish to enlist a third-party solution provider who will migrate all of your phones numbers to IP-services, provide phones and headsets and a call management platform. This could reduce the headache for your business and prevent the risk of downtime and outages when you switch.

How we can Help

To find out more about how our services and experts can help your business, contact Phil Laws, Senior Partner - PSTN Services, and his team: plaws@cambridgemc.com .

If you operate a call centre and need help with the migration of services and/or setting up a call management platform with AI analytics, get in touch with our Contact Centre specialists, Simon Kissane and Marcel Biesmans: skissane@cambridgemc.com . We have partnered with Dialpad , an industry-leading AI-powered Customer Intelligence Platform.

Property & Real Estate

Many buildings rely on PSTN lines for critical services such as lift emergency calls, fire alarms, security systems, door entry, monitoring, and management systems. Once the PSTN service is decommissioned, these services will cease to function without warning, leading to potential safety compliance risks.

Both owners and operators in the property sector need to act now. You should start planning upgrades and the migration of your infrastructure to digital voice services using a systematic methodology. If you lack the in-house experience or this is a drain on internal resources, consider using a third party to conduct a comprehensive review of your IT and telephony equipment to create a detailed migration and upgrade strategy.

Companies and organisations potentially affected by the PSTN switch-off include: retailers; department stores; shopping centres; outlet centres; retail parks; entertainment and leisure venues; distribution and logistics centres; service stations; drive-thru facilities; office buildings and campuses; factories; advanced manufacturing facilities; hospitals; health centres; care homes; schools; universities; sports facilities and many more.

This is a complicated process with many project streams for those businesses and organisations that have a property portfolio/estate to manage. Public Sector organisations that service and maintain various distinct property types, such as social housing, will also face significant challenges.

It may be in your best interest to upgrade these services under one programme, using a central PMO and procurement process, and a single solution provider, to ensure targets are met on time and operational efficiencies are maximised to reduce costs.

How we can Help

Our team can help; providing strategy, procurement and project management services as and when you need them. Get in touch with our Retail, Property, & Manufacturing team, to discuss a range of services which might suit your business needs: info@cambridgemc.com .

View our Retail, Property, Manufacturing practice .

Our Services

Cambridge Management Consulting has a team of experts who specialise in the PSTN switch-off and help private and public sector organisations of all sizes. We can analyse your telephony and IT equipment, as well as alarms and other special service devices; and then create a detailed migration plan as well as offering procurement services to keep this plan within your budget.

By outsourcing this process, you can save time and money and also negate the drain on daily resources——allowing your teams to stay focused on daily operations. If you do not have the knowledge and skills in-house to manage this process, please get in touch with Clive or Craig using the form below to discuss your requirements.

Terminology

PSTN: Public Switched Telephone Network - a complex network of copper wires, switching centres, and other infrastructure that has been the backbone of the UK's telephony network since Victorian times.

VoIP: Voice Over Internet Protocol - a technology that allows people to make voice calls using an internet-based communications technology. By converting voice signals into digital data packets, VoIP can transmit conversations over broadband connections and across the internet.

IP: Internet Phone - the digital version of your traditional home telephone. It uses VoIP to transmit your voice over a broadband connection. IP phones can offer a range of features like voicemail, call forwarding, video calls, and integration with other internet services.

Digital Voice: refers to BT's specific VoIP service or more generally to any service that transmits voice over your broadband connection. Confusingly, VoIP, IP and Digital Voice are often used interchangeably.

CP: Communication Provider - an organisation, either private or public, that offers telecommunications services or a mix of information, media, content, entertainment, and application services over networks.

ISDN: Integrated Services Digital Network - a set of communication standards that allow for the digital transmission of voice, video, data and other services over the PSTN network.

ADSL: Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line - allows for high-speed data transmission over existing copper lines. ADSL is a type of digital subscriber line (DSL) technology that is typically provided from a telephone exchange enabling broadband internet access, video-on-demand, and LAN services . The service is asymmetric in that the broadband speed profile to the premise is higher than that from the premise. Maximum download speeds are in the order of 20Mbit/s (Megabits per second).

VDSL: Very high speed Digital Subscriber Line - a form of DSL technology primarily delivered from street side cabinets delivering very high-speed data rates over existing copper lines. Often referred to as Fibre To The Cabinet (FTTC). VDSL is an asymmetric service, with superior performance when compared to ADSL technologies. Maximum download speeds are in the order of 80Mbit/s.

FTTP: Fibre To The Premises - a fibre connection from a premises to a fibre exchange. Offers superior performance when compared to DSL technologies. Services can be symmetric or asymmetric. Maximum speeds are in the order of multiple Gbit/s (Gigabits per second).

FTTC: Fibre To The Cabinet - a type of digital subscriber line (DSL) technology that delivers very high-speed data rates over existing copper lines, often from street-side cabinets. It utilises fibre optic cables to the main exchange and copper wires to connect to individual premises.

SOGEA: Single Order Generic Ethernet Access - only provides a broadband service rather than a package including a phone line. SOGEA is cheaper because it only provides data.

Useful Links

A Councillors Guide to Project Gigabit: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/a-councillors-guide-to-project-gigabit

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gigabit-broadband-voucher-scheme-information

Gigabit Voucher Scheme Eligibility Checker: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gigabit-broadband-voucher-scheme-information

Project Gigabit government webpage: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/project-gigabit-uk-gigabit-programme

Virgin O2 guide to the Switchover: https://www.damianhinds.com/sites/www.damianhinds.com/files/2023-10/23%2010%2030%20Virgin%20Digital%20Voice%20Switchover%20MP%20Guide.pdf

Ofcom guide to moving your landline to digital: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/advice-for-consumers/future-of-landline-calls#:~:text=If%20you%20don%27t%20have%20a%20broadband%20connection%2C%20your%20provider,take%20up%20a%20broadband%20service

BT Guide: How the PSTN Switch Off will Affect my Business: https://business.bt.com/insights/what-is-ip-telephony-pstn-switch-off/

A guide to digital voice: https://www.damianhinds.com/sites/www.damianhinds.com/files/2023-10/23%2010%2030%20A%20guide%20to%20Digital%20Voice%20BT%27s%20new%20home%20phone%20service.pdf

Telecare stakeholder action plan: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/telecare-stakeholder-action-plan-analogue-to-digital-switchover

Shared Rural Network: https://srn.org.uk/about/

Digital Poverty Alliance: https://digitalpovertyalliance.org/

Government guide for local councils: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-transition-from-analogue-to-digital-landlines-guidance-for-local-authorities/uk-transition-from-analogue-to-digital-landlines-guidance-for-local-authorities

Telecare National Action Plan: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/telecare-national-action-plan-protecting-telecare-users-throughout-the-digital-phone-switchover/telecare-national-action-plan-protecting-telecare-users-through-the-digital-phone-switchover

Working Group for Local Authorities: https://www.local.gov.uk/our-support/cyber-digital-and-technology/digital-switchover/working-group

Additional Sources

https://www.ukauthority.com/articles/london-cdo-raises-alert-for-councils-over-pstn-switch-off/

https://www.ukauthority.com/articles/mayors-sound-alarm-over-effect-of-digital-switchover-on-telecare/

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/news-centre/2023/protecting-customers-during-the-migration-to-digital-landlines

https://www.channelfutures.com/channel-business/pstn-switch-off-set-to-cause-problems-for-businesses

https://www.commsbusiness.co.uk/content/news/charities-urge-clarity-after-pstn-switchover-delay/

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5119g5z4q5o

https://www.commsbusiness.co.uk/content/news/charities-urge-clarity-after-pstn-switchover-delay/

https://www.ft.com/content/df368907-17a8-43cb-9a8e-28be20e6ea7c

Deep Green Engages Cambridge Management Consulting to Expand their Data Centre Solutions

Thu, 20 Jun 2024 13:00:00 GMT

Press Release: 19/06/2024, London – Deep Green, an innovative and sustainability-forward data centre operator, is delighted to announce that it has engaged Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), a leader in management consulting, in order to expand its market presence and widen Cambridge MC’s portfolio of digital infrastructure solutions.

Deep Green is a first-in-industry decarbonised data centre operator who has developed an innovative system for recapturing the heat produced by data centres in order to channel it into positive, environmental, and community-focused purposes. Examples of such initiatives include swimming pools, district heating systems, pharmaceuticals, and agricultural entities, for which Deep Green will provide heat for free in exchange for the opportunity to host their technology.

Through this engagement, Deep Green will work with Cambridge MC on its go-to-market strategy, and have access to Cambridge MC’s network of clients and customers, for whom Cambridge MC can also expand their digital infrastructure and sustainability support through the use of Deep Green’s unique service.

Mark Bjornsgaard, Founder and CEO of Deep Green, said: “As we continue to drive demand for our unique data centre solution, it is critical to forge the right partnerships, and in this case initiated by an organisation that people trust. Cambridge MC understands what we are doing as a business, and why it is critically important; they share our passion and motivation for sustainable change in infrastructure. I look forward to a fruitful partnership, and one that drives our growth.”

Stuart Curzon, Chief Commercial Officer of Cambridge MC, said: “Deep Green are an incredibly innovative organisation whose principles of sustainability and community-focus speak directly to Cambridge MC’s own values. We are very excited to be able to bring their brilliant solution to more customers and clients.”

Tim Passingham, Founder and Chairman of Cambridge MC, added: “Our purpose is to help our clients have a better impact on the world, and Cambridge Management Consulting is continually looking for new ways to make digital infrastructure more sustainable. Deep Green’s approach to digital infrastructure is truly innovative, and I am delighted that they chose Cambridge MC, and for our teams to be working together.”

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

What makes Cambridge Management Consulting unique is that it doesn’t employ consultants—only senior executives with real industry or government experience and the skills to advise their clients from a place of true credibility. Our team strives to have a highly positive impact on all the organisations they serve. We are confident there is no business or enterprise that we cannot help transform for the better.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

About Deep Green

Deep Green was founded i n 2016 by Mark Bjornsgaard, an entrepreneur with an interest in technology and energy. Deep Green’s pioneering ‘immersion cooling’ technology efficiently re-uses heat from its on-site 'edge' data centres to provide free heat for a range of organisations, including public swimming pools and district heat networks. Decarbonising commercial and domestic heating is one of the most urgent climate imperatives and Deep Green is excited to be at the heart of this important transition.

For more information visit: www.deepgreen.energy

Further Information

If you would like to find out more about this partnership or need a press contact, please use the contact form below to get in touch.

NIS2 & DORA Bring Tough Fines & Stricter Reporting Obligations: A Guide for Financial Services

jmadelin@cambridgemc.com (John Madelin) — Mon, 17 Jun 2024 11:34:21 GMT

What are NIS2 & DORA?

Standing for the Network and Information Security Directive, the NIS Directive is an EU Regulation which details a blanket level of cyber security measures required of all Member States and organisations within them, as well as those with or seeking to establish a footprint in Europe. In 2022, the Official Journal of the European Union published their updates to this Directive in NIS2 , which made their regulations more stringent while broadening the scope of who it applies to. One of these amendments differentiated between entities deemed ‘important’ and ‘essential’, whereby the latter, which includes Banking and Finance, will be subject to closer scrutiny and greater penalties regarding their compliance with NIS2 – or lack thereof .

This level of regulated scrutiny will also be heightened by a further EU directive, the Digital Operations Resilience Act ( DORA ). Similar to NIS2, DORA is described as establishing a ‘ comprehensive framework for harmonising digital resilience processes and standards ’. However, where NIS2 applies to all business entities within the EU, DORA is specifically designed to ‘strengthen the resilience of digital operations in the financial sector ’. Thus, though accounting for similar processes and practices, as we shall outline, the emergence of both NIS2 and DORA represent at least two sets of cyber criteria which financial entities must comply with, not only to avoid legal penalty, but to remain robust in an increasingly dangerous digital environment.

NIS2 and DORA are scheduled to become national law on the 17 ^th October 2024 and 17 ^th January 2025 respectively, and it is important to understand both in order to ensure that your business is compliant with their requirements.

NIS2 Requirements

Chapter 4 of NIS2 requires that all Member States of the EU ensure that all of their essential and important entities ‘take appropriate and proportionate technical, operational, and organisational measures to manage the risks posed to the security of network and information systems’ . By ‘appropriate and proportionate’, NIS2 directs all such entities to adopt an ‘all-hazards approach’, by which they refer to a baseline set of requirements including:

a. Internal Security Policies: Develop and enforce good essential policies that ensure robust internal security practices.

b. Incident Handling: Establish tested protocols to effectively respond to and manage security incidents.

c. Backup Management & Disaster Recovery: Ensure reliable backup solutions and disaster recovery plans to safeguard data integrity, also ensuring continuity.

d. Supply Chain Security: Maintain mutual responsibilities with partners through clear connections and dependencies to avoid the cascade effect of major incidents.

e. Information Security Maintenance: Ensure the security of your network, including vulnerability handling and disclosure.

f. Ongoing Assessment: Continuously update and monitor information security measures to protect against the ever-changing street smarts of evolving threat actors.

g. Cyber Security Hygiene & Training: Regularly assess and adapt security measures to current threat landscapes, which are often basic and repeated.

h. Cryptography & Encryption: Provide continuous cyber security training promoting best practices among employees, and ensuring Quantum-ready cryptography, a subject of other evolving regulations.

i. Human Resources Security: Implement thorough background checks and enforce security protocols for all personnel.

j. Multi-Factor Authentication: Enhance access control through the use of multi-factor authentication, which is always a feature of successful cyber incidents.

DORA Requirements

DORA is considered a Lex Specialis for financial sector entities, meaning that, where it possesses overlapping or shared regulations and principles with NIS2, DORA takes precedence. Thus, though it is still important to remain aware and informed regarding NIS2 and its requirements, it is more important to be equipped with an acute understanding of DORA.

DORA requires that all financial entities be equipped with an ‘ internal governance and control framework ’ designed to strengthen their cyber defences, particularly in regards to the transfer of data, risk of corruption, confidentiality and loss of data, and protection from human error. In order to ensure this, DORA insists upon the implementation of the following processes:

a. An information security policy with clearly defined rules to protect the availability, authenticity, integrity, and confidentiality of data.

b. A sound infrastructure management structure which makes use of appropriate techniques and mechanisms, such as those which isolate affected assets in the event of a cyber attack.

c. Policies which limit the physical access to information assets and ICT assets to what is legitimate and approved.

d. Protocols for strong authentication mechanisms based on relevant standards and systems, including the use of encryption.

e. Controls for ICT change management in order to ensure that any changes are recorded, tested, assessed, approved, and verified.

f. Appropriate policies for patches and updates .

Implications for the Finance Sector

Both NIS2 and DORA may appear to establish relatively basic levels of cyber security awareness and defence, however it is important that they are properly implemented and strengthened within your operations.

This is partly due to the financial and reputational losses that can and will impact your organisation in the event of a cyber security breach. In considering financial entities to be essential, NIS2 makes them liable to a fine of up to €10m or 2% of their annual turnover, whichever is higher. Similarly, DORA penalises any instance of non-compliance with a daily fine of up to 1% of the average daily worldwide turnover of the financial entity until compliance is reimposed.

Furthermore, the reporting obligations of both Acts pose significant and specific considerations to financial entities, based on how and when an organisation should bring awareness to a potential or recent cyber security breach.

DORA’s Article 10: Detection imposes that financial entities shall ‘have in place mechanisms to promptly detect anomalous activities’, and expands the reporting process in Article 17: ICT-related incident management process to ensure that ‘major’ cyber security incidents are reported to the appropriate management bodies in order to enact mitigation and prevention procedures.

Similarly, NIS2’s Article 23: Reporting Obligations requires that all essential and important entities promptly identify and report any ‘significant’ cyber security breach or incident to their representative computer security incident response teams (CSIRTs).

There are two main indicators which make an incident ‘significant’ under NIS2: one is that it has affected or caused damage to other entities or persons; the second is that ‘it has caused or is capable of causing severe […] financial loss for the entity concerned’. This is particularly emphatic for organisations which by nature and definition handle and advertise the possession of large amounts of money, a consideration which DORA highlights as an Act specific to the financial sector.

In their classifications of ICT-related incidents which financial entities should use to determine their impact, DORA specifies ‘the criticality of services affects, including the financial entity’s transactions’ as well as ‘the economic impact, in particular direct and indirect costs and losses’. Thus, it is crucial for financial organisations to ensure that their operations are properly barricaded against cyber threats, and that they have airtight contingencies and reporting protocols in place in case they are breached.

Finally, it is important to internalise clear accountability within your organisation. NIS2 makes it clear that the responsibility for the approval, delivery, and maintenance of an essential entity’s cyber security risk-management measure rests with the management bodies of the entity. This includes coordinating cyber security training and the provision of ‘sufficient knowledge and skills to enable them to identify risks and assess cybersecurity risk-management practices’. DORA is even clearer in this regard, specifying that the management body of the financial entity shall ‘bear the ultimate responsibility for managing the financial entity’s ICT risk’. Thus, the stakes are higher for executives and C-suite professionals to ensure compliance, as they will be the ones held accountable for breaches and attacks.

How Cambridge MC can Help

Whether your company is based primarily inside or outside the EU, it is crucial that your organisation complies with NIS2 and DORA by the end of the year if you have any entities or subsidiaries, or currently/plan to conduct work in any EU Member States. In any case, NIS2 and DORA represent aspirational sets of guidelines pertaining to the cyber hygiene of your organisation that would only strengthen it to internalise.

This is particularly salient in a regulatory culture which is increasingly prioritising and scrutinising cyber security. As of April this year, the UK Government implemented minimum security standards to protect consumers and businesses from cyber attacks. These include the banning of easily guessable default passwords; regulations which, like NIS2 and DORA, are seemingly basic yet possess higher stakes for non-compliance.

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we have a team of experienced Cyber Security professionals with decades of combined practical experience in the field, as well as detailed and up-to-date knowledge on all relevant regulations and principles.

To avoid your organisation from being left behind or penalised for a lack of cyber maturity, contact our cyber team to understand your pain points and vulnerabilities—we will work with you to construct, assess, and deliver a comprehensive strategy to resolve them.

Contact John Madelin , our Managing Partner for Cyber Security, or learn more about our Cyber Security capability here .

Cambridge Management Consulting Wins Three Awards at the Consultancy Awards 2024

Fri, 14 Jun 2024 22:25:12 GMT

Last night, we attended The Consultancy Awards 2024 – the annual awards event hosted by The Consultancy Growth Network, with the objective to recognise and celebrate hard work, commitment, and innovation across the consultancy sphere.

Taking place at the De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms in London, The Consultancy Growth Network distributed over thirty awards across ten categories to this year’s finalists, of which Cambridge Management Consulting are the proud recipient of three – earning a place in each of the categories we were nominated.

This is a testament to not only the impressive quality of talent, ingenuity, and drive present within our company, but throughout the consultancy industry itself. As an industry with collaboration at its heart, last night represented an excellent opportunity to connect with our peers for the shared purpose of uplifting our achievements.

Read on the learn about the three different awards we won, and the incredible work our practitioners completed to receive them.

Digital Transformation

Sponsored by Method Grid, the Digital Transformation award looks to recognise consultancies who have harnessed the power of technology to reinvigorate an organisation; whether that be in making it more efficient, cost effective, or sustainable.

Cambridge MC won an award in this category due to our ongoing project management of a multinational oil and gas company, to coordinate the development of a portfolio of high-priority EV charging hub sites throughout big cities. Thus far, we have delivered the successful deployment of the first EV hub site in Luxembourg, eight in the Netherlands, are currently in the process of rolling out further sites in the US and UK, and additional sites in other countries across other several continents.

Productivity Improvement / Cost Reduction

Sponsored by CMap, this award encompasses consultancies and projects which have increased and improved the efficiency, productivity, and operations of an organisation, while also reducing their costs.

In this category, Cambridge MC won an award for our delivery of £10m in savings for a large UK online retailer across only thirteen weeks. By leveraging our experience in procurement, contract, and vendor management, we were able to perform a deep dive into all vendor contracts facing the business, establish areas for saving, and engage in supplier negotiations, in order to maximise cost savings while the company was experiencing significant changes in demand.

Fastest Growing

Sponsored by Sonovate, the Fastest Growing award is one that is particularly important to Cambridge MC, for recognising our rapid development from a start-up to a multinational consultancy firm represented in offices, experts, and clients across the globe.

In the last few years alone, Cambridge MC has experienced exponential growth. Between our talented industry experts, reputation for a workplace culture grounded in integrity, and commitment to sustainability and pro-bono work, we have observed a 30% growth in revenue, 100% increase in geographies, 50% more services, and double the number of clients. Our consultant base has also grown by 100%, and were proud to be able to double the profit we donate to charity to 12%. Winning an award in this category is only part of the pride, strength, and affirmation that this growth provides us as an organisation.

Thank You

We want to end by showing gratitude to our partners, clients, and peers who have made all of this work and acknowledgement possible. As it was emphasised in the brilliant speeches made last night, the consultancy industry is to its core a service industry, with work completed for the benefit of our clients and customers, not for an award. However, it is always encouraging to earn recognition from our peers, and to have the opportunity to celebrate them in return.

Last night represented a brilliant collaboration of talent, and we look forward to returning next year.

The Consultancy Awards

The Consultancy Awards are presented by The Consultancy Growth Network, a group of professional advisers and service providers to the consulting community that offer one of the most robust, insightful performance benchmarking reports in the consulting industry.

The annual awards celebrate the breadth, depth, quality and impact of consultancies in the UK and beyond. Read more about the 2024 winners here .

How the New UK Procurement Act will Affect the Public Sector & SMEs

Thu, 30 May 2024 20:54:08 GMT

What is the Procurement Act 2023?

Every year, one in every three pounds of public money is spent on public procurement exercises. This amounts to roughly £300bn spent annually to fund public procurement projects, including those within central government departments and their arm’s-length bodies, local government and health authorities, utilities companies operating in the water, energy, and transport sectors, and more.

However, the current system for managing and coordinating these movements is convoluted and outdated, comprised of over 350 individual regulations derived from several different sets of EU Directives from different years (e.g. the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011, Public Contracts Regulations 2015, Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, etc.).

As such, the UK Government have decided to capitalise on some of the flexibility left by Brexit by repealing these existing regulations, and consolidating them into one single act, the Procurement Act 2023. Having received Royal Assent on the 26 ^th October 2023, the Act puts forward a revised matrix of rules, clauses, and criteria regarding public procurement provisions that is set to take effect throughout England, Wales, and Northern Ireland in October of this year. Thus, the Act is set to make public procurement ‘ quick, simpler, more transparent and better able to meet the UK’s needs while remaining compliant with [its] international obligations’.

In this article, we will highlight and dilate the differences between the new act and its predecessors, why these changes matter and how they will affect and, hopefully, improve the processes of public procurement, and how we can help you prepare for ‘ one of the largest shake ups to procurement rules ’ in the history of UK legislation.

What is Different about the Act?

The primary difference attached to the Act, and the main repository for the accessibility and transparency promoted by the consolidation of the previous regulations, is in the updated procedure surrounding a covered procurement. Differentiated from a regular procurement, the Act introduces a covered procurement as ‘the award, entry into, and management of a public contract’, exclusively within the public sector.

This process is described by the Act as a competitive tendering procedure, and can be understood by breaking it down into before, during, and after.

Before: Objectives

Before beginning a competitive tendering procedure, it is important that the contracting authority enters the process with the correct narrative and intentions in mind in order to make an informed decision when selecting suppliers. In order to assess this, the Act contains a list of objectives that the authority must internalise and adhere to when evaluating applicants for a procurement exercise. Outlined in Part 2, Section 12 , these objectives dictate that a contracting authority ‘must have regard to the importance of’:

a. delivering value for money;

b. maximising public benefit;

c. sharing information for the purpose of allowing suppliers and others to understand the authority’s procurement policies and decisions;

d. acting, and being seen to act, with integrity.

These objectives and principles encourage and ensure that the contracting authority will select their suppliers openly and judiciously, with ‘regard to the fact that small and medium-sized enterprises may gave particular barriers to participation, and consider whether such barriers can be removed or reduced’.

During: Competitive Tendering Procedures

‘ Competition is at the heart of the regime ’, and, once these objectives have been understood, the contracting authority must apply them to the subsequent selection process by conducting a competitive tendering procedure. This is described in Part 3, Chapter 2, Section 20 as:

a. single-stage tendering procedure without a restriction on who can submit tenders (an “open procedure”), or

b. such other competitive tendering procedure as the contracting authority considers appropriate for the purpose of awarding the public contract (a “competitive flexible procedure”).

It is this second option, the ‘competitive flexible procedure’, which differentiates the procurement legislation outlined in the Act from its predecessors, writing flexibility into the very fabric of the law. Section 20 proceeds to ensure that ‘the procedure is a proportionate means of awarding a public contract, having regard to the nature, complexity and cost of the contract’. As the anticipatory policy paper explains, this is unique as it allows contracting authorities to ‘design a competition to best suit the particular needs of their contract and market’.

After: Awarding Public Contracts

Once applications and proposals have been entered into a competitive tendering procedure, Part 3, Chapter 2, Section 19 simply dictates that the awarding of the public contract may be granted to the ‘most advantageous tender’ offered, by which it refers to the tender that ‘best satisfies the award criteria’. Aside from permitting the contracting authority to disregard suppliers from outside the UK, or those that offer a price that they consider to be ‘abnormally low for the performance of the contract’, the Act is otherwise open in its criteria, leaving much of the selection to the discretion of the contracting authority and the assurance that they will do so democratically and unbiasedly.

That being said, the Act does include provisions for the direct award of a contract which bypasses the competitive tendering procedure. There are two cases for this, as delineated in Chapter 3: Direct Award :

Direct Award in Special Cases: This allows for a contracting authority to override the usual competitive tendering process if there is an ‘overriding public interest’ in the selection of a particular supplier; this may be if they require the public contract to construct or maintain critical national infrastructure, ensure the proper functioning of a crucial sector, or if it would otherwise disrupt military or security operations.

Direct Award to Protect Life: Similarly, a contracting authority is free to select a particular supplier over others if it contributes to the protection of ‘human, animal or plant life or health’, or otherwise ‘protect public order or safety’.

Exclusion & Debarment

The Act also expands the criteria for the exclusion of suppliers by contracting authorities. As well as adding new violations such as theft, corporate manslaughter, and competition law infringement, the Act notably introduces the ‘ ability to exclude suppliers based on the status of their associated suppliers and subcontractors, and not solely on their own performance’. This is significant for the way it prevents larger companies from operating on the unfair approach of winning businesses first before sourcing subcontractors to fulfil their contract.

Furthermore, the Act also introduces several changes to what constitutes ‘ discretionary grounds for exclusion ’, with a significant addition being ‘Contractual performance relating to contracts where the bidder has underperformed against KPIs and failed to rectify performance following an opportunity to do so’. This speaks to a major issue with previous procurement processes, which is public bodies being met with unsatisfactory contracts due to (a) poor KPIs or a lack thereof, (b) KPIs being unreflective of the buyer’s expectations, or (c) suppliers twisting the definitions or loopholes surrounding their KPIs. As such, using KPIs as a possible exclusionary tool encourages suppliers to take their inclusion and adherence much more seriously. (For guidance and advice on the definition of a reasonable KPI, contact our Procurement & Commercial experts here .)

On the increased stringency for debarring suppliers, which also includes more scrutiny on those suspected of modern slavery, Minister for the Cabinet Office Jeremy Quin explained: “We have taken the long-term decisions that will increase our powers to protect our security in our supply chains and procurement.

“This has included radical steps such as creating a National Security Unit for Procurement and giving Ministers the power to prevent suppliers from bidding for certain products where there is a risk to national security. It will deliver lasting change which protects the UK for generations to come.”

Changing the Face of Procurement

As aforementioned, the primary purpose and design of the Act is to promote transparency, simplicity, and accessibility; as the Cabinet Office explains in their green paper, the revamp is directed toward ‘reinforcing and adding clarity rather than changing scope’. In particular, this is intended for the benefit of small businesses and social enterprises , so that they have the opportunity to compete for and win more public contracts. There are several ways in which this philosophy is being implemented, such as:

The creation of a central digital platform, on which suppliers can register and enter their details. This allows them to apply for multiple bids more directly, as well as have a more holistic overview of what tenders, projects, and opportunities are upcoming and available.

The inclusion of numerous regulation-making powers which will maintain a ‘ modern procurement structure ’, by which the Government defines as concurrent with ‘technological advances, new trade agreements and ahead of those who may try to use procurement improperly’.

The encouragement of contracting authorities to assess the boundaries which challenge or inhibit SMEs throughout the procurement lifecycle, and work to consider how they can be resolved and removed.

Also within reach of these changes is the Defence Sector, whose procurement activities will also benefit from the increased simplicity and flexibility and a more strategic relationship with the government, catalysing the development of the Defence and Security Industrial Strategy .

However, the main emphasis is on SMEs. For example, as discussed, the enhanced criteria for excluding suppliers is not only intended to prevent larger companies from operating on unfair means, by winning bids and putting the pressure on downstream suppliers to fulfil them, but to inversely make it more accessible for smaller and local businesses to bid directly. Cabinet Office Minister Baroness Neville-Rolfe said: “These new rules will help grow the economy and deliver better and simpler public sector procurement.

“I am particularly pleased to help small and medium sized businesses secure a greater share of nearly £300 billion worth of government contracts.”

How to Prepare for October

The Procurement Act 2023 is set to take full effect in October of this year, and though it is designed to make procurement simpler and more streamlined, it is still important for your organisation to understand and anticipate in breadth the nature and extent of the changes it will initiate.

For example, the new regulations are not retroactive, meaning that any procurement activity begun under the Public Contracts Regulations (PCR) 2025 will continue to operate within its remit. However, you will still need to consider which of those contracts will expire after the introduction of the new regulations, and form contingencies in advance for reprocuring as early as possible, if this is your intention.

The Crown Commercial Service (CCS) has delineated the process of preparing for these new regulations into five workstreams:

Commercial activity: review all current and planned commercial opportunities.
Standard operating procedures and policies: ensure they are robust and future-proofed for the new regime.
Guidance and information: review the documents that your teams and suppliers use and ensure they are current.
Systems: consider the readiness of your organisation’s systems and what changes may be needed.
People: ensure your people understand Transforming Public Procurement and undertake the necessary training.

In addition to this, the CCS has also produced a substantial list of commercial agreements that they expect to be awarded under the new legislation. This is a useful resource to read and internalise in advance of their introduction so as to ready your organisation for their application.

How Can Cambridge MC Help?

The last of the CSS’ five workstreams refers to a Government initiative paced to make the transition into the procurement activity under the new Act easier and smoother, by releasing intermittent ‘Knowledge Drops’ covering all changes and their effects. However, if you prefer a more hands-on and human-centric approach, our Procurement & Commercial experts possess the real-world experience and expertise to walk you through the new legislation, and prepare your organisation for the shift that it will bring.

Furthermore, if you are interested in securing projects and clients in the public sector, speak to our Public Sector team for guidance and support.

Advice for Winning Long-term Contracts in the Public Sector

Tue, 21 May 2024 20:40:57 GMT

“As a consultant, you can have a big impact on the lives of the people in your country.” —David Lewis

Last December, David W. Lewis , ( edit: Former ) Managing Partner for Cambridge Management Consulting and lead for Digital & Innovation, was featured in SAWOO’s Leaders in Consulting podcast. A platform which is dedicated to giving a voice to industry experts on salient topics for consultants and advisors, David’s episode specifically contended with ‘Mastering Government Contracts: Expert Advice for Winning Long-Term Government Projects’. An insightful conversation, David joins host Sammy Gebele to break down the complexities of government contracts and developing lasting client relationships.

In this article, we will elucidate the main points of this discussion, and highlight the most important steps toward building a presence in the public sector.

A Comparison of Winning Projects in the Public versus Private Sector

Sammy opens the episode by asking David to differentiate the criteria between applying for and securing work in the public sector, as opposed to regular clients and companies. David explains that there are two main differences: ‘One is frameworks, and the other is lead time.’

By ‘frameworks’, David here refers to the UK Government’s continual emphasis on framework-based procurement, whereby your organisation or one you are partnered with must be on a framework in order to deliver work into the Government. As there are hundreds of frameworks that comprise the UK Government, this requires considerable time to establish which avenues are most relevant to the work you are looking to secure, whether they are appropriate to your business, and how to access them.

This, along with other factors such as internal and external politics, can consequently affect the lead time to applying, bidding, and achieving the work in the public sector. This requires your company to be able to absorb a certain amount of time and cost to contribute toward this; the upside, however, is that once this pathway is established and ready, new work within that framework will generally be contracted more efficiently.

How to Build Relationships

Following this, David goes on to explain the importance of building strong, positive, and trusting relationships with your chosen client. Obviously, these are influenced and dependent on the quality of work completed throughout the project, however David attributes as much significance to open and honest conversation sustained alongside this.

For this reason, David warns against ‘mining’ when seeking and selecting projects and work, explaining that he finds a ‘land and expand’ approach to be transactional, as the client can easily assess and intuit when an organisation is more focused on the profit than the outcome. He highlights how this is even more heightened in the public sector, where the work is intended to improve the quality of life for individuals and/or the wider country.

How to Stand Out from other Organisations

When asked for the primary piece of advice he would give to an organisation looking to secure work in the public sector, David recommends isolating what differentiates your organisation from the other contenders, and emphasising this. Public bodies will be expecting a baseline set of requirements from their applicants anyway, so in order to stand out above these, it is crucial to understand your own value-add to the project.

One way to establish and support the USP of your organisation is through forming and sustaining relevant partnerships with other companies who could either benefit from your chosen speciality, or help to foster one within your capabilities. His Majesty’s Government encourages healthy partnerships, and uses its buying power to support the development of a healthy digital delivery SME community.

The Benefits of Networking

In order to initiate and build these partnerships, it is important to make the most out of networking. David warns against approaching networking from a point of transaction, finding the practice of establishing a ‘quasi-relationship’ purely for the sake of reaping business from it to be disingenuous: ‘That’s where I have a problem: It’s the conversation with intent rather than conversation as humans just communicating.’ It is through this latter avenue, getting to know a person before seeking to understand how they can help you from a business angle, that David has experienced the most fruitful and authentic working relationships.

Growing Client Relationships

One approach to securing work and relationships within the public sector which David reiterates throughout the podcast is to make yourself redundant by the end of the project. Though this may sound counter-intuitive, especially when it comes to sustaining repeated projects, what he is referring to is a teach-a-man-to-fish methodology whereby you implement your work into the material of the public sector entity so that it can continue beyond the timeline of the project, proving yourself to be a trust-worthy, reliable, and capable partner in the process.

The positive extension of this approach is the goodwill built with your clients, which will grow more and more fruit over time.

How you can Secure Work in the Public Sector

To learn more about David Lewis’ approach to securing work in the Public Sector, or get to know David Lewis and his career in more detail, you can listen to the full episode here .

To learn about David’s Digital & Innovation capabilities and offerings and how they can revolutionise your business, visit our Digital Innovation service page here .

If any of the topics or challenges outlined in this podcast/article resonate with you or your business, you can reach out directly to David Lewis .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 160 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Tel Aviv, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in the near future.

For more information contact us below.

Cambridge Management Consulting acquires Blue Creek, a Dubai-based Consultancy

Wed, 15 May 2024 13:43:59 GMT

Press Release: 16/05/2024 – LONDON, UK - Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), one of Europe’s fastest growing and most innovative consultancies, is continuing an ambitious growth strategy with the acquisition of Dubai-based management consulting firm Blue Creek.

The acquisition of Blue Creek will expand Cambridge MC’s team and reach to 22 countries globally and embolden our mission to help our clients make a better impact on the world.

Blue Creek is an IT and business advisory firm which works with key growth and delivery partners to serve local and regional clients in the FinTech, RegTech, RiskTech, Commerce and Cloud markets.

The combination of Cambridge MC’s clients in the Middle East, such as BP and Etisalat, and Blue Creek’s extensive local market understanding expands the strength and knowledge base of our offer to clients, existing and new.

Blue Creek’s projects for GCC clients have included digital strategy and technology change assignments across Smart City, SME Sector & tourism development in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, for sovereign asset, technology, government and energy sector clients.

Tim Passingham, Founder and Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting stated “We are delighted to have acquired Blue Creek and to have Owen Stubbs and his associates join the Cambridge MC team. I’m excited by our international expansion plans and our ever-growing ability to serve an increasingly wide variety of clients and vertical markets.”

Owen Stubbs, Managing Partner of Blue Creek added “It’s an enormous pleasure to join the Cambridge Management Consulting team and looking forward to helping Cambridge MC grow further internationally into new markets and with new clients.”

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For more information visit: www.cambridgemc.com

About Blue Creek

Blue Creek is a professional IT and business advisory firm that collaborates with strategic growth and delivery partners to cater to the needs of local and regional clients in the FinTech, RegTech, RiskTech, Commerce, and Cloud markets.

Our focus is on facilitating business transformation and growth through various means such as product development, technology innovation, investments, M&A, and effective management of key technology risks. We strive to achieve bottom-line success by driving enterprise technology transformation and rationalisation.

For more information visit: https://www.bluecreek.ae/

Qarbon Technologies enters Agreement with Cambridge Management Consulting to Innovate Go-to-Market Strategy

Tue, 14 May 2024 13:22:38 GMT

Press Release: 14/05/2024 – Qarbon Technologies (Qarbon), the world’s first platform for securely transferring data between workflow management and data centre systems, is excited to announce the start of an ongoing collaboration with Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), an international management consultancy. This will initiate a joint go-to-market strategy, providing Cambridge MC with a digital solution to provide to their portfolio of clients and customers, and provide Qarbon with a management solution for implementing and assisting with a client’s existing infrastructure.

Qarbon’s service, LATTICE™, is a SaaS-based orchestration platform designed to provide a single interface between data centres and customers, allowing them to avoid the challenges caused by using multiple providers with varying systems for managing data. This offers a solution to data centre infrastructure which is more secure in its transparency, compliant through its use of OpenAPI, and sustainable by reporting ESG data.

Thus, Qarbon and Cambridge MC will together provide an ongoing orchestration platform and service wrap, including data cleansing and management, cost reduction, and procurement services, to a market of international customers and clients who require support or transformation of their digital infrastructure. By implementing LATTICE™, this collaboration between Cambridge MC and Qarbon represents a joint go-to-market strategy, widening Cambridge MC’s portfolio of solutions while allowing Qarbon to further disseminate their service.

Robert Davidson, Founder and CEO of Qarbon, said: "Today marks a pivotal moment, as Qarbon Technologies partners with Cambridge Management Consulting to redefine how digital infrastructure is managed and optimised across industries. This collaboration not only amplifies our mission to streamline data workflows through our LATTICE™ platform but also empowers Cambridge MC's clients with transformative, secure, and sustainable digital solutions. Together, we are setting a new standard for operational excellence and strategic growth in the tech sector."

Nigel Meacham, Managing Partner for Digital Procurement at Cambridge MC, said: "Cambridge Management Consulting is excited by our collaboration with Qarbon. A combination of Cambridge MC’s experience and innovative consulting, alongside Qarbon’s LATTICE™ orchestration platform, is truly unique, providing clients with an approach for managing data centre estates going forward that is based on reliable, cleansed, and normalised inventories."

About Qarbon Technologies

Qarbon is creating the world's first SaaS-based orchestration platform for secure, seamless integration of data centre infrastructure and customers' existing business applications. It unlocks data contained in a multitude of data centre infrastructure systems and seamlessly integrates it with customer's business applications like ServiceNow and Salesforce. Qarbon's first product, Qarbon LATTICE™, provides customers with a single, ubiquitous interface between their data centres and their business systems, eliminating the current complexity, friction, cost, security, and observability issues caused by existing manual workflows and enabling secure, plug-and-play workflow automation. Whether to reduce energy costs, increase operating efficiency, track inventory, comply with ESG reporting, or anything else—Qarbon is your solution for data about the data centre.

For further details, visit: www.qarbontech.io

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For further details, visit: www.cambridgemc.com

Charity Focus: Sands - Improving Care for Bereaved Families

Tue, 30 Apr 2024 12:42:38 GMT

Who are Sands?

Established over 40 years ago by bereaved parents, Sands (originally an acronym for the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society but now simply referred to as Sands) is a non-profit organisation devoted to improving the care and support for anyone affected by the loss of a baby, and ultimately decreasing the number of those who experience it.

According to their website , 13 families a day are affected by the heartbreak of losing a baby, whether that be before, during, or after birth, and at least 15% of pregnancies end in miscarriage. Sands recognises that child-loss does not follow a linear process, and as such aims to make the bereavement journey more manageable for the wider network of family, friends, and healthcare professionals involved, by establishing national bereavement care pathways. In short, ‘to ensure that every bereaved parent and family receives the best possible care wherever they are in the UK’.

Sands achieves these ventures by working in partnership with healthcare professionals, health trusts, and boards, and offers a variety of training programmes and bereavement care resources to prepare healthcare staff for the loss of a baby. They also promote crucial research to increase understanding and knowledge regarding the causes of infant loss and avenues for improving the safety of both mothers and babies. Further to this, they raise awareness of such issues and collaborate with governments and other stakeholders to elevate them to the priorities that they should be.

The 9 Bereavement Care Standards

Sands launched the 9 Bereavement Care Standards as part of the National Bereavement Care Pathway during Baby Loss Awareness Week in 2018. Produced as a result of stories and testimonials told by parents affected by pregnancy loss or the death of a baby, these standards are comprised of 9 different protocols and expectations, and provide a concise and comprehensive guide for how each NHS trust should support a parent or family during and after the loss of an infant.

Several of these are designed to be implemented into the infrastructure and running of the NHS trust in question: no. 5 designates that ‘Bereavement rooms are available and accessible in all hospitals’, so that grieving parents can begin to process their experience and emotions in privacy, peace, and quietude; no. 8 advises that a ‘system is in place to clearly signal to all health care professionals and staff that a parent has experienced a bereavement’ in order to prevent the harmful elongation and disruption of their grief, and repetition of ‘having to tell their story again and again’; no. 2 suggests that ‘training is offered to staff who come into contact with bereaved parents’, a provision which Sands can resource; and no. 4 employs the role of a ‘bereavement lead in every healthcare setting where a pregnancy or baby loss may occur’.

Further to this, some of the standards cover protocols to be enacted immediately following the tragic loss of an infant. No. 6 makes this moment as sensitive and personalised to the parents as possible, by making sure that the ‘preferences of all bereaved families are sought’, particularly regarding ‘decisions relating to their care and the care of their babies’. Depending on the wishes of the families, this may result in the inclusion of no. 3, which ensures ‘emotional support [and] specialist mental health support’ if requested, and/or no. 7, in which the bereaved parents are ‘offered opportunities to make memories’. The latter refers to the reversal of an antiquated practice whereby, in the 1970s when Sands originated, deceased babies would be removed from the room immediately before their parents could see them; however, many studies have highlighted the importance of the mother spending time with the baby, and to form physical and emotional bonds as they would with a living infant. Thus, ‘making memories’ allows parents and families to retain sentimental items such as a teddy bear, a cast of the child’s feet or hands, and anything else that will allow them to keep a part of what they have lost.

And several others are to be established before the loss of an infant occurs – not to promote fearmongering for prospective parents, or attempt to mitigate the shock caused by such a traumatic event, but to make sure everyone involved is at least somewhat prepared so that those affected enter the most comfortable environment and setting without the further disorientation of a buffer or delay. This includes the very first of the nine Standards, which promotes the preparation of a ‘parent-led bereavement care plan’ so that all of the appropriate resources are readily available, and, to further this, no. 9, which instructs healthcare professionals to be equipped with enough ‘support and resources to deliver high quality bereavement care’.

How Cambridge MC is Supporting Sands

It is this final standard, no. 9, which Cambridge Management Consulting is striving to support in collaboration with Sands.

Since beginning this journey in 1978, Sands has taken advantage of technological advancements and their benefits to make such research and work both more sophisticated and, more importantly, more accessible. As well as a UK-wide network of around 100 support groups, Sands disseminate their support and resources through a Freephone helpline and online community. Now, as a technology-forward consultancy, with a collective wealth of technical expertise, Cambridge MC is aiming to bring this same accessibility and visibility specifically to the 9 Bereavement Care Standards.

Considering how important, and often urgent, the Bereavement Care Standards are to improving the wellbeing of bereaved families, healthcare professionals previously reported struggling to find them readily available, thus stunting their ability to provide the proper care imminently and effectively. Thus, Cambridge MC’s marketing and IT experts have, pro bono, produced a new landing page specifically for the National Bereavement Care Pathway and the 9 Standards, to make their implementation in UK-wide hospitals as easy and seamless as possible.

Karl Salter, Head of Marketing for Cambridge MC and project lead for the website, said: ‘Sands is an incredible cause, bringing light to such an important issue and vastly improving the wellbeing of those affected by it. It is an honour, and very moving, to be able to bring further awareness to this work.’

Marc Harder, Head of Bereavement Care & Hospital Liaison at Sands, said: ‘Healthcare professionals across the UK find themselves in a challenging environment at the best of times, and caring for newly bereaved parents requires a specialised set of people skills. The resources Sands and its partners provide are crucial to equipping the workforce to care for parents when they need it most, and we are so grateful to Cambridge MC in supporting this aim by creating the new NBCP website pages which will make accessing tools and resources so much easier.’

To learn more about Sands and their incredible work, particularly if you have been affected by any of the sentiments outlined in this article, click here .

To visit the new landing page for Sands' National Bereavement Care Pathway, click here .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Risk Management in an AI World

Thu, 25 Apr 2024 20:15:38 GMT

Why do we trust computers?

AI is a constant feature in the news these days, but a couple of news items in recent weeks might have struck you as worthy of more thought. First was the announcement by Meta and OpenAI that they will shortly be releasing models that ‘think’ more like people and are able to consider the consequences of their decisions. And the second was an article in the FT that the speed of AI development is outstripping the development of methods to assess risk.

These two developments and the conflicts they raise are related to a quixotical feature of human nature: why do we trust computers more than humans?

If there is a reliable basis of trust in a person or in a piece of technology, then the level of risk being taken can be more clearly understood. Without a sound basis of trust, this risk becomes increasingly uncertain.

In this article, Tom Burton, a cyber security expert and technology thought leader, addresses the historical roots of this dilemma, and also answers the following:

Why is digital risk such a challenging concept?
How will AI make this problem more complicated?
What principles could be put in place to manage trust in an era of AI?

Where does this bias originate?

Why is it that a human is more likely to implicitly trust what a computer tells them than what another human tells them?

Before you hit back with disagreement, consider this scenario: How would you react if a gentleman dressed in the regalia of an African prince turned up at your door offering untold riches without any conditions?

Many over the years have been taken in by exactly that offer received by email. Phishing, fake news on social media, and numerous other socially engineered deceptions rely on this digital bias, which has been the subject of plenty of research.

When Tom Burton was responsible for information systems, information management, and information exploitation in his Army Headquarters, he found it striking how many people assumed the accuracy of a unit’s location on a screen was 100% reliable. They would take a similar ‘sticky’ marker on a physical map with caution; recognising that there was implicit uncertainty in the accuracy of the ‘reported’ location, and that the unit in question may have moved significantly since they made that report. Yet, they would be happy to zoom in to the greatest detail on a screen and ask why A Squadron or B Company was on the east side of the track rather than the west.

This implicit trust has striking implications for many aspects of our digital lives, and will be brought into even sharper focus with the widespread adoption of AI applications.

Is tech more like a hammer or a human?

Tom has a theory. Humans are inherently fallible, deceitful and unpredictable. We make mistakes, sometimes intentionally; sometimes due to tiredness, emotions or bias. And we have spent at least 300,000 years reaffirming this model of each other.

Machines are considered to be predictable and deterministic. No matter how many times two large numbers are entered into a calculator, it’s expected that they will be added up correctly and consistently.

When considering the output of a computer, at least subconsciously, it is considered to be more like a hammer than a human : a predictable tool, that will produce the result it was programmed for.

But even in the case of conventional, non-AI technology, this perspective is a fallacy. Computers are designed and programmed by fallible humans. Mistakes are made, and those mistakes are transferred to the code, and in turn, the results that this code produces. The more complex the code, the less certainty there will be of accurate and consistent results.

A ‘truthful’ response may also be dependent on having a similar perspective to the person who designed a system. If ambiguous problems are interpreted differently by the designer, then the probability that the results will be misinterpreted increases significantly.

People consider their digital tools as predictable as a hammer, but too frequently they operate more like the humans who created them.

This situation is only likely to get more extreme with AI. Technology is actively being designed to operate more like humans. To learn and apply insight from that learning in new situations. The question asked of a system today might well produce a different answer if asked again in the future, because the information and ‘experiences’ that answer is based on will change. In exactly the same way that if one asks a human the same question ten years apart, we are not surprised by a different answer, particularly if seeking an opinion.

How does this affect the risks of employing increasingly advanced technologies?

If technological tools are increasingly becoming more similar to humans than hammers, then how does this affect risk? The diversity and unpredictability of humans is something with which society is familiar and has been managing for some time; so let's look at the similarities, because, after all, the aim is to replace people with technologies that operate in a similar way.

It's known that people misunderstand tasks because language is ambiguous, and interpretation is based on an individual’s perspective. Everyone has different value systems, influencing where focus is placed and where corners might be cut. At an extreme, these different values may lead to behaviour that is negligent or even malicious. People can be subverted or coerced to do things. All of these behaviours have parallels with complex technology, and AI in particular.

Ambiguity will always create uncertainty and risk . AI models are based on value systems that are intended to steer them towards the most desired outcome; but those value systems may be imperfect, especially when defined in the past for unforeseen situations in the future. And it's known that technology can be compromised to produce undesirable outcomes.

But it is important to note that there are some fundamental differences as well. Groups and organisations tend to have inherent dampers that reduce extremes (though geopolitics might provide evidence against this). Recruiting one person to do a task might result in a ‘good egg’ or a bad one. But recruiting a team of ten increases the chance that different perspectives will challenge extreme behaviours. Greater diversity increases this effect. This does not eliminate risk, and a very strong character might be able to influence the entire team, but it introduces some resistance. However, if the ‘team’ comprises instances of the same AI model, feeding from the same knowledge base, using the same value systems and learning directly from each other, it might operate more like an echo chamber; as seen with runaway trading algorithms that are tipped out of control by the positive feedback of their value systems.

Are digital risk and business risk the same?

Assuming the trajectory of technology continues into the age of AI, intelligent tools will be used wherever possible to do tasks currently done by humans. Over time, every aspect of business will be decided or influenced by digital systems, using digital tools, operating on digital objects, to produce outcomes that will be digital in nature before they transition into the physical world.

Consequently, there will not be many risks that do not have a very significant digital element. It could therefore be argued that managing cyber-, information- or digital-risk (whichever term you prefer) will be inseparable from the majority of business risks. Going into the future, the current construct of a CISO function managing information risk separate from many of the other corporate risk areas might seem quaint. Instead, it's uncertain whether any area of business risk management will be able to claim they ‘don’t do technology’ and it will be more important than ever for technology risk to be managed with an intimate and universal understanding of the business.

Applying human risk management to artificial intelligence

Improving our understanding of risk by considering technology components as people , at least at a conceptual level, is possible. Society is already there in many respects and, as AI solutions emerge over the years and decades to come, this convergence is only going to accelerate. An AI model’s decisions are based on an unpredictable array of inputs that will change over time. They are based on a set of values that need to be maintained in line with business and ethical values. But most importantly, they will learn. Learn from their own experiences, and learn from each other. This sounds far more like a human actor than a hammer.

Tom Burton suggests that we can take lessons from managing human risk and apply them to digital risk. He suggests the following measures that can be immediately adopted by businesses:

Initiation: When embarking on an initiative, time needs to be taken to consider the inherent risks faced. Not just the discrete risks within the initiative but also the more systemic risks that need to be avoided.

Recruitment: Deciding what is meant by trust when selecting the types of technologies to be employed, and where technology will be applied versus where a human in the loop is desired, is necessary. The frame of reference used to define and measure trust, what external evidence can be taken, and how much needs to be reinforced with one's own due diligence needs consideration. For instance, government regulation and certification of AI models may provide a baseline of trust, but in the more sensitive and high risk areas of business, 'interviews' and tests will likely need to be applied.

Design: The more risk that can be designed out, the easier (and cheaper) it will be to manage the residual risk in operations. The concept of Secure by Design is important now but will become essential as the progression continues. Ensuring the equivalent of segregation of duties until more is understood about how these systems will operate, learn, and develop over time is crucial. Applying segmentation is too often ignored today, with broad flat networks, but it will be vital to contain risk in the future.

Operations: In operations, just like with people, preparation for the worst scenario is necessary. This is not just about monitoring an environment. It is also about maintaining an understanding of risk and war gaming new scenarios that come to mind. The military planning process always includes the question: "Has the situation changed." Industrialising this in the way systems are managed, maintained, and evolved is needed. The most obvious 'big issue' that comes to mind is the point when operationalised quantum computing comes to the fore; but there will be others as well and adaptation to overcome them will be required.

Summary: Optimism is Good, but Hope is not a Strategy

There is a lot to be optimistic about in the future. There will be change, and the need to adapt, but the pace of change and the breadth of its impact demands that we take an objective approach to understanding and managing risk— hope is not a strategy .

If we do not understand something, then our trust in it must decrease as a consequence. This does not mean that we should not employ it; after all, the trust we have in our people and our partners isn't binary. But we put controls and frameworks in place to limit the damage that people can do proportionate to this trust.

We need to treat technologies that demonstrate human traits in a similar way.

About Tom Burton

With over 20 years of experience in business, IT, and security leadership roles, including several C-suite positions, Tom has an acute ability to distil and simplify complex security problems, from high-altitude discussions about business risk with the board, to detailed discussions about architecture, technology good practice, and security remediation with delivery teams. With a tenacious drive to enhance cyber security and efficiency, Tom has spent a significant amount of time in the Defence, Aerospace, Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals, High Tech, and Government industries, and has developed an approach based on applying engineering principles to deliver sustainable business change.

If you would like to speak to Tom or anyone from the Cyber Security team, please use the form below.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 160 consultants working on projects in 20 countries.

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

LB Networks engaged Cambridge Management Consulting to Support their Go-to-Market Strategy

Wed, 24 Apr 2024 07:54:48 GMT

Press Release: 24/04/2024 - LB Networks, an industry leader in service-based business intelligence and customer-facing portal solutions to carriers, is excited to announce a partnership with Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), a globally renowned international management consultancy. This partnership is to expand LB Networks’ reach as well as Cambridge MC’s portfolio of tech-based solutions, by allowing Cambridge MC to represent LB Networks and co-develop a market strategy to penetrate the EMEA markets.

Service providers use LB Networks’ solutions to solve their digital transformation challenges while providing immediate contribution to margins. LB Networks’ OcularIP and Business Service Portal differentiate carriers’ service and provide brand relieving price pressure while increasing ARPU and accelerating client acquisitions.

Robert Kittner, Chief Revenue Officer at LB Networks, said, "We are excited to partner with Cambridge MC. Their experience and expertise in delivering innovative solutions to telecoms is well recognised and we are appreciative that they committed to representing our solution throughout EMEA."

Stuart Curzon, Chief Commercial Officer at Cambridge MC, said, "Our global team of consultants are experts at helping telecoms scale through effective solutions. LB Networks’ applications are proven to provide unique value for telecoms. From concept through to execution, we will use our broad communications industry experience to support LB Networks as they expand the reach of their impressive portfolio application."

About LB Networks

LB Networks is a SaaS solution provider focused on digital transformation for telecoms by providing unique solutions that leverage carriers’ current infrastructure and optimise availability reporting. LB Networks is empowering hundreds of carriers worldwide to optimise their service delivery reporting and visualisation. These carriers have saved millions in costs while growing revenues with an award-winning Business Service Portal. Their success-based model can be implemented in days.

For further details, visit www.lbnetworks.co .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For further details, visit: www.cambridgemc.com .

Change Management Closure: From Formal Sign-Off to Lessons Learned

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 08:39:20 GMT

Project Control

Having completed our planning activity and mobilised a team of dedicated professionals through a well-defined execution plan, it is now time to ensure that our hard work is reinforced by a rigorous control and status communication mechanism.

A transparent, iterative control tool helps to enhance communication, increase adaptability, promote stakeholder engagement, and contributes to the overall success of the project.

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we visualise this control mechanism as a one-page project dashboard, documenting project progress against key milestones, capturing delivery risks and maintaining adherence to project time and budgetary constraints.

A transparent communication of project status and the assignment of ownership of issue resolution helps to streamline decision making. It is therefore critical that dashboards are an objective reflection of the project reality. Far too often, project managers present an idealised version of a project, failing to identify or communicate the risks that threaten to derail an activity. Hiding issues is common, and can be for a variety of issues, which is why a rigorous control process is required to keep us on track.

The creation of a Cambridge MC project dashboard follows a 5-step process:

Goal Definition: The change dashboard should be a reflection of the business goals and change imperative driving the activity.
Measurement Creation: Each measurable should be defined with a benchmark created to support an objective view of progress against operational targets.
Visualisation: A change dashboard should be an easy-to-understand visualisation of the project measures that can be shared with all levels of the organisation.
Control: Use the dashboard to control your progress towards the change imperative, with an appropriate review and communication plan.
Adapt: Planning and execution is by nature iterative, and therefore measures should be adapted as required and subsequently communicated across the stakeholder landscape. Resources should be onboarded or released as dictated by the evolution of the project requirements.

The use of a simple traffic light system helps to bring our dashboard to life, and communicate the status of how well team members are following our exemplary direction.

Change Agent and Sponsor Assessments

At strategic points during the project, it is important to perform Change Agent and Change Sponsor assessments. These assessments are used to gauge how well the project is being delivered by the team and how the project is perceived by sponsor stakeholders.

Assessments typically focus on key qualities associated with project delivery, such as communication skills, positive influence, role modelling, and resilience. These skillsets are indicative of the competencies required to navigate uncertainty, and help inspire others to embrace the change.

These reviews can take the form of a self-assessment, or be performed by a designated resource from the PMO. This engagement activity represents an excellent opportunity to reinforce project goals, and to motivate the team towards completion as energies and commitment levels may falter at different stages of execution.

Closing

Finally, having worked tirelessly to deliver the future state of the organisation, we have an opportunity to celebrate a job well done… well, almost. Before the celebrations can commence, we need to formally close our project.

Project closure is our opportunity to assess deliverables, confirm stakeholder satisfaction, and ensure that all outstanding tasks are finalised. Our goal during closing should be a smooth transition between the old and new states, promoting accountability and distilling lessons learned into actionable insights for future transformative endeavours.

Closing typically comprises the following deliverables:

Project Hand-Over
Formal Sign-Off
Vendor Contract Closure
Lessons Learned
Resource Release

Project Hand-Over - Institutionalisation

Having completed the project, our focus returns to institutionalising the change within the organisation and the transition of the project outputs into line functions.

A project is only as successful as the ability for the company to institutionalise change within the fabric of the organisation; if change cannot be operationalised, our efforts may have been wasted.

The hand-over activity encompasses the process owners’ acceptance of the changed operational landscape. This involves assessing the ability of the organisation to operate effectively within the new structure with minimal disruptions. During this transition phase, Cambridge MC provides additional team training and skills workshops to reinforce the institutionalisation of the change.

Formal Sign-Off

Having worked diligently towards business transformation, it is now time to seek formal sign-off from our sponsors and acceptance of project deliverables.

The sign-off activity typically involves a thorough review of the projects’ outcomes against the pre-defined expectations. This critical milestone serves as a tangible validation of successful collaboration and adherence to project goals, accountability, and acknowledgement of a job well done.

Once formal sign-off is received, we can release project teams to return to championing the change within the organisation.

Lessons Learned

A ‘Lessons Learned’ review represents a fantastic opportunity to distil insights gained during the project lifecycle into continuous improvement initiatives. However, in my experience, it is often the most neglected component of project closure, and there is nothing worse than repeating mistakes.

At Cambridge MC, we conduct a comprehensive review of the project, analysing the successes and challenges that arose during the activity, codifying those insights into enhanced organisational learning, and preventing the repetition of previous mistakes.

Resource Release

Having celebrated the project sign-off, it is now time to release project assets back to their functional roles, including personnel, equipment, and financial assets that were allocated for the project's execution.

Effective resource release is vital for organisational efficiency, preventing unnecessary expenses and optimising workforce utilisation. It signifies the formal conclusion of resource requirements, allowing the organisation to redirect its assets towards new projects and to flex newly acquired change management skills.

It is also a great time to celebrate the closure of the project!

Vendor Contract Closure

As internal project team is released, we can begin the process of releasing our hard-working vendors back into the wild. However, before they can be relinquished, we must undertake a thorough review of deliverables to formally conclude the business relationship and reconcile any financial obligations.

Successful closure ensures legal compliance, financial transparency, and a positive vendor-client relationship, helping to set the stage for future collaborations.

Conclusion

Undertaking a significant business transformation is not easy, and Change Management is not necessarily a function that exists within most organisations. Cambridge MC is in a unique position to be able to provide expertise across the change landscape, helping define the desired future state through our network of industry leading executives, whilst also possessing Change Management methodologies to institutionalise the change in your business.

Before undertaking your next change initiative please contact Daniel Fitzsimmons for a discovery session.

Contact us to identify how Cambridge MC’s Change Management methodology can act as the critical enabling mechanism to support your projects success.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Case Study: Carbon Assessment and Global Supplier Engagement

Wed, 17 Apr 2024 09:33:40 GMT

edenseven Supports Direct Wines’ Progress to Net Zero

By providing a carbon assessment and supporting global supplier engagement.

Direct Wines Ltd (Direct Wines) is an international and independent wine merchant which launched its first non-UK business in 2007 and currently has operations across the globe, with over 450 suppliers in their network and employing approximately 1,000 people.

Direct Wines owns Laithwaite’s Wine and Averys in the UK, as well as owning and operating a number of their own vineyards and wine-making facilities in the UK, France, USA, and Australia.

Direct Wines engaged edenseven, one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, to support the acceleration of their sustainability programme, with a clear focus on engaging their supply base.

Project Overview

To research the different techniques being adopted across the globe to sequester (store) carbon within the wine-growing community. The final report would need to show technical in-depth research and be summarised in a format to enable general circulation.

Create a muti-language online questionnaire focussed on benchmarking Direct Wines’ supply chain engagement levels relating to decarbonisation. This analysis would be summarised and presented to the board.

To create an engagement plan with key suppliers across multiple regions to provide a variety of consultative services to enable the acceleration of decarbonisation.

Skills & Knowledge

An environmental expert with an in-depth knowledge of carbon sequestration and best practice techniques.

Digital capability to produce a multi-language questionnaire and host it on a separate domain to Direct Wines.

A clear understanding of an appropriate questionnaire structure, which will product meaningful quantifiable data, while assuring a high response rate.

Experience in delivering bespoke carbon reduction and benchmarking projects across different geographies.

Outcome & Results

Market Analysis : A structured research paper giving clear guidance on the methods used to sequester carbon across multiple regions. This gave Direct Wines a document which would be distributed to senior stakeholders and suppliers to help positively impact their overall Scope 3 emissions.
Supply Chain Assessment : A clear benchmark of Direct Wines supply chains current understanding an progress to achieve net zero. This gave Direct Wines the ability to identify individual suppliers who needed support to move forward.
Programme Development : The delivery of a programme of work across selected suppliers which consisted of carbon foot-printing assessment, renewable energy feasibility studies, best practice gap analysis, and data reviews.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

edenseven Wins £2.75m Innovate UK Funding to Accelerate Local Authority to Net Zero

Tue, 19 Mar 2024 10:55:24 GMT

Press Release: 26/03/2024 – edenseven , one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, is excited to announce that they have, within a consortium led by Peterborough City Council (PCC), been awarded a £2.75m grant by Innovate UK, part of a total £3.2m project, to boost the local authority’s ability to achieve net zero. This success is testament to PCC’s ambition to deliver a Net Zero City, the essential role that local authorities play in delivering carbon reductions nationwide, and the goal shared by edenseven and the rest of the consortium to support this journey.

Working alongside edenseven and PCC, this consortium includes Cambridgeshire County Council, Nordic Energy, Energy Systems Catapult, and PECT. The shared aim of this team is to deliver ‘Peterborough Accelerated Net Zero (PANZ)’ over the next 18 months. This venture is designed to encourage healthier living, reduce costs, and develop a sustainable green skills market.

Peterborough was one of the first cities in the UK to adopt a Local Area Energy Plan, which considered the current and future energy demands of heating, electricity, and transport, and laid out its pathway to reach Net Zero.

PANZ will pioneer an approach to build on this Local Area Energy Plan, tailoring solutions to the needs of community and place. The project will support the Council in selecting projects that deliver on both carbon reduction and the Council’s many other aspirations for the city. It will encourage financial bundling of projects to create portfolios that can attract private investment, including district heating, and it will enable the Council to track the progress and impact of city-scale projects, making sure investment is directed toward the biggest environmental, social, demographic, and economic impact.

edenseven aims to transform the way Local Authorities navigate the complex transition to Net Zero by developing an intuitive, tailor-made, carbon accounting and management platform that can provide a complete view of city-wide emissions and decarbonisation plans. It will give the Council a clear understanding of its current position against Net Zero targets, create insight to identify areas where action is required, and uses the reporting functionality to measure progress.

Pete Nisbet, Managing Partner for edenseven, said: “In these pivotal years for decarbonisation in the UK, edenseven is thrilled to be collaborating with Peterborough City Council and the consortium on their Net Zero strategy. We recognise the critical role local authorities play in decarbonising the UK economy and are delighted to partner with forward-looking councils such as Peterborough and Cambridgeshire. This partnership creates a cross functional team equipped to deliver immediate actions for the local economy, as well as supporting the efficient future management of Net Zero projects. It marks the inception of a unique partnership across the public. private and third sectors and showcases our commitment to pioneering sustainable solutions that create social impact.”

For more information about the Innovate UK funding, visit Innovate UK invests over £25m in net zero projects – UKRI

About edenseven

edenseven is a sustainability consultancy and technology provider that uses data and market experience to enable companies and their supply chains to play their part in tackling climate change while achieving sustainable growth. edenseven uses the combined power of data, advanced analytics, and pragmatic project management to help companies baseline their status, identify improvement opportunities in the short, medium, and long terms, and plan and implement those opportunities.

For more information, visit our website: www.edenseven.co.uk

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Case Study: Renewables & Energy Reduction Feasibility Study

Tue, 19 Mar 2024 09:06:09 GMT

edenseven Supports Greater Anglia to Clarify their Decarbonisation Strategy

By conducting a renewables and energy reduction and feasibility study, and a net-zero strategy review.

Greater Anglia is a train operating company in Great Britain owned as a joint venture by Abellio and the Japanese trading company, Mitsui & Co.

As a large user of energy with a complex portfolio of sites, Greater Anglia sees the importance of developing a clear and structured decarbonisation strategy across their network of stations, offices, and depots.

Greater Anglia engaged edenseven, one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, to review their current sustainability strategy, benchmarking against best practices. Specifically, Greater Anglia requested that edenseven assess one of their largest depots for potential on-site renewable generation and energy reduction opportunities.

Project Overview

Greater Anglia needed an assessment of the current ‘as is’ status of their sustainability framework. The model needed to deliver the following:

Assessment of current targets, data, and governance.

Benchmark against sustainability best practices.

Outline recommendations and next steps.

Furthermore, Greater Anglia requested that edenseven conduct a site visit to review one of their largest depots and deliver the following:

On-site renewable energy opportunities, outlining planning and infrastructure requirements.

Assessment of immediate energy reduction ‘quick wins’ and potential capex requirements.

Business case development, outlining paybacks, key recommendations, and next steps.

Skills & Knowledge

Expertise in net-zero strategy development and best practices.

A clear understanding of key milestones in the delivery of a sustainability strategy.

A detailed understanding of multiple renewable technologies and infrastructure requirements.

A clear view of energy efficiency projects and which have the best environmental and financial return.

Ability to write investment grade business cases to support decarbonisation projects.

Outcome & Results

Organisational Clarity : edenseven reviewed and created a clear report outlining the current ‘as is’ status of Greater Anglia’s sustainability strategy as well as key recommendations and potential next steps.
Analysis & Evaluation : Undertook an on-site survey and liaised with Greater Anglia’s engineering team members to integrate site characteristics into the evaluation process.
Investment Grade Report : Delivered an investment grade report clearly highlighting paybacks and a key plan of delivery.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Mergers and Acquisitions: Culture and People

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 10:25:04 GMT

Readiness and Resilience

It is inevitable that an acquisition, merger, or divestiture will significantly change the structures, processes, department structures, and job profiles of both the buying and selling organisation. In order to properly monitor this it is important to fully integrate both Human Capital Management (HCM) systems and people into the TSA process, design, and delivery.

There are certain obvious elements that show up throughout the TSA, such as payroll transfer, employee data transfer, HR systems transition, and the transition of other HCM applications that guide the employee life-cycle. Less obvious is the need to measure the readiness and resilience of transferring personnel and those departments affected by the integration.

This requires a keen and consistent timeline throughout the life-cycle of the TSA. We usually recommend snapshots at 30, 60, and 90 days, however the full integration after acquisition can take as long as 24 months. Measuring workforce resilience at regular intervals will give the board of the acquiring employer a reality check by providing metrics that reveal the likelihood of achieving a successful implementation.

We also recommend using a system to measure workforce resilience prior to starting your integration. This system should provide statistically verified data on organisation, functional, department, team, job profile, and individual levels. Management dashboards based on this data provide insight and root cause analysis for underlying problems. The best systems also offer after-care support on a company and individual level, but we will return to ways you can maintain employee morale later in the article.

Culture Shock

Though merging two business cultures is oft-cited as huge factor throughout M&A, it is one that is typically, poorly understood and implemented. One particularly disastrous example is that of Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods in the US, demonstrating what happens when two diametrically opposed cultures clash with little or no planning for integration.

Employees vote with their feet, and if you fail to handle the integration process adequately you will face staff shortages and a loss of critical expertise and knowledge. As aforementioned, low employee experience occurs when companies do not understand change readiness levels and workforce resilience. Thus, establishing a baseline is essential to planning a migration and subsequently monitoring its success rate during the migration. These two metrics can also impact the reliability of the succession plan and talent pipelines.

Transferring employees must know what kind of environment they are stepping into. As the acquiring company, you must try to eliminate potential psychological factors that might make new employees feel at risk or uncertain about their future. These can be eliminated by a strong communication strategy, and the easiest to spot are concerns regarding:

Job security
Clarity about the new company culture
Organisational change effectiveness
Change in management
Introduction to new colleagues
Adapting to new systems that drive ‘old’ processes and procedures into a new standardised environment
Getting used to working in new locations and any additional commuting time or stress from moving their home

These are just a small list of HCM items that ought to be taken seriously throughout the transformation and integration process. Early involvement of your workforce throughout this transition will support improved employee experience, workforce resilience, and retention. It is imperative to address all of these concerns via a communication process that includes one-to-one interviews and a positive introduction to a new company culture.

Incentives and Interviews

This positive introduction can be secured by giving special attention to retaining those employees that are intricately involved in implementing the transition while unaware of the extent of their job security beyond completion. Not only can such levels of uncertainty can quickly and drastically impact morale, thus leading to higher levels of attrition, but the cost of replacing an employee can set your organisation back by an average of six months. Luckily, there are two main ways to mitigate this:

Incentives: There are a number of ways to incentivise employees throughout a transition, such as offering a retention bonus to persuade employees to stay, as well as more long-term benefits such as retirement plans. Both of these demonstrate and prove proper care for employees.

Another way to ensure this is through a strong benefits programme, including incentives such as paid vacation, meal breaks, social security, health insurance, perks and bonuses, achievement awards, employee allowances, and room for pay raises.

This can be further substantiated by offering opportunities for upskilling and reskilling. Employee anxiety can be escalated within duplicate roles, and thus it is important to remind those affected that their skillsets are still an asset to the company. This can be achieved by offering to train them for new roles that might better suit them under new arrangements. This displays a willingness to invest in the development of your employees, and in return they will pay back your organisation in loyalty and productivity.

Interviews: Incentives are one thing, but of course the best way to achieve a strong narrative for communication is exactly that: communication. This can be carried out through 1-to-1 interviews with new employees in order to assess their expectations. It is important to start this early: send a senior leader to the seller once announcements have been made and conduct these interviews. It is also worth producing a presentation to the group that reinforces your narrative.

Calculating Cost

Another significant benefit for fully integrating the HCM framework into the design and development of your TSA is to build in a critical and complete review and understanding of the total rewards cost of the acquired workforce. This includes an acknowledgments of the employees relations conditions that are in-place and conducting a litigation review. In Europe, the TSA needs to accommodate and comply with the Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment (TUPE) legislation (as well as other legal considerations which will be covered shortly).

An establishment of the total rewards cost and litigation review is now considered an essential part of the TSA process, and should include:

The structure of employment contracts in place, both permanent and fixed term;
Contractual elements that have been arranges in the employment contracts;
Collective labour agreements with, for example, work councils;
A CLA in place to drive employee relations and the format of employment contracts;
Review on probation practices;
Excess notice periods agreed shortly before the acquisition;
Compensation practices and guidelines;
Benefits practices and guidelines and their financing mechanisms; and
Practices that deviate from normal practices.

What Can Go Wrong?

As aforementioned, there are also numerous legal issues to consider, which are just as important throughout M&A processes as financial issues. One easy way to mitigate these is by hiring an M&A lawyer to avoid the threat of litigation.

One responsibility of the M&A lawyer is to conduct a litigation review. This should concentrate on a variety of events that can be identified while employing a workforce, including:

Liability for staff on long-term absence;
Staff dismissal procedures (such as an industrial tribunal);
Grievance history reviews;
Staff H&s litigation cases;
Redundancy programmes history review;
Redundancy litigation cases;
Minimum wage compliance;
Meeting GDPR standards and compliance/regulatory standards; and
Any code of conduct or SOX litigation cases.

This, along with the financial obligations outlined in the previous section, may seem like a lot to cover, but acknowledging them early will save an unmeasurable amount of time, money, and stress throughout the process as a whole.

To find out more about our M&A services, go to our M&A homepage .

If you have a specific question or would like to talk to one of our experts, please get in touch .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Change Management Execution: Tools, Strategy & Embedding for Real Impact

Wed, 06 Mar 2024 13:52:37 GMT

Lets Get Things Done

Thus far in our Change Management series we have covered the nature of Change Management, how to initiate it within an organisation, and what to plan for. Now, in our fourth instalment, it is time to translate this preparation into action.

Successful project execution requires a well-defined project management methodology, appropriate tools scaled to the job, effective communication, and a monitoring mechanism to ensure that changes are implemented on time and within budget.

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we emphasise four stages for completing a holistic Project Management and PMO exercise:

Scope Management
Project Management Methodology
Project Management Tools
Institutionalisation Methods

Scope Management

Scope management is rarely given the consideration it deserves, but provides a unique opportunity to define the boundaries of our project, capturing not only what will be done, but also what lies outside the scope of our activity. One way to identify these components is through a scope document, capturing key criteria in a one-page overview:

This scoping activity helps to address the most prominent disruptor of timelines and budgets: Scope Creep . Scope Creep is a universal factor to be considered; even during digital or complex transformations, it is a realistic risk. However, a well-defined Scope document allows us to revisit what has been agreed, and undertake an impact assessment associated with additional requirements, identifying cost, timeline, and resource impacts. Uncontrolled Scope Creep is unacceptable , an intentional and agreed growth of the scope of the project is far more palatable, especially for project leaders requesting additional funding.

A key contributor to Scope Creep is the project management methodology being used to support the activity.

Project Management Methodology

Agile and Waterfall represent the 2 major project management methodologies, being available in various forms and implemented to varying degrees in most companies.

Agile

Agile provides an adaptive approach with an emphasis on flexibility, iterative development, and collaboration, aligning well with fast-paced business environments where the end goal is less well defined. Even so, you must be careful: Agile done well is an excellent means to deliver results, but Agile done poorly is one of the key sources of Scope Creep and the reason projects miss their targets. When sprints, measures and outcomes are not rigorously defined and supported by a strong coordinating mechanism across the vendor landscape, it is easy for projects to spiral.

Issues that can manifest in Agile project deployment include:

Uncertainty in Planning: Agile is iterative and adaptive, which can make long-term planning challenging. This uncertainty can be a drawback for projects that require strict adherence to deadlines and budgets.
Resource Intensive: Agile projects often require active participation and collaboration from team members, and maintaining this level of involvement can be resource-intensive, potentially leading to burnout.
Lack of Documentation: Agile prioritises software solutions over comprehensive documentation. While this can speed up development, it may pose challenges for future maintenance and knowledge transfer.
Resistance to Change: Some team members or stakeholders may find it challenging to adapt to the Agile mindset, particularly if they are accustomed to traditional, more linear project management approaches.
Dependency on Team Collaboration: Success in Agile often hinges on effective collaboration. If team members struggle with communication or collaboration, it can impede the efficiency and effectiveness of Agile processes.
Incompatibility with Certain Projects: Agile may not be the best fit for projects with well-defined requirements, fixed budgets, or regulatory constraints. In such cases, a more structured approach like Waterfall may be more suitable.
Lack of Predictability for Stakeholders: Traditional project management provides a clearer roadmap for stakeholders. Agile's adaptive nature may be less predictable, which can be a concern for stakeholders who prefer a more structured approach.

Waterfall

Waterfall project methodology, though considered more traditional, offers distinct benefits for projects with predictable outcomes. Its linear, sequential structure ensures clear project progression and improves project visibility.

Personally, I am a huge fan of well-documented projects that allow the integration of multiple vendors into clear dependency maps. The creation of strict timelines in an easy to communicate document that consolidates various suppliers is a huge step in the right direction. Moreover, it simplifies project management, making it an ideal choice for straightforward, predictable projects where a step-by-step approach aligns with organisational needs.

At Cambridge MC, we feel both Agile and Waterfall have their place, but a hybrid model that combines the agility of Agile with the documentation structure of Waterfall represents the most comprehensive solution to successful project delivery.

Project Management Tools

Depending upon the complexity of the project, it may become necessary to leverage a number of project management tools. However, some tools are universal and non-negotiable.

GANNT Charts: It is surprising how many project managers are not using GANNT Charts. A single source of truth, capturing a granular breakdown of activities, dependencies, and progress tracking should be the backbone of all projects.
RACI Matrix: A RACI matrix streamlines project communication, enhances accountability, clarifies roles, and ensures efficient collaboration by delineating responsibilities for each project task.
Risk Management Registry: Risks should be proactively identified at all stages of the project. A risk registry should be used to log, track, and analyse project risks to enhance proactive decision-making and the development of mitigation strategies.
Communication Plan: Communication plans foster clarity, reduce misunderstandings, ensure timely information exchange, and enhance collaboration, improving overall project efficiency and success.
KANBAN Board: Kanban boards optimise workflow, visualise tasks, prioritise work, enhance team collaboration, and promote continuous improvement for streamlined project management.
Resource Management Matrix: Budget and resource constraints are a critical component of all project deliveries, ensuring that your project is delivered on time, on scope and on budget.

Institutionalisation

Any execution plan is only as good as the ability to institutionalise the change within the fabric of the organisation.

Complex change activities will often necessitate the transformation of key critical technologies, systems, and processes, requiring the development of new governance mechanisms and personnel competencies.

As part of the execution process, a significant amount of time should be devoted to the institutionalisation of the program through front-line managers, typically involving training, workshops, town-halls and other means for communicating the change. Change communication should be communicated as easily digestible bite size components that cascade down the organisation hierarchy one step at a time. During this adaptation process it is important to create the connection between the change imperative and organisation success.

Conclusion

Our execution activity is the culmination of our Initiation and Planning activities, providing the project management teams the tools they require to deliver the change initiative in an effective and organised way that considers risk at all stages of implementation.

In our next instalment, we will cover how to keep your projects on scope, on budget and on time in the Control Phase .

Contact us to identify how Cambridge MC’s Change Management methodology can act as the critical enabling mechanism to support your projects success.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Case Study: Cambridge MC Optimises the Cyber Hygiene of a Major Academic Institution

Wed, 28 Feb 2024 23:46:59 GMT

Introduction

The National Counterintelligence & Security Center (NCSC) suggests that universities are particularly vulnerable to cyber crime because they are key contributors to the economy, skills development, and innovation.

Cambridge MC was approached to conduct a comprehensive cyber capability maturity assessment for a major UK academic institution, leveraging a team of experts with technical understanding and frontline experience in cyber defence. This team carried out a thorough evaluation through a series of tests, interviews, and artefact examinations. Unlike conventional assessments, our strategy focused on actionable insights which were tailored to the unique operational context of the institution.

The assessment was structured around recognised capability categories, informed by the team’s extensive experience defending against cyber attacks. The methodology was particularly effective for its sensitivity to the institution’s risk appetite—balancing cost, risk, and investment to propose solutions that were unique to their situation.

Project Overview

The primary challenge was the institution’s realisation that its existing cyber hygiene practices and IT discipline might not be sufficiently robust to withstand increasingly advanced tactics employed by cybercriminals and their growing interest in the education sector.

The institution sought out Cambridge MC to identify these vulnerabilities, assess the overall maturity of its cybersecurity practices, and recommend strategic improvements. This meant not only highlighting technical deficiencies, but also providing a holistic evaluation of the institution’s security posture, considering the practical realities of defending against threats. This included an assessment of the institution’s risk readiness, infrastructure resilience and staff preparedness.

Cambridge MC’s goal was to ensure that the recommendations produced as a result of this assessment were not only technically sound but contextually appropriate and aligned with the institution’s strategic objectives and resources constraints. This personalised approach was crucial in designing a cyber security strategy that was both achievable and sustainable.

Strategy

What we did

Our approach involved a thorough assessment of the institution’s cyber infrastructure, including tests, interviews, and the examination of artefacts to gain a holistic understanding of their cyber maturity. To do this, we engaged experts with significant technical depth and extensive experience in cyber defence and leadership roles; a blend which was crucial in conducting a maturity assessment that focused on pragmatic gap closures.

Why we did it this way

Our methodology was designed to move beyond mere technical details and address the practical aspects of cyber security. By organising our work into recognised capability categories, we targeted areas that, if weak, would likely lead to vulnerability and a high risk of attack. This approach allowed us to pinpoint critical gaps in the institution’s cyber security practices and propose target improvements.

Concepts and methodologies applied

We applied a risk-based approach, sensitive to the institution’s risk appetite, to make practical trade-offs between cost, risk, and investment. This ensured that our recommendations were contextually appropriate and aligned with the institution’s strategic objectives. Our assessment framework was grounded in industry-best practices and standards, tailored to the unique needs and challenges of the academic sector.

Obstacles encountered and overcoming them

One of the main obstacles we encountered was resistance to change, a common challenge for institutions with established routines and cultures. To overcome this, we emphasised the importance of cyber hygiene and IT discipline through clear, evidence-based findings and recommendations. We conducted workshops and discussions to engage stakeholders at all levels, highlighting the tangible benefits of enhancing their cyber security posture and demonstrating how our recommendations could be implemented in a manageable manner.

The Team

The Cambridge MC cyber security team tasked with supporting on this project was comprised of:

A technically adept practitioner specialising in vulnerability testing, equipped with cutting-edge knowledge of tools and techniques for identifying weaknesses in the institution’s cyber defences. This role was crucial for uncovering hidden vulnerabilities that could be exploited by attackers, providing a technical foundation for the assessment.

Back-office risk experts with a deep understanding of the broader risk landscape and risk management principles, ensuring that the assessment considered not just technical vulnerabilities but also organisational and procedural risks, aligning the cyber security strategy with the institution’s overall risk appetite.

A security leader with 30 years of experience building and running security services, who offered strategic oversight and practical insight into effective cyber defence mechanisms and was vital in ensuring the recommendations were not only theoretically sound but also pragmatically achievable.

Together, these professionals ensured a comprehensive, nuanced, and highly practical assessment, underlining the importance of a balanced team in addressing complex cyber security challenges.

Outcome & Results

Optimised Cyber Resilience
We recommended and outlined a robust workflow and identity management system across all of the institution’s systems, emphasising the need for multi-stakeholder cooperation. This highlighted the challenge of managing over tens of thousands of accounts for a community of many fewer staff and students.
Longevity
We made clear, actionable recommendations describing implementation plans for changes, such as improving the security culture and some operational deliverables associated with SOC efficacy, all of which were agreed upon by the leadership team who assured us that these changes would be in place at this institution for the next three years.
Staff Readiness
We enhanced the security awareness and training of the staff, postgraduate researchers, and students, including specialised training for the Information Security team. We also made recommendations for improving security posture, such as the adoption of Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) and Data Leakage Prevention (DLP) solutions, and the development of a quantitative risk forecasting methodology.
Forward Planning
We also made suggestions for future improvements, including SOC operational activities, creating new initiatives targeting cyber kill chain strategy areas, and planning disaster recovery tests for ICT systems.

Cyber Security Homepage

Our Cyber Security services are run by John Madelin, a well-known industry expert who advises large multinationals and governments on their digital security. To find out more go to the Cyber Security service homepage .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Planning for Change: Build Your Change Leadership, Architecture & Readiness

Wed, 21 Feb 2024 22:33:51 GMT

Having completed a detailed Initiation activity, we now have to create the enabling mechanism that will support the institutionalisation of the change initiative within the company.

At Cambridge MC, we take the planning phase seriously, undertaking a comprehensive analysis of the project leadership landscape, timelines, milestones, and key performance indicators that will be used to support project delivery. An effective planning activity not only minimises disruptions, but also fosters a culture of adaptability and continuous improvement.

In this article, we will go through the four basic tenets of any Change Management strategy, specifically to develop a comprehensive enablement landscape:

Embedding Change Methodology (Logical Levels)
Change Architecture Development
Change Leadership Landscape
Organisation Engagement and Enabling

Embedding Change - Logical Levels

The true value of change lies in its’ successful institutionalisation . For change to be effective and sustainable, it must become ingrained in the organisation's culture, processes, and systems.

To achieve this goal, Dilts' 'Logical Levels' model provides a useful structure for securing the institutionalisation of change. Dilts delineates six interrelated levels influencing human behaviour and their relationship to embedding change.

Change efforts are most effective when addressed at higher levels of the behavioural framework. This is dependent upon the scale of the change being implemented, and the degree to which it will impact the nature of the organisation, e.g. changes in Environment or Behaviours may only result in superficial change.

When undertaking significant organisational change, it is important to address the purpose of your business , and to support the evolution of the company’s mission. Through this process, you challenge the legacy assumptions that underpin the operational framework of the business, comparing how things are currently done vs. how they should be. We also review how employees relate to the business and the roles they fulfil in delivering the company vision.

In addressing the purpose of the business, we create a context for change to empower Change Leadership and the creation of the Change Team.

Change Leadership Mapping

To be successful, Change Leadership is required at all levels of the change activity. Change leaders need to be role models throughout the duration of the project, demonstrating their commitment to the activity, fostering collaboration, and maintaining the beating drum of communications, i.e. why the change is required and how the future state positively impacts the business.

A typical Change Leadership map would include the following participant types:

Sponsors: typically a senior executive within the organisation, the role of the sponsor is to legitimise the change activity
Drivers (Change Agents): tasked with planning and implementing the change activity across the whole business
Influencers: hold sway over the team and its approach to the project; can either be a source of impetus to the activity or a negative impact
Adapters: includes everyone who will have to adapt to the change

We can help you to identify and categorise the change leadership map, developing a seamless top-down / bottom-up communication and management structure.

Once we understand the nature of the change leadership map, we can develop the enabling tools and systems required to support the delivery teams.

Change Team Enabling

Change team enablement focuses on empowering the change leadership team with the necessary resources, skills, and support to navigate project challenges. This includes training on change methodologies, communication techniques, and leadership skills. By investing in the development and empowerment of the change team, we are increasing the likelihood of change success and improving workforce agility.

Change Team Engagement

Solution design workshops
Townhalls and feedback activities
Transferring project ownership

Change Team Training

Providing PMO Support
Know-how training (tools/systems)
Use Case simulations

Change Agent Communication Strategy

Communication content definition
Communication scheduling
Formal progress communication

Rewards & Recognition

Develop motivation systems
Celebrate Successes
Bonuses for modelling desired behaviour

Change Architecture

We have now defined how we will embed the change, identified the team tasked with delivery and developed the tools required to move the project forward. Before signing off our planning activity and moving towards execution, we need to create an overview of the project , also known as the Change Architecture .

The Change Architecture provides a blueprint for the project, taking a helicopter view of critical milestones:

Timelines
Workflows
Impacted Process Groups
Dependencies
Communication Plan

A project blueprint helps provide an initial structure and framework to guide change agents towards key milestones, and provides a North Star for change leadership.

This brings us to the completion of our planning activity, in which we outlined how to create a collaborative environment where individuals feel valued, informed, and capable of navigating the transformation process.

Cambridge MC has expertise across the value creation landscape and is ideally positioned to support your next change project.

Stay tuned for the next phase of our Change Management path – Execution

Contact us using the form below to identify how our Change Management methodology can act as the critical enabling mechanism to support your project's success.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Case Study: Market Review and Technical Project Management

Wed, 21 Feb 2024 10:25:46 GMT

edenseven Deliver Numerous Decarbonisation Programmes for Eneco

By conducting a market review and providing technical project management.

Eneco UK is a subsidiary of the Dutch energy company, Eneco Group, which operates and buys from over 5GW of renewable assets supplying to millions of customers in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and the UK.

In support of Eneco’s operational and product development, edenseven, one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, were engaged in delivering a number of programmes of work across Eneco UK’s portfolio.

Project Overview

edenseven's in-house software developers provided technical programme management to deploy a new customer interface for the UK business. This required coordination with the selected external software vendor and integration to Eneco Group trading and data systems.

edenseven were tasked to undertake a market review of forward trends within the UK I&C (Industrial and Commercial) sector and an assessment of the market for solar in the UK.

edenseven conducted a review of Eneco UK’s existing customer portfolio through a series of detailed interviews.

Skills & Knowledge

A seasoned programme manager with a demonstrably good track record of delivery in a heavily matrixed organisation, and the ability to communicate with senior technical boards.

An energy expert with a detailed knowledge of the UK energy market; with a specific understanding of the evolving policy landscape, internal commodity trading processes, and customer interface expectations.

A customer-facing energy expert with extensive knowledge of the electricity market and the requirements of large end users of energy – having previously managed some of the biggest portfolios in the UK.

Outcome & Results

New Customer Interface: The successful deployment of a new customer interface platform which was delivered to the client’s specifications, within the allocated budget and to the internal process requirements of Eneco.
Forward Planning: The delivery of a clear forward view of the evolving I&C energy market and engagement at a senior level for a new solar product.
Customer Awareness: A clear outline of Eneco’s current customers’ future requirements, gained through a series of interviews which highlighted their expectations as they shift into a more decarbonised environment.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Unlocking Financial Inclusion: Banking the Unbanked in Africa

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 21:51:01 GMT

In a continent where vibrant cultures intersect with burgeoning economies, a profound transformation is underway – one that holds the promise of reshaping its future.

In this article, we will unpack how financial inclusion is at the heart of this transformation, and is essential to the delivery of Africa’s full potential. In driving these changes, the future promises opportunity, empowerment, and shared prosperity, something we are all invested in at Cambridge Management Consulting. As MTN, Africa's largest mobile operator, declares as their mission: 'everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life'.

Setting the Scene: What is Financial Inclusion?

It comes as no surprise that banks play an essential role in encouraging economic growth and development. Financial and business services account for close to 20% of South Africa’s GDP, and are at the very heart of the future economies of many others. Thus, helping individuals and their communities to understand and manage their money is crucial for making meaningful progress.

Yet, as of 2021, around 57% of the continent’s population does not hold a traditional bank account . This varies country to country: according to the World Bank , Mauritius and South Africa both have as many as 80 percent of their population financially connected, with Namibia only closely behind; but only 13% of the populations of Guinea and Sierra Leone are financially connected, and 350 million adults in Sub-Saharan Africa are without access to a bank account. The statistics surrounding so-called banking penetration are also misleading, being that most analysis and surveys only focus on the population who have a bank account, rather than access to financial services, especially those that are digital. 65% of adults in the developing world lack access to even the most basic transaction account that would allow them to send and receive payments safely and easily, much less the savings, insurance, and credit services that would help them expand their businesses, mitigate risks and plan for their futures.

Taking all of this into account, the concept of financial inclusion has never been more important. However, this takes more than just providing access to banking services; it requires a commitment to levelling the playing field, enabling people to save for the future, invest in their businesses, and protect their families against unexpected financial shocks. Financial exclusion not only deepens the cycles of poverty but also acts as a barrier to economic growth and exacerbates societal inequalities. It goes beyond the confines of a plastic card and digital figures on a screen; it represents a system that either empowers or marginalises individuals, shaping their financial destinies and influencing the broader economic landscape.

Despite these barriers, the potential of Africa's unbanked population is immeasurable. When given the tools to participate in the financial mainstream, the newly banked become drivers of economic progress, enabling a ripple effect of growth that can lift entire communities out of poverty. Financial inclusion is not only an ethical essential but also an economic one, with the power to unlock the continent's untapped possibilities.

Digital financial services, powered by fintech, have the potential to lower costs by maximising economies of scale in order to increase the speed, security, and transparency of transactions, and to ease the path toward more tailored financial services that serve the poorer populations in Africa. African fintechs have already made significant inroads into the market, with estimated revenues of around $4 billion to $6 billion in 2020 and average penetration levels of between 3-5% (excluding South Africa); these figures are in line with global market leaders. We expect significant growth and value creation to lie ahead for the fintech industry in Africa.

Cash is still used in around 90% of transactions in Africa, which means that fintech revenues have huge potential to grow. McKinsey & Company predict that, if the sector overall can reach similar levels of financial penetration to those observed in Kenya – a country which has amounted one of the highest levels of fintech penetration in the world – African fintech revenues could expand up to eight times their current value by 2025.

How to Eliminate Financial Exclusion

Financial Inclusion Begins with Financial Literacy

New things are always scary, particularly when stakes are high and people are depending on you. This is especially true when dealing with finances, as financial literary has become a key cornerstone of personal and communal development. Defined as ‘the ability of an individual to make well informed judgments and decisions regarding the management of their finances for both short and long-term financial goals’, the impact of financial literacy is multi-faceted, influencing not only the economic wellbeing of individuals but also the overall stability of communities. As individuals become more adept at managing their finances, the ripple effect evolves into a wave of improved economic resilience and reduced vulnerability to financial crises.

Distrust of the Finance Industry

Trust is always important, but perhaps never more so than when it comes to money. This poses a struggle for many, particularly when this all-important trust has been broken in the past. This is true even of South Africa, the continent’s most heavily banked nation: in a recent review of the country’s central bank, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), Itumeleng Mpatlanyana, the founding director of Pretoria-based fintech company gazaataDotCom, told African Business that consumers ‘are not happy with the 6% per annum return that the South African banks are currently giving’.

Lee Naik, CEO of TransUnion Africa, rightly notes that cash remains king: ‘to hold it is to be in control and education will be required to trust [new systems]’. This of course goes hand in hand with improved financial literacy and empowering people with this knowledge; opening a bank account is one thing, but trusting the system to serve you is another. This trust must be earnt, and one way to achieve this is by educating people on the value of bank accounts, whether that is for security purposes, growing your money, starting a business, etc. Taking the time to raise this awareness may seem like a lengthy process, but it will benefit everyone in the long term. All industries in Africa have a responsibility to make this happen.

Regulatory Support for an Innovative Environment

In the journey towards embracing innovative digital financial services, the critical role of regulatory support cannot be overstated — it stands as the linchpin in the delicate process of rebuilding trust within the financial landscape. Without proactive governance, the barriers of access, affordability, and integrity risk being completely dismantled, potentially leading to a loss of credibility in the financial sector. Regulatory support, therefore, serves as the architect of an environment where financial institutions not only operate efficiently but also adhere to the highest standards of transparency and accountability. This transformation is a prerequisite for rebuilding the fractured trust between financial institutions and consumers, instilling confidence in the financial system as a whole.

As these barriers are methodically broken down under the guidance of vigilant regulators, a wealth of opportunities are unlocked. This process extends beyond urban centres, reaching even the most remote areas across the continent. By facilitating innovative digital financial services, regulators become the catalysts for inclusivity, ensuring that individuals who have long been left behind can now participate in the financial ecosystem.

Technology Drives Change

One thing is certain: for financial inclusion to improve, so must access to technology. Boasting over 640 million mobile phone subscribers , Africa is ranked as the second most connected region globally in terms of mobile subscriptions count, following the Asia-Pacific region. With a substantial mobile customer base and a limited presence of traditional brick-and-mortar banks, technology has the potential to be a transformative force. It could empower the financial system of the continent to surpass the conventional banking model, positioning itself as the global frontrunner in mobile financial services. It is only by taking a holistic approach to change that Africa as a nation can truly develop in a way which is sustainable and efficient.

This is change with a 'capital C'. Getting the financially excluded access to an online or mobile bank account is one thing – opening a world of possibilities for themselves, their communities, and businesses – but we must also strive to ensure that digital infrastructure is implemented in a way which is affordable and reliant. These two modes of transformation illuminate each other and offer a means of supporting valuable consumers.

Catalysts for Change: Initiatives and Solutions

These obstacles shouldn’t frighten us away from the potential. Various approaches and initiatives are already striving to make these changes, including government-led programs, NGO efforts, and private sector innovations. There are many success stories to be found and many more to come if this hard work continues.

Tim Masela, Vice Chair of AACB African Inter-Regional Payments Integration Task Force, speaks of how ‘account ownership in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) rose from 43 percent in 2017 to 55 percent in 2021 ’: as the AACB Inter-Regional Payments Integration Task Force initiative is underway, the wheels of change are already moving and strategies such as these will continue to push us forward. Other projects, such as that by CMU-Africa , are also working to improve financial connectivity in sub-Saharan Africa: establishing the Upanzi Network ‘will establish and provide a neutral perspective on digital technologies and become the trusted resource for open-source technologies for digital public goods in Africa ’. As this project progresses, its benefit will be undeniable.

Conclusion

The pursuit of financial inclusion in Africa represents a pivotal undertaking with profound implications for the continent's development and prosperity. The challenge of addressing financial exclusion is multi-faceted and poses unique challenges. Yet, the initiatives and solutions showcased in this article reflect a collective commitment to bridging this gap and promise exciting prospects. When placed in tandem with the digital transformation which is already underway, it is with hope and excitement that we look to the future.

In propelling Africa towards a future of shared prosperity, we lay the foundation for a more inclusive and equitable future. As financial empowerment becomes a catalyst for development across the diverse landscapes of Africa, only time will tell how far we can go.

How We Can Help

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we defy the conventional norms by steering away from the standard playbook, particularly in the dynamic and intricate landscape of Africa. Our commitment is not just to make a difference, it is about crafting tangible and enduring impacts that resonate with the unique challenges and opportunities present in this diverse continent. Our approach is a departure from the rigidity often associated with traditional consulting. We recognise that Africa's landscape is multifaceted, and our strategies are tailored to address the intricacies that come with it.

Beyond merely solving problems, our mission is to cultivate genuine transformation. While we are dedicated to driving significant changes within businesses, we understand that these businesses are interconnected with the vibrant tapestry of African societies. Our vision extends beyond the balance sheets and market trends, focusing on uplifting the individuals who play a crucial role in advancing their organisations within the unique African context.

Our handpicked team of experts is not just passionate about making real change; they are deeply connected to the pulse of Africa. With a nuanced understanding of the challenges and opportunities this diverse continent presents, we strive to positively impact businesses in the most authentic and sensitive manner.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Press Release: Iceland Foods Signs Agreement with edenseven to Accelerate their Decarbonisation

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 22:31:39 GMT

Press Release: 25/01/2024 - Iceland Foods Limited (Iceland), one of the UK's best known supermarket chains with almost 1000 locations, has signed a long-term agreement with edenseven , one of the Cambridge Management Consulting group of companies, to report and monitor all classes of emissions through their online carbon reporting and management platform, cero.earth.

Built by edenseven's in-house software engineers, cero.earth is a cloud-based carbon accounting and management platform that provides a complete view of a business' emissions and decarbonisation plan. Monitoring emissions across all three scopes, cero.earth gives a business a clear understanding of its current position against net zero targets, creates insights to identify areas where action is required, and uses the reporting functionality to help meet regulatory requirements.

Capturing data from all of Iceland's stores, food warehouses, distribution centres, and supply chain, cero.earth will help Iceland to report their Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, monitor their existing decarbonisation programmes, and build insight to create momentum across their whole portfolio and supply chain.

Pete Nisbet , Managing Partner of edenseven, said: "cero.earth has been built to give businesses like Iceland a resource which will help them make a material change to their overall emissions footprint and meet regulatory reporting requirements. With the seamless data input process, clear reporting functionality, and analytical support, cero.earth will free up Iceland's resources to focus on the deployment of programmes of work to deliver against their net zero ambitions."

Graham Ireland, Head of Energy and Mechanical Services at Iceland, said: "As a proud signatory of The Climate Pledge and with a target for our own operations and supply chain to be net zero by 2040, Iceland has a clear focus on emission reduction. At Iceland, we believe that every business has a responsibility to take action against climate change and reduce its carbon footprint. Using a resource like cero.earth will allow us to easily report on all 3 Scopes of emissions, enabling Iceland to achieve our targets through clear insight and easy project tracking, as well as helping to meet regulatory reporting requirements."

About edenseven

edenseven is a sustainability consultancy and technology provider that uses data and market experience to enable companies and their supply chains to play their part in tackling climate change while achieving sustainable growth. edenseven uses the combined power of data, advanced analytics, and pragmatic project management to help companies baseline their current status, identify improvement opportunities in the short, medium, and long terms, and plan and implement those opportunities.

For more information, visit our website: www.edenseven.co.uk

About Iceland Foods Limited

Iceland is one of Britain's fastest-growing and most innovative retailers, recognised as one of the best companies to work for in the UK. Iceland seeks to build a growing, profitable, and responsible business that does the right thing for their colleagues and customers, the communities they serve, the planet, and future generations. Iceland has almost 1000 locations across the UK.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Mergers and Acquisitions: Vendors and Contracts

Fri, 26 Jan 2024 09:54:41 GMT

Authors

Phase 1: Due Diligence

Assemble your TSA Team

The management of vendors and contracts is a significant part of the M&A process, and thus it also has the potential to be a problem-area. As covered in a previous article, due diligence is essential to any merger, acquisition, or divestiture, and this is particularly true at this stage. Due diligence teams have the responsibility to correctly assess vendor and contract management during pre-acquisition, throughout TSA negotiations, and beyond their close.

This can also be thought of as the information sharing phase, and you should take this opportunity to construct the contract inventory and, unfortunately, be prepared for the worst. It is not uncommon for companies to lose, misfile, or limit access to their contracts. Thus, it is important to have the necessary NDAs prepared and make sure that teams can gain access as becomes relevant.

Contract inventories should include:

The number of active contracts;
The number of active suppliers and customers under contract;
The total annual spend with contract suppliers; and
The total annual revenue received from contract customers.

Phase 2: Discovery

The next stage can be referred to as the Discovery phase, in which it is important to try and find any contracts with problem-clauses. This can be a time-consuming task, potentially up to weeks or months, but can be accelerated by the use of AI contract management software that will parse contracts and highlight clauses for attention.

Luckily, Cambridge Management Consulting can provide exactly that. We partnered with SyrionLabs to produce CMaaS: a cloud-compatible software which extracts metadata from your contracts in order to highlight and flag potential issues. This program will also generate ‘obligations’, i.e. opportunities for value in your contracts that may be hidden away or forgotten about after negotiations are complete. This negates the need for less reliable human solutions such as setting reminders, which can be lost during the transition phase.

This works on a three-fold system:

Digitisation – assures complete visibility from your contract portfolio, manages risk and compliance, and produces contract intelligence.
Performance – proactively tracks easily-forgotten details such as renewals and expirations, manages the aforementioned obligations, and maintains operational performance.
Consulting – this is where Cambridge MC comes in; with our years of expertise, we can enhance collaboration, reduce cycle time, and create stronger and more compliant contracts.

Problem Clauses

Examples of clauses that can be problematic for acquisitions and divestitures include:

Assignment limitations;
Change of control restrictions;
Contract usage limits;
Early termination restrictions and fees;
Governing law either not stated or considered complex;
Notice requirements;
Supplier exclusivity; and
Ownership transfer limitations.

As part of the overall vendor management, teams will be looking for suppliers and vendors that provide similar services, often in the form of a consolidation review. To reach economies of scale, this is often a very important stage of value creation for M&A. Scale is vital and sometimes overlooked if it was not treated as a key strategic lever in the sale.

Know Your Vendors

Throughout contract management it is important to identify your tactical and critical vendors.

Critical vendors are those that must remain in place, and might be shared by both your parent and target organisations, or at least leased out for the transition period as licenses are being transferred before the final separation.

Tactical (also known as ‘strategic’) vendors are more easily changed and offer opportunities for economies of scale or consolidation to drive value.

There is also a third type known as operational vendors . These provide standard goods and services which are available from many different sources. Thus the failure of these vendors may cause some inconvenience but nothing unmanageable.

What Can Go Wrong?

As alluded to, the biggest difficulty throughout contract and vendor management, and the key takeaway of this article, is losing value due to a lack of due diligence. It is easy to mistake the negotiation phase as the difficult part and then tuck the contract away once it is done, but this is how value is lost, such as through service credits or late payment charges. This is where CMaaS is here to help and take care of these details for you, but there are several other things you can do to mitigate potential obstacles:

Identify quick wins – this will build momentum and thus help to carry the schedule forward.
Create a dashboard of vendors – this makes choices academic and allows teams to make better decisions.
Categorise critical and tactical vendors – this provides clarity and helps to prioritise the critical vendors.

To find out more about our M&A services, go to our M&A homepage .

If you have a specific question or would like to talk to one of our experts, please get in touch .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Cyber Security Predictions for 2024

jmadelin@cambridgemc.com (John Madelin) — Tue, 23 Jan 2024 16:39:56 GMT

“Cybercrime is the number one problem for mankind, and Cyberattacks are a bigger threat to humanity than nuclear weapons” - Warren Buffet

As we enter 2024, there are signs that the Cyber Security industry is teetering on the brink of a major transformation, culminating in a more coherent and business-involved approach which will ensure a better understanding and management of cyber risks.

Setting aside other associated factors for now, this metamorphosis is being fuelled by the astronomical rise in cybercrime that has been observable across the previous 3-5 years, turning it into a multi-trillion-dollar industry. The business leaders who missed this sudden rise in temperature, suddenly find themselves in boiling water.

These anticipated and imminent changes, accelerated by the lucrative and seemingly untouchable nature of cybercrime, will inevitably necessitate a more fundamental redefinition of cybersecurity strategies. The Dark Web’s explosion of sophisticated crime and the pivot from traditional crime streams, such as the illegal drug industry, to the high profit margins and low-risk profile of cybercrime is just too irresistible to a growing demographic. Between the intoxicating mix of easy money and apparent immunity, the appeal of cybercrime is reaching not only existing criminals, but new breeds.

This new era and new generation will force us to re-characterise what we mean by Cyber Security, as business leaders are set to thaw the icy divide between CISOs and the CIOs with whom they tend to work. This will push the industry into constructing a more deeply integrated and pervasive defence strategy overall.

However, this shift is not just about adopting new technologies; on the contrary, it amounts to a cultural revolution, and the associated liability, regulatory, maturity, quantification, integration, communication, and behavioural shifts in emphasis that are pulled into its current will be further catalysed by the growing ranks of ingenious cyber criminals and hackers at the gate, equipped to breach your defences with persistent creativity.

By now you may be thinking ‘wasn’t this a predictions article’? Yes, and so far I have tried to emphasise why the critical tactical actions that we begin today must be held to, not merely as piecemeal reactions to the cyber environment I have thus far outlined, but all the way to future proof. These tactical building-block priorities must become the planned foundations to support long-term resilience, we otherwise risk seeing the criminals melt into the dark web with our money and private data.

There’s a likelihood that absent vital improvements in our cyber defences, left by those still using old-school, gear-heavy, and fragmented defences, led by the autonomous and uncommunicative CISOs, those who fail to adapt will find themselves outmanoeuvred by the increasingly resourceful cybercriminals.

However, for those organisations in 2024 who recognise the gravity of the current climate and ingenuity of recent cybersecurity threats—and commit to more fundamental practices built into more IT and business integrated frameworks (which might also suggest a new breed of CISO)—the transition into 2025 is likely to be marked by a significant decrease in anxiety, and far more restful nights.

Traditional Technology Predictions for 2024

In this first section, we look at the more traditional, in-brief predictions for the gearheads, specifically falling within my Top 6 most pressing technology themes that will colour 2024:

Multi-Factor Authentication

Given how prevalent credentials are in attacks, we used to follow the rule of ‘Anything web-facing needs Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)’. Now, in 2024, thanks to the cloud breaking into our legacy estate, our complete clarity on what exactly is being published to the web has become obscured. In 2024, the mantra must be changed to ‘everything needs MFA’, but this still has a long way to go.

Privileged Access Management

Since Privileged credentials are the holy grail for cybercriminals, these chinks in the armour need resolving urgently. This is exacerbated by the way in which responsibility for this resolution is spread across business units; tactical challenges can be resolved, but only if an appropriate leader, at an appropriate level, applies some pressure and urgency.

Systems are out-of-date, there are too many passwords, many of these are mismanaged, privileges themselves are too excessive, etc. In modern systems, the arrival of cloud multiplies these complexities, as does the expansion of responsibilities to third parties.

These systemic failings need to be addressed in 2024, and imminently. The way forward is a cross-functional emergency exercise, with a target to adopt and maintain serious discipline by this time next year.

Monitoring

You read that correctly—unbelievably, monitoring is much further behind than it needs to be as we move further into 2024, a fact that has somehow gone largely unnoticed.

This may be the reason why the cyber insurance industry weathered rough seas in 2020, and why we are now overwhelmed with high volumes of indiscriminate alerts.

We must improve basic log aggregation, normalisation, and correlations, through better IT integration. This reporting should be developed to enhance action, with a, perhaps uncomfortable, focus on more meaningful ‘one-ten-sixty’-style reporting.

With today’s current threat landscape, if the insurance losses are anything to go by, if your monitoring is not polished in 2024 then you can forget cyber insurance, as you can expect to suffer losses in 2024.

Zero Trust

As a frequently misused and misunderstood phrase, it is important to establish a clear and consistent definition of what we mean by ‘Zero Trust’, first coined by Forrester’s John Kindervag many moons ago. The need for clarity is equally important to business leaders; they will expect quick intelligibility and relevance, or they will lose interest fast—and, for the first time in 2024, we need them seriously on board.

As you probably know, Kindervag’s core theme was to shift from the network’s ‘trust but verify’ model to ‘never trust but always verify’. This more cloud-ready mindset forces more emphasis on users, data, and devices across better segmented and more continuously monitored networks, also enhancing third-party risk management scenarios. Incremental steps in this direction, which reflect the need for more fundamental practices within more IT-integrated frameworks, can pay quick dividends in 2024.

AI Threats

I was reluctant to include this one, as I don’t believe that the use of AI either offensively or defensively will have a truly transformative effect on cyber defences in 2024/2025. I must, however, acknowledge that cybercriminals, who are after a quick win and are inherently street-smart, will use it to operate smarter and faster. At the very least, this will hopefully force companies to take care of their basics more effectively.

That being said, keeping an eye on AI is an increasingly critical aspect of security that is often overlooked, specifically the need to conduct regular, repeatable security testing of the AI technologies themselves. As the integration and use of AI tools becomes more pervasive, a new category is poised to become a bigger emphasis in 2024, one which continuously monitors AI systems for any unusual activities or anomalies, including tracking system performance and outputs.

IoT and OT (Complexity and Criticality)

Arguably, IoT is just more IP end points, which the networkers amongst you will be unphased by. I am using OT as shorthand (as many non-IT aware business leaders do) for ‘critical supply chain systems’. This amplification of the criticality of IoT as they continue to undertake more supply-chain functions suggests that we will need to distinguish which of them support critical business processes. In 2024, getting our arms around a near real-time and complex CMDB (the basic inventory of our IT estate), including this explosion of more integrated, more intelligent, and more mission-critical IP end points becomes of pressing concern.

Conclusion

Some might argue that these predictions are a little basic, and you will have noted that I collected cloud and third party under ‘Zero Trust’, when arguably there is so much more to be said for both. However, I unapologetically remain of the opinion that, if we continue to build our infrastructure on sand, then we shouldn’t be surprised when it sinks .

A key theme in 2024, as we consider my predictions in the next section, is that we must first attack these ‘basic’ technical security categories in more meaningful ways before leaping into shinier, strategic topics that will remain moot if unsupported by solid foundations.

What is Really Driving Change in 2024

The Business Sophistication of the Cyber-Criminal Fraternity

Cybercrime as a Service (CaaS) is an industry by which threat actors on the Dark Web sell their tools, expertise, and services to others, often in franchise or affiliate models.

Since the primary goal for such criminals is to make more money with less effort and less direct involvement, this exploding trend is a worrying, yet increasingly material, part of the criminal Dark Web. It is estimated that at least two thirds of ransomware, one of the largest categories of cybercrime, is conducted through a CaaS model (according to Cyber Resilience Insights).

There is a frightening level of organisation and sophistication with the roles, expertise, and infrastructure of these CaaS models that is making it easier for new entrants to subscribe to criminal franchises without the need for any technical or operational knowledge. Full-service CaaS operators will offer not only customer service to affiliates during ransomware campaigns, but they may also handle ransomware payments and decryption key access, for example.

The organisational sophistication of these franchisors is breathtaking, let alone their pricing and marketing capabilities. Operators such as Lockbit 2.0 offers guarantees on the speed of infection, not to mention service guarantees in recovery for those who pay the ransom.

In 2024 and beyond, his will continue to enable access to a wider demographic of new criminal profiteers in more resilient and integrated models that continue to evolve and improve with time and volume. More criminals will continue to exit lower profit and higher risk activities, such as people-trafficking and drugs, and move into cybercrime.

Key 2024 Takeaway: This re-enforces the need to re-visit the basics; cyber activities will continue to be a volume game for the perpetrators.

Visibility of Cybercrime to Non-Experts

Crime will become more visible, at last.

At the higher end of the size estimates for cybercrime are $10.5 trillion by 2027 . Allowing for a certain amount of scepticism, even if we halve those numbers, the US Government estimates that IP theft alone now amounts to around $600 billion a year, suggesting that ‘trillions’ is now the sizing language for cybercrime.

It should be noted that this number is widely distributed across a wide variety of criminal activity. The criminal fraternity are not greedy, given that too much visibility raises risk levels from complete impunity to unnecessary minimum risk. Whilst, globally, 72.7% of all organisations fell prey to a ransomware attack in 2023 (Statista), too much of this goes unreported. Because it represents a huge volume of mid-level cash impact, it has been too fragmented for any single action to deliver any more attention-grabbing deathblows, but is instead amounting to a less visually compulsive ‘death by a thousand cuts’.

Attacks are becoming so widespread and persistent, as well as collectively reaching material levels from a wider demographic of criminals, and taking numerous variegated forms of profiteering (such as data theft, phishing, malware, ransomware, DDos), that the growth in visibility to the Boardroom will accelerate in 2024.

Key 2024 Takeaway: In the past, research has suggested that CISOs have gotten away with accepting ‘smile and wave’ feedback from the board. While that may have worked previously, this will now force security and IT leaders to be held more accountable in real terms in 2024, and we will see much sharper qualification and expectations from the Board in the coming year as a result.

Furthermore, this opportunity will not be lost on the more mature CISOs. They will use these almost absurdly unrealistic yet engaging and increasingly visible happenings to fuel strong anecdotal storytelling with board members, in order to catch and retain their attention.

Authorities will Continue to Turn Up the Heat on CISOs and Business Leaders

A recent set of straw polls from front-line incident response experts in 2023 suggested that between 70-90% of incidents are not disclosed and, in another significant proportion, ransoms are paid.

However, during July 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the US adopted rules requiring registrants to disclose any material cybersecurity incidents that they experience, and to disclose on an annual basis any information regarding their cybersecurity risk management, strategy, and governance.

For those breathing a sigh of relief that they do not work or reside within the US, the Commission has also adopted rules that effectively incorporate certain categories of foreign entity that pass a business contact or ownership test. These steps are expected to be adopted in Europe, and some of them have already been incorporated within the EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA).

These new rules will require registrants to disclose any cybersecurity incident they determine to be significant enough on a formal reporting form, and to describe the aspects of the incident’s nature, scope, and timing, as well as its impact – or potential impact – on the registrant.

These changes will thus force a much closer relationship to develop with lawyers in 2024, who must be prepared for virtually real-time disclosure responsibilities and their impacts on personal and professional liabilities and fines.

Key 2024 Takeaway: Disclosure warrants a significant amount of workload involving lawyers, regulators, clients, media, executive, and the board, not to mention all the paperwork around the crime scene and a host of behaviours affected by subject-to-privilege constraints.

With all of this in mind, it is even more important to run those tabletop exercises in 2024, and ensure that you have all of the internal help and flexible bench strength from a host of experts ready at hand.

Around 50% of CISOs will leave in 2024

Another recent survey has suggested that 94% of CISOs are affected by stress, and that, for 64%, these, stress levels are compromising their ability to do their job. The relentless barrage of incidents which consistently affect nights, weekends, and vacations, combined with the aggression with which such incidents are met from impatient work colleagues and business partners is traumatic enough, but it is increasingly becoming the norm for CISOs to be held personally liable.

Recent actions from the US Government display a growing practice of holding executives accountable for cybersecurity breaches. Notably, the US District Court in San Francisco brought criminal charges against Joe Sullivan, Uber’s former CISO, for his alleged role in covering up a 2016 data breach. Professional observers say that he narrowly avoided going to prison because he was the first, and thus the rest of us should see this as a warning; however, it should be noted here that his $50,000 fine, significant costs of defending himself, and three years of probation are not going to help CISO stress levels.

This is compounded by the latest news from SolarWinds suggesting that executives there are likely to be held personally liable for their cyber security threats. Admittedly, as of now, there hasn’t been a specific legislation or regulation that would lead to the staff at SolarWinds being personally liable, but the legal and regulatory landscape is evolving, with discussions surrounding the accountability for cybersecurity incidents at the corporate leadership level expected to accelerate. In short, it can be deduced that around 50% of CISOs are expected to change career paths by 2025.

More imminently, in 2024, all of this will result in the lawyers and leaders representing major organisations paying much more attention to cyber and their D&O insurance. This shift will force closer attention and alignment with broader efforts to strengthen cyber defence mechanisms and ensure responsible management of cybersecurity risks within organisations, where failures in attention to detail could still result in jail time and other uncovered and personal liabilities.

Key 2024 Takeaway: This concerns those in business leadership specifically. If your CISO is a true front-line CISO, they will be suffering, and if you have not already done so, then now is the time to reach out and offer support. Accountability needs to be shared, or you’re going to lose your CISO and find them hard to replace. The days of autonomous and isolated CISOs being ‘left to do the expert cyber stuff’ are over.

Budgets and Quantifying Risk and Return in Cyber Security

In a recent board and CISO report, supported by thorough survey work and conducted by the analyst firm, Cyentia, the topics and concerns mentioned by board members that were cited as the most critical and pressing fell at the bottom of the priority list for CISOs.

I was closely involved in the first of the series, and personally spoke to dozens of CISOs, all of whom assured me of their close relationship and good communication with the board. The 75 board members surveyed universally disagreed—one quote in particular spoke volumes: ‘Security has a seat at the table, but has nothing to say. We’re listening, but security mumbles.’

The board-side lack of appetite to resolve these differences was amplified by the fact that, at the time (2017-2018), cybercrime did not have the visibility that it has today, in which it is near-impossible to ignore, and, in their words, ‘there’s no chance of fines or personal liability for me’.

Looking at the spending side, there has been almost unconstrained growth in Cyber Budgets in the period 2010 to 2020, expanding across a wide range from 6% - 14% of the company’s annual IT budget, and averaging at 10%. This has grown during a period in which, while experts could recognise the growth in cybercrime activity, business leaders felt no need to get involved.

Arguably, budgets were parcelled out to CISOs largely to keep the problem at arm’s length, during a time at which, according to my own survey expertise, leaders were paying lip-service to cyber defence and regulation.

Meanwhile, the evolving and escalating nature of cyber threats has hit the radars of most business leaders. In 2020, the FBI declared a record level of activity, unbeknownst at the time that this remarkable increase would continue to accelerate.

As cybercrime has exploded in size and diversity since 2020, budgets have been reducing. This is a strange coincidence, with one theory being that IT leaders and CISOs have suddenly found themselves being asked to hold themselves accountable for a spend that, over the last 15 years, has been tech-vendor-led, uncontrolled, and indiscriminate. This has led to the pause-button being hit in order to better understand what we have, before choosing to add any further investment.

‘Indiscriminate’ may seem like a provocative turn of phrase here, but it covers the reduced accountability for clear outcomes than are associated with other spending categories of a similar size. In the apocryphal words of some CISOs, the more you spend, the more ‘nothing’ (referring to peace of mind) that you get. This is not usually a good enough business case for a CFO.

Key 2024 Takeaway: The security community has tried and failed to engage the Board with any impact. The security community has struggled to meaningfully capture the Board's attention. However, there's a promising shift towards a new archetype of business savvy CISOs who embrace the 'listen more, speak less' approach, skilfully blending rigorous discipline with the nuanced 'narrate with data' soft skills required. Despite these advancements, bridging the gap between cybersecurity and executive engagement remains a significant hurdle, and there is still a long way to go.

In 2024, CISOs must identify with the business, build security awareness, be credible and candid, and provide ‘pointed evidence’. KPIs for the board should be based on underlying core business initiatives supported by security products and processes in a ‘by design’ approach that places security as an unobtrusive yet solid foundation to business offerings and the platforms upon which they sit.

Conclusion

While I anticipate the eye-rolls toward the Warren Buffet quote with which I opened this article, I hope we can all agree that he is not known for his hyperbole. Rather, he is known for due diligence across a wide cross-section of businesses. I am assuming he will have seen first-hand the Board members squirming as the temperature rises.

2024 will be the year to finally consolidate, integrate, simplify, and operationalise shoulder-to-shoulder with business and IT leaders, who will at last take an active interest in cyber security, and expect CISOs to operate like business leaders, together.

The interest and active engagement of the board will be amplified by the extraordinary scale and frightening growth, not to mention evolution, of cybercrime.

Attention will also be sharpened by the promise of serious personal and professional liability, with material amounts of money, and a stronger likelihood of being affected, coming into view for even the most sceptical of naysayers.

It is still going to be about getting the basics right in 2024, as the profound changes outlined in this article necessitate a more fundamental redefinition of cybersecurity strategies at a cultural level, involving a wider demographic of more actively interested leaders and lawyers determined to support the more coherent and integrated execution of threat defence strategy.

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we are equipped with a Cyber Security practice, led by John Madelin, which can accelerate, optimise, and strengthen your cyber-infrastructure, and support you in staying ahead of these trends and developments.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Change Management Initiation: Building a Strong Change Imperative & Readiness

Mon, 22 Jan 2024 16:50:03 GMT

Authors

What is Change Initiation?

Change Initiation is the first step in effective Change Management, and the process of preparing your organisation for change.

Arguably, the Change Initiation process is the most critical component of any change activity , as it requires a blend of strategic vision, effective communication, and a commitment to inclusivity across the stakeholder landscape.

We provide guidance to our clients throughout the Change Initiation activity, supporting:

Change Imperative Creation and Communication
Change Impact and Legacy Evaluations
Stakeholder Mapping
Adapter & Organisation Readiness Evaluation

Failure to undertake a comprehensive Change Initiation activity can result in the creation of obstacles to the success of your project, many of which could be irreversible. If you lack the in-house experience or this is your first major business transformation project, we highly recommend you seek external guidance—particularly in the planning stages.

The Change Imperative

The Change Imperative is our Why , the business rationale driving the change activity. The identification and communication of our Why is clearly an important activity, but it is remarkable how frequently teams who are tasked with change implementation are oblivious to these drivers, even if their jobs depend on it .

The impact of failing to effectively communicate the Change Imperative is disengagement. Rather than creating a sense of ownership and urgency, the Change becomes another disjointed request from senior management that fails to ignite Change Agents into action. The unfortunate result is often a superficial implementation of the change, and a failure to ingrain the initiative into the operational fabric of the business.

The Change Imperative narrative should be a well-crafted and concise elevator pitch of the proposed change, designed with the intent to engage stakeholders in the creation of the desired future state of the business .

The Change Imperative should also form the basis of the communication strategy throughout the project. A consistent change message helps increase employee engagement, foster collaboration, and develop a collective commitment to the journey ahead.

At Cambridge MC, we leverage a suite of diagnostic and communication tools to support the codification of the Change Imperative into a compelling narrative, comprising the following components:

Why – Organisation imperative driving the change
What – A Vision of the Desired Future State
How – Creating Visibility of the Solution

Change Impact Evaluation

A Change Impact Evaluation helps define the scope of the change activity and the adaptation that needs to be implemented across the organisation value chain. The evaluation involves an assessment of how alterations to processes, systems, or structures will affect employees, workflows, and overall performance.

During this evaluation, subject matter experts should analyse different sections of the business to identify potential risks and benefits associated with the change initiative.

In most environments, we assess impact in terms of the following criteria:

Scope
Governance
Resources
Infrastructure
Culture
Enabling Mechanisms (Technology)

This evaluation helps serve as a compass for leadership , providing valuable insight into the scope of the change being undertaken, paving the way for tailored strategies to mitigate stakeholder resistance, smoothing the change activity, and minimising operational disruptions .

Change Legacy Evaluation

To help secure employee engagement, we suggest using a Change Legacy Evaluation. This activity gives stakeholders an opportunity to voice their concerns by reviewing previous change activities, providing insight into what worked and what didn’t .

‘Lessons learned’ activities of this nature provide valuable insight into opportunities for improvement, but also support employee engagement objectives. Through active engagement on legacy issues, you will position leadership as agents of positive change and gain a better understanding of how to improve the delivery of future change initiatives .

There are 6 Legacy Evaluation Categories to consider:

Shared Change Purpose – Did the team understand what was driving change?

Leadership Support – Were the leadership team effective?

Sponsor Engagement – Was senior management actively engaged?

Team Engagement – Was the team included in the change activity as contributors?

Personal Impacts – Was the change a positive experience for staff?

Practicality – What improved?

Stakeholder Mapping

Stakeholder mapping is another often overlooked activity, but something we believe is critical for successful project delivery. Complex transformations are tricky enough—forgetting to engage key stakeholders who hold the keys to your success is not a good move. The importance of stakeholder mapping lies in its ability to systematically identify and analyse those who are affected by or can influence a project, be that positively or negatively.

Effective stakeholder mapping facilitates informed decision-making, enabling a more targeted allocation of resources and efforts. It also aids in identifying potential risks and opportunities associated with various stakeholders.

The output of this mapping activity should help clarify dependencies across the value chain , and represents a key input to the planning and execution phases of the change initiative.

We help our clients better understand stakeholders' interests, expectations, and levels of influence, so they can tailor communication strategies, mitigate potential conflicts, and garner support.

Stakeholders should be categorised in terms of their INTEREST and IMPACT on the project. Engagement and communication strategies should subsequently be aligned to the stakeholder’s role within the organisation and their contribution to the project:

INFORM

Stakeholders with a significant interest in the success of the project but limited ability to positively impact the project. These stakeholders should be updated and their interest maintained.

CONVINCE

Stakeholders' moderate commitment belies their crucial role in project success, given their significant impact and influence. Communication strategy and messaging should be such that it enforces project success and positive impact on the broader organisation.

CONSULT

Key stakeholders who wield substantial influence on project success and the organisation. These stakeholders should be managed closely and actively engaged in project delivery.

MONITOR

Stakeholders should be kept informed, but balance communication efforts to avoid excessive time and resource allocation for updates.

By identifying stakeholders in terms of their impact and interest, we can create an intentional communication and engagement strategy that aligns to specific project interests and individual targets. When people feel engaged and that their opinions are appreciated, they are far less likely to become a barrier to the project.

Adapter Readiness

Our goal for all projects is the smooth adoption of change through the transformation process. Before we start changing things, we always assess both adapter and organisation readiness to support the proposed change activity. This is critical in preventing future roadblocks and internal resistance to change.

To sustainably embed change in the organisation, we need employees to understand, accept, and own the change process.

To be successful, adapters must possess the necessary skills, knowledge, and flexibility to adapt to new processes, technologies, or structures. To achieve this flexibility in your transformation goals, we recommend the development of training, recognition, rewards and measures with a goal of moving adapters through the following stages:

Awareness – 'I get it'
Acceptance – 'I buy it'
Commitment – 'I own it'

Once employees own the change, the effort required to ingrain the change within the organisation is greatly reduced, accelerating implementation and achieving ROI goals in a more timely manner.

Organisational Change Readiness

Organisational readiness involves evaluating the overall preparedness of the entire workforce and system landscape for the impending change. It involves ensuring that employees at all levels understand the reasons behind the change, have the required competencies, and are receptive to the proposed modifications.

Typical areas for organisation readiness should include:

Leadership
Strategy
Governance
IT systems
Processes
Technologies and
Culture

Once an organisational readiness evaluation has been completed, we recommend the development of end-to-end user journeys across the impacted areas, identifying training and transformation requirements.

By comprehensively assessing both adapter and organisational readiness, organisations enhance their ability to implement change effectively and mitigate potential resistance or disruptions.

Collaborating with Cambridge MC and implementing our Change Management methodologies guarantees your business the ability to thrive during the transformative process.

We can be your change management partner, providing an enhanced process that lowers risk and increases the expected benefits.

Stay tuned for the next phase of our Change Management path – Planning

Contact us now to find out how our Change Management methodology can act as the critical enabling mechanism to support your project’s success.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

New Year's Resolutions: How Cambridge MC is Giving Back

Thu, 11 Jan 2024 11:00:59 GMT

Authors

Content Warning: This article describes charities whose work involves sensitive issues such as incarceration, child loss, humanitarian crises, and antisemitism.

January is often the time for resolutions. A new year, a new chapter, and a blank slate, it is a month for setting goals, making changes, and starting progress.

At Cambridge Management Consulting, we resolve to give back to society as much as we can, by donating up to 1% of our annual profits to charitable causes , setting aside 1% of our time and expertise each year to be utilised on a pro-bono basis, and partnering with transformative projects and programmes to make a lasting impact on others. Further to this, we hold 1% of our equity for a charitable pay-day in the event of a sale or other significant event.

2023 was a particularly productive year for our ongoing support of such schemes and organisations. Not only did we exceed our usual goal by giving just over 12% of our profits and over 200 days of pro-bono consulting time to support the inspirational work that they achieve, but we took on several interns from the University of Cambridge (from Pembroke College’s Leadership, Enterprise, and Adventure at Pembroke - LEAP - programme) in order to provide valuable work experience and boost their employability. Thus, as we enter 2024 with the resolution to continue and expand this work, we thought it worthwhile to spend a moment highlighting these lifechanging services and the incredible people that organise them.

British Exploring Society

Established in 1932, British Exploring Society (BES) are an equal-opportunities charity devoted to ensuring that all young people are ‘able to contribute confidently in the world’ by organising, fundraising, and leading expeditions across the globe. Combining their threefold values of adventure, knowledge, and personal development, BES work to establish the skills and support each young person will need to take part in an expedition, provide them with the appropriate training, knowledge, and ideas, and bring them on an adventure that promotes experience, diversity, and confidence.

In October of 2023, an enthusiastic team from Cambridge MC took part in one of several hikes in the Lake District to raise money for BES. Generously led by BES’ CEO, Honor Wilson-Fletcher MBE, and trustees, Soo Redshaw and David Wells, the groups involved in the hike achieved an impressive 40km per person, including over 30,000km of ascent across four different peaks. Altogether, the weekend raised over £30,000 for BES, which will contribute to all of their exciting expeditions in 2024, including Dangoor in Iceland and the Hartz Islands and Highlands in Scotland.

Storybook Dads

Storybook Dads was started by Sharon Berry in 2003, after observing how challenging it was for imprisoned parents to stay in contact with their children, and how crucial it was for them to continue to fulfil such aspects of a parental role.

To reconcile this absence, Storybook Dads arranges for prisoners to record themselves reading a children’s storybook onto a CD or DVD, which is then sent to their child, which they can listen to as many times as they like, allowing them to maintain an element of their relationship when doing so tangibly is made difficult. Furthermore, most of these recordings are edited by the prisoners themselves, who are trained by Storybook Dads to use software to remove mistakes and background noise, and add images, music, and sound effects to enhance the stories. Since 2002, more than 900 prisoners have trained to be editors, providing them with long-lasting skills, work experience, and a better chance of employment upon release.

Data from Storybook Dads has shown that 94% of prisoners said that engaging with the project has improved and enriched their relationship with their children, and 84% have said that it has helped to reduce the likelihood of them reoffending. In 2023, Cambridge MC’s in-house digital experts helped to maintain these statistics by developing IOS and Android apps for Storybook Dads, increasing the accessibility of their recordings.

Sands

Sands is a charity which has devoted the last 40 years striving to reduce the number of babies lost in infancy, and provide support to those bereaving the death of a baby either before, during, or shortly after their birth. Around 4,500 babies are tragically lost each year, but without scientists, doctors, midwives, or parents understanding why; Sands works in partnership with healthcare professionals to research and improve understanding of this loss and drive changes in maternity policy.

In 2023, we helped to further the important work completed by Sands by building a new website for one of their core programmes; this will go live later this year.

Télécoms Sans Frontières

Founded in 1998, Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) are the world’s first NGO focusing on emergency-response technologies. Operating during humanitarian crises, TSF not only build rapid-response communications centres for local and international responders, but provide those affected with ways to contact their loved ones and regain control of their lives. In the 26 years since its establishment, TSF have responded to over 140 crises in over 70 countries, providing communication to over 20 million people and nearly 1,000 NGOs.

Furthermore, TSF are also concerned with developing and disseminating innovative and cost-effective solutions to assist migrants, refugees, and displaced people, as well as other disadvantaged communities in different areas, including education, healthcare, women’s rights, and food security. In 2023, we donated a portion of our profits to furthering these efforts.

Community Security Trust

Established in 1994, Community Security Trust (CST) is a UK-based charity which protects Jews from antisemitism and related threats by promoting positive relations between British Jews and the rest of British society, and representing British Jews on relevant issues. Primarily, their aim is to support victims of antisemitism and increase the safety and security of Jewish life; they achieve this through the provision of security advice and training for Jewish communal organisations, schools, and synagogues. Altogether, CST’s security services cover over 650 communal buildings and around 1,000 communal events annually.

In October of 2023, we donated a portion of our profits to support the incredible work that CST achieve, and further the fight against prejudice in the UK.

LEAP

In the 2022-23 academic year, Pembroke College at the University of Cambridge launched their Leadership, Enterprise & Adventure at Pembroke (LEAP) Programme. LEAP aims to give back by supporting their students to develop their confidence, transferable skills, and career prospects through the provision of training, mentoring, and internship opportunities.

As a Fellow of Pembroke College, Chairman of Cambridge MC, Tim Passingham, was keen for the company to be involved in this exciting programme, and in September partnered with LEAP to take on an intern within our Marketing Department. Shania McNally, a third-year student studying Human, Social, and Political Sciences at Pembroke College, was given a months’ worth of marketing experience, including designing social media graphics, building webpages, and writing an insight article for our blog. Further to this, our sister-company, edenseven , for whom Tim is also Co-Founder and Non-Executive Director, employed another of Pembroke’s students through the LEAP scheme, Freya Arnott, to understand and support their data-driven sustainability projects. During her month’s internship, Freya assisted with researching and producing edenseven’s report on the FTSE250 companies’ lack of progress toward decarbonisation goals.

We look forward to working alongside the LEAP programme in 2024, and helping more interns to gain valuable real-world skills at Cambridge MC.

Heal

Heal is a charitable foundation dedicated to raising money in order to buy land and rewild it. With 41% of animal species in decline, 1 in 10 threatened with extinction, and 133 already declared extinct since the 1500s, the UK is particularly lacking in biodiversity. It is Heal’s mission to decelerate and ultimately rectify this by locating land that is degraded and working to rejuvenate it into a host for wild plants and roaming animals.

As a sustainability-driven and environmentally-conscious organisation, particularly since the establishment of our sister-company, edenseven, we have donated a portion of our profits to Heal in order to further their three-fold commitment to rewilding, climate, and wellbeing, particularly in the Naze peninsula in Essex.

A New Chapter

At Cambridge MC, we feel most positive and fulfilled by our work when it is driven by the opportunity to give back to and promote the work completed by generous and inspirational organisations. 2023 was a particularly productive year for this venture, allowing us to become acquainted with and understand these projects, and support them through both donations and our own in-house expertise, which we have used to develop platforms to further their reach, and provide valuable skills and guidance.

In 2024, our resolve is to continue this support, and further endorse the crucial and life-changing work achieved by such incredible foundations.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Navigating Change: A Comprehensive Overview of Change Management

Thu, 21 Dec 2023 20:35:28 GMT

Authors

In a new series of articles, Daniel Fitzsimmons, an expert in Change Management and Business Transformation, explains the importance of change management to organisations as they evolve and keep apace of technological advances in a rapidly changing business landscape.

What is Change Management?

Change management is a structured approach to transitioning individuals, teams, and organisations from a current state to a desired future state. The primary focus of change management is to help people adapt to change and minimise resistance, ensuring that the desired outcomes of the change initiative are achieved.

Change Management methodologies are grounded in the understanding that the transformation process follows predictable stages , and, as a result, all tasks, efforts, and activities associated with change can be strategically planned, implemented, and success is measured and assessed.

The Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) Change Management process places emphasis on creating an environment that supports individuals through the transition and helps them understand the reasons behind the change, the benefits it brings, and how they can contribute to its success .

Our goal at Cambridge MC is to significantly reduce the timeline from project initiation to benefit realisation.

Why is Change Management Necessary?

The statistical reality is that the vast majority of change initiatives fail to achieve the intended results initially outlined for the project. A number of these failings can be linked to over-ambitious targets, however, a significant proportion of these shortcomings can be linked directly to a failure to communicate and effectively operationalise the change initiative with employees.

One of the key reasons why change management methodologies are so critical is its role in mitigating resistance to change across the stakeholder landscape. Stakeholders often feel threatened or uneasy when faced with significant changes in their work environment or processes. This resistance is natural, as it stems from the fear of the unknown and the disruption of established routines.

To address stakeholder resistance and build trust, Cambridge MC places employees at the heart of the change activity, guiding stakeholders on a journey from:

To achieve commitment and ownership of change is no small feat, requiring a conscientious effort to engage employees, not only during the execution phase, but throughout the project and decision-making cycle. Through effective engagement at the outset of the project, Cambridge MC empowers employees (change agents) to take ownership of both the initiative and its subsequent success or failure.

With ownership, however, comes responsibility, and, as such, change leaders must provide change agents with the resources, skills training, and the psychological safety they require to deliver the future of the business.

By implementing a people-centric change management approach , Cambridge MC greatly increases the likelihood of embedding change successfully.

The Role of Managing Change

The significance of change management as a crucial leadership skill has become increasingly apparent, in an era marked by rapid technological advancements, shifting market dynamics, and evolving customer expectations, businesses must constantly adapt and innovate to remain competitive.

As Harvard Business states, “In today’s uncertain climate, leaders at all levels in the organisation are involved in managing change. While senior executives set the organisational tone, those in middle management, leaders on the frontlines, and team leaders also play critical roles.”

Whether driven by external factors like economic fluctuations, industry trends, or internal forces such as mergers and acquisitions, process improvements, or leadership changes, organisations must be prepared to embrace and manage change.

Effective leaders understand that change is inevitable , and, rather than resisting it, they actively embrace it, fostering a culture that values innovation and provides the necessary support and resources to develop solutions to the market challenges being faced. By embracing change, leaders not only steer their organisations towards growth but also cultivate a resilient and forward-thinking team.

Benefits: Three Examples

Mergers & Acquisitions

In the context of M&A, change management is especially critical. Mergers and acquisitions can be highly complex and tumultuous, with significant cultural, structural, and operational differences between the organisations involved. Without effective change management, the risk of post-merger integration failure is high. Change management helps to ensure that the two organisations are integrated seamlessly, with a focus on aligning cultures, retaining key talent, and maximising the synergies that prompted the merger or acquisition in the first place.

Digital Transformation

Change management is indispensable in the implementation of digital transformation programs. Organisations need to continuously adopt new technologies to stay competitive, however, the adoption of technology often involves significant changes in operational governance, workflows, and processes. The development of an environment and operational structure where change is normal, allows organisations to adapt more effectively to change, thereby minimising disruption and maximising the benefits.

Sustainability Programs

Sustainability projects often experience challenges due to a lack of specialist resources, data visibility, and the expertise to align sustainable strategy to business objectives. Leveraging a wealth of industry expertise within a proven framework of change management methodologies, Cambridge MC is uniquely positioned to allow your organisation to maximise the benefits of sustainable operations.

Change management supports the communication of the benefits of sustainability, organisation value alignment, and empowers individuals through training, to facilitate a smooth integration of eco-friendly processes and methods and long-term sustainability goals.

Our Methodology

Change management is not a one-size-fits-all approach, it requires customisation to fit the specific needs of each organisation and its unique change initiative challenges. Effective change management begins with a comprehensive assessment of the current state of the organisation, the desired future state, and the gaps that need to be bridged through the life of the project. Once the assessment is complete, a tailored change management plan is developed, encompassing strategies for communication, training, support, and performance measurement.

Change Imperative: The Reason Why

The Change Imperative is the reason we are having this conversation. Something is compelling the organisation to evaluate its current operations and consider change. These push or pull factors manifest in many forms but necessitate a response:

The definition and communication of the change imperative impacting the business is one of the most critical aspects of a change project, and yet often overlooked. I have experienced numerous instances where team members charged with change implementation do not understand the rationale driving the change activity. When team members do not understand the imperative driving the change, it is difficult to foster ownership and motivate change agents to deliver the change.

Shared Change Purpose

Our Shared Change Purpose is an elevator pitch used to sell the proposed change activity to the broader organisation. Like an elevator pitch, it should be concise, succinct, and directly linked to the Change Imperative driving the change activity, ideally comprising measurable targets and a timeline for completion.

When the Change Imperative is not effectively communicated as a Shared Change Purpose, teams struggle to contextualise the activity and create an urgency around its delivery. If we want to embed and institutionalise change , we need to win the hearts and minds of our colleagues, which at Cambridge MC we achieve through communication and engagement across the stakeholder landscape .

“When people are financially invested, they want a return. When people are emotionally invested, they want to contribute.” Simon Sinek

Cambridge MC will help support the creation of the Shared Change Purpose statement, identifying why things cannot remain the way they are, and guiding your organisation to a vision of the desired future state.

Creating Change Readiness in your Organisation

An organisation readiness assessment is an evaluation undertaken by Cambridge MC to understand the overall preparedness of your organisation to support a change activity. This assessment typically involves a review of the following:

• Leadership

• Strategy

• Governance

• IT systems

• Processes

• Technologies

• Culture

Once an organisation readiness assessment has been completed, the Cambridge MC team will support the development of end-to-end user journeys across the impacted areas, identifying the transformation required to achieve our desired future state.

Change management extends beyond individual projects or initiatives, towards the creation of a culture of change readiness. A business culture that embraces change as a constant and necessary part of the business can adapt more quickly, and therefore effectively, to evolving market conditions.

Stages

The Cambridge MC Change Management solution provides a rigorous and granular approach to ensure that all projects are delivered to achieve their stated goals.

The Cambridge MC team will support your organisation across the following domains:

1. Planning

2. Initiation

3. Execution (Project Management)

4. Controlling

5. Closing

The Cambridge MC Change Management methodology, provides a robust and repeatable framework to ensure all aspects and impacts of the change initiative across the value chain are considered, providing an effective mechanism to support change value acquisition.

In the following articles in this series, I will explain each stage of our methodology in turn and share the processes we use and the lessons we have learned along the way.

Conclusion

Effective change management ensures that change initiatives align with the organisation’s strategic objectives . In the absence of a structured approach, changes can become disjointed and uncoordinated, leading to inefficiencies and waste. Cambridge MC Change management methodologies help to ensure that all aspects of the organisation – people, processes, technology and governance – are aligned with the desired change, maximising the likelihood of achieving the intended benefits.

By recognising the importance of change management and investing in it as a strategic function, organisations can position themselves to thrive in an environment where change is the only constant.

Ultimately, effective change management is not just about managing change; it's about positioning the organisation for long-term success and sustainability in a rapidly changing world.

If you have any questions, or would like to find out more about our Change Management services, please get in touch using the form below, or email me at: dfitzsimmons@cambridgemc.com

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Stop, Get Ready, Go: What to Know about the Openreach Stop Sell

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 09:35:55 GMT

Authors

Openreach implemented the national Stop Sell of Wholesale Line Rental (WLR) products (i.e. basic landlines, ISDN2, and ISDN30) on the 5th September 2023. First announced in 2018, this milestone has been approaching for some time, and now that it has been achieved, the world has not stopped! Between careful planning, wide-ranging communications, and numerous trials, the success of this Stop Sell is down to five years of collective effort. Now, the focus has moved to ensuring that all impacted organisations can upgrade their communications infrastructure to maximise costs and operational and productivity benefits whilst mitigating the risk of adverse service impacts.

There are around 650 Communication Service Providers who buy WLR products from Openreach to sell to their customers. Such customers include households, to significant businesses, and critical national infrastructure organisations who keep the country running. Around 9M WLR products now need to be upgraded to IP and fibre alternatives ahead of the WLR product withdrawal in two years’ time.

Since the Stop Sell, WLR products have only been available through special exception requests that accommodate for critical customer use scenarios. Luckily, however, these have not received much use to date.

S0, What are the Alternatives?

That’s Fibre To The Premises (FTTP), right? Well, it may be for around half of the UK, but coverage is not ubiquitous yet. FTTP is being built by Openreach and there is a strong community of Alternative Network (AltNet) suppliers, but AltNets tend to have localised builds – often by town, city, or region. For service providers seeking national offerings, it’s likely that buying from multiple access network wholesalers will be necessary.

To bridge the gap to full nationwide FTTP coverage, Openreach have an alternative fibre-based offering: SOGEA, which is a Fibre To The Cabinet (FTTC) technology. Whilst availability of FTTC is very high (95%+), it does not have complete coverage, and will not be extended further.

Where there is no fibre-based offering available, Openreach plan to launch a copper-based alternative called SOTAP, which is a transitional product based on a copper line. SOTAP may also be appropriate where the customer-need cannot be met imminently with a fibre-based product.

And what about Wireless? Certainly, wireless-based solutions will have a part to play, be that in the form of 5G, IoT, or LORaWAN, although some of these might not be available if the planned location is remote. The new generation of low orbit Satellite communications will also offer an option for the hardest to reach locations.

Swapping Out the Old with the New

WLR products have long been used by customers in innovative ways to meet their needs. Though they were initially developed to enable customers to talk to each other in homes and offices, they are now also used in locations that couldn’t be any further, such as for monitoring and controlling applications. Indeed, as we go about our daily lives, you would be surprised to discover how WLR products are used to keep the country working: from traffic lights to water level monitoring stations; gas pressure monitors to electricity substation controls; the emergency lift line in the office at work to the health monitoring devices in an infirm person’s home; the fire alarm to the intruder alarm; the CCTV camera to the payment machine in your local coffee shop; the list is endless. All of these applications should be tested to ensure that they will work on replacement fibre-based products. Test facilities are available in a number of locations across the UK, either run by a single Communication Service Provider, or, in the case of Openreach, multiple Communication Service Providers.

WLR Withdrawal

So far, the focus has been on the WLR Stop Sell, which has zero impact if customers do not need to buy more products or make changes to existing ones. The WLR product withdrawal in December 2025, however, is a different kettle of fish.

On this date, the plan is that WLR products will cease to function. Organisations that use WLR products will need to have other solutions in place if they need to maintain continuity of operation. Broadly speaking, the larger the organisation, the more complex and long-winded the transformation will be.

Many organisations have this underway, but, unfortunately, the majority do not. Some of the learning we have encountered is that companies:

do not know what lines they have, what they’re used for, or if any special services equipment is connected to them;
do not know who’s responsible for the lines in their organisations;
do not recognise the need to manage the change as a formal project and have no budget cover; and
underestimate the time required to manage the transformation.

Organisations that don’t have plans in place need to act soon if they’re to complete the change in time. Service Providers must also reach out to their customers to ensure that they’re ready for the change and that any special services they use today are tested to function on the new network.

What's Next?

Along with the withdrawal of WLR and the building out of FTTP, the next big consideration is the Openreach Exchange Exit. This programme was announced by Openreach in 2020 with the intent of exiting 4,600 of the current 5,600 exchanges, leaving 1,000 ‘Openreach Handover Point’ (OHP) exchanges. This programme will impact all services currently being provided at an exchange to be exited.

FTTP & SOGEA products will remain unchanged as these are already served from OHP exchanges, however, there are small number of OHPs that will be exited, and these will require special arrangements in order to re-parent the equipment.

It is important to note that Openreach have long-lined copper-based services when exchanges have been exited previously, but this won’t be repeated in the new Exchange Exit programme, meaning that all products will be provided over a fibre-based infrastructure moving forward. This is a complete withdrawal of the copper network and all related products, i.e. WLR and LLU MPF portfolios.

Service Providers who provide services from exchanges to be exited, including those who rent space in these exchanges for equipment and connection of backhaul, will need to engage with Openreach to ensure that their ongoing needs can be met. Space in OHPs might become a premium and so the need to act fast may be important.

For business customers, consideration must be given to the migration of high bandwidth circuits. The complexity of this should not be underestimated, as these circuits are typically used for business-critical functions when circuit downtimes are important and need to be avoided or minimised.

How Cambridge MC can Help your Business

If you lack the in-house expertise and knowledge for the necessary assessments and migration plans, we can help. Cambridge Management Consulting employs experts with decades of experience in senior roles in Tier 1 Telcos, AltNets, and Enterprises to help you with these very factors and considerations. Phil Laws, who works within our Telecoms Strategy and Transformation practice, is an expert in this area and works closely on projects and issues connected to the PSTN Shutdown, Exchange Exit and FTTP build.

To get in contact with Phil for a consultation on how your organisation can make a seamless transition, please use the form below.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries.

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

How Cambridge MC is Helping to Recognise Global Talent

Sat, 16 Dec 2023 09:30:37 GMT

Authors

At Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), we pride ourselves on our ability to channel decades of hands-on experience across the telecommunications, technology, sustainability, and government sectors into learned and insightful guidance, allowing other organisations to produce tangible and steadfast results. Of the numerous case studies on our website which detail the work our partners have completed for different organisations, seven were completed in 2023 alone, a repertoire which is further substantiated by a number of partnerships, projects, and joint ventures which we have engaged in this year (which can be read about here ) – the most recent of which involved implementing submarine cable work for the Cayman Islands Government to strengthen their international connectivity.

However, as a people-focused company, we also understand that true consultancy and improvement does not stop at offering advice or providing recommendations, it is about acknowledging and rewarding those that display talent, integrity, and creativity; those that strive for impact and follow through. Support is two-fold: it is constructive criticism, and it is positive reinforcement, and the business world is no different.

When we started in 2018 as a consultancy designed to support the growth of start-ups and scale-ups in Cambridge, UK, we built ourselves on recognising the importance of innovation and determination for maintaining a successful and influential organisation. Now, as we close 2023 with offices in six countries and more expansion on the horizon, we celebrate three opportunities that we have been given in the last quarter of this year that not only reflect our own dedication to these principles over the last five years, but have allowed us to honour others who uphold the same.

In this article, we look at the three judging panels that we have recently occupied, and how they affirm our belief that good business should be rewarded.

October: Tim Passingham and the Capacity Global Carrier Awards

Established in 2000 and now boasting a vast portfolio of magazines and large-scale global events (numerous of which our consultants have been in attendance), Capacity Media prides itself on being an essential source of news and developments within the telecommunications sector. Its recent headlines span anywhere between relevant market updates, such as Jack Haddon’s latest piece on the partnership between Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Communications to produce the next generation of electric vehicles, to important social commentary, such as Nadine Hawkins’ ‘ Why mentorship is key to closing the gender gap ’.

Tim Passingham, Chairman of Cambridge MC, was first asked to be a member of the judging panel of Capacity Media’s annual Global Carrier Awards in 2018, making this year his sixth year running contributing to the event. With over 25 years in telecommunications including senior executive roles at BT, Level 3Communications (now Lumen) and Colt, Tim is the Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting, Chairman of the UK AltNet Lightning Fibre, and Chairman of the IoT company Iknaia. This makes him a well-equipped industry expert and ideal member of Capacity’s telco-focused awards ceremony.

This year, the event took place at the Indigo at The O2 in London on the 18th October, and saw the most entries that the ceremony has ever received: a record-breaking 238. The 37 different awards that an organisation can nominate themselves for and hope to win span categories such as ‘Global & Regional’ including awards that assess an organisation for its wide-reaching impact; ‘Innovation & Technology’, for which companies can present their latest technologies addressing services such as Anti-Fraud, Data Centre and Edge, Mobile/5G, and more; ‘Projects’, for those engaged in beneficial and influential contracts and projects; and others. (To see the full list of categories, and the winners of this year’s awards, click here .)

Each submission was evaluated by representatives from Capacity’s 400-person judging panel, of which Tim oversaw multiple, on a 5-point grading criteria , which analyses the extent to which each application comprehensively addressed its chosen category, presented relevant examples, and was expressed with fluency. The panel is chaired by Carl Roberts, Partner of Hadaara Consulting, who, when asked to summarise the Global Carrier Awards in three words, highlighted its principles of ‘Grandiose, Celebration, and Achievement’.

Tim Passingham said: ‘I am not only honoured to have been a member of the judging panel for this year’s Global Carrier Awards, but proud to have been asked to participate for the sixth year in a row. Capacity Media achieve excellent work for the telecommunications sector, so I welcomed the opportunity to give back, and the awards ceremony was a brilliant event as always.’

November: Meredith Sharples and the 25th Annual ISPA Awards

Standing for the Internet Services Providers’ Association, ISPA aims to promote collaboration and dialogue within the UK internet industry for the benefit of the economy and wider society. Primarily, they achieve this by making representations on behalf of the industry to Government bodies such as the Home Office, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and Ofcom, representatives of which are often the ones to approach ISPA for their collective and renowned expertise.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the awards, providing an opportunity for ISPA to celebrate longevity, not only of the organisation itself, but for the exponential growth and advancement experienced by the internet industry in the last quarter of a century. Steve Leighton, Chairman of ISPA, described the first ceremony as ‘a lowkey affair with a handful of attendees’, and Dana Tobak, CEO of Hyperoptic, listed its initial awards as including ‘Best DialUp, Best Internet Portal, Best Search’ etc. Now, the event sells out venues seating over 400 industry experts – this year taking place at the new London Raffles Hotel at the Old War Offices – with awards including ‘Best Channel Support’, as well as the ‘Best Infrastructure’ and ‘Best Consumer’ categories, and more . ‘As the industry has changed,’ said Hare, ‘the awards have changed.’

Chaired by Andrew Fergus, Editor at thinkbroadband.com, Meredith Sharples, Managing Partner at Cambridge MC, was asked to be a member of this year’s judging panel due to his continued and remarkable achievements within the telecommunications industry, spanning over 20 years. Specifically, ISPA’s profile on Meredith highlights and celebrates his successful launch of Vodafone’s fixed broadband market entry in the UK in 2014, resulting in rapid growth and an innovative customer proposition, as well his four-year position leading the Post Office Telecoms business, cultivating it into one of the largest broadband and fibre-focused ISPs.

Of the awards ceremony, which this year took place on the 9th November, Meredith Sharples said: ‘I am honoured to have been asked to judge at the 25th Annual ISPA awards, recognised as one of the leading independent awards ceremonies.’

December: Duncan Clubb and the DCD>Global Awards

Started in 1998, Data Center Dynamics (DCD) are a global media outlet who have been publishing content and hosting annual events, in which our consultants have participated, exclusively for the data centre industry for well over twenty years. With articles and updates researched and written by a team of experts whose knowledge and experience span the data centre, cloud, and edge infrastructure ecosystems, DCD’s insights span between shorter updates, such as Paul Lipscombe’s look into Huawei building their first European factory next year , to longer pieces such as Sebastian Moss’ ‘How Meta redesigned its data centers for the AI era’ .

Taking place this year on the 6th December in Westminster, London, DCD’s annual industry awards ceremony, the DCD>Global Awards , has so far dedicated 17 years to ‘recognizing the best people, projects, and teams who put innovation at the heart of this vibrant industry sector’. Each year sees hundreds of applicants nominate themselves across 17 different categories, all designed to celebrate different achievements and areas of the data centre industry. This year in particular, DCD introduced seven new awards, including the ‘Environmental Impact Award’, acknowledging an increasingly relevant global concern, and the ‘Young Mission Critical Engineer of the Year’, which aims to motivate and reward a new generation of industry experts. (For a full list of awards, click here .)

DCD writes that ‘it’s the strength of our judging panel that makes us the data center award-to-win, comprised of recognized experts from all the technical domains and disciplines’, and this year Duncan Clubb, Senior Partner of Cambridge MC and expert in Data Centres, Edge, and Cloud, was honoured to join this circle. Throughout his career, Duncan has worked on the data centre infrastructure of numerous organisations including JP Morgan Chase, RBS, the Bank of England, and provided advisory services to the many clients of CBRE, thus making him more than equipped to contribute to this year’s panel.

Specifically, Duncan was on the panel to select the winner for the ‘Edge Data Center Project of the Year’ award, targeted toward ‘projects that can demonstrate a unique and strategic approach as to how a successful Edge deployment is designed, set up and operated’, with a specific emphasis on innovation. This year, the winner of this award was NextDC for their project ‘Smart Mining at the Extreme Edge PH1 Port Hedland Data Centre’ ; this project aimed to implement the ultra-low-latency infrastructure and safer operations typically found in major cities, to the more remote areas of Western Australia.

Duncan Clubb said: ‘DCD does great work bringing awareness and insight to the Data Centre industry through its publications and numerous fantastic events. I was honoured to be asked to help judge this year’s ‘Edge Data Center Project of the Year’ award, of which NextDC were more than deserving.’

A Rewarding Year

The Global Carrier Awards, the ISPA Awards, and the DCD Global Awards have all marked fantastic opportunities for our partners to celebrate and give back to the industries they have excelled in throughout their working lives. It is easy to look forward in one’s career: to the next project, the next year, the next promotion, but this does not always give time to look back. Thus, joining these various judging panels has provided a moment to reflect and rewind through a year’s worth of work and industry milestones.

However, this does not just represent a chance to celebrate the work of others; if anything, being invited to join a judging panel, especially across multiple years, is the greatest award of all. It reaffirms Cambridge MC’s status as an intelligent and seasoned team of industry experts, with the knowledge, experience, and innovation to recognise and reward it in others.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Scope 3 Emissions: Making Sustainability Your Business

Wed, 13 Dec 2023 10:41:19 GMT

Authors

Note: this article has been updated since its original publication on the 11th November 2024 to reflect the topics of COP29 and findings from edenseven's most recent report on the FTSE250, Are businesses ignoring the climate crisis?

As COP29 gets underway Baku, Azerbaijan, the question emerges: is the world on track to prevent a climate catastrophe?

The Paris Agreement calls for a strong global effort to reach net zero by 2050. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), global emissions must peak before 2025 and roughly halve by 2030 if we are to limit warming to 1.5°C. However, global emissions continue to increase , requiring immediate action to meet the 1.5°C target. One-fifth of total UK emissions are generated by businesses, so it is essential that they measure their carbon footprint and implement strategies to achieve net zero.

Scoping out the Problem

A company's carbon footprint is made up of different categories, or 'scopes'. Scope 1 covers a company's direct emissions from its owned vehicles and fuel combustion at company facilities (e.g. in furnaces and boilers). Scope 2 covers the emissions from the electricity and heat or steam that a company purchases. Scope 3 covers a company's indirect emissions, such as business travel, employee commuting and product distribution, purchased goods from suppliers, use of sold products, and product end-of-life. For many businesses, Scope 3 is the largest source of emissions, accounting for over 70% of their total footprint .

Scope 3 emissions are particularly difficult to measure because they are not under the direct control or oversight of the reporting company. Measuring Scope 3 emissions often requires collaboration with suppliers and life-cycle assessments (LCAs) of products to determine the full extent of emissions associated with a business. This can be expensive and time-consuming, so many businesses hire external consultants to conduct assessments and develop action plans.

A Business Matter

A new report by edenseven , Cambridge Management Consulting's sustainability sister company, reveals that FTSE 250 companies are far from achieving their net zero goals and have significant gaps in emissions reporting. According to the report, these companies emitted over 206 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (CO2e) in 2023, which is comparable to the annual emissions of 53 coal-fired power plants . Additionally, the report indicates that emissions from FTSE 250 companies increased by 7% compared to the previous year, demonstrating that business growth has outpaced effective environmental action. This lack of urgency in reducing their carbon footprint is concerning.

The report highlights that 20% of businesses failed to disclose their Scope 3 emissions for 2023. This raises questions about their alignment with the Paris Agreement and suggests that many companies are either unaware or unwilling to disclose their full emissions impact. Consequently, the 206 million tonnes CO2e figure may be an underestimate, meaning the actual problem could be much larger, putting some companies in a position where they cannot make informed and credible decisions to cut emissions. Furthermore, this lack of transparency exposes them to the risk of non-compliance with climate regulations, such as the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) , the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) , and the International Sustainability Standards Board’s (ISSB) IFRS S1 and S2 , which require comprehensive Scope 1-3 reporting and other disclosures.

The report also indicates that many FTSE 250 companies are not taking sufficient action to align their net zero goals with the Paris Agreement , which seeks to limit global warming to well below 2°C—preferably 1.5°C—compared to pre-industrial levels. A total of 41% of FTSE 250 companies have not specified a target year for achieving net zero, an increase from the 37% that lacked a net zero target the year prior. Although the number of businesses with an approved Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) net zero target rose from 4% to 14% in 2023, when considering both approved targets and those committed to developing SBTi targets, the overall increase was minimal, climbing from 20% in 2022 to just 21% in 2023. Science-based targets are essential, as they ensure that businesses decarbonise at the rate necessary to the meet the climate objectives of the Paris Agreement and achieve net zero.

In 2022, companies within the FTSE 250 that had set net zero targets, aimed for an average date of November 2043. However, in 2023, this average date shifted back by 13 months to December 2044. The slow progress of FTSE 250 companies in establishing SBTi-aligned net zero targets, coupled with the rollback of net zero dates, indicates a lack of momentum and willingness to achieve these critical climate goals.

How Cambridge MC & edenseven Can Help

Cambridge MC’s primary sustainability capabilities are located with our sister-company, edenseven , who strive to optimise the environmental potential for organisations through data driven sustainability strategies.

To simplify the process of measuring and reducing carbon emissions, edenseven has developed cero.earth , a comprehensive management tool that calculates and manages the full scope of emissions sources (scopes 1-3). Using cero.earth , businesses can visualise their emissions, identify areas for improvement, and monitor the impact of their reduction initiatives. By using cero.earth , businesses can make informed and effective decisions to help them reach net zero and comply with upcoming regulations.

There is a small window of time left to meet the Paris Agreement and minimise the worst effects of climate change.

For more information about how edenseven can help decarbonise your business, visit www.edenseven.co.uk , or learn more about cero.earth visit https://www.edenseven.co.uk/cero-earth .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Digital Horizons: How AI, IoT, and 5G are Shaping Africa's Path to Agenda 2063

Mon, 04 Dec 2023 15:18:04 GMT

Authors

The roadmap for digital transformation in Africa is full of challenges. But digital innovation is essential to foster economic equality and fulfil Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations.

Agenda 2063, a visionary strategic framework for Africa, holds immense significance for the continent's economic and social development. This ambitious plan , set forth by the African Union, aims to propel Africa into a new era of sustainable development and economic prosperity.

The realisation of Agenda 2063's aspirations is intricately tied to the role of emerging technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and 5G networks. These technologies are catalysts for transformation and hold the potential to advance the continent in many sectors, from healthcare and education to agriculture and industry.

The key factor in all of this is how. The need is apparent. Just look at the uptake in internet usage: today, those with internet access has increased nearly fifty-fold since the turn of the millennium. With the youngest population in the world —a median age of eighteen—this trend can only be expected to repeat itself across the digital world more widely. In fact, by 2025, ‘Africa’s mobile penetration is expected to reach 50 percent , or 614 million connections, with 65 percent of those connections being smartphones’.

To harness this potential fully, it is imperative to understand the regulatory and economic challenges that accompany the adoption of these transformative technologies in Africa. The responsible deployment of AI, IoT, and 5G technologies is not only an opportunity but also a social imperative and it is critical for achieving the goals set forth in Agenda 2063.

An African Tech Renaissance

In the heart of the African continent, a technological revolution has been unfolding in recent years. African countries have been steadily embracing transformative technologies, with exciting progress in the adoption of AI, IoT, and forthcoming 5G networks. South Africa has emerged as a leader in AI adoption, fostering a thriving ecosystem of AI research and start-ups across various sectors: whether it be shining examples such as LeLapa , or exciting research , the uptake has been remarkable.

The IoT landscape in Africa has also seen substantial growth, with South Africa and Kenya leading the way in implementing IoT solutions in areas such as agriculture and smart cities. Regarding the former, IoT devices such as sensors and drones are used for precision farming; these technologies enable farmers to monitor and manage crops more effectively, conserving resources and increasing productivity. In terms of the latter, the phrase ‘smart cities’ refers to the adoption of IoT technologies throughout some African cities in order to improve urban planning, traffic management, and public services. Smart city initiatives aim to enhance the quality of life for residents and make cities more sustainable.

Another key area in which IoT has sparked innovation in Africa is within conservation, in which IoT can be used to track animal movements, monitor poaching activities, and collect data for research purposes. One exciting example, a large scale conservation effort , involving the deployment of 250 sensors across 3 million hectares in Kenya, has demonstrated the immense potential of IoT in preserving the environment and its precious species. These IoT solutions facilitate real-time monitoring and data collection to ensure the future of endangered wildlife. Projects such are these are perfect use cases that demonstrate how technology can work in conjunction with the natural world, rather than against it, while also encouraging cross-border collaboration in the process.

The proliferation of IoT devices is accelerated by the gradual rollout of 5G, which provides the necessary infrastructure for seamless communication between devices. This results in a more widespread adoption of IoT applications across various sectors, while driving new digital transformation markets and investment in its own right. With improved connectivity, 5G technology promises faster and more reliable internet connectivity, which wields benefits for businesses, education, healthcare, and entertainment by providing better access to information and services, as well as emerging technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). An example of one of one such project is based in Senegal. In collaboration with FREE Senegal, ‘several schools will be connected with Fixed Wireless Access technology, and will also be provided with laptops, learning content, and teacher training to support the development of the ecosystem’. This endeavour goes far beyond the provision of high-speed internet. By equipping these schools with laptops, enriching educational content, and conducting teacher training, this initiative seeks to create a thriving ecosystem that not only empowers students with digital learning tools but also uplifts the entire community.

As well as IoT and 5G, these industries are being further benefitted by the development of AI. AI is being used to improve healthcare services throughout Africa, especially in those areas which are more remote, and thus access to medical professionals is potentially limited. AI applications can be used in this context for diagnostic tools, predictive analysis, and telemedicine. Regarding agriculture, AI can support farmers in optimising crop yields, monitor soil conditions, and manage their resources efficiently, subsequently contributing to food security and economic development. And for the African economy, AI-powered fintech solutions are helping to increase financial inclusion by providing access to banking and financial services, particularly within regions with limited access to traditional banking infrastructure.

In a broader context, by cultivating a generation of connected and educated young people, these projects all contribute to building a skilled and tech-savvy workforce, which is essential for Africa's competitiveness in the global economy. These benefits extend to sectors beyond education, including healthcare, agriculture, and governance, where digital connectivity can drive up efficiency and innovation.

There is no doubt the impact Covid-19 had on these developments, creating dramatic innovation in the adoption of digital infrastructure. It has catalysed digital development across the continent by accelerating innovation, raising awareness about the importance of connectivity and digital services, and pushing governments and businesses to invest in technology infrastructure. These changes will have a lasting impact on the continent's digital landscape, fostering more inclusive and resilient digital ecosystems in the years to come.

As our world continues to change in a post-pandemic phase, the lessons learned during those challenging times must not be forgotten—and must be used to address the economic woes that the pandemic wrought. The acceleration of digital development in Africa, born out of necessity, demonstrated the transformative potential of technology in addressing critical issues. The momentum generated by the pandemic must be kept alive to spur further innovation, expand connectivity, and bridge the digital divide in Africa.

This new era should be seen as an opportunity to build on the ecosystem created by the crisis; ensuring that digital technologies continue to play a central role in economic growth, healthcare access, education, and sustainable development across the continent. After all, analysis in the report by IFC finds that ‘Africa’s Internet economy has the potential to reach $180 billion by 2025, accounting for 5.2% of the continent’s gross domestic product (GDP)’. The resilience and adaptability displayed by African nations during the pandemic can serve as a beacon of hope for a more digitally empowered and interconnected future.

The Synergy of AI, IoT, and 5G

While all these individual technologies are latently powerful, they all influence each other. By combining all three, we can increase the strengths of each. By integrating these technologies, African nations can create solutions that address critical challenges and improve various aspects of life, maximising their ability to achieve their goals in the process.

For example, in healthcare, the combination of AI, IoT, and 5G can enable remote patient monitoring, telemedicine, and data-driven diagnostics, especially in remote or underserved areas . It's a digital transformation that ensures not only sustainable farming but also a flourishing agricultural sector. The same can be said for this combination in so many sectors, varying from healthcare to waste disposal, to diagnostics and beyond. This is something which David Joosten agrees with, arguing on Forbes that ‘AI and IoT are highly dependent on 5G to provide the data capacity to support smart manufacturing and digital supply chains and deliver emerging technologies such as AI, virtual reality and robotics’.

Many challenges still remain. Not only are there unresolved obstacles such as data privacy, cyber security, and closing the digital divide, but there is also progress to be made regarding the development of a digital infrastructure throughout Africa. While there has been some significant advancement toward this goal, some regions in Africa are still subject to stark challenges, especially due to the substantial investments needed to implement an effective network infrastructure. Furthermore, there is a need for skilled professionals who are able to develop, implement, and maintain AI, IoT, and 5G technologies. Bridging the skills gap is crucial for the successful adoption of these technologies.

Navigating the Challenges

Despite these promising developments and the exciting opportunities ahead, AI, IoT and 5G integration in Africa face several challenges and barriers, notably the digital divide.

The reality of the region needs to be understood by all parties. Africa has one of the widest digital gender gaps in the world, as well as enormous disparity throughout the continent: ‘divides in the availability of high-quality digital services persist in all [African] countries, particularly in remote and poorer subregions’ .

Addressing the digital divide is critical to ensuring that the benefits are widespread and inclusive. Digital connectivity enhances so many aspects of modern life, but its benefits are limited to the connected—which tends to be those living in cities and wealthier areas. It will take significant investment, as well proactive action by governments, to encourage ISPs to extend their networks to remote areas. Governments will need to find innovative solutions to ensure that the isolated and economically disadvantaged do not get left behind.

Finally, it is important to underscore that this challenge is achievable. By committing to affordable, accessible, and high-quality digital infrastructure and implementing educational initiatives that promote digital literacy, we can level the playing field and proceed unanimously towards Agenda 2063.

It is now up to governments, NGOs, private and public organisations, ISPs, investors and individuals to work together to seize this opportunity to bridge the digital divide, and ensure that Agenda 2063's vision becomes a reality. Africa's digital future looks bright, and with the right strategy, policy, and investment, it can become a reality that benefits all its citizens.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Unlocking the Power of Exceptional Customer Service

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 12:46:11 GMT

Authors

In the ever-evolving landscape of customer service, achieving high Customer Satisfaction and NPS ratings has become the holy grail for businesses. Simply implementing KPIs is no longer the silver bullet it was once seen as being: “Customers who have excellent experiences with brands spend 140% more ” and “Companies earning $1 billion annually can expect to earn, on average, an additional $700 million within 3 years of investing in their customer experience”. This isn’t an unnecessary add-on; it is your connection with your customer and therefore your business.

Yet, it’s not just about metrics. Today, success begins with understanding the voices of your agents and your customers: by consistently listening and investing in your team, you can create an environment where loyalty and retention flourish. We had the pleasure of talking to Simon Kissane, a customer experience expert with over 20 years’ experience in the field, about crafting excellence in the field and the future of the industry.

The High Price of Bad Customer Service

Let's not mince words – bad customer service comes at a steep cost. Just earlier this year, the UK Institute of Customer Service reported that poor customer service costs UK businesses £11.4bn a month . Yet, you don’t need me to tell you about how our opinions and loyalties to businesses can be shaped by the experiences we have. Whether over the phone, online, or in person, these interactions represent more than a quick conversation. They represent the entire business in the eyes of the customer.

Whether it's the loss of customers, damage to your brand reputation, or the direct financial implications, the consequences are dire. In this ever-connected digital age, one negative experience can quickly spread like wildfire. This isn’t to scare anyone: feedback is crucial to moving forward and progressing and learning. Yet, understanding these problems before they escalate and happen again can prevent this from happening in the first place. Customer experience is an opportunity to shine, rather than something to cower away from. The importance of delivering a memorable and positive customer experience cannot be overstated.

Crafting Coaching Excellence

To excel, it all starts with data, insights, and analytics. Armed with facts, you can't help but recognise the areas that need attention. To truly understand the dynamics at play, there's no substitute for getting out of the 'ivory tower syndrome'. That means rolling up your sleeves, sitting next to your agents, and engaging with your teams directly. It may not be the most glamourous suggestion, but hearing the queries of both your team and your customers is simply invaluable.

Engagement with your Customer Service, frontline, and back office teams must go beyond a yearly visit and should be happening regularly as part of your Voice of The Customer/Agent programmes. The landscape of each industry and the climate within which your customer and business finds itself is constantly changing. Your brand's success is intricately tied to your team's performance, making their involvement from day one absolutely vital.

Voice of the Agents

Every contact, every complaint, every interaction with your customers tells a story. It's more than just something to do until something commercial comes along. This is something our expert Simon Kissane is fiercely passionate about: “Your agents are your key to customer loyalty and retention. They represent your brand. It's vital to support them, wear their shoes and celebrate successes. Customer Experience is talked about a lot but can often get dismissed when trading is tough, or financials are off-target. But, in reality, it is linked to ROI and the bottom line and merits Executive attention. Call reduction through First Call Resolution, reducing customer complaints/compensation, and lowering churn are all outputs of great Customer Experience. Coach and develop your agents based on best practice, use data to understand their individual development needs".

Voice of the Customer

Understanding the voice of the customer goes beyond merely knowing their names and contact information; it's about delving into the "why" behind their actions. Why do they need to contact you? What challenges or issues are they facing? These questions are crucial because they unveil the very essence of your customers' needs, desires, and pain points. When you comprehend the "why" of their actions and interactions, you can tailor your products, services, and customer support to address their specific concerns. This not only boosts customer satisfaction, but also fosters loyalty and advocacy. It’s a proactive approach that enables you to anticipate and resolve issues before they become critical, achieving that essential satisfying customer experience.

Yet, deciphering the voice of the customer is a company-wide initiative that involves departments beyond sales, such as product development, customer support, and marketing, all of which can benefit from this customer-centric approach. By aligning their strategies with customer needs and preferences, these departments can collaboratively contribute to an enhanced overall customer experience, making everyone a winner.

Balancing the Bot: Navigating Automation and Human Expertise

Whilst there is no substitute for standing face to face with your team and your customers, the landscape of customer experience is being revolutionised by AI: at present “the conversational AI market is worth $10.7 B and growing at an annual rate of 22%”, predicted to be worth $29.8 billion by 2028 , $32.6 B by 2030, according to Allied Market research. The role of AI extends far beyond manual customer interactions, as it now delves into the realm of data analytics, opening up unparalleled possibilities for businesses.

If you can automate tasks and the customer gets exactly what they need, then this ultimately improves customer experience and lowers cost to serve, freeing up agent’s time for the inbound contacts that are more complex or require a human touch. However, caution is warranted, as we frequently encounter instances of automated approaches falling short of meeting customer needs, leading to frustration. This frustration can escalate to inbound customer contacts, often with the customer already in a state of irritation, putting the agent at a disadvantage.

Therefore, the crux lies in adopting a customer-centric perspective and scrutinising the customer journey from their vantage point. It's not about merely focusing on internal steps but identifying the customer's needs, recognising potential obstacles, and anticipating points of frustration. The allure of chatbots and automation, driven by promises of 90% first-call resolution, must be tempered with a critical examination of what this truly means. Does it signify that the chatbot merely responded correctly 90% of the time, or does it genuinely imply that the customer's inquiry was fully addressed?

Nevertheless, there are exciting developments in the field, such as AI-driven Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) assessment, enabling companies to measure CSAT scores for 100% of customer calls, avoiding the need for post-call surveys. Although rich verbatim comments may still be missed, this approach offers a transformative means of visualising and improving performance through alerting you of areas which need improvement. This goes beyond the obvious and severe examples: picking up on the less visible and tangible causing frustrations limits customer frustrations maintains that customer loyalty which is so important.

In essence, human agents remain irreplaceable, particularly in scenarios involving vulnerable customers, the elderly, those less tech-savvy, and complex technical inquiries in telecommunications and broadband. Handling complaints and demonstrating genuine empathy and connection are areas where human agents excel.

Yet, there is a compelling case for harnessing technology to deflect inquiries to lower cost-to-serve channels, optimise customer journeys, offer a variety of communication channels, and empower agents with the skills to address the complexities that demand a human touch. Additionally, self-service options can substantially reduce customer contacts and provide customers with an intelligent platform for managing their accounts and relationships with companies effectively. The key lies in achieving a harmonious synergy between technology and human interaction to offer customers the best of both worlds.

Among the tools available to leverage this blend of technology and human interaction, Dialpad, one of our trusted partners, stands out. With its capacity to assess Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) across 100% of calls, Dialpad offers a valuable resource for companies seeking to enhance their understanding of the customer experience.

How We Can Help

Here at Cambridge Management Consulting, we don't follow the standard playbook; we're all about making a tangible and lasting difference. Our approach is grounded in a genuine commitment to creating impactful and sustainable change. We recognise that the consulting industry can often appear rigid and predictable, but we're here to break the mould.

We're not just about problem-solving; we're all about fostering genuine transformation. While our core mission is to drive significant change within businesses, we also appreciate that businesses are made up of people. Our vision extends beyond the balance sheets and market trends. We're here to uplift the individuals who work tirelessly to drive their organisations forward.

Our hand selected team of experts are passionate about making real change and touching the lives of business in the most genuine and helpful way. This is led by industry expert Simon Kissane who has spent the last 20 years in contact centre operations and has a proven track record of lasting change and transformational results.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

The Big Chill: Liquid Cooling’s Forecast for Data Efficiency

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 14:00:29 GMT

Authors

The online world has grown to be completely entwined with our day-to-day activities. It determines how we work, communicate, play and learn. Although the rapid pace of technological change has become normalised, the statistics are still staggering: since 2010, the number of global internet users has more than doubled and internet traffic has surged a staggering 20-fold. This explosive growth in active internet users, surpassing global population growth rates by more than four times , represents a post-industrial revolution.

As we approach this new horizon, the data cloud industry is taking centre stage, continuously expanding to keep up with new developments and demand—from AI to Edge and 5G. With data centres forming the architecture of our online world, the need to maintain the IT kit in optimal conditions within these facilities is paramount .

While air cooling has been the conventional choice for many years, a new variant is emerging to meet the growing demands of the industry: liquid cooling. In simple terms, it works in a in the opposite way to a radiator , using liquid to take heat away from the servers so that they can be kept at an acceptable temperature.

But it’s not just about keeping things chill. “ Data centres account for 1% of the world’s electricity consumption and about 0.5% of CO2 emissions ” and as the industry is tasked with finding more eco-friendly solutions to manage these facilities and changes, liquid-cooling offers an exciting potential lever in the industry’s sustainability profile.

Increasing Density in the Data Cloud Industry

The data centre industry is experiencing a data deluge like never before, and the adoption of liquid cooling is a cost-effective means of tackling the sizzling heat generated by the ever increasing density of hardware.

Over the years, advancements in technology have led to the development of more powerful servers, storage systems, and GPUs, all of which generate higher levels of heat. As a result, data centres are becoming more densely packed with hardware, making it increasingly challenging to effectively cool them using traditional air-cooling methods.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI/ML) is going to drive the need for increased density inside data centres even further. Enter liquid cooling, which offers a compelling solution to the challenges of energy consumption and exciting opportunities for the industry. By intimately connecting with the hardware and whisking heat away, it ensures that data centres can increase without breaking a sweat: "the cooling fluid captures 100% of the server heat, as opposed to 30% in air-cooled solutions”. This improved capability allows data centre providers to maximise their hardware utilisation without compromising on performance or the risk of overheating.

Energy Efficiency: Liquid Cooling's Competitive Edge

One of the most significant advantages of liquid cooling over air cooling is its superior energy efficiency. Air cooling relies on fans and air circulation, which require a substantial amount of energy to maintain the required airflow. In contrast, liquid cooling systems, when properly designed and implemented, can significantly reduce energy consumption.

Liquid cooling achieves this efficiency through several mechanisms. Firstly, the high thermal conductivity of liquids ensures that heat is rapidly absorbed from the components, preventing them from overheating. Secondly, liquid cooling systems can be designed to be more precise in cooling specific areas, eliminating the need to cool an entire data centre uniformly. This targeted cooling approach saves energy by not overcooling or undercooling certain areas. Servers that are liquid cooled no longer require internal fans, so the amount of electricity consumed directly also goes down.

Furthermore, liquid cooling allows data centre facilities to operate at higher ambient temperatures, reducing the need for extensive air conditioning. This not only results in lower energy consumption but also lowers operational costs, making it a financially attractive option for data centre operators. It is also much more straightforward to utilise the heat captured in liquid cooling systems and reuse that energy in district heating networks, for example.

Green Horizons: Environmental Insights

Being conscious of your carbon footprint is now a legally binding target in the UK and the stated goal of many other countries. Traditional air-cooling methods are less efficient and rely on fans and other hardware that consume higher amounts of energy.

By transitioning to liquid cooling, data cloud facilities take steps towards a greener future. A liquid-cooled data centre's energy consumption is only about 35% of that of an equivalent-sized traditional centre. When operating with 100,000 servers, it can annually save approximately 235 million kilowatt-hours of electricity and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 200,000 tonnes.

Additionally, the heat extracted from data centre hardware can be repurposed for other applications , such as heating nearby buildings, thus maximising resource utilisation.

The future of liquid cooling in the data cloud industry is promising, driven by the industry's growing density and the remarkable energy efficiency it offers. As data centres continue to evolve and scale to meet the demands of the digital age, liquid cooling stands as a viable and sustainable solution.

By reducing energy consumption, lowering operational costs, and minimising environmental impact, liquid cooling could revolutionise the way data cloud facilities operate. As the industry increasingly adopts this innovative technology, we can expect to see more efficient and eco-friendly data centres powering the digital world of tomorrow.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Storybook Dads: Preserving Bonds with Parents in Prison

Thu, 23 Nov 2023 12:51:10 GMT

Authors

All around the world, children spend their evenings tucked up in their parents’ arms, absorbing the stories and skills that will stay with them for the rest of their lives. Bedtime stories leave many positive impacts on children; not only do they help them to fall asleep, creating fond memories along the way, but it has been ascertained that this habit helps to improve the relationship between children and their parents, alleviate their stress levels, and strengthen their grasp on language and literacy.

However, this is not the story for every child. More than 300,000 children are estimated to have at least one parent in prison in England and Wales – and when a parent is incarcerated, it is their children who are the ones missing out on crucial memories. Research from Barnardo’s , another charity which targets children affected by the imprisonment of a parent, has shown that parental imprisonment has a direct impact on children’s academic attainment, socioemotional development, and often behaviour. Storybook Dads provides the opportunity for these parents to bridge this gap and connect with their children through the magic of storytelling. “Our daughter was absolutely over the moon,” said one parent, “She has just started school and after watching her Dad she went to school happy, no tears, and feeling loved. She even recited his message.”

Who are Storybook Dads?

The prisoners are recorded reading a children’s storybook, which is then placed on a CD or DVD which is sent to their child. The book is of their choice, however Kizzy Wroath, Project Manager at Storybook Dads, shared that The Gruffalo is the most popular option. The stories are then recorded against a creative backdrop, which reinforces the uplifting nature of the project for all involved.

Recording these stories on a disk means that the child can listen to it as many times as they like, no matter the time of day. This then becomes a tangible visual reminder that they are loved and being thought of by their parent. “I love and miss Daddy so much,” said one child, “The story he did for me of Monkey Puzzle made me happy as I got to hear his voice and laugh. I listen to it every day.”

What makes Storybook Dads Special

Actively staying in touch with a parent in prison as a child is difficult. Often occurring during the school day, prison visiting times are limited, and interactions with a parent over a visiting hall table can be challenging. Adult prisoners in England and Wales are held an average of 45 miles away from their home (according to data from the Ministry of Justice) making it even more difficult to organise visits for families. Phone calls are limited by time and, particularly for young children, hard to understand. Altogether, it is a very different experience to the home life these children were accustomed to before their parent became incarcerated. Thus, not only does the digital nature of Storybook Dads’ service transcend these physical barriers, but a key benefit of reading a story specifically is that it is a familiar memory and provides comfort to the child.

“ This is a fantastic idea and really helped as my son has special needs and doesn't understand where his Dad has gone. He was so happy to get this. ”

Storybook Dads: for Parents and Children

Furthermore, it is not just the child who is benefited by Storybook Dads’ programme. Allowing an imprisoned parent to maintain contact also reduces the likelihood of them reoffending. A government-commissioned review confirmed that maintaining family ties is essential for preventing prisoners from reoffending after being released. Despite this, an expected half of all prisoners lose regular contact with their families while they are incarcerated. However, data from Storybook Dads showed that 94% of prisoners said that engaging with the project improved and enriched their relationship with their children, and 84% said that it has helped to reduce the likelihood of them re-offending.

“ Being able to do this for my kids means so much to me. I am doing a long time and there's no words to express how appreciative I am. Without this it would be so much harder. ”

The stories themselves are made extra special by the editing process, which provides further opportunities for those incarcerated. Within the Dartmoor headquarters, most stories are edited by prisoners themselves who are trained by Storybook Dads. They use software to remove mistakes and background noises, add images, music, and sound effects to enhance the stories. Since 2002, more than 900 prisoners have trained to be editors, providing them with long-lasting skills, work experience, and a better chance of employment upon release. 100% of these editors reported an improvement in computer skills, confidence, well-being, creativity, attitude, and behaviour. This has helped some to continue temporary employment upon their release, helping them to adjust to life again.

" It's nice to know that I am contributing to the quality of relationships that parents can still maintain even though they are in prison. ”

Recent data published by the Ministry of Justice shows that 57% of adult prisoners taking initial assessments had literacy levels below those expected of an 11-year-old. This is something that Storybook Dads is aware of, and the team supports those with difficulties. Furthermore, the editing process works alongside this and even enables non-readers to take part by repeating spoken words. Thus, reading a story for their children becomes a powerful motivator to practise and improve themselves, as well as their familial relationships.

Where is Storybook Dads now?

As it stands, Storybook Dads is now used in 100 UK prisons and young offender institutes. They also work in a number of Secure Training Centres and Secure Hospitals. As well as the UK, the project has globalised to being present in Poland, Denmark, Hungary, America, and Australia. In recognition of their work, they received a 2022 Centre for Social Justice Award demonstrating their impact.

Storybook Dads’ work continues to expand, introducing workshops which allow prisoners to create memories for their children. Examples include sessions to create memory books, calendars, or challenge charts for their children to receive. The gifts are fully personalised, meaning that prisoners are able to use things like their child’s favourite colours and characters. As a result, all the projects have been “truly treasured by the children”.

“ Personalising a Height Chart for my son was really rewarding and made me feel like I was able to do something lovely for him and also be part of home life. ”

Furthermore, Storybook Dads is not just limited to dads in prison, with Storybook Mums operating in female prisons. As well as this, although the scheme is primarily for parents, most prisons allow other family members to participate, including grandparents, siblings, aunts, and uncles. The aim is to help to encourage familial bonds for children, which stretch beyond immediate family.

“ My son loves seeing his uncle on screen, and this eased a prison visit as my son was able to recognise and be excited to see him. ”

How Cambridge MC is helping

For many families, these story discs are a lifeline, helping to heal bonds and build needed relationships for children. Cambridge Management Consulting is proud to support this venture through the development of a digitalised platform, aimed at making the Storybook Dads process more accessible. Taking the form of an app in order to promote Storybook Dads’ aims of proximity and repetition, this platform is being generously funded by Rahul Moodgal and Damian Mitchelmore and developed by our inhouse digital experts.

How You can help Storybook Dads

Storybook Dads relies upon charitable contributions, and each donation continues to help provide this vital service and support them to go even further.

To get involved, you can donate at this link: https://www.storybookdads.org.uk/donate/donate/5/credit-card

To find out more about what Storybook Dads does, you can watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zlq10Gj4Bk

You can also watch this TEDTalk from an ex-prisoner: https://www.ted.com/talks/alan_crickmore_how_storytelling_helps_parents_in_prison_stay_connected_to_their_kids

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Case Study: Assessing the Solar Panel Portfolio of Peterborough City Council

Tue, 07 Nov 2023 01:53:05 GMT

edenseven Supports Peterborough City Council toward their Sustainability Journey

By developing a model of their current portfolio to project a forward path.

Peterborough City Council owns a portfolio of several thousand rooftop solar panels that are used to provide renewable energy to their tenants.

In addition to providing obvious benefits in terms of a reduction in carbon emissions with clean energy, the Council also receives income through the Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) scheme. FIT was designed by government to promote the uptake of renewable and low-carbon electricity generation.

Project Overview

The Council needed to assess the current value of the portfolio and asked edenseven to develop a model to forecast the predicted electricity usage and corresponding income. The model needed to be:

Robust and auditable, following industry best practices.

Flexible, to allow for testing different scenarios and assumptions.

Provide visibility of future quarterly income and cost patterns.

Allow users with limited experience to change assumptions and assess results.

Skills & Knowledge

Understanding of solar PV installations, performance, and cost drivers.

Understanding of FIT tariff schemes and the variables that affect them (e.g. installation date, capacity, RPI).

Ability to create complex yet robust and user-friendly data models.

Ability to interact with stakeholders to ensure the model captures and reflects the needs of the Council.

Outcome & Results

Project Model : edenseven developed a model that met the Council’s expectations.
Financial Clarity : The model allowed the council to assess financial value as well as expected income and cost flows.
Adaptability : Although the initial aim was to use the model to evaluate the portfolio, its flexibility allowed it to be used as a tool to track changes on the portfolio over time.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Getting ISO Certified: The Need-to-Know about ISO

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 05:00:00 GMT

Authors

In 1947, 65 delegates from 25 countries collected to produce the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). An independent, non-governmental body, ISO came together with the intention of sharing knowledge in order to ‘support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges’ (see their official website ). Just over 70 years since publishing their first ISO standard in 1951, the ‘Standard reference temperature for industrial length measurements’, the organisation has grown exponentially to encompass 24,992 International Standards across the technology, management, and manufacturing sectors.

Cambridge Management Consulting has spent the best part of two years devoted to earning their certification across three families of these standards – namely, 9001, 14001, and 27001 – through a combined effort of meticulousness, analysis, and a commitment to constant improvement, both internally and for the benefit of our customers and clients.

In this article, we go into further detail about what ISO is and what it means to be certified, specifically the three that Cambridge MC have prioritised; why it matters to be certified; the process to getting there; and how Cambridge MC can help you to achieve the same standardisation.

What is an ISO?

As aforementioned, an ISO is one in a family of standardisations that establish a benchmark for how an organisation should operate within a particular faculty. At the core of this is ISO 9001, which is focussed on quality management; given its emphases of customer focus, top management, process transformation, and continual improvement, 9001 is the most fundamental and adaptable standard that ISO certifies (being applicable to organisations of any size) and is thus the most widely held. At the time of writing, the ISO official website boasts of over one million organisations across over 170 countries holding an ISO 9001.

However, ISO does not stop here. This page of their official website lists 17 further standards an organisation might wish to undergo, and these are just their ‘most popular’. Using those standards that we decided to adopt as examples, here is a snapshot of the range of business operations that ISO covers:

ISO 9001: To reiterate, ISO 9001 lies at the core of the ISO project. The most commonly held standard, 9001 assists a business to lay their foundational principles of quality management, which further standards, such as those listed below, can subsequently be layered upon. To summarise, using the values listed in more detail here , ISO 9001 prioritises and optimises an organisation’s customer focus, leadership, people engagement, process approach, improvement, evidence-based decision making, and relationship management.

ISO 14001 : An ever more pressing, relevant, and vital standard, ISO 14001 focuses on the environmental impact of an organisation, and how they can optimise their operations to be more sustainable. Not only is this an attractive standard to possess from a business point of view, improving the reputation of your organisation and providing a ‘competitive and financial advantage through improved efficiencies and reduced costs’ ( see this brochure on the standard ), but it also contributes to the betterment of the world and encourages the same from suppliers and clients by integrating them into your own business systems—hence Cambridge MC’s own choice to earn this certification.

ISO 27001: The most recent standard under Cambridge MC’s belt, ISO 27001 is the world’s most recognised standard for information security management systems (ISMS). In a world with increasingly frequent and prevalent cyber security risks and traps, this standard assists organisations to become equally aware of them, encouraging proactivity by identifying and addressing any chinks in an organisation’s digital armour, and thus tackling any issues before they arise. In short, ISO 27001 names its core values as risk management, cyber-resilience, and operational excellence.

These are just several of ISO’s thousands of standardisations designed to streamline the operations and running of an organisation. However, the work does not stop here: though ISO has taken the time and care to design these standards, your organisation must apply the effort to implement them. In the next couple of sections, we break down both why it is desirable to have an ISO and the method behind getting certified, from the lessons we learned going through the process.

Why we chose to get certified

As with most organisations, the choice to become ISO certified for Cambridge MC came down to one thing: risk management. At the crux of the ISO journey, particularly 9001 but also, for Cambridge MC, when it came to beginning 14001 and 27001, is identifying and addressing the potential risks to our organisation before they arise. Waiting to complete an ISO when and while risks become apparent will only cause them to exacerbate. Beginning the process well in advance allows them to be acknowledged, minimised, and resolved before they have a chance to inflict significant damage upon a business.

For our business environment, one of the most crucial factors to completing ISO 9001 was growth. Though rapidly growing in clientele and project size, Cambridge MC is still a relatively young company, and was, until not too long ago, relatively small. At this time there was less need for an established QMS system, however, as our team began to expand and multiply, we quickly recognised that it would be an essential factor by the time we could prepare the groundwork. In this way, the QMS system that was built through ISO 9001 at the time has since been able to grow and mature as the company does, expanding to incorporate aspects of the company as they come to fruition. To those start-ups or smaller organisations anticipating growth of this nature, we strongly recommend engaging with ISO 9001 sooner rather than later.

Since then, achieving 14001 and 27001 have felt like very natural steps. Beyond the reasons listed previously, earning and understanding 14001 was very close to the heart of what Cambridge MC does, given our close proximity and working relationship with our sustainability-led sister-company, edenseven . From there the decision was simple: how do we best demonstrate the principles that we promote.

With 27001, the thought process boiled down to best practice. As a company that handles large amounts of data day-to-day, without adopting an official plan to reduce and avoid security risks, we could potentially jeopardise the running of both our own company and that of our clients. With ISO 27001, we have closed-up any gaps that could allow these dangers to sneak through.

The ISO Process

Earning the ISO certification, beginning specifically with 9001, took around 18 months in total to complete. With regard to identifying and evaluating the risks that you seek to absolve through gaining the ISO, the process opened with an assessment of the scope that the ISO would cover. This does not have to be static, it can reflect the current nature of your organisation in a way that leaves room for change, growth, and maturity over time, as we experienced at Cambridge MC. This beginning stage is further supplemented by the use of an internal auditor, who assists with identifying and substantiating the scope of the project.

Once your scope is outlined, you can begin filling it in. At Cambridge MC, we conducted this by designing and building out a company manual. This initially represented and reflected the QMS principles of ISO 9001 and our assimilation of them into our working patterns, however it has since evolved to include ISO 14001 and 27001. (The latter of these also depended on the achievement of Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus externally to the ISO, making us the first organisation affiliated with Data Connectivity (our primary IT provider) to earn these certifications.)

Once this was completed, we then subscribed to a certifying body, who appointed an external auditor to check that we have since complied with ISO standards not just on paper, but in practice. They had the opportunity to delve as deep into our working operations as they please, and open up as much interpretation within our manual as they deemed appropriate, to affirm that we were performing to standard. Only then could we achieve certification.

The process does not end there. At Cambridge MC, we are not concerned with earning the ISO standardisation in order to get a certificate on our wall or a badge on our website’s homepage, and this is something that ISO itself assures. The certification is only valid for three years, at which point it will need to be renewed via another assessment; in the interim your organisation must undergo frequent surveillance to assure that you are keeping to your principles in the meantime. As such, one of the primary values promoted by the ISO and adopted proudly by Cambridge MC, is continual improvement.

At Cambridge MC, we demonstrate this through our Weekly Learning and Development (L&D) sessions – an internal seminar every Friday afternoon in which one of our clients or team members has the opportunity to educate the rest of the group on a particular topic or industry. Though optional, these sessions are strongly encouraged and give the chance for the Cambridge MC team to improve their learning and skillset outside of their particular specialism or department. Further to this, we are committed to the principles attached to our ISO certification by regularly reviewing our risk register, processes, policies, procedures, etc. The more assimilated these self-assessments become in our working patterns, the more ingrained the ISO values have become.

Notes:

[1] Given that ‘International Organization for Standardization’ translates to different acronyms in different languages, in line with their founding principles, these delegates decided to standardise it to ‘ISO’, partially derived from the Greek ‘isos’ to mean ‘equal’. ‘Whatever the country, whatever the language, we are always ISO.’

How Cambridge MC can help you

Becoming ISO certified is incredibly beneficial, if not near-essential, to the running of a successful and growth-orientated organisation. Assimilating a widely-recognised and proven standardisation system into one’s business and operating patterns not only allows for minimisation of risks and continued improvement throughout growth phases, but it also proves to current and potential clients and customers that you take these principles seriously.

For these reasons, if you are similarly interested in having your organisation become ISO certified, Cambridge Management Consulting is now equipped with the knowledge and experience to help you bring this to fruition. Please get into contact for any insight, advice, or guidance that can help you along your own journey to getting certified.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

How to Set Up Governance and Oversight for your TSA

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 18:52:39 GMT

Authors

Setting Up Your Governance

Assemble your TSA Team

TSAs involve the coordination of a complex series of workstreams, each of which contain many of their own interdependencies; thus a tight governance team and thorough delegation is key.

This team should usually include the following roles (although the nature of the M&A will dictate this):

Project Manager

Project Managers oversee the day-to-day workflow within M&A integration. They are often present throughout the entire process, beginning their job at the initial planning and due diligence phase, and operating through the integration into the post-transaction activities. As such, they are intrinsic to a successful M&A transaction.

Programme Manager

The Programme Manager is responsible for the successful delivery of a new capability and ensuring the delivery of the expected benefit. This requires the effective coordination of the projects and their interdependencies, as well as any risks or issues which may arise. In most cases, the Programme Manager will typically work full-time on the programme, as the role is crucial for creating and maintaining motivation and direction.

Throughout the programme, the Programme Manager provides the ongoing ‘health check’ of the programme by reassessing whether the projects continue to meet the programme’s objectives and continue to use available funds and resources efficiently. This requires the timely management of exceptions, slippage, and conflicting priorities.

Programme Director

Should the client have a larger business change containing multiple programmes then a Programme Director may be required to oversee and lead multiple Programme Managers. The Programme Director will be responsible for a number of related projects in order to achieve a beneficial change aligned with the strategic goals of the organisation.

The programmes will include projects likely to be highly complex in nature and will have involvement across a range of organisations/services/stakeholders at a regional, national and global level. The Programme Director will ensure that, through all relevant programme and project management staff, all projects will produce the required deliverables to within defined quality, time and cost constraints.

Solutions Architect

The role of Solutions Architect is highly recommended and involves producing the blueprints that map services and platforms into their new environment (see our previous article for further details on these). This is a key part of the process that must capture synergies and efficiencies, as well as flag up any risks or difficulties with data segregation and integration.

An effective Solutions Architect will identify potential overlaps or gaps in migrated/carved-out systems; then determining whether or not the overlapping item(s) should be retained. They can also flag potential incompatibilities between systems.

Vendor Management Team

Vendor managers monitor the relationships between the organisation and any vendors/partners attached. This includes recruiting the best available vendors, negotiating any contracts between them, and establishing standards for them.

Vendor Management is important because the relationship between an organisation and its third parties can determine their success. Thus, they need to be managed effectively in order to reduce risks such as supply chain disruption and instances of non-compliance.

Managing vendor relationships through a transition requires a thorough understanding of the vendor contracts, particularly around use restrictions and change of control clauses.

Commercial Contract Manager

The role of a Contract Manager is to review, negotiate, draft, and manage the various contracts involved through an M&A transaction; these may include the purchase agreement, confidentiality agreements, and any other legal document required for the deal.

Specifically, a Commercial Contract Manager focuses on contract agreements within a commercial or business-oriented context, such as those regarding an organisation’s revenue generation or cost control. Benefits include an assessment of contractual risks and obligations to ensure legal compliance; contractual accuracy to make sure terms and conditions are legally binding; management of post-transaction contractual obligations to provide a smooth integration; and resource allocation, which allows the in-house team to concentrate on core M&A activities.

Budget Control

Another important role within your governance team is that of the Budget Control Team. Their role is to track costs against the projection and act accordingly if they suddenly escalate to the point of threatening value creation.

There are four major cost areas to consider during a divestment:

One Time Costs : these include costs for relocation of physical assets and people, setting up payroll, severance pay, and debt servicing.

Transitional Services : these include consultant and legal fees, integration costs (including IT and HR), training, data migration, and outsourcing costs.

Dis-synergies : there are usually decreased economies of scale when a business unit is carved out, and thus the buyer must act quickly to realise anticipated synergies to counterbalance these losses.

Stranded Costs : the seller’s cost structure usually includes expenses that are linked to the operation of the divested business unit, however these cannot be easily isolated. For example, personnel that stay on the seller’s payroll while delivering services to the buyer.

Protect your Subject Matter Experts

There can also be a huge drain on Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) during the transition phase, and thus it is important not to underestimate the burden that it can place on them.

Critical staff left behind might be required to spend around 20%—but often up to 80%—of their time on transition services: some are prone to resist this, but in general most are also too busy with day-to-day work.

Thus, it is crucial to take some of the weight off of your SMEs. This is where a third party running your TSA can help. An outsourced team can take the raw data from SMEs and process it in order to save them some time that could be better spent elsewhere. They can also absorb some of the work and thus diffuse complaints down the line.

The transition phase relies on a degree of cooperation, and often goodwill, on the part of the SMEs to give up their time to help. Thus, if your Programme Manager lacks the necessary soft skills to mobilise this then there is likely to be trouble ahead.

Making Communication Part of your TSA

Migration and Communication

Both transferred staff and SMEs left behind raise communication challenges in terms of keeping systems and processes running efficiently during the fragmentation inherent in the transition period. Communication lines must exist between the relevant teams on both sides, and the groundwork should have been laid so that Programme Managers have the means to contact the right SMEs to answer their questions.

NDAs need to be signed off as soon as possible, and transferring staff and SMEs that are left behind must be in a position to share knowledge. Emails can be a particular problem due to their unofficial use as repositories of information, including passwords. Migration comes with an inherent fragmentation process that has many interdependencies; as such, transferring staff risk being cut off from many resources that they need for their job. For example, passwords are sometimes lost, and time is wasted trying to retrieve or reset them.

Controlling the Narrative

Given the costs and potential difficulties outlined thus far, we also recommend that buyers establish a central pillar of communication and negotiation throughout your TSA.

To mitigate risks to morale and loss of key talent, we recommend the use of a specially-designated communications team, who should aim to go live with a preconceived strategy as soon as the deal is announced. Their role is to launch the narrative to all stakeholders, highlighting the positive outcomes and underlying business case for the deal.

Their responsibilities are pivotal to a seamless transition, and might include:

Celebrating milestones throughout the deal.
Smoothing out any ‘Us vs Them’ mentalities that creep into the relationship between buyer and seller.
Handling doubts and anxieties that exist within the workforce prior to and after announcements of transfer and/or redundancy.
Carrying out face-to-face interviews with personnel who are transferring to discover their expectations.
Creating a positive narrative for transfer and integration.
Looking after new personnel from Day One (e.g., welcome parties, 1-on-1 check-ups, navigating integration into the new company culture).
Having a fast response to any news that could damage reputations and harm the deal.

Key Takeaway

The key takeaway from this article is to set up strong governance early and create a consistent narrative of communication throughout your acquisition or divestiture. This allows for complete clarity on both sides, as well as a united front and culture of honesty during negotiations and when problems inevitably arise.

Failure to effectively communicate why you are acquiring or divesting to your stakeholders can cause multiple issues, including low morale and loss of talent, as well as devaluing the deal in the early stages and losing momentum post-close.

Celebrating milestones and wins as well as communicating honestly with your staff will help to heal the stress the drain on your teams. Migrating staff need to be given thorough attention and there should be collaboration between your HR resources and communication team to handle this fragile process.

To find out more about our M&A services, go to our M&A homepage .

If you have a specific question or would like to talk to one of our experts, please get in touch .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Talent Pipelines: Outreach & Recruitment

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 08:55:02 GMT

Authors

Organisations wanting to improve the diversity of their hires need not only to recruit in the traditional, established ways, but to reach beyond their existing recruitment practices into the world of outreach. How much an organisation has to do of each and the balance between them is inevitably variable. But there remains relatively limited experience of effective outreach, and existing norms of recruitment are changing all the time, prompting a constant need for agility. In this, our third article on how organisations can address the ‘S’ in ESG, we address how to succeed in a complex space.

Recruitment

The internet followed by social media have been game changing in the world of recruitment. The COVID-19 pandemic has also brought change, as in-person events were replaced by online events.

1. Job advertisements and your offering to employees

We talked in the second article about how important job advertisements and your offering in terms of salary, benefits, and inclusive policies are to securing candidates, and about the way in which you deal with all applicants. Social media has given people the opportunity to talk more widely than ever before, so you need to think about what a previous applicant will say to a prospective applicant about your application process, and do everything you can to make the impression positive, even where it ended in a rejection.

2. What influences decisions to apply to your organisation

Recruitment teams are well advised to continue with events and actions they know are generating applicants. The problem is how to really ‘know’. While many organisations ask candidates how they found the vacancy, the extent to which this data is analysed varies. Even where analysis tells you that a candidate found the vacancy through X source, that does not mean that their decision to apply was exclusively generated by their exposure to X source. Perhaps they saw an advert, then attended an event, then reached out to current employees before making their decision.

So, the second recommendation would be not only to ask where your candidates heard about the vacancy, and not simply how many of the list of sources they consulted, but which and in what order. If, when you analyse this data, you see clear patterns emerging, you can get a sense of where your approach to recruitment is working well, and thus where it is important to keep investing resources. It is likeliest that applications for jobs are influenced by more than one ‘interaction’ with your organisation.

3. Re-imagining and re-inventing core recruitment activities

No matter how successful you currently are, you should always be thinking about how to improve your core recruitment activities, because it would be a mistake to imagine that what works now will still work in a year, two years, five years. As part of this, you should always be looking at emerging platforms or approaches that you might capitalise on in the competition for talent.

4. Improving applications

If you are not as heavily subscribed with applicants as you would wish to be, and feel that you are lacking quality fields repeatedly, then you must scrutinise:

How competitors recruit, and what the most successful ones do, alongside salaries and benefits.
Whether there are potential sources of recruitment you are not using.
Whether you could improve in any of the activities you are currently investing in.

5. The importance of brand perception

It is not unusual for application patterns to be skewed by brand knowledge/exposure. So always be prepared to ask how your brand is perceived. Recognising that asking this question and looking closely at areas for improvement is not just about winning business, but winning talent too. That said, there may be some differences between successfully improving brand perception among candidates, and doing the same with clients/customers.

Outreach

Successful outreach is difficult to achieve, and it is important to be prepared to expend resources that are disproportionate in strict relative terms to the gains you make.

Members of under-represented groups can lack:

Confidence and cultural capital
Connections and role models
Resources
Knowledge
Qualifications

This makes shifting the composition of your workforce incredibly challenging.

Unsurprisingly, research has shown that one-off contact with potential applicants from under-represented backgrounds is much less effective in inducing those people to move forward with an application than multiple points of contact, even more so than in the traditional world of recruitment . But it is important not to underestimate how early connections with under-represented groups should be made. You should be prepared to invest resources in work with schools/high schools, and young people’s organisations. This is because issues are deep-rooted; changing self-perception and presenting wider, attainable horizons at an early age is critical.

Some actions you can take to begin to bring about change:

Think about groups that are under-represented in your organisation, and set targets for what you want to achieve.
Create an outreach officer/team if one does not already exist; this is a long-term project.
Ensure that your marketing and communications are inclusive.
Monitor progress against targets and be prepared to change tack with your outreach strategy if you are not making progress.
Focus outreach activities with under-represented groups in mind; don’t simply adopt generic approaches.
Consider whether there are partnerships that could be established with schools, universities, and third-party organisations (e.g. Speakers for Schools, IntoUniversity, the Sutton Trust) working on social mobility and related issues to create pipelines.
Use staff pro-bono time to take part in initiatives.
Design a programme of events for school students in respect of gender and other characteristics.
Provide events and mentor potential applicants, perhaps as an add-on for some targeted participants in the already existing programmes.
Create mechanisms and programmes that ensure sustained contact with individuals and groups.

Conclusion

Investing in recruitment and outreach is crucial. Your staff are your greatest asset, and, as such, you need to be prepared to invest in maintaining the existing the pipelines, while also scanning the horizon constantly for new opportunities; and, to improve diversity, there are no quick fixes: it is essential to create further pipelines for traditionally under-represented groups.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

AIRX Signs Strategic Partnership with Cambridge Management Consulting to Break into New Markets

Thu, 21 Sep 2023 08:45:00 GMT

Press Release: AIRX Technologies and Cambridge Management Consulting are launching an innovative collaboration to open new market opportunities—helping to further expand AIRX’s growth on a global scale.

AIRX Technologies Limited (AIRX), part of Neeco Group, a global network integrator offering network connectivity & ICT solutions, has signed a strategic partnership with Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), one of Europe’s most innovative consultancies, as part of ambitious plans to form rewarding bonds with leading carriers, managed service providers, system integrators, SD-WAN and technology companies around the world.

This collaboration is designed to enhance AIRX’s sales strategy and market expansion using the global sales network and broad expertise of Cambridge MC’s senior consultants and partners.

Piyush Srivastava, founder and CEO of AIRX, said:

“ We are thrilled to announce this exciting new partnership with Cambridge MC that is set to redefine the future of AIRX. We have always been committed to delivering exceptional services to our customers. To ensure we continue to excel in this regard, we have sought the expertise of Cambridge MC, a renowned leader in sales and growth strategy consulting. We believe that this collaboration will enable us to unlock new opportunities and gain entry to an expansive network of leading telco carriers, service providers and SD-WAN companies; enabling us to expand our reach for delivering products and services across the globe. ”

Tim Passingham, founder and chairman of Cambridge MC, said:

“ We are very excited to be working with AIRX as our companies share the same values, and we are both drivers of innovation in connectivity. I am confident that our global network of sales agents, combined with our extensive experience and connections to global carriers, service providers and systems integrators, will provide a solid foundation to expand the market for their leading-edge products and services. ”

Today, AIRX is trusted by over 40% of the Global Network Service Providers (according to a 2022 report from Gartner Magic Quadrant for Network Services, Global). They proudly offer a comprehensive suite of services under a full turnkey solution, which is revolutionising the telecommunications landscape. With a foundation of industry knowledge, global market expertise, and streamlined procurement lifecycles, AIRX caters to diverse customer needs globally.

About AIRX Technologies Limited

AIRX is a ‘Global Network Integrator’ that offers network connectivity, SD-WAN, networking equipment, and professional services. Supporting leading telecommunications, SD-WAN companies, managed service providers, system integrators, and technology companies, with headquarters in the United Kingdom, AIRX provides solutions in more than 200 countries by leveraging its 1000+ trusted partners. AIRX is part of the Neeco Group, a leading provider of complex, global ICT services.

For more information visit: https://airxtechnologies.com .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Cambridge Management Consulting & NetPMD Enter JV to Innovate FTTX Networks

Wed, 13 Sep 2023 10:00:00 GMT

Press Release: The AltNet market in the UK is currently experiencing significant challenges due to the rapid increase in build costs, and the knock-on effect this has on speed to profitability.

To address these issues directly, Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), one of Europe’s most dynamic and innovative consultancies, is working with NetPMD Design & Integration (NetPMD), a market-leading global provider of FTTX Design and Integration services, to offer a flexible and cost-effective way for AltNets to manage their design and network build.

This strategic engagement will enable Service Providers and AltNets who face cost pressures to tackle these problems directly by connecting customers faster. Cambridge MC will provide network assessment, training, permitting, and project management. NetPMD will provide FTTX network design, consulting, and integration, as well as access to construction partners.

As a turnkey joint venture, it provides unparalleled flexibility by adapting to economic changes and prioritising innovative solutions that are always current with the needs and demands of the market. Cambridge MC and NetPMD have devised a novel approach to network design that targets cost efficiency, flexibility, and speed.

Cost Efficiency: Our approach can quickly identify areas for up to 30% in time saved, as well as saving around 10% on the cost of materials, and 20% on construction costs. If companies outsource different stages of a design process, they are giving themselves more points of management. Instead, by creating blueprints for the physical network infrastructure and then adopting a digital twin into the eventual as-built system, the entire process is streamlined because opportunities for increased efficiency are more easily identifiable.

Flexibility: This combined service is unique in the market due to its ability to be turned on and off according to demand. Clients can choose the capabilities of Cambridge MC and NetPMD which are most relevant to their needs.

Speed: Combining the designs and inventory management tools into a single system can save a further 10% in time , as opposed to a fragmented design process.

Mike Mason, CEO at NetPMD, said this about the new service:

“ The market as we see it today is going through significant changes. AltNets are facing different headwinds than was the case 12 months ago. Cost pressures to meet connected customer deadlines are key drivers with investors, who look to satisfy their returns. While consolidation, mergers, and acquisitions will continue, there are many that look for services to move quicker in their endeavours. Today, we are delighted to respond to their needs. ”

Tim Passingham, founder and chairman of Cambridge MC, said:

“ We are already seeing huge amounts of change in the telecommunications market and, especially for many AltNets, there will be a large amount of consolidation in the near future. Being able to offer a single, cost-effective design solution as a partnership outsource model will be extremely attractive to many of our clients. ”

About NetPMD Design & Integration

NetPMD designs, project manages and integrates fibre networks that enable smart cities to operate optimally in the modern world. They partner with community stakeholders to bring faster speeds, bigger bandwidth, and greater technology integration to whole cities, exploiting GPON and point-to-point technologies. NetPMD offers independent project management and design expertise to help you close the digital divide in your region.

As a partner to the leading companies for fibre design and integration, NetPMD pairs energy and professionalism to enable their customers to deliver projects at pace. They are trusted worldwide to deliver, bringing technology and over 100 years of design and integration expertise together.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

The Future of AI in Global Data Centres

Mon, 11 Sep 2023 12:44:45 GMT

Authors

The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Global Data Centres

In a recent article that breaks down the current trends for global data centres, CBRE, a global commercial real estate services and investment firm, concludes that the market is becoming increasingly tightened by a ‘worldwide shortage of available power’. ‘Large corporations are finding it increasingly difficult to find enough data center capacity’ and, the article warns, ‘Low supply, construction delays and power challenges are impacting all markets’. Subsequently, the impact of these obstacles causes an increase in price.

As the presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in the workplace rapidly increases, becoming as prolific in our real lives as in the work of science fiction, it will be necessary to expand the capacity of data centres to accommodate this newly burgeoning market. The CBRE articles continues: ‘The rapid growth of artificial intelligence […] is expected to drive continued strong data center demand. This will spur innovations in data center design and technology as operators aim to deliver the capacity that meets the increased power density requirements of high-performance computing.’

In this article, we will break down how this looks in the current digital climate, unpack the impact on data centres globally, and discuss what this means for the immediate future.

Types of AI Systems

As it stands, there are two primary types of AI or Machine Learning (ML) systems that we expect to exert differing, pressures on the data centre market: training engines and inference engines . These equate to different stages of the AI process: in brief, in the training phase, AI systems are fed datasets in order to learn everything required to analyse this data; this will then produce a model which is used within the inference phase to make assessments or predictions which can subsequently be translated into actionable results.

Most forms of training engine require huge amounts of computational power, and hence data centre capacity. In most cases, the physical location of the training engines is not important, so decisions on where to base such systems can be based on cost, frequently placed where electricity and operating costs are the cheapest.

Inference engines, on the other hand, can be sensitive to distance, especially when they are operating in ‘real-time’ environments which require low network latency. Examples of these are manufacturing systems used to control production lines or industrial process control systems which take inputs from Internet of Things (IoT) devices such as sensors and cameras. These systems can be much smaller than training engines, but also need to be much closer to the action, thus suiting a distributed data centre topology.

AI and Data Centre Capacity

Despite the different requirements by each stage of AI, what is becoming increasingly clear is that the overall data centre capacity needed to host such engines is expected to undergo a huge acceleration in growth. Mark Ganzi, the CEO of DigitalBridge (one of the world’s largest investors in digital infrastructure) is quoted as predicting a near-tripling in the gigawatts (GWs) required : ‘Today, public cloud, which really has been building and leasing space to the data center marketplace over the last 10 years, is about 13GW. Ultimately, to drive AI and to get networks to where we think they will, we believe the opportunity is close to 38GW.’

Given this surge, the preparations made by major data centre colocation organisations are already observable. The Financial Times has estimated that the Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (Breit) plans to inject $8bn into building new data centres, directly due to the increase in AI workloads. Similarly, Brookfield Infrastructure Partners has announced that it will own and operate one of the largest global hyperscale data center platforms in the world. Again, CEO Udhay Mathialagan attributed this decision to the impact of AI: ‘We’re definitely noticing a bit of an uptick with hyperscalers in particular and others looking at applications like AI and seeking to secure supply.’

Hyperscalers, large cloud service providers that provide computing and storage at an enterprise scale, have contributed a significant metric to the accommodations being made for the future of AI. Analysts from TD Cowen have observed that hyperscalers have already begun to pre-lease capacity 2-3 years in advance of facility delivery, an increase from the 12-18-month pre-leasing window witnessed last year. On this discrepancy, they explained: ‘In 2022, leasing prices increased due to the increased cost of building data centers. Now they are higher simply due to limited supply and high demand.’

It is worth noting that most of the growth over the next two years is expected to be in building very large sites for training engines. The wider network of smaller, distributed inference engines is likely to follow at a slightly slower pace. The data centre industry is still debating with itself how and when that will happen.

Key Takeaways

To summarise, in an industry that is already growing rapidly and materialising a great impact on our digital climate, AI stands to cement its position even further by innovating demand for data centre capacity worldwide. With this comes two prescient considerations: how the UK and Europe can capitalise in this expanding market, and how we can all work together to mitigate sustainability risks.

Regarding the former, the most immediate action the UK can take is to emulate the standard currently being set by the US. Adrian Josef, the chief data and AI officer at BT, declared in a parliamentary meeting of the Science and Technology Committee that the global tech industry is in an AI ‘arms race’. Specifically, this so-called ‘race’ pits us against the ‘Big Tech Companies’ of the US and potentially China: ‘There’s a very real risk, that unless we begin to leverage and invest and encourage our startup communities to leverage the great academic institutions that we’ve got to ensure that we have public and private sector all working together […] we in the UK could be left behind.’ At a recent conference, Jaap Zuiderveld of nVidia pointed out that the US is way ahead of the UK and Europe in building out capacity for AI, issuing a wake-up call for the data centre industry.

As countries attempt to stay ahead in this race, it is essential that we, globally, are acknowledging the environmental impact of AI, as well as the societal benefits. AI hardware frequently requires much more power than standard servers, due mostly to their use of Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). This creates a demand for higher energy density, which will necessitate the adoption of innovations such as liquid cooling in order to make energy usage more efficient—a subject we will consider in a future article.

We can Help with your Data Centre Strategy

Cambridge Management Consulting is currently working with clients on their AI and data centre strategy. There is momentum building in all sectors which, for most companies, means that there are opportunities that need to be understood and developed. The Cambridge MC team, led by Duncan Clubb, can help in what is a very fast-paced changing technology environment.

Please use the form below to get in touch with Duncan and enquire about our data centre services.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Getting enough Fibre: An Update on the Openreach Stop Sell on 5 September 2023

Wed, 30 Aug 2023 18:04:50 GMT

Authors

As announced in 2017, Openreach will completely disconnect over 10 million phone lines and broadband lines that rely on copper by the end of December 2025. For businesses, it is important to know that this applies to those lines that form the WLR (Wholesale Line Rental) product family (i.e. WLR3 and classic, ISDN 2, ISDN 30), and any broadband that is transmitted over WLR analogue lines (i.e. FTTC and any remaining SMPF ADSL/copper broadband). These will all be replaced either partially or completely with new fibre lines (FTTP, SOGEA, SOGfast), therefore removing many of the traditional services most people use to make voice-calls.

While this deadline is more than two years away, there is a more imminent date that has wide-ranging implications: Openreach is initiating a ‘ Stop Sell ’ on all WLR and related broadband products on 5 September this year—less than a week away. Given that all 10+ million phone and broadband lines must be replaced by December 2025, households and businesses run the risk of running out of time to migrate. This could lead to increased costs to migrate, not migrating to the right solution, or even loss of service.

In this article, we explain how the Stop Sell may affect your business in the short term, and what you can do to mitigate the associated risks.

How will the Stop Sell Work?

There are two main elements to Openreach’s Stop Sell happening at the same time.

The national PSTN (WLR product family) Stop Sell on 5 September will withdraw the ability for anyone to order, upgrade or move any WLR-based phone line or broadband product in advance of their national switch-off in December 2025. Anyone wanting a new service, to move services or add more capacity to an existing service will have to use a new fibre broadband service (FTTP, SOGEA, SOGFast), IP voice, or 4G/5G mobile instead.

Openreach is also taking the opportunity to withdraw all copper-based products (WLR product family and MPF products used by many other communication providers and ISPs) in areas where they are rolling out their new fibre products, FTTP, on an area-by-area basis.

This list of areas is known as the FTTP Priority Exchanges . As FTTP is being implemented in exchange areas, a Stop Sell will come into effect when FTTP coverage reaches 75% of all premises, meaning that they will no longer be able to buy any new copper-based services. 551 of these areas have been identified thus far, and some are already implementing the Stop Sell earlier than its official start date due to a high availability of FTTP. This impacts over 10% of the UK and is increasing every quarter.

If you are in one of these FTTP Priority Exchange areas, you are still able to use your existing analogue services until your Communication Provider (CP) migrates you, however you will face limitations on how you can make certain changes, such as moving home or changing suppliers. Order restrictions will also be applied in these areas which will prioritise the use of FTTP products (with certain exceptions).

Both these Stop Sells will have the most impact on service providers grounded in a strong use of regular (WLR and SMPF) phone and broadband lines, such as BT, Zen Internet, and others. However, Openreach has tried to mitigate any disruption done to these providers by spending the last few years deploying new fibre broadband services (FTTP, SOGEA, SOGFast) as alternatives to the copper-based broadband products being withdrawn.

How will you be Affected?

To reiterate, for the national Stop Sell, you will no longer be able to order, move or amend any WLR product family phone line or broadband service anywhere in the UK from 5 September 2023.

For the FTTP Priority Exchanges, once the Stop Sell goes into effect in your area, you will no longer be able to increase your supply of products compatible with copper or analogue lines, including those from services providers such as Sky and TalkTalk that use their own equipment rather than BT’s Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), nor will any additions or extensions be possible for existing copper or analogue lines. This will also create a halt to any transfers to an alternative service provider, or changes to bandwidth.

However, while it is important to be aware of supply restrictions following the Stop Sell, you should also identify all products that are impacted by the restrictions placed on these phone lines. We recommend that you have a migration plan and risk assessment in place and identify replacement services well before the 2025 PSTN switch-off.

The obvious impact is to the telecommunications industry, but there will be many other affected devices/services that are integral to the day-to-day running of certain other industries. For those operating in retail environments, these include kiosks, CCTV, and chip and pin machines. In the health and science industries, the upgrade will impact medical equipment, test labs, and telecare services. At the infrastructure level, it will affect devices used to monitor electricity, gas, and water, as well as systems used for traffic management.

How to Prepare your Business

Though the list of systems and services impacted by the Stop Sell and subsequent switch-off may seem extensive, there are a number of ways you and your organisation can prepare.

Primarily, you need to make sure that your devices are IP ready and can be transferred easily to your replacement service. If they are compatible, your new service can continue to support most services offered by your organisation, and any voice calls can be carried out through its VoIP function.

What you should note, however, is that in the event of a power-outage, your new service will be disrupted in a way that copper lines would not, thus you should consider investing in emergency battery back-up packs, or make it clear to your employees and customers throughout the transition that they may need back-up batteries or a power generator in the case of an emergency—and/or using mobile phones for voice calls.

How Cambridge Management Consulting can Help your Business

Although the PSTN switch-off will not go into complete effect for at least another two years, this does not mean your business should not act now. Openreach’s national Stop Sell will begin on 5 September 2023 and this will place certain restrictions on products and services. By starting now, your business still has time to make key decisions and considerations, and you can mitigate all of the potential risks well in advance.

If you lack the in-house expertise and knowledge for the necessary assessments and migration plans, we can help. Cambridge Management Consulting employs experts with decades of experience in senior roles in Tier 1 Telcos, AltNets, and Enterprises to help you with these very factors and considerations. Clive Quantrill , our Senior Partner for Telecoms Strategy and Transformation, is an expert in this area and works closely on projects and issues connected to the PSTN Switch-Off.

To get in contact with Clive for a consultation on how your organisation can make a seamless transition, please use the form below.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

ESG | Diversifying Hiring for Professionals

Wed, 02 Aug 2023 13:58:39 GMT

Authors

Targeting the Social in ESG - Part 2

In this, the second of our articles on the ‘S’ of ESG, we focus on how to couple increased diversity in hiring with improved organisational performance.

It is now widely known and accepted that greater diversity in the workplace is a business winner: ‘The numbers don’t lie’, wrote Jack Myers for Marketwatch in 2020, ‘Diverse workforces make businesses more money’ [1]. McKinsey’s report, ‘Delivering through Diversity’, in 2018 put stark figures on the contribution the right hires can make to businesses, both in terms of profitability and value creation [2]. In this context and in a competitive talent market, many organisations are beginning to think harder about inclusive recruitment and selection processes: does this role really require a university degree/ does the test we set disadvantage certain groups of applicants, etc.

This has translated into some progress in diversity hiring – recruiters are increasingly likely to think about job descriptions in the context of protected characteristics, for example. In annual DE&I/ESG reports on talent channels/acquisition, huge strides forward have been made in relation to gender and sexuality, and race/ethnicity, which is very encouraging, and shows the extent of goodwill and impetus in the system.

Significant Issues in DE&I

However, at the same time, there continue to be many significant issues. As mentioned in our first article , DE&I officers regularly report feeling peripheral to their organisation and speak of a failure to embed DE&I, and there is little faith among executives that their company gets recruitment of the most talented people right. Just as concerning is the fact that a recent survey found that two in five UK businesses do not collect data on the demographic composition of their workforce [3]. In another survey, only just over a half of respondents rated their recruitment and selection processes as ‘effective’ or ‘very effective’ in positively affecting diversity and inclusivity in their company’ [4]. Moreover, there is limited reporting on other things like age and disability/SPLD, and workplace returners/career changers. Even in relation to the commonly reported characteristics, data is rarely especially granular, or cross-segmented (e.g. class and gender), which is a further weakness: more female managers and CEOs is progress, but if they come predominantly from one socio-economic background or are mainly white and heterosexual, other cross-cutting aspects of diversity remain unaddressed.

So, undeniably one of the most important questions facing executives is how organisations can successfully turn the best intentions into reality in diversity recruitment and ensure performance enhancement. Below, we argue that now is the time to rethink hiring processes more systematically in response to the availability of much more data and increasingly sophisticated digital tools and AI, as well as to the rapidly changing economy and societal values of the 21st century, and new ways of working accelerated by the pandemic.

We set these out in two categories:

Advertising and Publicity
Application Process

Advertising & Publicity

The process of hiring begins at the point an organisation decides it has a need for a role, followed by how it defines it, and how it goes about advertising it. These are major elements in securing a variety of applicant backgrounds. It has long been known that the bases on which women and men apply for roles differ, with women tending to apply only if they fulfil all or almost all of the requirements. At the same time, the words used in an advertisement can be gendered, racialised, age-biased or seem to exclude people with disabilities; even if this is inadvertent, it can be very damaging. If you don’t get the field, you can’t make your best appointment.

Some obvious points to consider in the light of this:

Be clear, concise and open

Consider the picture you are presenting of your organisation; this is a sales pitch for the organisation too

Explain what you can offer, and ensure to list inclusive benefits

Stating salary has become a matter of debate. You may want to avoid a talent price war with competitors, but not disclosing salary (range) is likely to deter some candidates

Focus only on necessary skills or experience; place weight (more) heavily on transferable skills

Don’t define requirements too narrowly

Signal explicitly that you are keen to receive applications from people who have the skills you are looking for, whatever their experience

Avoid unnecessary detail

Ensure the message is inclusive for under-represented groups: e.g. look at the language you are using and get advice

Be explicit about your diversity and inclusion policies.

Explore new avenues of advertising

Consult with organisations representing under-represented groups and seek their advice about how to appeal to a wider range of applicants.

If you are recruiting a substantial intake to the same roles each year (e.g. graduate entry jobs), analyse your marketing and recruitment strategies, including types and location of recruitment event, participation

Use data analytics to examine how the careers pages of your website could work better, and which social media your applicants are using

Don’t assume everyone, or even most applicants, will pick up on your vacancy by visiting your website

Consider whether specialist programmes for targeted groups could be a good source of applications [5]

Look at both internal promotions and the full range of possible external hires

It is important not to overlook possible internal hires

Equally, competition for a role is positive, and not advertising, or relying on referrals, risks perpetuating current hiring patterns and, in worst case scenarios, nepotism.

Consider how easy you are making it for candidates to apply for the role

Many times, to the quiet fury of candidates, they are required to upload their resume and then answer the same questions long-hand all over again, for example.

If you are going to buy in IT solutions in this area, take time to look for and eradicate duplications

Are you able to offer flexible working? The options you are able to offer will affect your field just as language does.

Aim to send decisions to all your candidates, with a brief explanation of the general areas in which successful applicants were strong

Candidates cannot improve themselves if they have no sense of what they might improve on

And your brand will benefit from being one that takes the trouble at least to send someone a rejection rather than to leave them to make a judgement about how long after an application no news turns into bad news.

Your Application Process

Despite so many changes to the way we work, applying for a professional job has largely retained its traditional format. Submission of a resume and covering letter, sometimes a separate application form instead/as well is followed by some form of initial screening, often automated, and often focused on particular words and experiences. Sometimes there is a test too. Then, if people get over these hurdles, interviews are used to make final selections. The interview often remains the most important element, and many organisations give candidates multiple interviews over several days.

It has long been recognised that the problem with any selection process is the vulnerability of each of its elements to coaching (often at high financial cost), socio-economic advantage, etc.

To try and mitigate some of the effects of socio-economic and other advantage/bias, growing numbers of organisations are using platforms to provide them about contextual information about the candidates in front of them. This has been a welcome development, but while it is often helpful to outsource collating and analysing this information, it does necessitate some loss of control over data and how it is used.

Where applicant tests are concerned, many companies have also worked to find formats that are less susceptible to coaching. Unfortunately, however, this is virtually impossible to do. There are long-established problems with ‘intelligence’ or ‘IQ’ testing:

It is something that can be coached

And, despite efforts by test designers, the tests can be subject to cultural bias. Perhaps the most important point for diversity recruitment is the extent to which IQ tests can keep under-represented groups out of education and employment [6]. This is because, while they are often designed with the best intentions at heart, they tend to serve instead to perpetuate trends that already exist.

Where companies have decided to adopt a different style of test, or perhaps even a bespoke test, keeping a test secret does not level the playing field, as, except in the very first iteration, there are always people who have sat it, can re-create it or its format, and can go on to sell coaching online to those who can afford it.

As with IQ tests, companies may therefore find significant disparities when performance is segmented to identify under-represented groups: many may not have begun to analyse this because very little data that would identify such groups is usually collected about candidates at point of application.

Once a candidate gets to interview, it is their chance to answer relevant questions in person and for the interviewer/s to get a sense of them as a potential colleague (as well as for the interviewee to appraise the organisation and their would-be colleagues themselves). In a recent survey, 65% of employers regarded interviews as the most effective means of identifying the right person for a job [7].

Evidentially, this faith in interviews as a selection tool is not easy to substantiate though. In fact, despite how interviews feel to interviewers as a selection tool (there was a real person in front of me saying real things), there are many long-documented issues [8].

It would be naïve to imagine that unfairness can ever be entirely removed from any selection process, but you can attenuate its effects. The major overall message is to use all the information available to you, from the application form to the interview, holistically. Do not view each of these as hurdles on the way to interview and then place all the weight of the final decision on interview outcome.

Some obvious ways to improve processes:

Key Takeaway

All selection processes are vulnerable to being navigated most effectively by those with the cultural (and sometimes financial) capital to do so. The beginnings of the answer to how organisations can cut through the forest of cultural/financial capital to access talent lie in more nuanced, carefully researched and considered recruitment processes, not quick fixes.

The positive point is that there are now many more ways of easily gathering contextual data and analysing it, and much more research into the dynamics of under-representation. This makes it possible to envisage imminent strides forward in diversity hiring in organisations that are willing to review their processes and think imaginatively about how to assess talent and harness the potential of data and AI in the process.

In the long term, it is likely to become clear that eschewing some of the conventional wisdom about what a strong candidate should look like yields better results from the perspective of coupling diversity with performance. Organisations that are ahead of the curve in recognising this will therefore open the door to greater profitability and value creation and set the standard for their peers. More widely, this will bring dividends for society and for individuals, improving the social impact of the organisation too.

References

[1] https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-numbers-dont-lie-diverse-workforces-make-companies-more-money-2020-07-30

[2] https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/delivering-through-diversity

[3] https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/attracting-and-retaining-the-right-talent; https://www.recruiter.co.uk/news/2021/06/staffing-firms-fail-report-staff-diversity-finds-joint-rec-and-apsco-report

[4] https://uk.news.yahoo.com/uk-jobs-recruitment-diversity-inclusion-targets-missed-153007321.html

[5] Some interesting thoughts and ideas can be found at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleystahl/2020/07/21/10-steps-businesses-can-take-to-improve-diversity-and-inclusion-in-the-workforce/?sh=2ad44e25343e

[6] https://www.discovermagazine.com/mind/do-iq-tests-actually-measure-intelligence ; https://ectutoring.com/problem-with-iq-tests ; https://classroom.synonym.com/disadvantages-intelligence-testing-6381904.html ; https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/iq-tests-are-fundamentally-flawed-and-using-them-alone-to-measure-intelligence-is-a-fallacy-study-finds-8425911.html

[7] https://www.xperthr.co.uk/editors-choice/face-to-face-interviews-remain-most-popular-selection-tool/106738/

[8] http://www.nationalforum.com/Electronic%20Journal%20Volumes/Lunenburg%2C%20Fred%20C.%20The%20Interview%20as%20a%20Selection%20Device%20IJSAID%20V12%20N1%202010.pdf

[9] https://www.fastcompany.com/90369924/the-effectiveness-of-blind-recruitment

Get in Touch

We have a range of DE&I, ESG, Executive Search & Selection , and HR focussed services which can be combined in various ways to create the perfect package for your business. To speak to one of our experts, please get in touch:

Effects of Power Constraints in South Africa on Digital Transformation

Wed, 12 Jul 2023 09:03:03 GMT

Lights Out

There is no denying that South Africa’s energy situation is in a state of crisis. A nation renowned for its rich natural resources finds itself grappling with an ongoing energy shortage that poses significant challenges to economic growth and social development.

Eskom, the state electricity monopoly, is currently experiencing a severe shortage in power generation capacity. Their drastic solution is to implement a system of rotating outages known as ’load-shedding’—a final fallback to prevent grid failure. 2022 was the worst year on record with 205 days of rolling blackouts and homes and businesses going up to 10 hours a day without electricity.

Costing the economy as much as 899 million rand ($51 million) daily, a long-term solution is urgently required. And yet, with warnings of ‘a difficult winter’ ahead—filled with power outages of up to 16 hours—the situation may get worse before it improves.

South Africa’s potential for digital transformation is hindered by persistent power constraints that impede the seamless adoption and integration of digital solutions. As digital transformation emerges as a critical driver of economic growth, innovation, and competitiveness in the modern era, it will become essential to the country’s future. Curtailing that future will have a dramatic effect on the economy and the diversity of job opportunities for future generations.

Organisations are leveraging digital technologies to streamline operations, enhance customer experiences, and unlock new business opportunities. This opens endless possibilities. Under the drive for digitalisation, the cloudification of enterprises across African nations is already well underway with spending on public cloud set to triple over the next four years. Although it may be difficult to see the current situation in a positive light, there is much scope for exciting prospects that will pave the way for innovation and change.

Power to the People

Kusile power station in South Africa, one of the continent's largest coal fired power stations

South Africa has long struggled with an unreliable and constrained power supply, with regular blackouts and ‘load shedding’ becoming a common occurrence. These power constraints have significant ramifications for the digital transformation efforts of businesses and government organisations across the country. Without a stable power supply, businesses face a variety of challenges that hinder the effective implementation of digital technologies.

Below, we explain the two main barriers to digital transformation caused by power constraints.

Infrastructure

Digital transformation relies heavily on robust and consistent power infrastructure. Power outages and load shedding disrupt the operation of critical IT systems, data centres, and communication networks, leading to service disruptions and downtime. Unplanned power interruptions have massive implications for company efficiency, output and reliability; none of which are in the control of the company or its employees. The daily cost of these disruptions impede investment and large infrastructure projects, as well as severely affecting the delivery of goods and services.

Innovation

Digital transformation necessitates continuous innovation and experimentation. Power shortages limit the ability to pilot and deploy new digital solutions, as they rely on a stable and reliable power supply.

Companies may hesitate to invest in innovative technologies due to the risk of operational disruptions caused by power outages. This is particularly true in the context of education. As modes of learning continue to adapt and change, entire areas are being cut out of education opportunities available elsewhere. Furthermore, beyond e-learning, how can hypotheses and ideas be tested and grown without the right resources? This comes at a huge cost, as Chris Boshoff, Senior Product Manager for Vox, has explained: "IoT has slowly started delivering the solutions that are closing industrial, manufacturing, logistics and infrastructure gaps globally by providing the digital capabilities that society needs after having simmered on the edges of innovation and transformation for years.

“The risk of losing the functionality of IoT, owing to poor connectivity, is fundamentally inhibiting uptake and innovation in the country”, citing as an example companies that have invested in IoT-powered security systems suddenly experiencing unnecessary alarms and failures, amid connectivity failure, owing to a fault or loadshedding.

“To have to plan your research around load shedding is a unique experience which not only limits innovation, but it also limits funding which could be going elsewhere to make a difference.”

Digital transformation initiatives often rely on internet connectivity and cloud-based services. Power constraints render such systems completely inaccessible to users. This limitation is particularly detrimental to remote work arrangements and e-commerce activities, which heavily rely on a lag-free connection. Data centre providers throughout South Africa, such as African Data Centres, have been actively pursuing solutions to increase their resilience to offer network interconnect, peering, compute, storage, cloud hosting and other services during extended periods of load shedding. “Africa Data Centres standard operations include the ability to run for extended periods on generators, and to maintain these systems concurrently and continually at full availability in this configuration,” said Dr Angus Hay, General Manager at African Data Centres.

South Africa has a young demographic that is vital to its digital future

A Green Grid

While economic growth in 2023 remains flat, predicted to be 0.3% and narrowly avoiding a recession, there are many opportunities for reform and a transition to green energy.

This is driven by huge political pressure to return South Africa to its place of prominence as Africa’s most industrialised nation. The digital needs of the population may also act as a force for change, providing new opportunities for foreign investment, a fertile ground for startups, job opportunities and new consumer markets.

The demand for next generation connectivity is set to increase enormously across the continent. With the “highest percentage of people under the age of 18 in the world”, the region's digital needs and literacy will be shaped by this demographic in a way unseen previously. This provides a true demographic advantage which is unique. Africa has a large pool of tech-savvy and digitally native young individuals who are eager to embrace and adapt to new technologies. Their openness to innovation and their ability to quickly adopt digital platforms and tools create a fertile ground for the digital revolution to flourish.

Beyond these demographic foundations, there are political developments which signal opportunities for businesses. President Cyril Ramaphosa declared a state of disaster in February this year. He also appointed Kgosientsho Ramokgopa as Minister for Electricity to deal solely with the crisis. Progression to more varied sources of energy has been a political priority since 2018, with a R1.5 trillion energy plan pledged earlier this year. Recently, Minister Ramokgopa, together with Digital Council Africa, met with the leadership of the South African data-centre operator community to discuss the impact of load shedding on the sector. Juanita Clark, CEO of Digital Council Africa, said this: “We look forward to future engagement and implementation of suitable solutions to ensure that data centres are protected and availability secured.”

This diversification and political investment has the potential to radically change the current landscape, ensuring that the situation improves and South Africa becomes a hotspot for investment into renewable energy resources.

In terms of infrastructure, there are also many recent developments which are beginning to bear fruit. Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners are one of the first to invest, acquiring South African Energy IPP Mulilo Energy Holdings. If investment like this continues, it is safe to assume that the trajectory of renewable energy in South Africa will continue to rise.

Our Work in Africa

Our team is passionate about the possible developments to come in South Africa’s near future and our representatives are at top of their field.

Our plans in Africa this year include several exciting new projects and partnerships, and we are currently engaged in the following activities. Beyond various exciting possibilities of consulting, design and delivery for several networks across Africa, we see plenty of opportunities that will have positive ramifications across the economic landscape:

Since September 2022, we have led our efforts in support of various National RENs and Regional RENs in Africa. As a result, some of our consultancy services, including advanced network design and business intelligence solution development, are now included in the scope of the upcoming European Commission funded AfricaConnect 4 Programme

We will be leading an ongoing collaboration between Cambridge MC and Knowledge Consulting Limited (KCL) in Uganda. Jointly, Cambridge MC and KCL are exploring digital transformation opportunities across the African continent, with a specific focus on government funded projects, such as the World Bank’s African digital acceleration programmes

Together with our M&A team, we have recently established a collaboration with RISE, a South African-founded M&A firm based in the Netherlands. Through this collaboration we will support RISE in servicing their global clients from base camps situated in South Africa and the Netherlands, focusing on backing entrepreneurs to accelerate their businesses and scale globally.

If we can help with any aspect of your growth or digital transformation strategy in Africa, please get in touch using the form below. We have a range of services and a global network which can be combined to create the ideal approach to a specific challenge. We advise companies all over the world, across diverse sectors, helping them lay the foundation for a successful business transformation that includes technology, people, strategy and optimisation.

Co-authors Elia Tsouros, Leon Staphorst and Olivia Williams.

Selection of References

https://m.engineeringnews.co.za/print-version/iots-backbone-of-connectivity-impacted-by-loadshedding-2023-04-28#:~:text=The%20risk%20of%20losing%20the%20functionality%20of%20IoT%2C,connectivity%20failure%2C%20owing%20to%20a%20fault%20or%20loadshedding

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/juanita-clark-244b0223_forward-activity-7071781188205445120-ZHU4?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

https://www.greenpeace.org/africa/en/blogs/53187/how-the-government-eskom-can-put-an-end-to-load-shedding/

https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cloud-hosting/336800-how-south-african-data-centres-have-prepared-for-load-shedding.html

https://apnews.com/article/south-africa-power-cuts-electricity-corruption-c86b3db8bce962cd8b0fa672310d95aa

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/18/energy/ramaphosa-davos-south-africa-blackouts/index.html

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/african-gdp-growth-edge-up-2023-despite-south-africa-slide-afdb-2023-05-24/

https://www.africanews.com/2023/06/03/south-africa-power-cuts-suspended-until-further-notice-eskom//#:~:text=Power%20cuts%2C%20which%20have%20been,utility%20Eskom%20announced%20on%20Saturday

https://news.sky.com/story/south-africa-power-crisis-state-of-disaster-declared-by-president-cyril-ramaphosa-12807137#:~:text=A%20state%20of%20disaster%20has,circumstances%20call%20for%20extraordinary%20measures.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2023-03-17/south-african-electricity-minister-on-dire-situation

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EXA Infrastructure and Cambridge Management Consulting Form New Partnership to Create Access to New Markets

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 08:00:00 GMT

Press Release: EXA Infrastructure and Cambridge Management Consulting Form New Partnership to Create Access to New Markets

PRESS RELEASE - 4 JULY 2023

LONDON, UK, 04 July 2023 – EXA Infrastructure , the largest dedicated digital infrastructure platform connecting Europe and North America, today announces it has partnered with Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) as it continues to grow its Channel and Partner ecosystem.

The partnership will bring together EXA’s award-winning network and Cambridge MC’s leading telecom experts who partner with public and private sector companies to support their digital transformation.

“ We’re delighted to announce this new partnership with Cambridge MC. Their expertise in delivering complex network transformations for enterprise and government customers will extend EXA’s reach to new markets and opportunities, ” EXA Infrastructure, Chief Commercial Officer, Nicholas Collins said. “ Partnerships are important to us at EXA and we are excited about the opportunity to work alongside Cambridge MC and their team of global experts. ”

This partnership is the latest addition to EXA’s Channel and Partner ecosystem which will comprise a hand-selected portfolio of strategic partners.

Cambridge Management Consulting, Founder and Chairman, Tim Passingham said: “ Our global team of consultants are highly experienced and experts at helping companies scale through effective channel partnership programs. From concept through to execution, we will be using our broad communications industry experience to support EXA as they accelerate and expand their reach to the market, leveraging the incredible portfolio of services they have built and continue to develop. ”

About EXA Infrastructure

Headquartered in London, UK, EXA Infrastructure is the largest dedicated digital infrastructure platform connecting Europe and North America and owns 125,000 kilometres of fibre network across 34 countries. EXA’s network connects 300 cities and offers 13Tier 3-equivalent data centres, with sub-sea routes that include three transatlantic cables, one the lowest latency link between Europe and North America. EXA is wholly owned by I Squared Capital. For more information, see exainfra.net

Media Contacts for EXA Infrastructure:

Alana Foster

EXA Infrastructure

alana.foster@exainfra.net

Steve Earl and Jon Rhodes

BOLDT

steve.earl@boldtpartners.com

jon.rhodes@boldtpartners.com

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 140 consultants working on projects in 18 countries.

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com

Media Contact for Cambridge MC:

Stuart Curzon
Chief Commercial Officer

+44 (0)1223 750 335
scurzon@cambridgemc.com

The Importance of Due Diligence and Organisational Clarity in Divestitures

Tue, 06 Jun 2023 13:36:13 GMT

Authors

Part 2 in a 6-part Series on Transition Service Agreements and Divestitures

The Detail Is in Your Diligence

The most important thing to take into consideration when planning or preparing for a divestiture, carve-out, or acquisition is due diligence. In other words, you will maximise the capabilities and efficiency of a TSA by starting with a thorough and detailed understanding of your company, strategy, and what you want out of the end result. This works both ways: sellers and buyers both must share an awareness of their business in order to calculate the real cost of the deal and realise potential value synergies.

This knowledge should extend to the TSA itself. For example, it may not be necessary to have specific SLA levels included in the TSA because in certain outsourcing scenarios it might be more practical for the seller to monitor and report service level metrics for the buyer. Conversely, using vague statements like ‘commercially reasonable’ or ‘best commercial effort’ should be avoided as these are ambiguous and will often lead to a clash of expectations, which will lead to delays, etc.

S ome parts of the TSA will necessarily require looser expression because those details cannot be worked out just yet and therefore will evolve with the transition. Because different elements of your TSA might be tight or loose, we recommend that you use experienced consultants and work closely with a legal team to draft an agreement that is fit-for-purpose.

In complex separations you may decide to use specific TSA Service Schedules to cover areas such as IT and HR. In cross-border M&A, different TSA schedules would be required for different geographic locations. Overall, it is crucial to have a clear image of your TSA before you jump into it.

Chasing Waterfalls

Once you have this image in mind, the next step is to consider your timeline. At Cambridge MC, we recommend you adopt a Waterfall and Agile approach to your TSA, prioritising frequent opportunities for review. Rather than trying to tackle the entire migration at once, plan for tranches for systems migration. This lowers the risk and allows both parties to regroup and evaluate success before moving on—making changes between phases to deal with any unforeseen issues.

Transferring employees

Proper due diligence and planning allows for onboarding and payroll to be set up by HR. Payroll management is complicated for transferred staff and often information gets lost in the process. You should give yourself an appropriate window to deal with these issues and learn from your mistakes.

Know Your End-state

If you don’t have a clear view of what the end-state looks like, you will make the wrong decisions during TSA negotiations and those mistakes will be compounded in the execution phase. This also means knowing what value drivers are in the deal. These drivers should determine your strategy pre- and post-close.

The end-state also includes knowing which personnel are critical to the acquisition and how they will integrate into your teams and culture .

Once your end-state is clear, the next natural step is to outline your exit plan and ensure it supports the blueprint and strategic goals of your end-state. It is useful to predict micro and macro market changes that might impact the integration and the first 6 months post-separation.

Make sure to budget the cost of this exit, and assign resources as soon as possible after the close—any delays may prolong the duration.

Blueprints for Success

All of these aspects can be condensed into a really detailed blueprint , a high-level document which provides a scoping of programme deliverables against the TSA.

Primarily, the purpose of a blueprint is to provide a comprehensive overview of projects and benefits for the Programme Director, so that she/he can create work steams to move those requirements toward a solution. The blueprint will also provide further clarity of TSA outcomes to ensure that there is an understanding by all parties involved.

Blueprints should be as agnostic as possible so that they do not tie the hands of downstream delivery teams, with the caveat being that solutions must remain in the boundary of the blueprint and therefore aligned to the TSA.

Programmes without blueprints are at risk of improvising as they go and thus are likely to encounter unexpected obstacles without the funding or personnel to pick up the pieces.

Each situation is unique and therefore a bespoke blueprint must be created for each client programme.

In general, the blueprint is based on Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) framework with commentary on the POTI (Process, Organisation, Tools and Information) for the ‘as-is’ and ‘to-be’ states.

What to Include in a Blueprint

The benefits in a merger, acquisition, or a divestment are not as deeply defined in the blueprint as they would be in other programme types and thus the benefits will differ depending on whether it is buyer- or seller-sponsored.

For example, a potential benefit of a seller-sponsored blueprint could be as simple as divesting the company, its technology, information, and organisation to the buying company; a buyer-sponsored blueprint, on the other hand, will want more focus on the amount of integration or balance going into the parent/standalone company and where rationalisation of systems can be achieved for greater efficiencies.

It is highly beneficial to incorporate a RACI Matrix (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) in the blueprint alongside the documented activities to ensure that the PMO is fully aware of who is doing what. All too often, programmes have black holes where nobody picks up pieces of work, and thus including a RACI Matrix will avoid the finger-pointing between buyer and seller.

It is also essential to define each of the POTI areas so that the PMO is aware of the requirements and solution roadmap for delivery. It is critical that the Blueprint defines all interdependencies across projects so that the PMO can interface them to create the overall programme plan to closure.

The different POTI areas are as follows:

Process: The processing of transforming input data into the required defined output data and format

Organisation: The people inputting, operating, or receiving output from the process

Tools: The infrastructure providing the processing and storage to which the organisation interfaces

Information: The input data to be transformed into the required output by the process

Key Takeaway

If there is anything to take away from this article it’s to do the lion’s share of the planning before initiating the TSA in order to avoid un-funded obstacles down the line. This means constructing a detailed blueprint which takes into account both the buyer's and seller’s needs, business plans, and what they seek to gain from the merger, acquisition, or divestiture.

In other words, though it may take more time and effort to cover all these details at the beginning, it will avoid so much work and costly delays throughout the process.

Get in Touch

If you would like to find out more about how we can help with any stage of due diligence, drafting your TSA and/or blueprints, as well as our Project Management and PMO as-a-Service, get in touch below.

Targeting the Social in ESG

Thu, 01 Jun 2023 13:36:07 GMT

Authors

What is ESG?

ESG is often misunderstood or not understood in depth. It is commonly associated with ‘business and the environment’ (as well as being a growing concern in financial investment and the public sector) and is sometimes considered as meaning the same as ‘sustainability’ or ‘net zero’. These terms are sometimes used interchangeably (even though they differ in very important ways).

But while the three parts of ESG—Environmental, Social, and Governance—are distinct from one another, they are also interdependent.

In simple terms, ESG is a framework that is embedded into an organisation to create a paradigmatic shift towards a stakeholder-centric approach. The fundamental belief it represents is that ‘environment’ is only one pillar of three that determine the overall commitment of an organisation to sustainable outcomes that influence individuals, society and the planet.

Some examples of the issues that fall under each ESG pillar are given below:

Environmental

• Climate Change

• Decarbonisation

• Water pollution, wastage and scarcity

• Air pollution

• Deforestation

Social

• Mental health at work

• Diversity and Inclusion

• Relation to local communities

• Workplace culture

• Supply chain management

Governance

• Makeup of the board

• Strategy and goals

• Political ties and lobbying

• Choice of companies for tender

• Ethics and values

In this introductory article (the first part of a series) we focus on the ‘Social’ pillar.

The impact of ESG on our perception of 'good' companies

The three pillars of ESG: ENVIRONMENT, SOCIAL & GOVERNANCE

Over the last two decades, climate change, environmental concerns and sustainability have become major issues in public and corporate discourse. The imperative is clear: climate change is already upon us and having a major and growing impact on the lives we lead, so we must do something urgently.

Everyone—individuals, government and all organisations, private or public—has an obligation to try to mitigate, and in some cases reverse, developing problems. This is not just a ‘nice to have’ or the right thing for the planet and the people on it, it is fundamental to business success.

In his 2022 ‘Letter to CEOs’, which has become a keenly anticipated annual event, Larry Fink of Blackrock wrote,

“Most stakeholders—from shareholders, to employees, to customers, to communities, and regulators—now expect companies to play a role in decarbonizing the global economy. Few things will impact capital allocation decisions—and thereby the long-term value of your company—more than how effectively you navigate the global energy transition in the years ahead.” [1]

As head of a global investment management and financial services business, Fink has had one succinct message since 2020: "climate risk is investment risk". But of course, it is not just investment risk. All organisations, of whatever type, must make changes to what they are doing if they are to survive, and if we are to survive. The biggest risks do not therefore come from acting on sustainability, but from a failure to act. When a business chooses to ignore climate and sustainability or fails to adapt, its future is in peril. In this way, the environmental importance of ESG has broken like a wave over all of us.

The focus on environmental concerns has coincided with, and helped to drive, another fundamental change: in the same way as most would acknowledge that government should be a force for good rather than a necessary evil, so now the expectation is that all organisations act as forces for good and demonstrate how exactly they are doing that.

In other words, the tectonic plates of cultural expectations have shifted. This is partly generational: data currently available suggests that GenX are much more likely to remain liberal as they age than their forbears, and that they and their successors (Millennials, GenZ, etc.) want business to have a function beyond profit. [2]

Leaders and boards can find themselves caught in the crossfire of societal and employee expectations, and the need to achieve the fundamental objectives of the organisation, whether that is profit or something else.

How can they square the circle of succeeding on one without sacrificing the other, while at the same time remaining compliant with the law, regulations, KPIs and the fundamentals of good governance?

The good news is that it is becoming increasingly clear that a well-devised, focussed sustainability strategy and delivery plan can greatly improve profitability and create market advantage compared to competitors.

In this series of articles, we focus on how businesses can successfully address the key aspects of the ‘S’ in ESG, and how we at Cambridge Management Consulting can help you do this.

How to focus on the S in ESG

The changes to public expectations, and the challenge and opportunity of squaring the circle, extend inevitably to the ‘social’ side of ESG, which has previously received less comprehensive attention than its ‘E’ counterpart.

Notable examples of the ‘social’ side of ESG in action are the growing emphasis on the importance of diversity hiring and employee wellbeing, as well as on things like social impact. As with the ‘E’ side of ESG and the increase in appointments relating to sustainability, this has led to the creation in many organisations of the role of Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I), or of ESG more broadly, and to the production of annual DE&I reports. It is a world in which no one wants to be left behind, and in which businesses and other organisations must display their credentials.

It is important to note that things are moving fast, and we have already seen significant progress on the social side of ESG. For example, many organisations have invested heavily in employee wellbeing programmes (including mental health), in mentoring, and in creating supportive platforms for traditionally under-represented groups. Furthermore, many are aware that greater diversity is good for profits.

This has led to some positive results, with many DE&I reports indicating rising ethnic and gender diversity. For example, organisations are also beginning to think harder about inclusive recruitment and selection processes: does this role really require a university degree; does the test we set disadvantage certain groups of applicants, etc.?

And, with some notable exceptions, conversations are being had with workforces about the balance between online, hybrid and in-office work. Similarly, in another direction, supply chains are being increasingly scrutinised for things like child labour, exploitation and poor working conditions.

Organisations are recognising that they need to have a positive impact on society and are taking action to realise that goal.

However, at the same time, there continue to be many significant issues. If we look as an example at the DE&I side of the ‘S’, DE&I officers regularly report feeling peripheral to their organisation and speak of a failure truly to embed DE&I, feeling almost as though the appointment of a DE&I officer tells management that it has discharged its duty. [3]

At the same time, Scott Keller’s work indicates that only 18% of executives in Fortune 500 companies believe their company gets recruitment of the most talented people right, and a recent survey found that two in five UK businesses do not collect data on the demographic composition of their workforce. [4] In another survey, only just over a half of respondents rated their recruitment and selection processes as ‘effective’ or ‘very effective’ in positively affecting diversity and inclusivity in their company’. [5]

Moreover, there is limited reporting on things like age and disability/SPLD (often difficult to do within legislative frameworks, but not impossible), and workplace returners (e.g., those who have taken time out of the workplace to fulfil caring/parenting roles). Even in relation to the commonly reported characteristics, data is rarely especially granular, or cross-segmented (e.g., class and gender), which is a further weakness. More female managers and CEOs is progress, but if they come predominantly from one socio-economic background or are mainly white and heterosexual, other cross-cutting aspects of diversity remain unaddressed.

This is only one aspect of the ‘S’ and demonstrates how quickly things are moving and how much of a challenge organisations face. It may not be long before ‘diversity-washing’ becomes as common a term as ‘greenwashing’ to signal real failures to achieve anything more than superficial change. [6]

No one wants to have to bring a damaged brand back from the brink, so many boards are beginning to share concerns about their performance in this area, and they are now trying to step up efforts.

How Cambridge MC can help your organisation with DE&I

Leaders and boards trying to grapple with all this would be forgiven for thinking that they are caught in a storm trying to get to an unclear destination with a spinning compass. But this does not need to be the case. At Cambridge Management Consulting we have developed a model that enables both a clear and holistic definition of the ‘S’ in ESG, and an effective and systematic approach to each element.

As the diagram indicates, at the core is organisational culture:

How does the organisation see itself?
What aspects of its culture need overhaul?
What behaviours and attitudes does it embody?
What is prioritised and how is that decided?
How would someone describe the organisation (and brand) from within and outside?
Where does it sit in its context – how does it differ culturally and reputationally from others in the same business area?
Has any change occurred and, if so, what was its impact?

Redefining organisational culture from the inside out is a difficult, costly and not immediately impactful way for those organisations to make progress on the social side of ESG. What organisations can and must do is embed this into the wider strategy at C-Suite level, before looking at specific ways to implement the strategy.

What the sections in the diagram indicate is that a series of practical, individual and, to some extent compartmentalised, steps that can be taken initially to work towards specific goals. Each can be defined one at a time, keeping a watchful eye on the overall coherence and alignment with strategy.

It is crucial throughout to pay attention to what the data indicates in terms of strengths and weaknesses in relation to priorities. You cannot improve your diversity recruitment, for example, without understanding where specifically your talent pipeline is blocked and taking targeted action to address that. You can adopt any number of wellbeing schemes to address stress, burnout and retention issues, but if your office culture at a local level is toxic, you are destined to fail.

You can specify rules for your suppliers to follow, but if there is no formal scrutiny, you cannot be sure that the vision is being realised in practice. That does not mean that you cannot make a very positive and impactful start in these areas—it is key that you do this. In due course, though, it will need to be accompanied by other actions to deliver its maximum benefit. And you need to have a plan for that.

Key Takeaways

There are few quick fixes, but taking a stepwise approach is likely to generate real results.

Having a keen sense of the overall picture in relation to the wider organisational strategy is also key to begin to remove the silos that tend to prevail in many businesses.

Such an approach is also much more likely to open the door to greater profitability/value creation, squaring that elusive circle, and allowing you to set the standard and pace for your peers.

In the following series of articles, we will discuss each of the major categories and suggest some of the actions that are likely to be effective, based on an ever-growing body of research.

edenseven

If you are struggling with the ‘E’ in ESG, edenseven , Cambridge Management Consulting’s sustainability sister company, works with a range of organisations across differing sectors to support in the rapid decarbonisation of their operations and the services they provide to their customers.

Their proven record of delivery in the space shows that ESG offers a wealth of opportunities for companies to realise.

About the author

Dr Caroline Burt has worked in business, higher education and the public sector, and has many years of experience in recruitment and selection. She is an expert on diversity recruitment. She has transformed admissions at Pembroke College as Director of Admissions and produced the most diverse intake in the College’s history. This has been based on a data-driven approach and a collaborative working model. She also has executive education and experience in mentoring and leadership development and has developed an innovative leadership development programme for undergraduates.

As a non-executive director on two boards, she has been a member of Regulation and ARAC committees and chaired the Remuneration Committee of Qualifications Wales where she made reforms to the CEO succession plan and the Board Chair’s appraisal process. She currently serves on the Independent Welsh Pay Review Body (IWPRB), which is responsible for making recommendations on schoolteachers’ pay and conditions to the Welsh Government. She is an Associate Partner at Cambridge Management Consulting, with expertise on the people, recruitment and diversity side, and on higher education.

References

[1] https://www.blackrock.com/corporate/investor-relations/larry-fink-ceo-letter

[2] https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelstone/2021/05/18/gen-z-they-crave-stability-and-trust-so-give-it-to-them/?sh=68389338594a ; https://www.kornferry.com/insights/this-week-in-leadership/millennials-purpose-generation ; https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/10/gen-x-politics-explained-republicans.html ; https://www.ft.com/content/c361e372-769e-45cd-a063-f5c0a7767cf4

[3] https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/elevate-diversity-equity-inclusion-work-organization/

[4] https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/people-and-organizational-performance/our-insights/attracting-and-retaining-the-right-talent ; https://www.recruiter.co.uk/news/2021/06/staffing-firms-fail-report-staff-diversity-finds-joint-rec-and-apsco-report

[5] https://uk.news.yahoo.com/uk-jobs-recruitment-diversity-inclusion-targets-missed-153007321.html

[6] https://www.viridor.co.uk/news-and-insights/wash-rinse-and-repeat-greenwashing-on-the-rise/ ; https://www.businessinsider.com/diversity-washing-greenwashing-george-floyd-corporations-black-lives-matter-2021-1?r=US&IR=T

Mergers and Acquisitions: What to Know before Starting a TSA

Tue, 16 May 2023 13:36:11 GMT

Authors

Part 1 in a 6-part Series on Transition Service Agreements and Divestitures

Mergers and Acquisitions after Covid-19: Where Are We Now?

It is undeniable that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a major influence on the business sector; between disruptions in the supply chain, economic troughs, and a lingering switch to hybrid working, no organisation has been untouched by its impact.

The field of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) is no different: though 2021 saw more than $5 trillion in global volume, marking a record year for M&A and a more-than impressive rebound from the pandemic, 2022 did not achieve the same capacity for growth. Though the year started well, it was met with a quick plateau and ended up falling short of its prior benchmark due to a number of factors, including stock market volatility, soaring inflation, supply chain issues, and increased borrowing costs.

As a consequence, there has been a growing trend of divestitures and carve-outs caused by the resulting economic pressures. Companies are more-often opting to realign and consolidate their priorities and concentrate on core business units and areas of profitability.

This flatline is not completely pessimistic, however. Though an economic downturn such as this does create many challenges and higher risks, there is also plenty of room for exciting opportunities. For example, the risks involved give both buyers and sellers a reason to invest in thorough due diligence. In the case of divestitures, this includes a robust Transition Service Agreement (TSA) that supports a realistic transition period and a clear deadline for exit.

This article comprises one of six posts designed to provide and outline guidance for constructing and achieving a holistic TSA for your organisation.

What Are the Advantages of a TSA?

A TSA is a legally binding document that sets out the terms for a seller to continue running or supporting a purchased business unit during a transition phase. It then governs this transition period from financial close to separation, a period which can vary but often lasts for around six months (although up to a year is not uncommon).

The transition phase gives the buyer time to align and integrate the new business unit with their operations, including resolution of staffing and resourcing issues.

The main benefit of a TSA is its speed, accelerating the negotiation process without waiting for a buyer to assume full responsibility for the chosen business unit. This assures a quick resolution and efficient financial close during the transition.

While there may be some costs associated with implementing a TSA, the benefits usually far outweigh these costs in the long run.

TSAs Must also Be Managed Effectively

Although TSAs are the most efficient and rounded way of resolving a divestiture, they are not without their challenges. It is useful to understand these complexities and manage them with foresight to prevent delays and overspend.

It is useful to split these challenges into those affecting the seller and those impacting the buyer.

Not only does the seller have to devote a wealth of internal resources to the TSA during the process, but they are contractually linked to the buyer after its completion. This means that they could remain responsible for any employees that are no longer a part of their own team. This also includes certain accounting challenges, which compound throughout the transition but do not necessarily end upon its fruition.

Turning to the buyer, one of their biggest challenges could be a lack of flexibility during the process. For example, they might not inherit complete control over their new employees, and might have to rely on the seller to take responsibility for the hiring of new positions.

Overall, this can lead to a sense of confusion for both parties as to where the boundaries exist between their respective organisations. Because of this, TSAs are most often implemented as a last resort, which only exacerbates stress, costs, and tension in a relationship that will only continue beyond its completion.

How to Create a Holistic TSA

At Cambridge Management Consulting, our biggest piece of advice for the post-close transition is to start early in order to ascertain whether a TSA is required—as careful and thorough consideration and preparation of all factors is crucial to achieving a holistic TSA.

Due diligence should lead straight into these considerations, and the pre-close teams should hand over any information to the relevant governance office for the transition phase.

Managing a shorter TSA process is a significant factor in controlling costs. Both parties will be keen to avoid a drawn-out transition phase because this eats into value-creation for the buyer and often affects day-to-day operations for the seller—as well as being a huge drain on subject matter experts.

Delegation is also key: buyers should consider out-sourcing administration of services to a trusted third-party if this will shorten the duration of the TSA and save money in the long term.

This is where Cambridge MC is here to help. In the following articles outlining our approach to M&A services, we provide keen and detailed advice on how to construct a properly holistic TSA, covered in these five main areas:

How to achieve organisational clarity: to properly understand the inner working of your TSA, including timelines, exit strategies, and how to achieve clear phrasing and detail
The importance of governance and communication: the different roles required to execute a holistic TSA and how to achieve proper communication and cooperation between them
Vendors and Contracts: the different stages involved with vendors and contract management, as well as clarifying the different types of vendor
Culture and People: how to manage the minutiae and maintain the morale of employees throughout the transition
Managing risk: the different issues and conflicts that might arise throughout a TSA, and the key points for mitigating such concerns

Get in Touch

Do Universities Need To Be Fundamentally Re-imagined For The 21st Century?

Mon, 01 May 2023 13:36:09 GMT

Authors

In the second half of the 20th century and the early years of the 21st, higher education dramatically expanded in many countries, extending the prospect of a college education to increasing numbers of students from a wider array of backgrounds.[1]

Here, we look at the current situation in two major providers of higher education, the US and the UK, to draw some conclusions about how universities can (re-)position themselves for success in a climate that is much less favourable than it was when expansion began, and in which the sector is under significant financial strain.

Current Challenges

The United States

In the US, college enrolments moved into reverse in 2010, falling by an average of 1% per year since then, dramatically affecting tuition fee income, which represents the largest portion of university revenues.[2]

This fall in overall student numbers was despite an increasing US population and a rise in international students studying in the US.[3] This pain, though, has not been evenly distributed.[4] In the US, elite institutions have been largely unaffected (quite the opposite in fact), but smaller private colleges in particular have seen marked declines. A number have already folded (861 between 2004 and 2022 to be precise)[5] and some have merged in order to survive.

The forecast for others looks perilous.[6] The present outlook is not promising unless enrolments begin to increase again. Yet, state funding is now significantly lower than it was before the Great Recession and shows no sign of increasing significantly any time soon.[7] The situation is worse in some states than in others, partly because funding reductions from 2008 did not affect all states equally; for example, a number of southern states were disproportionately affected. While the overall average reduction in state funding per student between 2008 and 2018 was 13%, it was above 30% in Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma.[8] To put this into perspective, at public universities, state funding covers around 50% of teaching costs.[9] Colleges have tried to compensate for declining government income by reducing staffing and restricting the programmes and services on offer, but there is now arguably little left to cut.

With concurrent increases in federal government support for individual students not having kept pace with significant rises in tuition fees, a fee ceiling has arguably been reached. Furthermore, the scale of fee rises has led to changes in the way students approach university applications, with the recent trend being for students to set their sights on a smaller number of elite institutions.[10] If you are going to pay more, you might as well aim for a better school with better career outcomes.

One recent survey put the difference in preference for a more expensive university with a good reputation, compared with going to a cheaper institution with a lesser reputation, at over ten percentage points for both prospective students and parents.[11] As some universities have pulled ahead in the enrolments game, opportunities have inevitably declined for those students with less money and capacity to travel out of state to university. General perceptions of the financial inaccessibility of a college education came out in a recent survey as the top reason why people decided not to go to college/complete their degree.[12]

The new race funded by debt

In order to try to succeed in a challenging environment, many universities in the US have embarked on costly infrastructure projects, creating something of an arms race in facilities. To put figures on this, between 2000 and 2010-11, the aggregate capital spend on new facilities was up by over 100%, at more than $11bn per year in 2010 and 2011.[13]

A report by EY-Parthenon noted that US HEI long-term debt in 2018 stood at almost $300bn, which represented an increase of 36% since 2011, dramatically at odds with the overall pattern of enrolments.[14] The same report showed that total debt was roughly equally divided between public and private institutions, despite public institutions accounting for around three quarters of total enrolments. In 2023, College Values Online reported on 30 US colleges that had changed a lot in the last five years, showing that in the vast majority of cases infrastructural improvements to academic and other facilities had been core to their approach. Aside from COVID-19-related measures, this was the stand-out takeaway of the summary. This is not to say that other things had not been done—several had increased the number of programmes on offer, improved resources devoted to student wellbeing, generated partnerships with businesses, and focussed on innovation and entrepreneurialism—but the extent to which colleges were looking to improved facilities to appeal to potential applicants was striking.[15] For those without strong endowments or public funding, this is a high-stakes approach, making failure and insolvency likely bedfellows.

The Private Equity effect

A further trend in the US has seen private equity firms acquiring universities. In 2018, an article in The Review of Financial Studies reported on 88 private equity deals involving 994 private institutions, showing that this led to increases in tuition fees and per-student debt.[16] This was coupled with lower rates of graduation, lower educational inputs, lower loan repayment rates and lower earnings among graduates, the latter possibly explained at least in part by students who would otherwise have attended community colleges being recruited to universities. In other words, there was a trade-off between value creation for the firm and value creation for the institution, particularly its students, in which the latter were the losers.

Private equity-owned institutions were also better at accessing government aid after acquisition and raising tuition fees quickly when government loan limits increased. There was a correlation between higher enrolment and an increased spend on marketing, with private equity-owned colleges employing twice as many ‘sales’ staff than other private colleges. As a result, the ratio of faculty to students and spend on tuition declined significantly following acquisition. Going forward, private equity might save struggling institutions, but the cost to students in terms of educational inputs and outcomes is likely to be high.

The United Kingdom

In the UK, private universities do not exist in the same way as in the US, and different arrangements are in place for each of the devolved nations. In England, central government funding has declined sharply in the last decade, and across the UK it was at its lowest point ever in 2021-22, according to Universities UK.[17] More widely, UK university funding is low relative to many countries: in fact, spending on tertiary education is the lowest among OECD countries. Tuition fees are also high, and only 20% of university spend is on R&D compared with an OECD average of 29%.[18] Russell Group (research intensive) universities indicate that they currently have a deficit of £1,750 per student, with this set to increase to £4,000 by 2024-25.[19]

The situation has been made particularly difficult by the marketisation of higher education in the last decade, in which caps on student numbers were removed as individual loans to students replaced government grants to universities. Already under strain, universities were forced to compete for students, with some, as in the US, investing heavily in expansion projects, especially infrastructural, creating high levels of debt in the sector.[20] In the same way as across the Atlantic, this debt could only be managed if the institution won, and continued to win, in the battle to recruit and retain students, even before COVID-19. While, unlike the US, numbers of UK enrolments have continued to increase, some universities have begun to lose applicants to competitors. In 2023, the University of East Anglia (UEA), announced a major projected budget deficit of £30m in 2023-24, a figure that it stated was likely to increase by 50% to £45m in three years; while it was trying to avoid compulsory redundancies, it could not rule them out.[21] It cited a challenging student recruitment market, leaving it down on enrolment targets/forecasts, at a cost to the institution running into millions.[22]

It was a similar story at Birkbeck in London.[23] It is currently unclear whether, in what is a relatively new market in higher education in the UK, the government at Westminster will step in to shore up institutions if they end up facing insolvency.[24] Alongside these individual instances of institutional challenges, we are beginning to see significant cracks appear more broadly: disputes about academic pay, working conditions and pensions, and cuts to staffing, are obvious and well publicised ones.[25]

General challenges to universities

In many countries, the UK and the US not excepted, wider questions have also emerged about the continued relevance of university degrees, particularly in the arts and humanities; and how well graduates are prepared for today’s working world.[26] It is likely that the move towards STEM subjects has particularly affected the smaller liberal arts colleges in the US, and it has had a significant effect on UK higher education.[27] In addition, there are now some employers who no longer require a university degree in order to apply for professional roles with them, complicating the picture further.[28] It is hard to know what effect this change will have, given how recent it is, but existing financial and other pressures already add up to something of a perfect storm for higher education providers, especially when coupled with the rise of competitive online learning companies, the increasing need to make improvements to student support and services, and a general rise in regulation.

Conclusion

There is no doubt, then, that areas of the tertiary education sector are not functioning well, for a mixture of reasons. This brings with it economic and societal costs. It is still the case that university graduates, on average, earn more in employment than their non-graduate peers: in the US, there is an average 40% pay gap between high school graduates and university graduates, while in the UK it is 30%.[29] So, if fewer students from less wealthy backgrounds attend university, income differentials will increase, to the detriment of both individuals and wider society: we are already seeing these trends among millennials in the US.[30] Furthermore, in areas with lower proportions of college graduates, outside investment is also less likely, exacerbating the problem. It is also generally bad news for economies: nations where university enrolments are falling rather than rising, and which therefore find themselves with a shortage of appropriately trained workers, are likely to see adverse economic impacts. Lack of funding for universities will also affect their ability to innovate and provide graduates with the skills that will be relevant in the economy as it changes, thus creating something of a vicious circle.[31]

How can universities respond?

Is it time for reinvention?

It would be easy to suggest that universities in the US, the UK, and many other nations, need to fundamentally reinvent themselves for a new world of learning and employment. One argument might be that they need to adopt more fully hybrid and digital learning in order to respond to increased competition in the virtual space, and hunger on the part of students for a different learning experience from the traditional university format. At the same time, it might be assumed that many of the traditional degree programmes, especially in the arts and humanities/liberal arts, are increasingly defunct in a working world for which graduates are regularly described as unprepared, and in which the skills needed are very different even from ten years ago.

It would be equally easy to point to the likelihood of better times soon as a result of the continued growth of the global (mobile) middle class and of international students from the southeast Asia and India in particular.

Both approaches are problematic. The overall growth in the number of international students in the UK and the US looks set to continue in the medium term at least, but in both countries this growth is not sufficient to offset the reductions in government funding or reverse the extent to which student aspirations have become increasingly funnelled into more elite schools and into STEM subjects. Similarly, universities in other countries are competing more strongly with the US (and the UK) than ever before; there is no guarantee therefore that universities in either country will be able to count on international students to help correct deficits in the long run.[32] In the US, this leaves struggling private colleges and state universities, which have seen steady infrastructural decline, in a precarious position that is not likely to change any time soon. State colleges might not fail entirely, but the quality of the education they offer is likely to fall significantly, disproportionately affecting particular socio-economic and racial groups. In the UK, universities with high levels of debt, and which are struggling to fill their places, are not likely to be rescued by international students.

On the other hand, while it is always important to look at things from an existential perspective and consider reinvention, it is also easy to fall into the trap of jettisoning both baby and bathwater. There are arguably many things about the traditional HE model that work well, and look set to continue to do so. In-person community is important to students (even if they are increasingly attracted to hybrid), as are career prospects and learning at a high-quality institution with high-quality course content.[33]

Furthermore, on the other side of the equation, we know that online learning provision in general is complex, requires high levels of investment, and even for specialists is not yet delivering net profit: Duolingo increased its total revenues by 47% to $369.5m in the last year, but its net loss of just under $60m was not very different from the loss it made in the year before. The growth in revenues is promising, but it remains unclear whether that will turn into net profit in the near future.[34] Pearson Education, whose initial contract with Arizona State University (ASU) was groundbreaking and helped turn ASU into a market leader in online education, has recently offloaded its online services unit to a private equity company. In a crowded and volatile market, it had not been able to keep up with competitors, and clearly did not see a profitable future for itself in online learning.[35] Pearson’s key competitors, Coursera and 2U, have not yet made a net profit, and the history of edX, bought by 2U recently, does not suggest that the viability of non-university online providers of higher education is established. In fact, most of edX’s users already had a college degree.[36] Share prices in some providers have also been falling recently after a warning by one company that ChatGPT was beginning to hurt sales.[37]

In connection with this, and crucially, it should be noted that ASU never outsourced the content of its online offering; even when working with Pearson, it produced and updated content in-house using its subject-based expertise. The fact that online success still depends on content developed and regularly refreshed by university staff indicates the extent to which the platform of delivery is just one part of a much more complex and multi-linked picture; universities remain specialists in tuition and research. One good example of how this can be highly effective is the Masters partnership between ASU and MIT which began in 2019.[38]

A more financially sustainable approach to creating the successful universities of the future

To state the obvious, there is no one-size-fits-all method that universities can adopt in order to remain/become successful. But, in a world in which interest rates are rising and liquidity in the economy is reducing, with no guarantee of increasing enrolments, taking on greater debt for infrastructural projects is likely to be high risk for all but a minority of universities – in other words, those with the biggest endowments and the largest sustained intake of students. Particularly given existing institutional debt levels, most universities would be wise to shore up operations in other ways before turning to the highest expenditure initiatives. One persistent issue that is often under-appreciated in its impact is the quality of institutional leadership and management. A series of small decisions can have a major effect when aggregated, so while getting the fundamentals of management right is not attention grabbing, it is an obvious (if far from easy) win. This is not just about inter-personal relationships within an organisation, but about strategy and operations. It is hard because it is the whole package.

A good leadership team is more likely to identify the most effective ways for the institution to move forward. Some examples of universities that have made significant strides forward in different ways in the US in recent years are the University of South Florida (USF), the University of Florida (UF) and Arizona State University (ASU).

In 2022, USF attained its highest position ever in US News and World Report rankings, and has been the fastest rising US university in rankings. The university has made major efforts in recent years to improve graduation rates, especially among low- and moderate-income students.[39] In 2010 its four-year graduation rate was 24%; by 2020 that had improved to 59% in the most recent federal statistics. Particularly notable was the success rate among Latino and black students, which was roughly equivalent to that of the student body as a whole. Key to this has been proactive support of students identified as being at risk of not graduating, a focus on improving courses with the highest rates of failure and reducing class sizes. Making it easier for students to remain on campus was another important plank of the strategy. Better graduation rates have impacted positively on recruitment too, in a self-fulfilling trend. What is interesting is the extent to which this strategy of improving graduation rates fits in with the weight the state government gives to this in its funding models, something that is not replicated in some other states.

Elsewhere in Florida, UF has similarly made a variety of improvements to its operation that have seen it rise further up the rankings, in relation to retention and graduation, class sizes, curriculum quality, in-state and out of state reputation and research expenditure.[40]

Meanwhile, at ASU, whilst it might be assumed that it is the university’s successful commitment to online education that has given it an edge on its competitors, that is only one part of the overall picture. Alongside the online offering, ASU has addressed multiple elements of its operation:

It has reduced its reliance on state funding (at the same time maintaining the lowest tuition fees of the three state universities in Arizona)
It has adjusted its approach to philanthropy
It has focused on the student experience, significantly raising retention and completion rates
It has invested in facilities
It has aggressively increased its research income and prestige, as well as research-driven enterprise
It has utilised big data to understand what is working well for students and what is not, and to enable interventions
It has placed great emphasis on increasing its needs-based funds and on diversifying its student intake.[41]

In other words, ASU has taken an innovative and dynamic approach on a number of fronts without removing the core components of how a university has traditionally been defined, and it has done so successfully.[42]

The traditional model of university education can be viable, but in a world where there are few easy wins, this requires strong leadership that analyses the university’s position and does not seek to apply a one-size-fits-all model. Instead, it builds on core strengths as a collective package, and/or seeks to carve out a USP for itself based on effective analysis of its market and operating environment.

In the UK, the University of Hull is an example of a university that has had to confront major difficulties, including an unsustainable deficit, and to reimagine itself in the light of those difficulties. The process of change was inevitably painful, but the university has not only weathered the storm, it has also improved its standing markedly. How it achieved transformation is discussed with bell-like clarity by Professor Susan Lea who, as Vice Chancellor, led the institution between 2017 and 2022 when the bulk of the reforms were devised and implemented.[43] As with the US case studies, Hull did not deviate from its core mission as a university; rather, it doubled down on it.

How can other universities achieve similar success?

Our model below provides an outline roadmap for other institutions to work with. The starting point is that there is no urgent need for a complete existential re-thinking of what a university is. Success can follow on performing the core functions of a traditional university well. This is not to say that innovation cannot be effective – it has always in fact been at the heart of what universities are – but rather that complete re-invention is not called for.

The steps to success

Step 1: Fully assess the current situation in relation to both internal and external factors; gather and analyse data.

Internal

For example:

Enrolments by programme
Retention and graduation rates by programme and student type
Financial position
Current USP/brand/niche
Origins of students (in-state, out of state, international, etc.), as well as their socio-economic background, ethnicity and other factors
Where it is doing well and where it needs to improve
Quality of leadership and management
Quality of governance structures, engagement and communications

External

For example:

Its market and the wider market, including opportunities for organic and inorganic growth
Brand and Competition
Revenue streams and opportunities to create more of these
Its operating environment, e.g. skills needs in the region
Relationships with external stakeholders
Emerging trends

Step 2: Develop a strategy and implementation plan based on the above information.

The model below signals the array of factors a university leadership will need to consider as part of its overall strategic vision and action plan.

Conclusion

Higher education institutions in a number of countries face great challenges, but to imagine that now is the time to rethink the entire function of a university would be a mistake. Fundamentally, universities offer something distinct, for which it is clear that there is still a market. The concept therefore remains valuable and viable, but in a climate of declining government funding, slowing/declining enrolments and a general shift towards STEM subjects, differentiation within the range of traditional core functions will distinguish the winners from the losers. Innovation will be an important part of differentiation for universities, as it always has been, but it should never be an end in itself.

At Cambridge MC, we have the expertise to help universities pivot for a stronger future. Please get in touch if you would like to learn more about our bespoke services. Use the form below or Contact Us page.

References

[1] E. Schofer & J. W. Meyer, ‘The Worldwide Expansion in Higher Education in the Twentieth Century’, American Sociological Review, vol. 70, no.6 (2005), pp. 898-920.

[2] https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_gl/topics/strategy/pdf/ey-the-other-looming-educational-debt-crisis-institutional-debt.pdf?download

[3] https://www.bestcolleges.com/research/college-enrollment-decline/ ; https://educationdata.org/college-enrollment-statistics ; https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-7857/CBP-7857.pdf ; https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/21568235.2021.1944250

[4] https://www.publicpolicyexchange.co.uk/event.php?eventUID=NE30-PPE ; https://hechingerreport.org/analysis-hundreds-of-colleges-and-universities-show-financial-warning-signs/

[5] https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-861-colleges-and-9499-campuses-have-closed-down-since-2004/

[6] https://hechingerreport.org/analysis-hundreds-of-colleges-and-universities-show-financial-warning-signs/

[7] https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/issue-briefs/2019/10/two-decades-of-change-in-federal-and-state-higher-education-funding

[8] https://www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/state-higher-education-funding-cuts-have-pushed-costs-to-students

[9]

[10] https://www.cbpp.org/research/state-budget-and-tax/state-higher-education-funding-cuts-have-pushed-costs-to-students

[11] https://morningconsult.com/2022/06/29/inflation-concerns-college-education-costs-reputation/

[12] https://www.highereddive.com/news/why-arent-people-going-to-college/632915/

[13] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/innovations/wp/2014/10/13/why-colleges-should-stop-splurging-on-buildings-and-start-investing-in-software/

[14] https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_gl/topics/strategy/pdf/ey-the-other-looming-educational-debt-crisis-institutional-debt.pdf?download

[15] https://www.collegevaluesonline.com/colleges-changes-last-five-years/

[16] https://eml.berkeley.edu/~saez/course131/Eatonetal2020privateequity.pdf : what follows is taken from the same article.

[17] https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/policy-and-research/publications/opening-national-conversation-university

[18] https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/policy-and-research/publications/opening-national-conversation-university

[19] https://russellgroup.ac.uk/news/russell-group-warns-of-long-term-squeeze-on-uk-skills-pipeline/

[20] https://www.fenews.co.uk/skills/uk-universities-debt-burden-grows-50-in-five-years/ ; https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1059056022002076

[21] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-64810537

[22] https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/23257565.university-east-anglia-set-make-job-cuts-loss/

[23] https://www.ft.com/content/25f803fd-f5cb-4577-8d86-f120ca03f6e3

[24] https://www.hepi.ac.uk/2021/09/01/why-the-government-should-never-bail-out-a-university/ ; https://www.hepi.ac.uk/2023/03/21/are-universities-really-at-risk-of-ending-up-in-the-public-sector/

[25] https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-9387/CBP-9387.pdf

[26] https://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/content/news/employers-think-graduates-are-unprepared-for-the-workplace/ ;

[27] https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2021/02/09/more-young-people-are-taking-stem-subjects-than-ever-before/ ; https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-the-number-of-college-graduates-in-the-humanities-drops-for-the-eighth-consecutive-year/ ; https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2023/apr/4/focus-stem-education-killing-already-struggling-li/

[28] https://www.businessinsider.com/google-ibm-accenture-dell-companies-no-longer-require-college-degrees-2023-3?r=US&IR=T

[29] https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/americans-are-increasingly-dubious-going-college-rcna40935 ; https://www.unit4.com/blog/the-us-and-uk-comparing-higher-education-in-the-two-top-ranking-nations

[30] https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2014/02/11/the-rising-cost-of-not-going-to-college/

[31] https://russellgroup.ac.uk/news/russell-group-warns-of-long-term-squeeze-on-uk-skills-pipeline/

[32] https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20210610150037741

[33] https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/what-we-do/policy-and-research/publications/lessons-pandemic-making-most ; https://tallo.com/data-insights/what-high-school-college-students-want-higher-education/

[34] https://www.statista.com/statistics/1247949/annual-duolingo-net-income/

[35] https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2023/03/22/pearson-once-leader-sells-its-online-services-business

[36] https://www.harvardmagazine.com/2021/09/jhj-edx-sold

[37] https://www.ft.com/content/0db12614-324c-483c-b31c-2255e8562910

[38] https://news.asu.edu/20190619-asu-edx-and-mit-announce-innovative-stackable-online-master-science-supply-chain-management

[39] https://edsource.org/2022/how-a-florida-public-university-helps-more-students-get-to-graduation/671805 . What follows is taken from the article.

[40] https://eu.gainesville.com/story/news/education/campus/2019/09/09/uf-reaches-no-7-among-top-public-schools/3457664007/

[41] https://umdearborn.edu/news/how-arizona-state-reinventing-american-university

[42] https://heeap.org/news/us-news-and-world-report-ranks-asu-ahead-stanford-mit

[43] https://www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Turning-Around-a-University-Lessons-from-personal-experience.pdf

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Bringing High-Speed Internet to Rural Britain

Fri, 21 Apr 2023 01:41:29 GMT

Authors

How to Connect Rural and the Hardest-to-Reach

The lack of rural connectivity in the UK has become a pressing issue , creating a digital divide that impacts individuals, businesses and farmers.

Modern society relies on digital services, and the lack of access to reliable, high-speed internet is not simply a minor inconvenience but rather a social issue with far greater ramifications. It can result in digital exclusion for communities, depriving them of fundamental services like online banking, health care, and education.

This lack of access has a further impact on social mobility, particularly when around 37% of workers in the UK spend at least one day a week working remotely.

In 2021 the Public Accounts Committee published a report on improving broadband which states ‘1.6 million UK premises, mainly in rural areas, cannot yet access superfast [internet] speeds’.

According to similar research by Ofcom , access to high-speed internet is significantly less in rural areas. In May 2019, 95% of UK premises had access to superfast broadband (30 Mbps+) whereas just 77% of rural premises were able to access download speeds of at least 30 Mbps. Furthermore, almost half a million rural premises were unable to attain 10 Mbps or higher.

Connected North Conference 2023

Meredith Sharples chairing a panel on Rural and Hardest-to-reach at the Connected North conference in Manchester 2023

Meredith Sharples, Managing Partner for Cloud, Content & Telecoms (CCT) at Cambridge Management Consulting, attended the Connected North conference in Manchester this week. He chaired a panel focused on the advancements and technology used to bridge the digital divide in the rural North.

This article draws on the conclusions and discussion points from that panel meeting.

Closing the Digital Divide in Rural Areas

Local authority areas in England classified as ‘predominantly rural’ contribute around £253bn of Gross Value Added (GVA), which equals 15% of England’s total GVA (House of Lords Library, 2020).

Consequently, the push for greater connectivity and superfast internet is vital if we are to strive for growth—both economically and socially.

Covid-19 has caused an abrupt shift towards digital service delivery and remote work, emphasising a need for access to digital technology and the skills necessary to apply for remote job opportunities. To prevent the growth of digital poverty, it is imperative to ensure that connectivity options, relative costs, internet speed and digital skills are levelled up—to give one example, internet speeds in some rural areas are so bad that farmers have to travel significant distances to a public library to apply for agricultural subsidies.

One of these major challenges is a lack of funding. With providers reluctant to invest in the digital future for the hardest-to-reach, who will bear the cost of ensuring equality across the country?

In 2020 the UK government announced Project Gigabit , a £5bn investment aimed at ensuring that 85% of premises have access to gigabit-capable broadband by 2025. This initiative provides Gigabit Vouchers , which pay up to £4,500 for homes and businesses, helping to cover the costs of installing gigabit broadband.

Despite this investment, significant barriers remain and exclude the hard-to-reach from large infrastructure projects:

The cost of laying fibre-optic cables can be up to 20 times higher than in urban areas. Home and farms are spread out, and legal permission is required to lay cable across large stretches of private or public land

Despite the UK government's efforts to simplify the planning process, with initiatives such as changes to permitted development rights and a new code of practice for telecoms infrastructure, many of these changes are still in their infancy

Infrastructure is not only more expensive to build, but also to maintain in remote environments

Limited competition between internet service providers (ISPs) in rural parts of the UK leads to higher prices and fewer options for residents

Champions of the Rural Network

While there is still a long road ahead, there is cause for optimism. In recent years industry experts have been fighting the corner for the UK's rural communities.

There are several initiatives underway to improve access to fast and reliable internet in remote locations, shaping the region's future for the better. For example, the rollout of 5G mobile networks is expected to enhance mobile coverage in remote areas, enabling residents to access faster mobile internet speeds.

There have been some local heroes too. Chris Conder , resident of the small village of Wray, Lancashire, got so exasperated by broadband speeds while trying to organise care for her elderly father, that she took matters into her own hands. After several years campaigning, she founded B4RN and found a unique solution to funding hurdles. Many of her subscribers were farmers and had access to machinery and were more than happy to dig their own ducts in exchange for a discount. Today, B4RN has connected about 7,000 homes in the rural north-west of England.

Community-led projects such as this will be necessary to hit the government's 2025 target, and they provide community guidance and case studies to help villages that want to follow the example of Wray.

Other potential connectivity solutions exist which may plug the gap:

Fibre to the Mast (FTTM) connects homes by fitting a discreet antenna that links to a nearby mast or repeater. FTTM technology has been around for a while now and in recent years it's been adopted by ISPs and government as an an alternative technology to connect remote locations. Installing masts is costly, but some providers are exploring ways to share the cost and have one mast serve several operators and functions

Satellite is another option . The UK government began a trial begun last year that sees remote locations across the UK, including a 12th century abbey in the North Yorkshire Moors National Park, equipped with technology receiving broadband from space that is up to ten times faster than is currently available to them. Following the trials, the government will consider the viability of using satellite technology to connect the very hard to reach

Example of a satellite dish that can received broadband from an orbiting satellite

Key Takeaway

Achieving better rural connectivity in rural areas requires a collaborative approach involving government funding and voucher schemes, regular oversight from local authorities, incentives for ISPs, and community-led projects.

ISPs may need to use a mix of technologies to reach remote locations and communities. They might also need to find ways to share the cost, via shared masts for example. It is also important that large infrastructure projects use technology solutions that will last and provide reliable and upgradable network access for the long-term; with maintenance costs and the impact of weather (in the case of satellite and masts) being a factor.

By all working together, we can ensure that residents and businesses in rural locations have access to fast and reliable internet that meets their needs and grants them the opportunities which they deserve.

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We have several consulting services geared towards ISPs, AltNets and the PSTN (copper) switch-off in 2025. If you have any questions or think you might benefit from one of our services, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Cambridge Management Consulting & the Turks & Caicos Islands Announce Subsea Project

Tue, 11 Apr 2023 13:36:15 GMT

Press Release: Connectivity between the islands is key for economic and social prosperity

Cambridge, 2 May 2023 - Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), an international management consultancy, announces its new agreement with the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) for an exciting new submarine fibre telecommunications project to connect the archipelago.

The Turks and Caicos Island Government, through the TCI Telecommunications Commission, published an open tender for ‘Consultancy Service for the Turks and Caicos Island Domestic Submarine Strategic Outline Business Case (TR22/19)’. Cambridge MC won the tender together with industry experts from Julian Rawle Consulting, Pelagian, Baker Botts and local TCI company, ATECC.

Currently, family islands are connected to Providenciales and then to the public Internet via the ARCOS-1 cable system—which connects to both the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas in a ring structure. High-speed internet is crucially important to economic growth across the islands. Tourism and local businesses require reliable and fast service to meet the growing needs of users. Hospitals, ports, and emergency services will also benefit greatly from new digital services—20% of patients already use remote doctor appointments in TCI.

The government has ambitious plans to digitalise operations and provide eGovernment services to all its citizens.

The new domestic submarine cable will not only provide economic benefits, but also social benefits—especially during hurricane season when staying in touch with relatives is paramount and the current microwave link network is prone to outages and has limited capacity.

The TCITC Chairman, Clayton Been, stated that “the establishment of the domestic submarine cable ring connecting all inhabited islands with redundancy had been an objective of the Commission since 2016, but due to unforeseen events this is only now becoming a reality. The Commission is pleased to have contracted the services of Cambridge Management Consulting to develop the business case to quantify the need and solution for TCI to be the pearl of the Caribbean, if not the world, for internet broadband solutions.”

Tim Passingham, Founder & Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting added “the Cambridge MC team is incredibly excited and proud to be a part of this cable project to benefit the beautiful and pristine islands of Turks and Caicos. This project is a great example of why we founded Cambridge MC: for the purpose of helping our clients have a better impact on the world—in this case helping deliver a project that will have significant social and economic benefits for the Turks and Caicos Islands and their people.”

This latest project is another milestone in the rapid growth of Cambridge MC. 2021 saw the acquisition of Straxia and the launch of Cambridge MC’s sister sustainability consulting firm, edenseven. Furthermore, in 2022, Cambridge MC expanded into the US and grew to have 88 clients served by over 120 consultants across 18 countries worldwide. In 2023 we have grown to over 150 consultants operating in twenty countries worldwide.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Press Contact: Mirren Mace , Chief of Staff, +44(0)7973-542664 / mmace@cambridgemc.com

(Edit: Mirren Mace is no longer working with Cambridge Management Consulting, for press enquiries please contact Karl Salter, Marketing Director, at ksalter@cambridgemc.com)

About the Turks & Caicos Islands

Turks and Caicos Islands is an archipelago of 40 low-lying coral islands in the Atlantic Ocean, a British Overseas Territory southeast of the Bahamas. The island of Providenciales, known as Provo, is the gateway with direct flights from many cities in the United States and Canada, as well as London and many countries in the Caribbean. English is the official language, and the islands use the US Dollar for currency.

The unrivalled and world-famous Grace Bay Beach is the country’s crown jewel, and has won countless awards and recognition. The beach is a true paradise, with breathtaking pristine beauty. A full range of all-inclusive resorts, luxury hotels, and vacation villas are established on Grace Bay.

For more information go to: https://turksandcaicostourism.com/

For press enquiries go to: https://turksandcaicostourism.com/press-and-film/

The first site visit

Left to right: Kenva Williams (Director General, TCI Telecommunications Commission), Clayton Been, Chairman (TCI Telecommunications Commission), Hon. Erwin Jay Saunders (Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance, Investment & Trade),

Hon. Otis Chuck Morris (Minister of Home Affairs, Public Utilities and Transportation), Aki Uljas (Cambridge Management Consulting, Senior Partner, Subsea and Nordic Region), Fredrico Johnson (Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs),

Aslin Niza Ismail (Technical Director, Premier’s Delivery Unit, Office of the Premier), Russel Gardiner (Director Technology, TCI Telecommunications Commission)

Aki showing a nautical chart, demonstrating water depth from the beach to deep water after the reef. From left to right: Aki Uljas, Kenva Williams (Director General, TCI Telecommunications Commission), Russel Gardiner (Director Technology, TCI Telecommunications Commission (behind Kenva)), Aslin Niza Ismail (Technical Director, Premier’s Delivery Unit, Office of the Premier)

Landing site in North Caicos, adjacent to North Caicos Community Centre. Left to right: Aki Ujas, Russel Gardiner (Director Technology, TCI Telecommunications Commission), Kenva Williams (Director General, TCI Telecommunications Commission), Aslin Niza Ismail (Technical Director, Premier’s Delivery Unit, Office of the Premier)

More site surveys across the island. Kenva Williams (Director General, TCI Telecommunications Commission), Hon. Arlington Alexander Musgrove (Minister of Immigration & Border Services), Aslin Niza Ismail (Technical Director, Premier’s Delivery Unit, Office of the Premier), Russel Gardiner (Director Technology, TCI Telecommunications Commission (behind Kenva))

Landing site in Middle Caicos.

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How British Exploring Society is Changing the Face of the Outdoor Charity Sector

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 09:38:50 GMT

Authors

Honor Wilson-Fletcher in front of young explorer artwork

Cambridge Management Consulting is proud to support the life-changing work accomplished by British Exploring Society. We interviewed Honor Wilson-Fletcher, CEO, about how the charity has stayed true to its roots but also reinvented itself to reach more young people

Connecting is at the heart of all we do: to be at one with the world around us and the people we share it with is at the centre of our daily lives.

No one knows this better than British Exploring Society, an incredible charity which sees outdoor education as the pathway to young people thriving. We are delighted to shine a light on the vital work which they are doing—as CEO Honor Wilson-Fletcher gives us an insight into what the past, present and future looks like for this very special organisation.

At its core, British Exploring Society is about celebrating young people and championing their potential. Yet, the way they approach this is unique and what truly provides such transformative results. By handing them the necessary skills and tools, young people are empowered and emboldened to take part in expeditions in all corners of the earth.

Young people who are underrepresented in outdoor education—those from ethnic minorities, economically disadvantaged communities or with physical impairment— are given the gift of independence, resilience and lasting memories which directly impact all aspects of their future. No teen or young adult pays to take part and all expeditions are now funded solely through kind donations. This is a transformative, once-in-a-lifetime experience which every young person deserves, and this charity is doing everything to make that possible.

Young explorers on an expedition to Iceland

A Rich History of Exploration

Founded in 1932 , British Exploring Society was the passion project of Surgeon Commander George Murray Levick RN, inspired by his expedition of 1910-13 to the Antarctic with none other than Captain Scott. Having completed the endurance battle to trump all, he wanted to bring back its transformative capabilities and extract his experience into something everyone could access. He did this at a time when nobody had conceived of anything like this, and he truly pioneered the model.

How can this past be found in the charity today? How does the organisation wear its military history? Honor admits that “We are proud of our history and our heritage, but hopefully not a victim of it. Murray Levick was a doctor, and he was our founder. Actually, finding leaders for the expeditions outside of the military was almost impossible during his time, because they were the only ones who had the training or experience needed. So, some of the language and the methodology, certainly in earlier years, came from the military because that was the only source that there really was.

“And even lots of things like the scouts and girl guiding was informed by a quasi-military background. Nowadays, some of the bits of training that we value such as jungle training still only the armed forces do. There are lots of sorts of technical tickets for mountaineering etc, but if you want that training, you have to go to someone who has been in the armed forces. And some of our best leaders come from the uniformed professions generally, like community police officers who make incredible youth leaders. Uniformed professions, which have a sort of commitment to community, are generally something which fits really well with our ethos. We would be nothing without the members of our community go on all our expeditions. We are a community as much as we are an organisation.”

A group of explorers learn how to stay safe when climbing difficult terrain

A New Direction for the Charity

Much of this exciting change can be credited to CEO Honor Wilson-Fletcher, who took over the helm in February 2016. When asked what drove her to the project, she announced that she “was initially thinking of taking a break over the summer and then some friends saw this opportunity advertised and knew that it had my name written all over it. I was a bit worried as it looked like it was very patriarchal, had a lengthy military history and used to be called Public Schools Exploring Society. But, I was also very intrigued, and it sounded like its core was really interesting. At its heart, it was so ambitious and what the team wanted to do was make it more accessible to young people who had had a tough start in life. And amazingly, six and a half years ago they took me on. We’ve completely changed the operating model but have still got loads to do, which excites and challenges me daily.”

With a history in publishing, this move to the charity sector was surprising to many, including Honor herself: “My first role was amazingly at the British Museum. They took me on, and it was an unbelievable culture shock. It is an enormous organisation and all the decision-making happens where you least expect it. Decisions are not made in meetings; it’s all done through inference and everyone’s timescales are so different. Archaeologists can wait 30 years for a decision. I was so used to everything being a single line and I learnt so much about holding on to the endgame whilst navigating really complex groups of stakeholders.“

The Future of Outdoor Education

Although British Exploring Society is all about leaving its mark and creating lasting impact, there remains one area of the organisation where Honor is passionate about leaving no tracks. As a charity whose work is so intensely linked with the natural world, recognising its fragility and treating it with respect is part of what makes their work so important. To spend time among magical landscapes and truly appreciate the impact we have on them is vital. This project is so far away from being superficial: it is transformative in terms of character but also in terms of perspective. It is the environment which pushes these young adventurers and allows them to thrive. To not return the gift would be just another abuse.

As a result, Honor is dedicated to radically reducing the carbon footprint of the charity and crafting an organisation that will work with the earth, not against it. Despite already taking positive and decisive action to limit their carbon output, Honor explained how her team continue to look forward. Consulting an external team of specialists to plan concrete steps towards progress, they want to go beyond carbon neutral and truly embed the process of ethical offsetting programmes into their DNA.

As an organisation whose model is based on travel and exploration, this is no light statement. But with the help of technology and a constant re-calibrating between goal and actions, they are certain they will achieve it.

British Exploring Society is ambitious and excited about embracing the future. Despite its rich history, Honor is adamant that this organisation does not become stuck there. It is charging forward.

The organisation’s drive for change does not stop here. They are passionate about making the outdoors accessible to all young people, regardless of their socio-economic environment. Going on expeditions to far-flung places is not something within reach for many children in the UK. A big part of the mission is to help young people see themselves going to places where they have not traditionally been able to go. This preparation takes the form of school workshops, which condense the benefits and the experience of an expedition for young children, planting the seed that the outdoors and its effects are achievable.

Yet, Honor is aware that some of the limits and inequality are out of her control, and this goes for their instructors as well as the young people they support. Honor notes that ”you can only really pursue a career in the outdoors if you have a safety net at the moment and for a lot of people, that just isn’t an option. As a result, there must be structural changes which are beyond us.” However, she hopes “that we can support individuals who can make that decision themselves or support young people who are on that journey.

“We also have to support other organisations doing great work like Muslim Hikers and Black Girls Hike and many others who we are trying to learn from without making them responsible for all of the insight in the world. We have to be working with people who are doing great work that we may never be able to do. They provide an environment that makes Muslim women feel incredibly safe in a way that we would really struggle to match. So, some of it is about partnership and also advocacy. We have to be doing as well as saying if we want to see that change.”

This is where Honor’s wealth of experience comes in. Having previously acted as CEO for 6 years at the Aldrige Foundation, which successfully established 12 state schools in some of the most deprived parts of England, she has always been passionate about changing the lives of young people. British Exploring Society is no different.

A group on a polar expedition learn about tools and hiking in snow

As British Exploring Society approaches its 100 ^th birthday, the charity asks itself the same questions we all do when blowing out our candles: who are we and what do we want to do? Honor and her team embrace the past and the present with one mission: to reach more young people and transform their lives. We know that this reach will only grow, and the world can only be a better place because of that.

Cambridge Management Consulting is very proud to support the life-changing work accomplished by British Exploring Society. As an organisation, we are closely connected to the outdoors in more ways than one. Our founder and chairman, Tim Passingham, is a patron for the charity, and like all of the team, is dedicated to supporting environmental causes as well as other charities connected to the welfare of children and young adults. We give 1% of our time and profits to charities and non-profits who are doing incredible work in the third sector.

To find out more about the incredible work done by British Exploring Society, head over to their website: https://www.britishexploring.org/

Why We Go Where We Go

Cambridge Management Consulting worked with British Exploring Society to create a video to answer the question 'Why We Go Where We Go'. They take young people to some of the most alien and remote locations around the world as part of a transformative model that combines real-world challenges with personal development and the awe of wilderness. The locations are an essential element in the success of this model.

You Can Help British Exploring Society

If you would like to support British Exploring Society with a monthly or annual donation; or would like to know more ways you can help their amazing work, please go to their donations page: https://www.britishexploring.org/support-us/donate/

Delivering Digital Transformation, Business Transformation and Legal Compliance

Mon, 20 Mar 2023 20:55:31 GMT

Authors

Why Digital Transformation & Business Transformation Must Come Together

Transformation is at the heart of everything we do at Cambridge Management Consulting, and we have always recognised the importance of combining digital transformation (using digital capabilities to modify operations) with business transformation (a significant redesign of your operating model).

70-80% of digital transformation initiatives fail to realise their predicted value. Our experience shows that integrating digital and business transformation is an essential feature of delivering successful transformation and significantly reduces the risks of failure.

Put simply, digital transformation must include business transformation to ensure change initiatives achieve lasting strategic outcomes.

As a consultancy that was founded on principles and lessons learned in decades of complex transformation projects, we strongly emphasise developing a people strategy for your transformation. This is often overlooked, and companies still fail to realise that they pay a high price for focussing exclusively on changing systems and processes.

Consequently, your digital transformation strategy should also include an assessment of the change readiness of your workforce and its resilience .

What is Change Readiness and How to Measure it

Change readiness measures how prepared and able your workforce is for a specific change. The results indicate whether you can expect high or low employee resistance, the reasons behind those barriers, and it provides the Board with a reality check on estimated change timelines and expected completion.

Every organisation has unique conditions that can make change management easier or much more challenging. Understanding these attributes will enable your management teams to predict potential obstacles and plan ahead.

A typical assessment includes:

Culture and value systems
How much change has already taken place or is taking place
Leadership styles and power dynamics
Positive and negative effects of past changes
Attitudes toward the change initiative
Workforce resilience

The Importance of Building Workforce Resilience Prior to Business Transformation

Workforce resilience refers to a work environment in which employees can easily adapt to challenging situations, manage stress, and stay motivated. There are a number of indicators that positively influence workforce resilience:

Early Workforce participation in the change process through established representation guidelines, or in its absence, by proactive company invitation
Involvement of the workforce in actively developing the change solution
Early understanding how roles will change and how skills gaps to fulfil the new roles will be addressed by the company
Early understanding how the company will deal with workforce reductions

To gather information on workforce resilience, we recommend you use an experienced third-party . There are many different methods such as tracking polls and pulse surveys; and increasingly, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automated tools that use sentiment analysis.

Depending on the outcome of the above assessments, you may choose to continue or revisit the timing of your business transformation initiatives. If change readiness is found lacking, we can deliver an action plan to help prepare your workforce for the specific changes ahead.

To foster the concept of workforce resilience, you may need to review your values and culture , and provide additional training to management, team leaders and employees.

Providing opportunities for employee feedback and participation in decision-making will help to improve employee experience in your company and an employee desire to contribute to the investment in the company's longer term business success. It cannot be stressed enough that communicating any upcoming change is crucial, as is the need to include employees in your transformation journey.

Start early and offer ongoing training and development opportunities to support employee growth and success throughout digital and business transformation.

Our Unique Focus on People, Processes, and Compliance

Cees Van der Vlugt is a recognised expert in international business transformation, HR and Human Capital Management (HCM). With decades of experience in the Human Resources environment and organisational restructuring, he created our transformation triangle model to deliver digital transformation with the inclusion of business transformation and legal compliance.

This model also includes a strong focus on change readiness, early involvement of the people in your business and stronger governance of a multi-functional consultancy team in delivering a customer centric solution.

The Model was, in its first instance, developed and tested in the German Market, where strong compliance demands are made by Works Councils Legislation. After successful testing in this strict market, it has been expanded to all geographies.

To further complement our service in Germany, we have engaged a legal partner, Pusch Wahlig Workplace Law (PWWL). PWWL is part of a global network of law firms and they support our clients by making sure business changes are implemented with the right level of legal transformation and compliance, with a focus on delivering a customer centric solution with the Transformation Triangle Team.

Dr Tobias Brors, Pusch Wahlig Workplace Law, says "what I like about the partnership between Pusch Wahlig and Cambridge Management Consulting is the solution orientation and customer-centric approach that both companies embrace in their engagement with clients"

How Our Model Addresses the Failure Rate of Digital Transformation

Cees has first-hand experience of the many challenges that come with digital transformation. His business experience has taught him that companies will, without doubt, face an uphill struggle to turnaround their digital capability if the delivery strategy does not include people (Human Capital) from the beginning of the transformation journey.

Furthermore, it is not only early involvement, but also a lack of understanding of change readiness levels in your workforce that can bring digital transformation to a grinding halt. Whether it is the resilience of your workforce, or the efficiency of your processes and procedures, every part of your operating model must be ready to sustain the impact of digital change.

An operating model that fully aligns with the anticipated digital change in your company is often an undervalued element in the process. Without full alignment between proposed digital transformation and operating models, your organisational capability can only reflect the past and present, but not the future.

When these shortfalls are compounded by (legacy) localised process design, lack of communication, and weak training strategies, you will start to see diminishing results and growing resistance from your workforce. The longer this continues, the less chance you have of realising the strategic advantages of your transformation.

The Triangle of Transformation Model

Cees has created a digital and business transformation service that is based on a pre-defined partnership between the providers of digital transformation, business transformation and legal transformation. The emphasis is on driving a customer centric solution through an agreed multi-functional approach, reducing the impact of siloed expertise and substandard solutions.

Multi-functional disciplines are fully aligned with our planning, design, consultancy and implementation services and we work through creating a Transformation Triangle of essential resources that drive a customer-centric, lasting, and efficient change.

There are many reasons why we believe this blended approach is essential to produce the best results.

By combining multi–discipline external expertise into a customer-centric orientated team we reduce the complexity of fragmented support and we can increase our focus on delivering the transformation rather than being pulled into the bureaucracy that surrounds fragmented partnerships.

Yet that is not the only unique strategy employed by our model. As discussed earlier, one common cause of failure during digital transformation is not having a strategy for the people side of your business and not starting early enough.

Our approach continuously balances the employee and business interests . Having an employer and employee representation approach that abstains from technical rationality promotes a sustainable transformation journey.

According to Dr Tobias Brors, Pusch Wahlig, "the development of the Cambridge Management Consulting Transformation Triangle would be a great step in the direction of more effective engagements with Works Councils and the approach could certainly lead to benefits for both employers and Works Councils."

How the German Market Created Our Unique Scalable Model

Cees believes that a model for the German market delivers a scalable solution for international clients. Germany operates a complex set of legislation that needs to be adhered to before making changes to IT infrastructure; and it is specific about the decision-making powers given to German Works Councils, particularly when changes to IT infrastructure affect employees and existing operating models.

This makes it the perfect place to build a scalable model: “A developed business transformation solution for Germany, with its complex employee relations environment, gives us the model from which we can adapt business transformation solutions for other countries with more lenient institutional employee representation.”

Our Legal Partnership with Pusch Wahlig Workplace Law (PWWL)

For legal expertise and legal integrity in the German Market we engaged Pusch Wahlig Workplace Law (PWWL). In collaboration with PWWL, we focus on driving effective labour law solutions, while balancing the customer’s desired digital transformation aspirations and the interests of institutional employee representation.

In the Triangle approach, PWWL provides the vital legal support to implement digital transformation solutions. PWWL is a great example of the kind of law firm that matches our ambitions. The firm is innovative and at the forefront of developments and trends in the field of workplace law in Germany, and strongly connected with digital and business transformation.

PWWL is a leading German employment and labour law firm, with more than 60 highly qualified labour and employment law specialists. Three-time winner of Employment Law Firm of the Year in Germany, they offer clear, concise, goal-oriented solutions in the highly regulated realm of German labour and employment law. With a focus on communicative working relationships, they are a firm driven by proactive strategies which produce results.

PWWL is a member of L&E Global, an alliance of employers’ counsel worldwide. Through our PWWL partnership we also have access to this Global Law Firm Network. L&E is the worldwide leader for cross-border labour and employment law services. Spanning 6 continents, L&E Global member firms are ideally situated to provide clients with the pragmatic, commercial advice necessary to achieve their objectives, wherever they operate.

We feel proud to showcase and be supported by the amazing people that we work with. Digital transformation is full of exciting possibilities and our cutting-edge model and legal support can make it happen for you.

To read more about our Business Transformation capability, go to our service page .

To find out more about our combined Digital Transformation, Business Transformation and Legal Services, contact Cees Van der Vlugt for a free consultation.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 120 consultants working on projects in 18 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in the near future.

Find out more about our people services and full list of capabilities .

Case Study: Global M&A Programme

Wed, 15 Mar 2023 16:16:22 GMT

The Team: M&A Experts

Cambridge Management Consulting delivers the TSA programme for a $216m divestment 6 months early & under budget.

Utilising our significant experience and proven M&A framework we successfully managed the global divestiture for a multinational financial services company.

The goal of the programme was the transition of two financial derivatives trading platform businesses. The client approached Cambridge Management Consulting to advise them on the optimal way to deliver a business-critical transition and TSA.

The initial engagement was to review and implement a TSA programme and support the client with consulting services to deliver an optimised TSA. We quickly became a trusted partner, and our engagement was extended to leading the delivery of the transition programme.

Our experience in managing and delivering successful TSA transitions resulted in our TSA Manager, Program Manager, Project Managers, Solution Architects and PMO remaining on the TSA from start to finish, ensuring consistency and continuity.

The Challenge

Client lacked in-house M&A experience and the appropriate resources.

TSA contract lacked detail which threatened transition timeline and budget.

Complex global HR transition requirements (US, UK, EU & India).

FS Global compliance where different regions have different regulatory compliance standards.

Licensing consent complexity: transition period required the acquiror to contract for ~100 licenses while the client continued to provide an interim service.

Financial market instability during transition period resulted in staffing challenges impacting the HR workstream.

We were challenged by the client to optimise the timeline to exit the TSA earlier than the contracted 18-month duration.

Solutions

Cambridge MC resolved issues with the TSA contract and aligned all parties through a detailed ‘blueprint’ and contract amendment. Typically, we would be engaged early to develop the TSA alongside the client.

Cambridge MC are experienced with cross-border M&A and the legal implications from TUPE and other workforce legal requirements.

Our Contract Management team are skilled at assessing and resolving contractual issues and preventing loss of service and unforeseen costs.

Our HR capability can step in to help with staffing issues and take the pressure off in-house HR teams.

Our commitment to delivering cost-effective consultancy services means that we delivered the TSA 6 months early and under budget.

Approach

We ran 16 global projects (with 4 sub-programmes)

We provided our client with direct access to a team of highly experienced on-demand professionals who remained on the programme for the duration, providing consistency and continuity

Our PMOaaS hybrid programme approach used both Agile and Waterfall iterative methods in a Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) framework. This approach enabled the programme to gather momentum—planning as knowledge was understood—rather than trying to plan everything up-front

Full blueprint (MSP artefact) production defined the scope of Roles & Responsibilities, dependencies and the project portfolio definition

Using our collaborative approach to client relationship management, we brought all the parties together under a jointly agreed definition of what success looks like—this set the vision for the entire project

Outcome & Results

Highly successful transition which satisfied both parties.
18-month programme was delivered within 12 months and under budget.
All contractual obligations were met.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

For more information visit www.cambridgemc.com or get in touch below.

Is Decentralisation the Future of Telecoms in LATAM?

Mon, 13 Mar 2023 10:00:06 GMT

Authors

Ahead of her panel at Capacity LATAM on Tuesday 14 March, Elisabeth Simaõ introduces some of the challenges that prevent greater internet penetration and infrastructure development in the Latin American & Caribbean (LAC) region. Elisabeth asks what advances might be made as carriers adopt a more decentralised approach to networks—how will this help tackle the digital divide?

Facts & Figures on the Latin America & Caribbean Region

The LAC region stands as one of the most industrialised in the world and yet it continues to sit low in the rankings for internet penetration—less than 50% of the population has fixed broadband—and in many rural areas only 4 in 10 households have connectivity options.

The below infographic summaries some of the key facts to understand this huge gap in digitalisation.

There is huge potential to be unlocked in the region, and digitalisation would have dramatic positive effects on the economic recovery from Covid-19 as well as promoting better health, productivity and education.

Two Possible Models for Infrastructure Development in Latin America

As we talk about decentralisation of the internet and Web 3.0 as the next paradigm of telecommunications, what benefits could this offer to the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region?

Is there an urgent need for decentralising the internet in a region where the population is concentrated in large cities and there is a stark digital divide?

Rapid industrialisation in Latin America since the 1960's and the resultant urbanisation of populations has led to high concentrations of economic power in a small number of urban centres.

This leads to two potential models of digital infrastructure development in LAC. In the first, nations generally develop their own infrastructures and attend to their own needs and agenda. The second model sees a more fragmented approach with IXPs providing hyperscale connectivity to link up economic centres and leveraging those Tier 1 benefits to rural areas as the exchange network and peering ecosystems extend their reach.

As edge and IoT needs grow, requiring lower latency and local processing, this decentralised infrastructure will hopefully support an exponential growth in traffic on the back of lower data costs and rising household income.

This would take aim at the digital divide, tackling societal and economic poverty by seizing digital opportunities that unlock a more sustainable, more resilient, more productive and more inclusive future.

Capacity LATAM Panel Discussion: How are IXPs Decentralising Latin America's Internet?

This year I am moderating a panel on the progress made by IXPs to decentralise the network infrastructure in LAC countries. The details of this panel are below for attendees. To prepare for the panel, I have provided a series of short questions that will form part of the debate.

We will also answer these questions and go into further detail in a follow-up article after the conference. Please get in touch if you have any questions.

Title of panel:
How are IXPs decentralising Latin America's internet?

Date and Time:
Tuesday, 14 March, 11:50am to 12:30pm

Summary:
Across Latin America, we are seeing key exchanges growing, such as IX.br , and new exchanges emerging across the region. The growth of peering ecosystems lowers connectivity costs and decreases latency.

This session will discuss:

Efforts to decentralise the internet through new exchanges
The growth of ecosystems in established and growing markets
The future of peering from direct enterprise interconnection to hyper-local exchanges

Moderator:

Elisabeth Rodrigues Simão, Cambridge Management Consulting

Speakers:

Ivan Zilic, Technology Director, PIT CHILE

Salvador Bertenbreiter, CSO, PIT Colombia

Hernan Seoane, General Manager & Treasurer, CABASE

Milton Kashiwakura, Director, Special Projects and Development, NIC BR

Hernán Yepes, Regional Manager, Padtec

Questions for discussion before the panel

What does 'decentralising the internet' mean for IXPs?
Is there a need for decentralising internet in South America?
Are IXPs decentralising to centralise?
What are the challenges for IXPs in this decentralisation process?
How do you see the future in this context in 5 to 10 yrs?

I look forward to seeing you there and have a great time at Capacity LATAM 2023 - Elisabeth Simaõ

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 25 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

What makes Cambridge Management Consulting unique is that it doesn’t employ consultants – only senior executives with real industry or government experience and the skills to advise their clients from a place of true credibility. Our team strives to have a highly positive impact on all the organisations they serve. We are confident there is no business or enterprise that we cannot help transform for the better.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our people services and full list of capabilities .

NetPMD Partners with Cambridge Management Consulting to Expand its Network Design Services Globally

Mon, 13 Mar 2023 08:00:01 GMT

Cambridge MC will use its Agent Programme to help NetPMD deliver a global portfolio of services for tomorrow’s networks

PRESS RELEASE - 13 MARCH 2023

NetPMD Design & Integration (NetPMD) , a leading network and integration business that designs the fibre networks of tomorrow, has signed a strategic agreement with Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) , a global consultancy focussed on innovation and digital transformation for business impact. By working with NetPMD, the aim is to support NetPMD’s growing global reach, by delivering a service offer across various service providers in multiple markets.

NetPMD has an extensive client base, and their solutions provide futureproofed, scalable platforms where homes and businesses in towns and cities are enhanced by faster broadband. The pace of technological advancement starts in the home, so bridging the digital divide and helping communities be more connected is a critical goal. NetPMD is currently designing and integrating networks of more than 1.5m homes per annum, and this number continues to rise. This new partnership between Cambridge MC and NetPMD aims to support the service provider marketplace—including AltNets. The primary focus is to de-risk major fibre-based projects. Design and integration support starts at initial feasibility, then moves to approved business plans for investment, and finally to designing the networks of tomorrow as quickly as possible.

“ Cambridge MC’s network of industry executives can solve the key sales and marketing pain points of rapidly scaling companies, ” says Tim Passingham, founder and chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting.

“Our consultants are highly experienced and have a track record in helping companies scale their organisations through effective channel partnership programs. From concept through to execution, we help organisations during critical growth, accelerating and expanding their reach to the global market. ”

Mike Mason, CEO of NetPMD, said “ NetPMD are looking forward to working with Cambridge MC and incorporating their extensive Sales Agent program into our ever-expanding global service capabilities. Factors such as a market skill shortage, multiple funding programs and providers aiming to accelerate the delivery of new fiber networks, mean NetPMD are ideally positioned to support ISPs and AltNets alike. ”

For specific questions about the NetPMD partnership and global services, contact Charlotte Griffiths at charlotte.griffiths@netpmd.com .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For more information visit: www.cambridgemc.com

About NetPMD Design & Integration

NetPMD designs, installs, and integrates fibre networks that enable smart cities to operate optimally in the modern world. We partner with ISPs and AltNets to bring faster speeds, bigger bandwidth, and greater technology integration to whole cities, exploiting GPON and point-to-point technologies.

NetPMD offers independent project management and design expertise to help you close the digital divide in your region. As a partner to the leading companies for fibre design and integration, we pair energy and professionalism to enable our customers to deliver projects at pace. We’re trusted worldwide to deliver, bringing technology and over 100 years of design and integration expertise together.

To find out more visit www. netpmd.com

Media Contacts

Media Contact for NetPMD:

Darren Mann

Director of Business Development

Tel: +44 (0)1743 636 572

Email: salesagent@netpmd.com

Media Contact for Cambridge MC:

Stuart Curzon
Chief Commercial Officer

+44 (0)1223 750 335
scurzon@cambridgemc.com

International Women's Day 2023: Promoting diversity from the top

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 09:59:18 GMT

Authors

The working world is in a constant state of flux, yet perhaps never more than now. As we see the long-term social and economic consequences of a global pandemic play out, we can start to re-evaluate the telecom industry as it supplies a world more reliant on digital communication than ever before. With all this development, we must question why some areas have been seemingly left unchanged.

Women leaders are just as ambitious as their male counterparts.

Yet, where is this represented when only one telco board (Vodafone) has more than 40% female directors? While the industry contains incredible leaders such as Anne Chow and Belinda Finch, this is far from indicative of the sector as a whole: according to a 2020 study by GFL , in 70% of telco organisations fewer than 30% of technical roles are held by women.

Why is the ladder to the top still full of so many broken rungs?

For International Women’s Day 2023, we recognise that our business has a part to play when it comes to equality across the industry. Despite having some incredible women in our team, we are committed to expanding this number and continuing to learn from a more diverse set of voices. We want to build on our vibrant and international team. To do this, we need to join the conversation on our industry as a whole; on how it is structured and the paths it offers for success.

The theme for IWD2023 is #embraceequity. Equity and equality are not the same.

Equality means each individual or group of people is given the same resources or opportunities
Equity recognises that each person has different circumstances, and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.

The goal is equality. But how we reach that goal is by equity. The telecom industry must work together to assess the opportunities if offers and then make sure there are adequate resources to make those opportunities equal to all of society.

We spoke to our Senior Partner Elizabeth Simaõ, head of carrier relations and The Carrier Club, to gain more insight into this issue. With over 20 years of experience in the industry in senior roles, she is candid about her experiences and provides her vital insight on how the industry can change for the better.

Advantages of Diversity in Leadership

The industry as it stands still has a long way to go to address diversity and the gender gap, something which sector leaders have an increasing awareness of.

Elisabeth describes how “for a long time, I was the only woman on the team” , something she has remedied when building her own team in leadership roles. Yet, this is not true in most instances. The telecom industry still largely relies on a traditional top-down approach and hiring policies reflect this. In times of uncertainty, like now, there is a tendency to privilege experience over potential, something which is shown to disproportionately affect potential female leaders who are less likely to have had the opportunity to showcase their talent at a senior level.

Neglecting the importance of diversity comes at a big cost. Studies reveal that gender- diverse companies are 45% more likely to improve market share , achieve 53% higher returns on equity, and are 70% more likely to report successfully capturing new markets. We must reinforce that diversity is not a fad, or mere virtue signalling but it is a powerful tool for our industry to have a better impact on the world.

There are always wins and losses in terms of power. Yet the benefits allow companies to truly attract the best talent and reflect their values, and the values of their client base.

“I think a diverse leadership body brings a different way of thinking” says Elisabeth. “Technology can be blind. Most of the time in this industry, facts are just facts. We all attend the same classes; we all learn the same content. Yet, the way you manage processes and people is different. We can bring a different way of working and thinking. I’m not against men, I’m not against women. I just think that if we combined all our different attitudes and viewpoints, the professional landscape would be a better place for it.”

How to Attract More Women to Tech

For real change to take place, we believe it must be tackled from multiple fronts. Perhaps most obviously, company values must be unambiguous, and actions must reflect this. Diversity affects all of us and this must be echoed in the sentiments of every employee, from the CEO all the way down.

However, fostering diversity begins before the boardroom, with essential grassroot initiatives that will introduce young girls to the possibility of working in tech. With only one in three STEM graduates being women , “it has to start from school” , Elisabeth proposes. “I didn’t see this was an avenue for myself when I was younger. We have to bring it to the forefront of their possibilities.”

Initiatives such as ‘Next Tech Girls’ and #eSkills4Girls are opening up a world of opportunity and are essential to discovering and fostering new talent. Elisabeth herself did not see the tech world as a place for her, initially planning to go into the food industry: “I saw an ad and thought I had the skills since it primarily required knowledge of languages and management skills rather than technical skills.

“I sat through my interview opposite a panel of men. I wasn’t hopeful, but as it turned out that was the start of my career!”

Using Equity to Drive Equality

Once you have begun to drive change, how do you maintain it?

According to Bloomberg, female leaders are leaving their jobs at higher rates than ever before: having fought tooth and nail to reach the top, the climate in some organisations does not allow many future female leaders to fulfil their full potential. e Research shows that this pattern is also a product of other factors which make the climb so precarious. A traditional 9-5 job was not necessarily built to support those outside of a male framework. This is particularly true for mothers or caregivers: without support, you have an employee juggling two full time jobs.

Motherhood can become a penalty, particularly given the rising costs of childcare . This is an experience which Elisabeth experienced herself: “I didn’t find a nursery straightaway and so I had to take my daughter to work. She spent the day sat next to my computer. I had to change her in the dressing rooms. I had to breastfeed her in the middle of some meetings. As you can imagine this was not well received. I struggled with that.

“Everything became more complicated, and it was not an easy task. My other colleagues who had babies at the time wanted a more flexible working structure. Yet, the organisation was not ready for it. The working world wasn’t ready for women. You can still be productive and bring intelligence and empathy to work. It’s one thing creating a diverse leadership board; it’s another to keep them there.”

This is something which is changing slowly, largely due to the pandemic and the rise of a remote, hybrid working system which has allowed increased flexibility. Increased paternity leave is also becoming more and more important for potential employees, something which companies are beginning to respond to. Not only does it allow for a more balanced care-giving structure, but it also creates a sense of respect and equality to parents, regardless of their gender. Creating an inclusive culture does not happen just through hiring processes. It comes from the daily experiences of employees within the company and the structures that are put in place to support their professional and personal development.

This can take many forms, education and communication being two of the most important. Staying abreast of diversity laws and opening up discussions around inclusion in the workplace are essential to maintaining harmonious working patterns. By definition, more diverse leadership will bring together a range of different viewpoints and perspectives. By regularly taking the time to examine how our behaviour and language affects those around us, company culture can support new types of leaders with new ideas.

However, creating a zero-tolerance policy of disrespect is necessary for when this fails. Bigotry has no place in a modern workplace and policies need to reflect this. It is also essential to support this education with formal complaint procedures which ensure that employees can safely and effectively bring to attention behaviour which does not comply with values of respect. Diverse workforces bring diverse solutions. By fostering inclusivity and equality in telecoms, Elisabeth and the Cambridge Management Consulting team believe that the industry and individual businesses will grow more sustainably.

The Next Generation of Leaders

Mirren Mace, Chief of Staff for Cambridge MC, says she is positive about the future of women in the industry and in business leadership in general, but she recognises that there is a long way to go to truly achieve a level playing field.

“With only 24% of women holding STEM roles and the lowest percentage of female engineers, the UK is one of the worst regions in Europe when it comes to encouraging women into STEM-related industries.”

It is important that we find more ways to engage girls and young women into these areas and not allow their thinking to be limited to the more ‘traditionally female’ areas of education and employment. It is my hope that educators will continue to strive to break stagnant mindsets and to encourage more young women to see that qualifications in tech can also lead into creative industries: music, event production, environmental research—the possibilities are endless.

Speaking as the mother of two, it is also vital that boys and young men are raised and educated with a positive view and respect for their female counterparts in all ways. Women must be their equals in life, their peers and leaders in the workplace. This will become the norm and unquestioned if that understanding is there from the beginning.

Soft Skills Are Not Inferior Skills

Considering women in business and leadership roles in the wider sense, I wanted to share a quote from the conclusion of the research paper written by Dr. Alice Eagly for Harvard Business School on women leaders, ‘Gender & Work – Challenging Conventional Wisdom’.

Dr Eagly writes:

“There is considerable evidence that female leaders have a somewhat more participative, androgynous, and transformational leadership style than their male counterparts. There are also multiple indications that women, compared with men, enact their leader roles with a view to producing outcomes that can be described as more compassionate, benevolent, universalistic, and ethical, thus promoting the public good.”

Dr. Eagly’s report found that women are transformational leaders who are interested in the development of others, which can only empower the people in their teams.

These views are also echoed in the World Economic Forum’s ‘Future of Jobs Report’ from 2016, that emphasised the importance of soft skills often demonstrated by women when it comes to leadership roles. Skills of listening, coaching and mentoring, empathy and creativity and potentially an enhanced natural EQ ( emotional intelligence), are now being recognised as vitally important for the leaders of the future—and these are skills that are attributed more widely to women (although this will hopefully change, in time).

It is an all-too-common story that women in particular have felt disregarded, undervalued, or unheard in the workplace and this is something that we must genuinely strive to change. We still have a way to go to achieve greater balance and encourage more women and greater diversity in general—this is something we are working on ourselves at Cambridge MC.. We absolutely recognise thatit is vital to start the conversation and keep it alive within the organisation, supported by policies, values and HR, along with constant reviews.

In the rush of daily pressures, it is easy to overlook long-term issues of workplace culture. It is much easier to present a view of your company as you wish to be seen via social media. These more illusionary efforts might be innocent and well-meaning, but do not really help or address root causes. A truly inclusive culture starts with the leadership team. Their behaviours and values will be reflected to the rest of the organisation and, as mentioned earlier in this article, inform the daily experiences of the employees and clients.

It is more important than ever to encourage women into leadership roles and create an environment in which they want to remain. This International Women’s Day we pledge to support equity-based solutions to reach equality across the industry. We hope you will join us.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

For more information visit: www.cambridgemc.com

Indigo Telecom Partners with Cambridge Management Consulting to Offer End-to-End Due Diligence

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 09:00:04 GMT

Press Release: Cambridge MC & Indigo will provide a one-stop shop for technical and commercial due diligence

CAMBRIDGE, UK - 8 MARCH 2023

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), one of Europe’s most dynamic and innovative consultancies, and Indigo Telecom Group (Indigo), a leading provider of engineering services for network infrastructure and data centres, have announced a new partnership to offer a one-stop shop for due diligence for digital infrastructure assets—to support fibre alternative networks (AltNets), data centres and international fibre companies.

This strategic engagement will enable infrastructure funds and private equity organisations to contract with one party for complete commercial and technical due diligence on an asset. Cambridge MC will be providing the commercial due diligence, and Indigo will provide physical due diligence. Additionally, the joint offering will provide a sell-side service to those wishing to ensure their business is in the best possible shape prior to sale.

“ For many years, investors have experienced poor quality due diligence with a historic focus primarily on the financials aspect. Now private equity and infrastructure funds also want to look at the architecture, systems and physical network to see if they are getting what they believe they are investing in. Today, we are delighted to respond to their needs, ” said Ian Duggan, Chief Executive Officer of the Indigo Telecom Group .

Kevin Taylor MBE, Chairman of Indigo Telecom adds, “ Through this collaboration with Cambridge MC, we can now offer a one-stop shop to the market for both commercial and technical due diligence. This is unique in the market as far as we know. ”

Tim Passingham, founder and Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting said “ We are already seeing huge amounts of change in the telecommunication market and, especially for many AltNets, there will be a large amount of consolidation in the near future. Being able to offer technical as well as commercial due diligence on digital infrastructure assets will be attractive to many Indigo and Cambridge MC clients. ”

Meredith Sharples, Managing Partner for the telecommunications vertical at Cambridge MC elaborates: “ This strategic partnership will further strengthen our current capabilities in preparing companies for sale. Through our collaboration with Indigo Telecom, we can offer significant advantages to our telecommunication and data centre clients seeking to sell or secure additional funding in the upcoming months. ”

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 120 consultants working on projects in 18 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Tel Aviv, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in the near future.

For more information visit: www.cambridgemc.com

About Indigo Telecom Group

Providing network infrastructure to fixed/mobile carriers and the enterprise sector since 1998, Indigo is a leader in Design, Build and Support services to a fast-changing market where business and consumers demand increasingly powerful connectivity.

A reputation for reliability has made Indigo a trusted partner to some of the biggest companies in the world. The pursuit of value and innovation has seen our reputation grow and our footprint expand into over 90 countries. We provide clients with a local and global presence, supporting infrastructure anywhere in the world with a single point of contact.

To find out more visit www.indigotg.com

Media Contacts

Media Contact for Indigo Telecom:

Niall Looney

Divisional Director

niall.looney@indigotg.com

Media Contact for Cambridge MC:

Mirren Mace
Chief of Staff

+44 (0)1223 750 335
mmace@cambridgemc.com

Due Diligence Services Contact:

Meredith Sharples

Managing Partner, Cambridge MC

+44 (0)1223 750 335
msharples@cambridgemc.com

Global Cloud Xchange Partners with Cambridge Management Consulting to Expand its Channel Partner Program Globally

Wed, 01 Mar 2023 22:26:00 GMT

Authors

Cambridge MC to grow GCX’s ecosystem of partners and resellers, enhancing reach to deliver GCX’s portfolio of global products and services

PRESS RELEASE - HAMILTON, BERMUDA - 2 MARCH 2023

Global Cloud Xchange (GCX), a network service provider powering global connectivity for new media providers, telecom carriers and enterprises, announces the company has signed a strategic agreement with Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), one of the most dynamic and innovative consulting organizations globally.

The strategic engagement will expand GCX’s reach to offer and deliver its global product and service offerings across various wholesale and enterprise markets using Cambridge MC’s key telecom Master Agents.

“ For a number of years, the global agent channel has asked us about the opportunity to offer GCX’s products,” said David Bruce, Head of Europe, US and APAC, Global Cloud Xchange. “Today, we’re delighted to respond to their interests. Through this collaboration with Cambridge MC, and to support our ambitious growth plans, GCX gains access to a much wider ecosystem of resellers and partners that can offer GCX’s portfolio of products and services globally. ”

“ Cambridge MC’s network of industry executives exist to solve the key sales and marketing pain points of global telecom operators,” says Tim Passingham, founder and chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting. “Our exceptional consultants are highly experienced and knowledgeable in helping companies scale their organizations through effective channel partnership programs. From concept through to execution, we help organizations like GCX accelerate and expand their reach to the market. ”

Today, GCX enables new media providers, telecom carriers and enterprises to leverage growth opportunities and improve resilience through strategic subsea network capacity and diverse route offerings in high growth markets throughout the world. The company’s network capabilities are supported by a team of industry experts providing consultative solutions, managed ICT, cyber security, and UCaaS services to some of the world’s most notable brands.

For specific questions about the GCX partnership and involvement in the telecom channel:

Contact Richard Darcy, Global Channel Manager at rdarcy@globalcloudxchange.com .

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting is a global management consultancy with an emphasis on digital transformation and business impact. We focus on overcoming barriers in complex business transformations using an agile service approach and our global talent pool.

We firmly believe in the value of real-world experience. That is why we do not hire 'consultants'. Instead, we hire leading experts with a track record of driving growth and innovation.

Cambridge MC has offices in London, Paris, and over 120 consultants in 18 countries.

Our services fall under four integrated consultancy practices: Technology, Process, Strategy and People; and we operate across all major vertical markets.

For more information visit: www.cambridgemc.com

About Global Cloud Xchange

GCX Holdings Limited (Bermuda), operating as Global Cloud Xchange (GCX), offers network services that power digital transformation for enterprises, new media providers, and telecoms carriers. We cover all aspects of cloud-centric connectivity from managed SD-WAN and hybrid networks, to direct Cloud connections and 100 Gps+ waves. With a pedigree going back 30+ years, GCX are experts in providing connectivity throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North America via the vast GCX subsea network (the world’s largest private submarine cable network), with extensions available into more than 200 countries worldwide.

To learn more about GCX, follow us on Facebook , LinkedIn , and Twitter .

Media Contacts

Media Contact for GCX:

Ilissa Miller

iMiller Public Relations

Tel: +1 866 307 2510

Email: gcx@imillerpr.com

Channel Manager Contact at GCX:

Richard Darcy, Global Channel Manager

Global Cloud Xchange

Email: rdarcy@globalcloudxchange.com

Media Contact for Cambridge MC:

Mirren Mace, Chief of Staff

mmace@cambridgemc.com or use the contact form below:

(Edit: Mirren Mace is no longer working for Cambridge Management Consulting, for media enquiries please contact Karl Salter, Marketing Director, at ksalter@cambridgemc.com)

Q&A: What you need to know about the PSTN switch-off in 2025

Sun, 26 Feb 2023 00:47:30 GMT

Your phone is at the end of its line

Many people do not know that at the end of 2025 all phone lines in the UK will be switched over to a fully digital network.

This is happening around the world, and Germany, Japan and Sweden are already ahead of us. Estonia and The Netherlands have already turned off their PSTN networks.

This article is intended for the non-technical reader and technical alike and is intended to dispel some of the myths around the switch-off and provide you with advice and reassurance. You may wish to skip those sections that are less relevant to you.

What exactly is the PSTN?

PSTN or Public Switched Phone Network is the foundation of our communications network and it dates back to Victorian times. It is this messy network of copper wires that transmits the data for analogue phones and fax machines to work. The network is still active in around 14 million homes.

Today, Openreach (part of BT) looks after 192 million km of cables, 110,000 green cabinets, and 4.9 million telephone poles and junction boxes. This infrastructure is no longer fit for the digital age, and it is costly to maintain. As a result, and like many other countries, including France, Germany and Japan, the PSTN network is being phased-out.

What is the PSTN switch-off?

BT announced that as of 31 December 2025 traditional phone lines would be switched off, and all data on those lines transferred to digital services. This means the end of the analogue phone.

Businesses and homes will need to make the switch. And it affects far more than just phone lines. It will impact all kinds of essential devices: fax machines, CCTV, security alarms, lift alarms, alarm pendants, EPOS machines, traffic lights, door entry systems and even cash machines.

In March 2021, Taking Care surveyed more than 2000 people and found that 91% were unaware that all phone lines would be digital by the end of 2025. It is therefore very important to spread the word, and Cambridge Management Consulting is taking this on as a personal project.

What is ISDN and how is it affected?

Integrated Service Digital Network, or ISDN, was created in the 90s and was one of the evolutions of the PSTN system. ISDN was an attempt to digitalise the ‘last mile’ of connections. It splits the traditional copper telephone line into multiple digital channels. These channels operate simultaneously on a single line, allowing multiple phones to make and receive calls.

ISDN was invented in the early days of dial-up internet access, when households couldn’t make a phone call and access the internet at the same time. ISDN has a higher bitrate, and also takes 2 seconds to launch a connection. Those of us old enough to remember will recall the painful dial-up connection speed on a basic landline and the screeching racket it made.

It is important to note that many people still use ISDN for internet access in areas where broadband internet isn’t available. Because ISDN uses the same infrastructure as PSTN, it will also be switched-off on 31 December 2025.

A technical list of all those services affected: WLR, ISDN2 and ISDN30, Local Loop Unbundling Shared Metallic Path Facilities (LLUSMPF), Narrowband Line Share and Classic Products. This will consequently affect products such as Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Lines (ADSL) broadband and Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) broadband.

What are the advantages of digital voice services?

The move to digital phone services (known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)) offers clear benefits such as better quality, simultaneous multiple calls and accessing your landline in other locations. In the future, providers will be able to develop tools to protect customers against scam and nuisance calls.

This new service will go under a variety of names, such as Digital Voice, IP voice or a branded version.

How will digital voice services be connected to my home or business?

If you’re simply migrating to a digital phone line without upgrading to full fibre, then there won’t be any change to the physical infrastructure. Your service will work using the incumbent wiring —it should simply be a case of connecting your phone to your router. Upgrading to full fibre services has more of an impact because fibre optic cables need to be installed into your home.

Openreach has stated that just over half of properties will be connected using existing telegraph poles where a line from the pole is attached to your home. But in other cases, fibre optic cables will be delivered underground and then through an external wall of your property.

How will the switch off impact UK businesses?

The BT 2025 switch-off will impact an estimated 2 million UK businesses currently operating PSTN or ISDN. There is research showing that 42% of SMEs still use analogue lines for data.

While many larger companies have kept their systems up-to-date, many SMEs need to begin planning their switchover. This will particularly affect businesses who rely on phone or fax communications.

There will also be a burden on care homes, hospitals and public services to update alarms, alarm pendants, security systems and CCTV. Local authorities and those in a position of influence should spread the word in their local area and among their networks to ensure both private and public organisations are well-prepared ahead of stop-sell dates. Some older systems will need to be ripped out and replaced.

You can read BT's five-point checklist for UK businesses here: https://business.bt.com/why-choose-bt/insights/digital-transformation/five-steps-to-digital/

What is Stop Sell and the FTTP Priority Exchange Rollout?

While 2025 might seem a long way off, it is important to know that many services and devices for copper lines will be withdrawn much earlier. By September 2023, you will no longer be able to buy non-digital phones or order non-fibre broadband.

Fibre to the premises (FTTP) is a pure fibre connection from the exchange, into your home or business. The ‘FTTP Priority Exchange Rollout’ allows Openreach to transition to alternative products earlier. When FTTP gets to 75% availability in an area, Openreach will issue a 12-month ‘Stop Sell’ notice. This stops the sale of copper-based products where FTTP is available. When this happens, all new customers, or those switching suppliers, will only be able to buy FTTP. The stop sell has already happened in over 100 locations across the country —with almost 300 exchange areas undergoing stop sell as early as April 2022. Openreach is rolling out its FTTP Priority Exchange program in tranches, with a new tranche being announced every three months.

For a PDF of tranches and stop sell dates from BT Wholesale use this link: https://lnkj .in/t/d6ztq

Timeline

What are the risks of the move to digital voice?

There are a million UK voice-only customers; some of those have no access to broadband. People in this group are more likely to be older and financially vulnerable. They may find the PSTN switch off baffling and hard to grasp.

Ofcom has said that will keep a close eye on the progress made by phone providers to help ensure all customers, particularly those who are vulnerable, are supported through this transition.

If you are reading this article, please make sure older members of your family are aware and prepared closer to the date. There is relatively little public knowledge about the PSTN switch off.

Can the elderly, or those with accessibility needs, still call emergency services during a power cut?

Old landline phones receive power via the line itself and often remain functioning during a power cut digital phones rely on home routers or similar devices.

Ofcom requires phone operators to come up with alternative solutions to ensur e customers can still call emergency services. The advice has been in some cases to use a mobile phone, but this is unsatisfactory for vulnerable groups. BT has plans to supply vulnerable customers with a back-up battery that ensures that devices will work for an additional hour if an outage occurs. Virgin Media's stated solution is a device with its own battery that allows landline phones to connect to mobile phone services.

How we can help

If you are an SME, organisation, charity or other body with concerns about the PSTN switch off, please get in touch by email and we will offer advice to get you started.

We can help with your transition, potentially identifying services that are no longer required and saving you money. We can create a digital replacement strategy to ensure continuity of services and transform your current communication capabilities.

To discuss this further, please get in touch with Jeff Owen at jowen@cambridgemc.com

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 25 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our digital transformation services and full list of capabilities

Partnering with Pembroke College, University of Cambridge, to bring academia and business closer together

Tue, 21 Feb 2023 14:26:59 GMT

Press Release: Pembroke College, University of Cambridge, and Cambridge Management Consulting Announce Corporate Partnership

22 FEBRUARY 2023

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), a global management consultancy, announces a corporate partnership and strategic university relationship with Pembroke College, University of Cambridge.

The aim of this partnership is to bring academia and business closer together. Cambridge MC will support the growth and development of students and world-class research. Pembroke College will reciprocate by supporting Cambridge MC in its core purpose of helping clients have a better impact on the world.

As economic headwinds grow and continue to grip the world in early 2023, it has never been more important for industry and academia to work closely together to invest in world class education and research that can help solve the world’s growing challenges.

Cambridge MC has doubled in size every year since it was founded. To continue its rapid growth it needs access to the finest talent, research, and technology. Hence building a closer relationship with Cambridge University and specifically Pembroke College.

Cambridge MC Founder and Chairman, Tim Passingham, explains why the company has embarked on this partnership with Pembroke College:

“ I’m delighted by our new partnership with the College. Since starting to work with Pembroke in BT many years ago, I have long-admired the outward-looking nature of Pembroke and its desire to work with industry. It’s a huge privilege for Cambridge Management Consulting to be able to work with the students, fellows, and researchers at Pembroke College in the spirit of true collaboration and partnership; to help further their education and research, and for the talent in the College to help enable Cambridge MC with its purpose of helping its clients have a better impact on the world. ”

The Master of Pembroke College, Lord Smith of Finsbury, added :

“ Our Corporate Partnership Programme is unique amongst the Cambridge Colleges and we’re thrilled to be working with Cambridge Management Consulting. Tim has been an enormous supporter and advocate of the College over many years and it was a pleasure to welcome him as a William Pitt Fellow last year. For the College to now be able to call upon the talents of the Cambridge MC team and for us to be able to partner for mutual benefit is tremendously exciting for our fellows and students alike. I look forward to seeing our new partnership flourish in years to come, and to having real impact on society through our joint work together. ”

The Partnership with Cambridge MC is another of many recent areas of growth and success for Pembroke College. The development of its expanded campus to Mill Lane will further this venture, by increasing the size of the College by a third to include nearly a hundred new rooms, including an interconnected learning space, learning centre, and a ‘retreat space’ focused on student well-being. By expanding the size of the college but not the student body, Pembroke College is allowing their current and future students more room to grow and transform, and encourage the open community atmosphere that they strive to maintain.

For more information on this venture, see https://www.pem.cam.ac.uk/alumni-development/support-pembroke/time-and-place/mill-lane-development .

The partnership with Pembroke College is also another milestone in the rapid growth of Cambridge MC. 2021 saw the acquisition of Straxia and the launch of Cambridge MC’s sister sustainability consulting firm, edenseven. Furthermore, in 2022, Cambridge MC expanded into the US and grew to 88 clients served by over 120 consultants in 18 countries worldwide.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Press Contact: Mirren Mace, Chief of Staff, +44(0)7973-542664 / mmace@cambridgemc.com

(Edit: Mirren Mace is no longer working for Cambridge Management Consulting, for media enquiries please contact Karl Salter, Marketing Director, at ksalter@cambridgemc.com)

About Pembroke College

Founded in 1347 by Marie de St Pol, Countess of Pembroke, Pembroke College is the third oldest college at the University of Cambridge.

To this day, they harbour a strong commitment to openness and diversity, prioritising exceptional talent in their students over their social, cultural, or educational background, and giving them the benefit of contact with a large and distinguished Fellowship.

They boast a strong tutorial system which offers support in any way they can, whether that be academic, practical, or financial. However, Pembroke College’s focus is not just intellectual: they also encourage extracurricular pursuits and charity work. In their own words, they “regard a university education not just as an investment in one’s future but as a means of enriching the world”.

For more information on the Pembroke College, please visit https://www.pem.cam.ac.uk/college .

Press Contact: +44 (0) 1223 338100 / staff.seniorporters@pem.cam.ac.uk

About Pembroke College Corporate Partnership Programme

Businesses have long recognised the value of universities as a source of talent, ideas, insight, cutting-edge research, and technology capital. Since 1996, the Corporate Partnership Programme established by Pembroke College Cambridge has made a substantial and significant impact on businesses around the world. With corporate partners from around the globe – key players in their industry and market – and a fellowship of academic members spanning every scholarly subject from anthropology to zoology, Pembroke College’s Corporate Partnership Programme provides a unique gateway into the wealth of knowledge held by the University of Cambridge.

For more information on the Partnership Programme please visit: https://www.pem.cam.ac.uk/college/corporate-partnership

cero.earth: Helping your Organisation Achieve Net Cero

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 15:26:29 GMT

Net zero carbon emissions by 2050

In 2008 the UK Government announced the Climate Change Act, which set the target of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050. As we approach the half-way mark to this deadline, it becomes increasingly clear that this seemingly futuristic date is no longer the stuff of science fiction. Unlike hoverboards or teleportation, climate change and global warming are definites, and will cause irreparable damage to our planet should we not meet our targets. Encouraging paper straws and public transport is no longer enough; pressure needs to be put on both the public and private sectors to make consistent and substantial changes before it is too late. Enter cero.earth : a carbon accounting platform developed by edenseven .

Part of the Cambridge MC group of companies, edenseven combines the data and technology expertise of Cambridge MC, with its own data-led sustainability consulting expertise.

In addressing the urgency of achieving net-zero - hence its name, cero - cero.earth works on the cloud to measure and report your emissions and provide you with actions, delivering quantifiable outcomes to achieve complete decarbonisation. Its three main objectives: to provide accurate and mature DATA in order to produce honest and straightforward INSIGHT, which can be turned into tangible and effective ACTION.

Why now?

So why cero.earth now? Looking first at the public sector, aside from the ever-approaching date of net zero 2050, edenseven has located a distinct lack of structure in the sustainability operations across public sector organisations. In 2022, the House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts reported that, ‘the public sector as a whole lacks clear standards for measuring and reporting emissions’. This boils down to two things: an absence of clear achievable targets, and little precedent for the progress and tracking of these ‘targets’ to remain transparent and accountable, an operation which the same report describes as ‘fragmented and ineffective’ (2022). In short, though the UK Government has established a multitude of ‘ Greening Government Commitments ’ to aid their journey to net zero, they don’t appear very committed to them; and though there are a handful of loose targets scattered throughout the public sector, they are not coherent enough to be fruitful. cero.earth, however, leaves no room for this. cero.earth takes good quality, mature data from the public sector and treats it with edenseven and Cambridge MC’s wealth of consulting expertise and technical understanding to produce clear and actionable solutions.

In the private sector, this imperative to act is even broader. Not only are companies expected to take meaningful action on climate change by a range of stakeholders—from customers, to employees, to investors—but reducing emissions saves money and thus increases profit. To put it bluntly: carbon equals cost. This was the case before the recent spike in energy prices and is even more prescient now. This means that there are not only the obvious environmental reasons to take rapid action, but reducing emissions has positive ramifications for both the engagement and economy of a business. And, as any good business knows, good data allows for meaningful insight, which in turn produces impactful actions, something which cero.earth is designed to provide.

What makes cero.earth different

What makes cero.earth different from other carbon accounting platforms? Here, we return to the repeated term: data, specifically mature data. Firstly, this refers to data which prioritises robustness over precision in order to deliver equally robust insights with the imminence and urgency so key in environmental matters . This data will subsequently become accurate and precise over time, by working with cero.earth, which leads us onto the next of cero.earth’s unique qualities. cero.earth is not a static platform that can be glanced at idly once in a blue moon. It is a dynamic, intuitive, and forward-thinking programme which gathers data across both an organisation and its supply chain to provide well-informed insights, and produces a stepping-stone pathway of actions that terminates at net-zero. This makes it plain and easy for public sector organisations of all sizes to track their progress against their own unique and individualised goals.

And thirdly, as this suggests, cero.earth uses holistic data, taking into account the entirety of the emissions landscape in order to produce big picture results. Regarding cero.earth’s primary aim of complete decarbonisation of the private and public sector, this refers to the inclusion of ‘Scope 3’. Most sustainability assessments and carbon accounting platforms will prioritise—or look exclusively at—Scopes 1 and 2, which cover the direct and indirect burning of fossil fuels respectively. Put simply, direct burning, or Scope 1, can be seen in the day-to-day usage of one’s car (unless it is electric), boiler, or gas-powered oven. Indirect burning, or Scope 2, is most commonly found in the use of electricity—i.e. light switches, fridges, or your TV—which also requires the burning of fossil fuels to be powered. cero.earth does not stop here, but takes into account Scope 3: the fossil fuels burned, as aforementioned, throughout the supply chain. Why is this important? Because Scope 3 constitutes roughly 70-80% of all total emissions, which is a visibly large chunk to be brushed under the carpet. By giving this the same attention as Scopes 1 and 2, cero.earth demonstrates its commitment to the serious and wide-reaching approach that sustainability consulting requires.

So why should you use cero.earth in your organisation? As we have outlined, cero.earth is able to intuitively and efficiently assess your emissions with the purpose of providing you with a complete and fool-proof plan to achieving net zero. Not only will this mark your contribution to the future of our planet, but will keep your organisation cost-efficient and relevant in our increasingly environmentally-conscious landscape. Since its launch, cero.earth has already captured 1,500 emission factors, a figure which is growing all the time. So don’t wait—climate change certainly isn’t.

click here to book your free consultation now.

About Cambridge Management Consulting

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Our Winter Wonderland: Christmas Traditions from our Partners

Wed, 21 Dec 2022 17:38:53 GMT

Our global network now covers 18 countries and this year we asked some of our partners to share their Christmas traditions at home.

Christmas Traditions across Africa

By Leon Staphorst

Most countries in Africa celebrate Christmas, like the UK, on 25 December. In most of these countries, such as South Africa, extended celebrations on 24 and 26 December also frequently form part of the festivities.

In some countries, celebrations can extend over a long period of time, such as in Ghana where it starts at the beginning of December and is focussed on Christmas and the end of the cocoa harvest season.

There are, however, a few countries that celebrate Christmas on 7 January. For example, in Egypt and Ethiopia this is the tradition of the Coptic Christians who still follow the older Julian calendar. Christmas in these countries is typically preceded by a 40-day fast, culminating in a Christmas Eve feast called the 'Glorious Birth Feast' on 6 January.

Interesting Christmas festivals throughout Africa include Gambia’s annual celebration of light, music and community during Christmas, creating giant, brightly lit and coloured floats of bamboo and paper called ‘fanals’ (lighthouses). The importance of women in the community, particularly midwives, are celebrated by the Ga people of Ghana. These celebrations are based on the local legend of the midwife Anna, whom many believe helped deliver the baby Jesus.

While there is no Santa Claus or Father Christmas in Liberia, children believe in the legend of the Old Man Bayka who parades the streets on Christmas Eve telling tales that berate the wealthy who do not give to the poor.

While Christmas in Africa also commemorates the birth of Christ in Bethlehem, the historic significance of Christianity migrating into Egypt during the 1 ^st century AD, intermingling with Egyptian beliefs, also plays a role in many African countries. Christmas can also symbolise the birth of the African god Ra, the creator of ancient Egypt. People in these countries decorate trees to commemorate ancient times when Ra’s birthday was celebrated in this way.

Children playing Zambian nativity games

Old Man Bayka in Liberia

How does your family celebrate?

My family’s Christmas traditions include the gathering of my extended family at one of our homes. The small children will typically all sleep in tents pitched in the backyard. We attend church on Christmas Eve after having a Braai, an outdoor barbeque common in South Africa. The meats and fish are usually accompanied by side dishes ranging from home baked breads and roasted vegetables, to potato salad and pap, which is a kind of South African porridge made from maize meal, usually served with chakalaka, which is a spicy South African vegetable relish.

The children receive their gifts during this meal. On Christmas Day we have a family lunch consisting of cold meats and side dishes, as South Africa gets pretty hot during this time. In the evening we usually visit one of the light festivals in the area, such as the Lawley Street Lights or Jacaranda Children’s Home Light Festival in Pretoria.

A South African barbeque known as a 'Braai'

What food is eaten in other African countries?

In Kenya, Christmas feasts typically consist of grilled meat, called Nyama Choma, and potato stew, while Tanzanians like to roast a cow or goat for their entire their local village, washing it down with home-brewed beer. Liberian prefers beef, rice and biscuits for their Christmas feast and in Nigeria flavoured rice, tomato stew and fried chicken or goat are popular. In Ghana, locals enjoy Jollof rice, fufu and okra soup as their Christmas meal.

I wish you all a very merry Christmas, Leon.

Our Family Christmas in Slovakia

Martin Vavrek, Digital Transformation and Project Management

Tell us about Slovak traditions

Christmas is the main feast of the year in Slovakia. The first important date is Advent (a period of four Sundays and weeks before Christmas). This is when the Christmas season starts for most. The majority of Slovaks belong to the Roman Catholic church, and most Christmas traditions have a religious significance.

It is also a time for cleaning, baking, shopping for presents and decorating the Christmas tree. Christmas markets are organised in the bigger cities and the streets shine bright with dazzling lights. This period is the favourite part for my family. We meet our friends and colleagues to celebrate with cups of mulled wine or punch.

Slovaks also celebrate St. Nicholas’ day on 6 December, or as they call him, ‘Mikuláš’. It starts on the evening of 5 December and parents (playing Mikuláš) give presents to well-behaved children. They place their clean shoes near the door for Mikuláš to fill them with sweets and fruit.

How does your family celebrate?

For the last 10 years we’ve spent every Christmas in our weekend house in the small town of Brestovec because it has the perfect Christmas spirit. During the day on 24 December, we prepare the dinner and we also decorate the Christmas tree. The tree is kept up until 6 January, which is the Feast of the Three Kings—also called Epiphany. Religious traditions call on us to fast throughout Christmas Day. They say that if you manage to survive the day without a single bite, you will see a little golden pig in the evening.

It’s not Santa who brings the presents—it’s baby Jesus! A common tradition is that the children leave the room when baby Jesus arrives to deliver their presents. When the gifts are placed under the Christmas tree, someone rings the bell. That’s the moment when the children rush in.

Martin and his family at Christmas in Slovakia

What do you eat?

Our Christmas dinner consists of lots of courses including a fish dish, a potato salad and sauerkraut soup—kapustnica—with dried mushrooms and cream. Every family has its own secret recipe and some might include unusual ingredients such as dried plums or even apples. There are variations in every region in Slovakia.

Each family easily makes more than 10 different types of sweets which are served to their guests over the Christmas season.

Many people attend a Midnight Mass which is the busiest church service of the year. My family doesn’t attend this service, instead we pray in front of the Christmas tree after dinner.

25 and 26 December are much quieter. We cook lunch for our closest family. We rest and relax and overeat! 26 December is also when St. Stephen is celebrated and especially in the villages you can find many events and parties organised that night.

During the Christmas holiday we do lots of winter sports and long walks in the forest around our village. We also love sledding at this time of year.

From all of us here in Slovakia, Merry Christmas!

This article was kindly written by Martin’s wife, Martina. Thank you so much Martina.

Reindeer and Lots of Snow in Finland

Aki Uljas, Nordic Region, Subsea and Data Centres

Finland is the home of Lapland and the mysterious factories where elves toil day and night to make gifts for the only delivery service quicker than Amazon Prime.

In Finland, Santa Claus is called 'Joulupukki'. This literally means 'Christmas Goat' and stems from folklore where a scary goat asked people for presents. Over time this goat learned some important lessons and became a giver of gifts—and also a human.

Joulupukki rides on reindeer and leaves gifts under the Christmas tree but if you have been naughty you might only get a bag of coal (which might actually be welcome during a fuel crisis).

The main celebration is in the evening on 24 December. This is the beginning of three holy days.

On 24 December, it is traditional to eat rice porridge and plum juice for breakfast. Often the tree is bought the same day, from a local market or square where you haggle over the price.

At noon, the 'Peace of Christmas' is broadcast on radio and TV by the City Mayor of Turku, in the south of Finland.

It is traditional for many families to visit the graves of family members once it has got dark (which is around 3pm this time of year). Some of the cemeteries are huge and require police to manage the traffic. Hanging lanterns often decorate the graves, creating a slightly macabre winter wonderland.

Many people also like to take a sauna on Christmas Eve.

The main feast is eaten in the early evening. Lutefish (salt fish) is the traditional starter. The main course is a leg of pork served with mashed potato traditionally baked in birch-bark boxes in the oven.

Most families make a casserole. Ham and cured salmon are also very popular.

Dessert is baked rice pudding served with spiced plum jam. One almond is hidden in the pudding. Whoever finds this almond will have good luck for the next year.

After the meal, Joulupukki might visit the house. When he comes in with his sack he asks if any children are living there. They tend to reply ‘yes’ vociferously while jumping up and down. Also, suspiciously, 100% answer 'yes' when they are asked if they have been good all year.

Christmas Day is much quieter with families usually spending it at home. On Boxing Day people like to go outside to walk and do sports. Skiing is popular or skating if the lake or river has frozen over.

Merry Christmas from the home of Santa Claus!!

The meaning of Hanukkah

By Jonathan Werth, Business Development

Hanukkah is an eight-day holiday that celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. It starts on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which falls between November and December. This year Hanukkah started on 18 December and will finish on 26 December.

The word ‘Hanukkah’ comes from a Hebrew word meaning ‘to dedicate or ‘to illuminate.’—it is often called the Festival of Lights.

The story behind Hanukkah goes back to 168 BCE when Judean Jews rebelled against Syria-Greek occupation and regained control of their temple. The temple was defiled by the Syrian soldiers who entered and desecrated its contents. A small group of Jews, led by Judah Maccabee, reclaimed the temple and restored it to religious use. They found only enough consecrated olive oil to light the menorah for one day, but miraculously, it lasted for eight days.

Relating to this story, the main tradition during Hanukkah is to light candles on each night of the holiday. Jewish families put up a special candelabrum called a menorah to commemorate the miracle of the oil. The candles are lit each night from left to right and from top to bottom, until all eight candles are lit on the eighth night. The last candle is called the ‘shamash’, or servant candle, because it is used to light all other candles.

Each night little gifts are given to children and the overall message is ‘little and often’.

Jewish families also eat foods that use oil to cook, like latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly donuts). over this period.

Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas all, from London

Christmas in the French Countryside

By Charles Orsel des Sagets, head of EMEA and LATAM

The French, as you may guess, celebrate Christmas with lots of good food and drink. The traditional Christmas meal includes turkey, roast beef, ham, goose, duck or chicken and game birds such as pheasant or quail, salmon and oysters. Roast chestnuts are also popular at this time of year.

In France, like many other European and Latin American countries, people celebrate Christmas and share gifts on the evening of 24 December.

How does your family celebrate?

My family goes to church for Christmas Mass, just before midnight, and then we have a Reveillon dinner at home. Reveillon is a long meal that happens on both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

Across Europe, Reveillon dinners still occur in France, Belgium, Portugal, Romania, Brazil, Quebec and New Orleans.

Either that same night or the next morning we open gifts which have been put under the Christmas tree. It is tradition that the Christmas tree must touch the ceiling of the room. We also put a Christmas tree by the front door called the ‘coronne de l’avent’.

Who usually does the cooking at Christmas?

Every year we have a family cooking contest when we get together in the countryside. We create teams of 3-4 persons and secretly prepare a full meal—lunch or dinner. At the end of the three days, we vote on the winner. This adds a lot of fun and motivates us to cook something very special and share out the tasks.

I wish you all a ‘joyeux Noel’ from the French countryside, near Paris.

Carp in the Bathtub—Czech Republic

By Denisa Pokrývková, Project Management

A selection of Christmas biscuits from the Czech Republic

Czechs and Slovaks celebrate Christmas in a very similar way, which is proof of our nations’ very close relationship throughout our mostly shared history. So I will leave out the parts about Baby Jesus, Christmas markets and Christmas trees, because those are exactly the same.

However, the typical Czech Christmas themes are a bit darker than the Slovakian ones, probably because unlike our Slovak brothers and sisters, us Czechs are not usually as religious.

This does not stop us from enjoying religious holidays like Christmas, in fact Czechs from all different backgrounds can be found singing Christmas carols or attending a Midnight Mass on 24 December.

Tell us about those delicious biscuits

Throughout the Advent period, people tend to get tense and frantic because of all the shopping and house-cleaning, but also because of the baking. It is customary to bake Christmas pastries, which are various kinds of bite-sized biscuits, all made by hand and usually decorated. It is the best way to get your home smelling festive and increase the stress-level just enough so you simply have to go to a Christmas market and try every single kind of mulled wine/punch/mead they sell. And let me tell you, there are a lot of variants when it comes to Czech mulled wine—some of them include absinth!

This definitely washes the stress away, which is what you need after you have been baking up to 13 different kinds of Christmas pastries, like my mum. As kids, we were not allowed to eat any of it before Christmas. But we were expected to help, only to see the delicious treats pile up in boxes on our balcony, because no fridge was big enough for them.

St Nick, an angel and the devil

Like many Christmas traditions everywhere, they are meant to scare children into listening to their parents and being good. For St. Nicolas day on 6 December, known as Mikuláš, family friends dress up as St. Nick and his faithful companions, the Devil and the Angel, and visit homes, preschools and elementary schools.

At home, children hang stockings on the windows in the evening and then in the morning they are magically filled with chocolates, sweets and fruit if they were good the whole year. If they were bad, they get coal in their stockings, and no sweets.

But on the night when St. Nick pays them a visit, the children who were bad get a chance to redeem themselves, either by singing a song or by reciting a poem. If St. Nick is sufficiently appeased by their performance, the Angel gives the children sweets and a friendly warning for the next year. If he is not pleased, he beckons the Devil to take the children straight to hell, in chains, wrapped in a big bag. You can imagine the screaming and crying involved.

What do you eat?

The festive period is crowned by the Christmas dinner. The traditional Czech Christmas dinner is a two course meal. There is soup followed by a breaded, fried carp with a potato salad. Each family has their own version of the salad, some make it with just cooked and sliced root vegetables and potatoes, diced onion, gherkins and hard boiled eggs. Some add peas, or kidney beans, and mix it all with mayo or tartar sauce (or both); even with a bit of mustard. It is a heavy side dish, but one everyone looks forward to since we only get to eat it once a year.

A very festive carp on a plate

What about the carp?

The carp is a reminder of older traditions and the somewhat violent acts in the preparation of food.

It is customary these days to get fresh carp fillets that have been de-boned and skinned for you, but a lot of families still do what my family did when I was younger.

We used to buy a live carp at the market and bring it home to live in a tub for a day or two where it became a new pet for the kids to play with. Then, prior to Christmas, the man of the house killed it with a hammer, gutted and skinned it. A lot of people opt for a chicken schnitzel for dinner nowadays, and I suspect it has less to do with the taste and everything to do with their childhood memories of eating the fish in their tub.

We also eat soup, which is traditionally made from the freshly cut-off fish head and all the fish milt left over.

Why can you see into the future on Christmas Day?

The Czech Christmas is a peaceful time of the year, sprinkled with a little magic. It is believed that you can see into the future on Christmas Day.

Unmarried women throw a shoe over their shoulder and if it lands with its tip pointing to the door, it means they will marry in the New Year.

We also pour small amounts of melted lead to a bowl of water and observe what shape it takes as it cools down because we believe it is a sign of what is to come in the New Year. And we cut apples, only to check if the core forms a perfect star in the cut, meaning good health in the New Year.

One could say we combine many pagan traditions with Christian ones and drown it all in an eggnog or mead or beer. But like any other nation in the world, we mostly eat a lot, drink a lot and spend time with family and friends.

Merry Christmas— or Veselé Vánoce—and I wish you all the best in the New Year, Denisa.

From all of us here at Cambridge Management Consulting, wherever you are, we wish you a very merry Christmas and best wishes for the New Year!!

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our telecommunication services and full list of capabilities

The Challenges and Opportunities of a Once-in-a-Generation UK Gigabit Broadband Upgrade

Wed, 09 Nov 2022 13:39:00 GMT

Authors

There will be as much change over the next five years as the previous twenty years

Globally, and in all major economies, fibre-to-the-premise (FTTP) gigabit broadband networks are being built at pace, replacing legacy broadband and phone networks. FTTP will grow to 75% of fixed broadband globally by 2030. The UK is arguably playing catch-up with many other countries in the FTTP build stakes, but now has one of the fastest FTTP build rates of any country. High levels of investment and regulatory freedoms have launched the UK into a highly disaggregated market with intensive competition and over 100 alternative network providers (AltNets) building FTTP today, competing with incumbents such as BT Group (Openreach) and Virgin Media O2.

FTTP broadband offers over 20 times the speed of legacy broadband networks, enabling a broad range of applications that require the higher speeds (e.g., streaming, gaming, virtual reality, remote surgery, metaverse) and, importantly, supports running many applications over many devices simultaneously. Once built, FTTP networks are also cheaper to maintain and operate for network providers and will be an infrastructure that will endure the next 25-50 years – a generational change of technology for everyone.

Customers have to be migrated from legacy broadband to FTTP. This requires an engineer visit to the home to drill a hole in the wall to get the fibre into the house and installation of two new pieces of equipment in the home (an Optical Network Terminal (ONT) screwed to the wall and a broadband router to provide Wi-Fi in the home). The hope from network operators is that customers, after having gone through this process once, are unlikely to want to repeat it too quickly to change FTTP providers.

There are some important data points that paint an interesting picture of the UK broadband market at this critical time:

Everyone will need to migrate off legacy broadband products

Legacy broadband, made up of FTTC and ADSL broadband technologies (mainly form Openreach), covers 96% of UK homes with over 85% take-up - over 80% of UK homes use broadband
BT is switching off its legacy networks in 2025 - everyone will need to migrate off legacy broadband products
The top five consumer broadband brands have over 85% market share of legacy broadband (BT/EE/Plusnet; Virgin Media O2, Sky, TalkTalk and Vodafone) – this marks a challenge for the new entrants
Total UK FTTP investment is likely to exceed £30bn over a 10-year period, with a further £5bn in state aid from the UK Government's ‘Project Gigabit’ - many investors are looking for a return
Openreach plans to build its FTTP network to pass 25 million homes by the end of 2026; Virgin Media O2 plans to build FTTP to pass 23 million homes by the end of 2028; AltNet forecasts building FTTP to pass another 20 million+ premises - with 30 million premises in the UK there is a significant overbuild risk that could undermine some investments
Current UK FTTP take-up is in the order of 25% compared to closer to 50% in other areas of Europe – there is a lot of headroom for the UK to accelerate take-up

Incumbent Telcos

The move to FTTP is a double-edged sword for the incumbent broadband network providers such as BT Group and Virgin Media O2. They face the unenviable task of migrating all their customers to a new set of FTTP products, in parallel with building out the new FTTP network and upgrading their portfolios of voice and communication services to be fully FTTP-compatible. This transition requires exceptionally careful optimisation of churn and margin loss during migration of pushing customers too fast vs. the risk of losing market share to new network providers if they go too slowly.

However, the incumbents can look positively on their scale, brand strength, and channel reach advantages. Incumbents also have the not insignificant prize of being able to drive significant cost and complexity out of their businesses from switching off legacy networks and focus on running FTTP networks alone. A particular risk for incumbents is their enterprise and public sector customers, who often face a highly complex migration impacting their networks, IT systems, applications, and associated equipment. A note of caution is also warranted from other, comparable countries; in Germany, legacy network closure dates had to be extended to allow customers, especially those in the enterprise and public sector, more time to migrate successfully, for which someone has to foot the bill.

Challengers: Alternative Network Providers (AltNets)

Responding to the opportunity created by the enabling regulation and supressed market demand, AltNets attracted over £10bn in private investment over the last five years, focused on building regional FTTP networks to lay a claim to geographic areas. The AltNets are now moving to drive FTTP customer take-up to monetise their investments and deter overbuild from competing network providers.

AltNets face some fundamental challenges to break into a market dominated by five established brands, which is pointing any of them to increasingly adopt wholesale models to maximise their channels to market. There is a likelihood that enabling ‘Open Access’ strategies, where AltNets can connect once into a community to sell to multiple retail brands and vice versa, i.e., retail brands can connect once into a community to buy form multiple AltNets, will be necessary to enable AltNets to achieve their take-up ambitions.

There is a lot of industry talk about a likely consolidation in areas such as the fragmented market, seeking synergies and economies of scale, and there are some early signs of acquisitions happening. The battle ground may well end up being the value of AltNets networks; coverage is interesting, but the number of paying customers is most important.

What Cambridge MC can do to help

At Cambridge MC we are blessed with consultants with tens of years of experience, gained from senior roles in Tier 1 Telcos, AltNets and Enterprises, and all with a global perspective. With a wealth of expertise and experience, we are best placed to advise on strategies from planning to roll-out, and from every commercial and technological angle.

With a reputation for excellence and knowhow in the telecommunications industry, Cambridge MC will continue to track this generational change in operational and commercial models as they emerge globally. We pride ourselves on being ahead of the curve, and our consultants sit on many panels and boards that advise on current activities and future trends, able to advise your organisation on adoption strategies - for more information contact us using the form below.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

The Time is Now for African Investment

Mon, 17 Oct 2022 12:46:54 GMT

Authors

Africa has a young population and is growing fast

Establishing and supporting businesses in Africa is twinned with risk; but this is not an uncommon partnership. High-risk endeavours usually have the highest rewards. African investment also includes the opportunity to have a positive impact on local and national infrastructure, SDGs, the economy, and the digital divide.

Africa is made up of 54 countries, according to the United Nations (UN). It is larger than the United States, China, India, Japan and the whole of Europe put together.

Most of these countries are underdeveloped, with poor infrastructure and degrees of governmental instability. It has been reported that Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) was the world’s slowest growing region in 2021. SSA also has some of the most expensive 1GB basket prices globally.

There is a clear international focus on Africa. The second largest continent is receiving significant investment which is financing the roll-out of data centres, fibre connectivity in new areas, and the deployment of mobile networks in key markets.

Africa is home to 1.4 billion people, accounting for 16.72% of the world’s population. This is predicted to rise to 4.39 billion by 2100.

It is the most central continent in the world, making Africa the perfect hub for reaching the four corners of the world. It is also the most profitable region in the world. According to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), Africa offers the highest returns on foreign direct investment (FDI) globally. In fact, according to the recent UN Conference on Trade and Development, Africa’s return on foreign investment between 2006 to 2011 reached 11.4%— significantly more than the global average of 7.1%.

Currently, the top three recipient countries in Africa for FDI in 2020 were Egypt, The Republic of the Congo and South Africa. Since 1 January 2021, the African Continental Free Trade Area has been in effect, creating the world’s largest free-trade area with all 54 countries participating. This agreement essentially creates one single market allowing foreign businesses to reach markets that were once difficult to approach.

The median age across Africa is 19.7 years.

Africa has a young and growing workforce: a perfect condition for businesses wanting to invest. Africa is the fastest growing continent, and by the turn of the century will be the only region with population growth.

Six of the world’s 12 fastest-growing countries are in Africa (Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Tanzania and Rwanda).

With almost 60% of the population under 25 years old, it is also the youngest continent. There is a surplus of workers that want and need jobs. Unlike other parts of the world, Africa is not in a candidate-driven market; it’s an employer market and that means your business can recruit the best talent, without facing fierce competition. A young and abundant labour market also has the advantage of lowering production costs. Foreign investment will hopefully have the additional advantage of raising wage rates in Africa and improving market efficiency.

Africa is the least-developed continent, barring Antarctica. With its fast-growing population, governments want and need infrastructure projects to support this budding populace. The opportunity for development is huge, and African countries are adopting various measures to attract investors.

Top five growing markets for foreign investment

We will take a look at five of the most important emerging markets in Africa: Nigeria, South Africa, Algeria, Ethiopia and Namibia. We make the business case for investment and also assess the matrix of opportunity versus risk.

Nigeria

Overview

Nigeria is the largest market in Africa
The main language is English
The population is forecast to grow to over 410 million by 2050
The legal system is based on the UK system
One of Africa’s key oil producers, although currently held back by low production. The economy is heavily dependant on this sector and part of the current economic strategy is diversification
The country is facing severe challenges such as rising inflation, high unemployment and widespread insecurity

MNOs

MTN
Glo
Airtel

Opportunities

There is a major drive to transform the energy and agricultural sectors through technology
Key driver of international trade across all of West Africa
The third largest movie industry after Hollywood and Bollywood
Deployment of 5G technology and the Federal Government of Nigeria’s broadband penetration target of 70% by 2025 will attract additional foreign investment
Nigeria plays an important leadership role in both West Africa and on the African continent. The headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is in Abuja

Challenges

Although the economy is predicted to grow around 3.2% in the next few years, this projection is subject to significant risks such as further declines in oil production and heightened insecurity
Unfavourable regulatory changes are continuing to have negative effects on business
Nigeria ranks 131 on the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business 2020 report — although this is improving year-on-year
Unreliable power supply
Poor transportation infrastructure
Slow judicial system

South Africa

Overview

South Africa is, in general, the most advanced, diversified and productive economy in Africa
The country was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Poverty has reached levels not seen for more than a decade, while inflation has increased to a 13-year high
Telecoms growth has decreased despite the boost in traffic during the pandemic. Future growth is expected to be driven by mobile and fixed-broadband digital services
South Africa is a business incubator for new-to-market ideas which then travel to other Sub-Saharan African markets
There is widespread use of English for business
SA has a robust legal sector

MNOs

MTN
Cell C
Vodacom
Telkom

Opportunities

Since 2015, over one-third of acquisitions in the African tech space have involved South African companies
Significant CAPEX investment in new infrastructure required to evolve telco’s business models to compete with new market entrants
According to the Global Connectivity Index, South Africa is one of the countries with the most potential in using ICT to boost growth and achieve several of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Challenges

Infrastructure issues continue to hold back the economy and lead to frequent power shortages
The telecoms market has suffered from reduced profit margins over the last decade. Value-added services and new technologies will be required to realise new revenue streams
The high cost of connectivity and mobile devices, particularly in the current recession and high unemployment, are a barrier to the uptake of new digital services
According to the World Bank’s Doing Business project, South Africa’s rank in ease of doing business in 2020 was 84 out of 190
One of the highest and most persistent inequality rates in the world

Algeria

Overview

Algeria is the fourth largest economy in Africa
Oil and natural gas historically account for 95% of export revenues and 60 percent of total government revenues
Continuing political instability threatens economic reforms
The country’s infrastructure primarily relies on 3G and 4G LTE for mobile, and ADSL & fibre for fixed telecommunications
Algeria connects to Europe via four fibre optic subsea cables

MNOs

Mobilis
Djezzy
Ooredoo Algeria
Algerie Telecom

Opportunities

The ICT sector will play a significant role in Algeria’s export diversification strategy as it moves away from oil and gas
Mobile adoption rates are high, with the number of mobile connections in 2022 equivalent to 103.5% of the total population. Broadband adoption rates are significantly lower at around 9%
Since 2016, Algeria has deployed more than 120,000 km of optical fibre across the country to help close the gap in broadband adoption rates

Challenges

Algeria’s state-owned company Algerie Telecom holds a monopoly over the country’s fixed-line and fibre optic networks and it is responsible for developing Algeria’s telecommunication sector
Algeria ranked 157 out of 190 on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index in 2021
Corruption in state institutions
One of the biggest challenges is foreign exchange (Forex) and finance repatriation. It can be very difficult for companies to get their money out

Ethiopia

Overview

Ethiopia is the second-most populous country in Africa
It has one of the oldest public telecommunication operators, established in 1894
Ethiopian telecommunication is one of the least developed in the world. Mobile connections per 100 people is around 49% and internet penetration stands at 25%
Ethiopia is one of the weakest economies in the world
As part of its commitment to support Ethiopia’s plan to open up the telecoms sector, the World Bank is preparing a new Digital Ethiopia Foundations project and will invest some $200 million in the country’s digital economy
The African Union (AU) is headquartered in Addis Ababa

MNOs

Ethio Telecom

Opportunities

The Ethiopian government is in the process of privatising state-owned enterprises and has signalled that it will shift toward market-based reforms and more flexibility
The Government of Ethiopia (GOE) has committed to building a green economy and reaching UN sustainable development goals (SDGs). Ethiopia will mitigate CO2 emissions by expanding electric power generation from renewable sources
The GOE is open to proposals for energy projects using Independent Power Purchase (IPP) agreements for the sale of power from renewable resources

Challenges

The economy is still emerging from civil conflict in the north which created substantial social and economic disruption
The GOE retains control over the utilities sector and prohibits foreign ownership of banking, insurance, and financial services
State-owned enterprises dominate the economic landscape, reducing room for the private sector to grow and attract foreign investment
There are frequently energy shortages as demand outpaces supply. New hydropower dams struggle to produce at full capacity. Power transmission lines and distribution facilities are also inadequate

Nambia

Overview

Namibia is a relatively small market with a population of 2.7 million
Namibia has one of the most stable political environments in Africa
Primary infrastructure (roads, rail, air, energy, and telecommunications) is fairly well developed and modern
The economy is mostly export-driven
Imports into Namibia are dominated by South Africa, which equate to 45% of Namibia’s total imports

MNOs

MTC
TN Mobile (formerly Cell One)

Opportunities

With the completed expansion of the port at Walvis Bay, Namibia is positioning itself as a gateway to the broader Southern African market and beyond
The government launched the National Broadband Policy and Implementation Action Plan, which aims to provide universal 2Mb/s services by 2024
The government is trying to speed up a 5G development strategy after it was initially hampered by public concerns over health implications of the technology—this caused the government to order an environmental assessment of 5G in mid-2020
Namibia has potential for renewable power investment and plans to build solar, wind, and biomass infrastructure. The government has committed to adding more renewable energy generation sources to its grid
The government is seeking to attract foreign investors to participate in public-private partnerships (PPPs)
By the end of 2022, Namibia aims to be connected by a 1,050km branch line of Google’s Equiano cable, running between Portugal and South Africa

Challenges

High unemployment and critical shortages of skilled labour
Demand for electricity outstrips domestic supply. Namibia generally escapes any large-scale power outages, but the country remains reliant on buying electricity from South Africa
Corruption and transparency are often an issue

Opportunities in Africa

If you have an opportunity in Africa, are planning an M&A, or want to partner with an African business we would love to talk to you. At Cambridge Management Consultancy we have a number of consultants who have year's of experience and expertise in the African telecommunications markets. They know how to operate and overcome legal and cultural barriers, as well as having the necessary contacts to help you save time and money. We are excited to share our knowledge and skills to support growth, infrastructure and jobs in these regions. If you want to discuss with one of our team directly then please get in touch with Charles Orsel des Sagets , Steve Brookman , or Andrew Kinnear ; or alternatively contact us via the website form below.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our telecommunication services and full list of capabilities

Hollow-Core Fibre: The Route to a Faster Future?

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 09:08:36 GMT

Authors

The demand for lightning-fast broadband

As we continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, demand is higher than ever for services that require lots of data. For most of us, this is most noticeable in the home: remote working, gaming, online video streaming.

While 95% of UK premises have access to superfast broadband (30 Mb/s), the race is now on to provide nationwide access to ‘gigabit’ broadband (1 Gb/s) by 2030, as per the government’s commitment in this year’s Levelling Up white paper. Old copper networks are unable to deliver such high speeds and are therefore being systematically phased out by single-mode optical fibre (SMF), which is being deployed at pace in FTTP access networks around the globe.

This copper-to-fibre upgrade represents a pivotal moment in the history of telecommunications in the UK and beyond, as we move away from infrastructure that has been in place for over a century. Many industries and services are ever-reliant on higher speed connectivity.

Is SMF the best solution, or are we overlooking a better alternative?

The emergence of hollow-core fibre

Conventional SMF in global use today passes light through a single fibre strand made from glass. Albeit incredibly pure and refined, there is no getting away from the fact that light travelling through glass will always travel slower through this medium than through a vacuum—as well as being affected by attenuation. This is where hollow-core fibre (HCF) technology offers greater promise, chasing a seemingly impossible solution to limitations governed by the fundamental laws of physics: by enabling the light to be transmitted via air or a vacuum.

HCF technology has improved since its emergence in the late 1990s, yet the central concept remains the same: an optical fibre guiding light through a hollow core (air or vacuum) with a lower refractive index than any single-mode core. Running the signal through an air-filled rather than glass-centre channel means the signal speed can be maintained at 99.9% of the speed of light (300 km/s), rather than at 66%. While there are now nuances in design and construction, the best performing HCF to date is the double-nested antiresonant nodeless fiber (DNANF) recently developed by Lumenisity, an offshoot from the University of Southampton’s Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC).

Aside from transmission speed , another critical performance indicator of an optical fibre is its attenuation value , a measure of the light signal lost between input and output. First reported in March of this year, Lumenisity’s DNANF achieved attenuations of 0.22 dB/km at 1310nm (O-band) and of 0.174 dB/km at 1550nm (C-band), matching that of commercial SMF at some frequencies (C-band) and surpassing it in others (O-band). This recent ground-breaking development has further pushed HCF into the spotlight, with various industries now considering possible applications of the technology in their fields.

Examining potential applications of hollow-core fibre

The excitement around HCF has led to a number of key trials which may shed light on the best use cases for Lumenisity’s CoreSmart® solution. One such trial was carried out in March by euNetworks. Using Lumenisity’s latest solution, the company installed a 7km route of HCF between the LON1 and London Stock Exchange data centres. Through 50% faster data transmission, latency was cut by 1/3 compared to SMF. This finding has huge implications for financial trading and is also of interest for gaming networks. Longer trial routes are now being planned, while there is confidence that the decreased latency can be maintained even with increased separation of data centres, an exciting prospect for both high frequency traders and hyperscalers.

Telecoms giant BT, in early testing with Mavenir, also noted that HCF’s faster transmission and reduced latency could help to lower mobile network costs, allowing greater distances between antennas and back-end cabinets and therefore larger areas to be served by fewer cabinets. In a different trial, instead with a focus on potential applications in quantum security, BT deployed a quantum key distribution (QKD) system using 6km of Lumenisity’s HCF solution. Reporting a reduction in latency and signal interference, the trial exposed the potential for HCF to be deployed in quantum communications, boosting security for data transmission through the safer delivery of quantum keys for quantum encryption.

Another potential application of the technology is in laser machining. Experiments by Lumenisity’s Francesco Poletti and the ORC showed that 1kw of continuous laser power at 1070nm could be beamed through a 1km-long stretch of HCF, compared to SMF’s capacity of tens of metres at this wattage, avoiding the nonlinear effects seen with conventional SMF given the nested design that gives (D)NANF its name. This ability to deliver high-power beams over such distances could be a huge discovery for the field of laser machining.

Could hollow-core fibre change the face of FTTP?

HCF has been shown to match or better performance of conventional SMF at different wavelengths, showcasing improvements with attenuation, latency, nonlinearity and dispersion. The excitement around this new fibre technology in various industries is clear, but just how realistic is its application in FTTP access networks?

With a predicted increase of 10+ million live connections in the UK by 2025, the demand for fast and dependable fibre is ever-greater. Unfortunately, HCF technology cannot yet answer this demand, for a multitude of reasons. Not only is the geography of the UK very awkward, but to use HCF in FTTP access networks to increase broadband speeds would require rebuilding existing FTTP deployments. Still an emerging technology, HCF is not yet being manufactured in volume and so comes at an extreme price premium, which is not expected to change for several years. Currently HCF’s use in FTTP access networks in the UK and across the globe seems a very distant possibility. The ongoing evolution of PON and other technologies will also continue to increase the performance, speed and commercial lifespan of existing SMF, further pushing the goalposts for HCF.

So, although HCF’s use in the consumer access networks is some way off, we may see many core network and business applications starting to incorporate this technology.

What Cambridge MC can do to help

Having lived with and worked around the limitations of SMF for 40 years or so, HCF will provide a step-change in optical networking and the applications it can support.

These will have far-reaching impacts on digital transformation strategies that will be adopted by our enterprise clients. HCF is a truly fascinating new technology and, although still in its infancy, already demonstrates a capacity for lower latency networking in the years to come. It may be some time before we benefit from HCF in the home when gaming or streaming our favourite Netflix shows, but B2B applications of HCF are more likely, particularly with financial trading and data centres.

With a reputation for excellence and expertise in the telecommunications industry, Cambridge Management Consulting will continue to track this technology and many others as they emerge. We pride ourselves on being ahead of the curve, and our consultants are on many panels and boards that advise on and predict future technology trends. When commercial opportunities for HCF emerge, we will be able to advise your organisation on adoption strategies - for more information contact us .

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our telecommunication services and full list of capabilities .

DARQ is (almost) here

Wed, 24 Aug 2022 09:07:45 GMT

Authors

DARQ technologies driving digital innovation

A new group of emergent technologies are driving innovation and digital transformation. Collectively they are known as DARQ, which is an acronym for D istributed ledger technology, A rtificial intelligence, extended R eality and Q uantum computing.

Over 85% of enterprises have already begun to use DARQ technologies. We delve into each of these technologies and investigate the potential uses as well as the effect each will have on one another, accelerating their development.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our digital innovation services and full list of capabilities .

Country Focus: The Nigerian Telecoms Market

Mon, 18 Jul 2022 09:07:20 GMT

Authors

Country Focus: The Nigerian Telecoms Market

One of our African market specialists, Steve Brookman, recently gave a webinar on the Nigerian telecoms market. We summarise some of the key takeaway points from his talk, which outline the huge opportunities available in a growing market and young demographic, as well as some of the inherent challenges for foreign investment and business. Please get in touch if you have any further questions.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our digital transformation services and full list of capabilities .

Why Fuel Prices aren't 'Pump Fiction'

Wed, 06 Jul 2022 09:05:55 GMT

Authors

Why fuel prices aren't 'pump fiction'

Over the last few weeks we have seen ‘Go Slow’ protests on motorways against the rising fuel prices and an article in the Mirror quoting Edmund V King OBE, President of the AA, that prices are ‘pump fiction’.

The subtext is that pump prices don’t reflect the wholesale market, and the article quoted a pump price for diesel of 198.96ppl. Phrases like ‘heinous’ and ‘regressive’ were used.

While I don’t for a minute dispute the massive impact wholesale energy price rises are having on people, especially the lowest paid, it is truly shocking to see the rate of inflation and consequent disconnect to wages.

But the solution to that problem is not to reduce the tax on a commodity which generates 40% of the UK’s carbon emission (when upstream refining is taken into account). Below I will discuss the reasoning for this, but I won’t go into the details of the broader issues as this post is about fuel and energy, not social value.

The fuel crisis isn't the result of taxation and pump price

There are a range of issues with the premise that fuel price challenges stem from unfair taxation and pump price profiteering. I’ll just call out the main two:

Pump prices lag wholesale prices: this has always been the case as the RAC Foundation’s data shows. Wholesale prices have only just started falling so one would expect the pump price to follow shortly—it always has in the past as the data shows. This is exactly what you’d expect from a traded commodity which is stored in large quantities at the retail location (note – this also depends on $:GBP FX rate).

‘Regressive’ and similar statements are simply wrong. Fuel duty is a fixed figure per litre, so as the retail price goes up fuel duty actually becomes a smaller % of the cost. The very opposite of regressive.

The only solution that doesn't cost the earth

The real indicator should be the 'value' of fuel, because there are so many hidden costs. And the only viable solution is the transition to electric vehicles (EV). To make the case, I have done some calculations that compare the costs and efficiencies of diesel/petrol vs electric.

Diesel (and petrol) are massively inefficient fuels when well-to-wheels is considered. Typically below 20%: four times as much energy is used extracting, refining, transporting and burning the fuel as it actually converted into motion.

In contrast, an electric car is around 76% efficient end-to-end. A third of the energy converted into motion is lost in generation, distribution and motor processes. 400% process losses for ICE, 33% for BEV.

Taxation on diesel at 198.96ppl is 33.16ppl VAT and 52.95ppl duty, a total of 86.11ppl or 43% of the retail price.

The average diesel car does 43mpg = 9.5 miles per litre. A cost of 20.9 pence per mile whilst using 0.105 litres of fuel and emitting 0.2645kg CO2e (based on 2021 conversion factor of 2.51233 kgCO2e/litre).

An electric car gives ~4miles/kWh (I average 4.3 in my Kia eNiro). The current price cap at home is 28.34p/kWh, a cost of 7.1ppm using 0.25 kWh of electricity and emitting 0.0531kg CO2e per mile, 20% that of diesel.

Tax on electricity at home is 13% environmental tax + 5% VAT = 18% tax. 42% that of diesel.

For business it is 13% environmental tax + 17% VAT = 28% tax. 65% that of diesel.

Hence driving a BEV rather than in a diesel car you are paying between 2 and 3 times the tax per kgCO2e emitted.

Five miles in an EV car buys you a bag a sugar

What does all this show? It certainly isn’t that tax on diesel is too high. What it shows is that you can save 13.8 pence per mile and 0.2114 kgCO2e by driving a battery electric car—hence the AA and every other motoring, energy and campaigning organisation, as well as every business, should be focusing on how we can switch to electric vehicles as soon as possible.

A 1kg bag of sugar at Tesco costs £0.65. You can save enough money to buy one, and the equivalent weight of CO2e, by driving just 4.7 miles in an electric car.

Switching to electric vehicles now makes sense for people, planet and pocket. Contact me or edenseven (the environmental subsidiary of Cambridge MC) for help in making these savings a reality for you and your business.

It won't be easy, but the rewards are huge

Simon King built the largest fleet of EV vehicles in the UK. He has a deep knowledge of the industry and a passion for electric vehicles, particularly the opportunity they offer to positively impact the environment while also saving you money.

If you would like to talk to the edenseven team about effective steps to invest in electric cars and change your fleet, please get in contact with us.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our sustainability services and full list of capabilities .

Organisational Development and Workforce Resilience: A continuous business challenge

Wed, 15 Jun 2022 09:05:02 GMT

Authors

The Current Climate

In periods of unrest and financial turbulence, there is a significant gap between companies that build resilience and those who rely on outdated structures based on yesterday’s markets.

We believe that it is a mistake to view your Organisational Development as a process used primarily to prop up internal business structures. These structures have usually evolved to meet current demands, and they have often have become static.

‘Static’ here means that your current structures represent the past and present only. In today’s climate, this is a risk to future growth —particularly to an organisation’s ability to adapt to change.

If your current internal structures and culture react to change using this present-past organisational footprint, there will be a variety of issues when you invest in business transformation.

We have found a variety of reasons why organisations use a ‘current model’ as a design choice:

They have been successful with their current organisational footprint, so why change anything
Putting the workforce through a change process is ‘painful’, so they see what can be done without too much disruption
There is a lack of understanding around how organisational capability can drive innovative solutions in the marketplace
The costs of the current organisational structure are a stumbling block to change. Current costs are known, new structures are assumed to be more expensive

Consequences of the ‘Current Model’ for Organisational Change

Organisations are increasingly facing business challenges from rapidly changing market conditions, globalisation, and pressure from shorter Go-to-Market cycles for new products and services.

Businesses don’t always have the relevant data analytics to understand new trends or changing consumer behaviour —leading to obsolete products and ‘burning’ working capital.

We offer a solution with our Organisational Design Process combined with tools to measure Workforce Resilience. By establishing the readiness for organisational change, in your workforce, culture and internal structures, we can help you plan for a successful and competitive future.

Your Priority is your People

Before embarking on organisational design projects it is essential to understand your Business Challenges and People Challenges.

We see projects fail because so often the ‘People Factor’ becomes an afterthought. Companies start a complex transformation with no benchmark for the change readiness of their workforce.

They sometimes start with estimates to completion that are a guess or idealistic hope at best. An evidence-based understanding of the work resilience of your workforce supports your board decisions; providing better accuracy for the expected level of success and timescales.

Why is Workforce Resilience so Important?

Workforce resilience is a huge factor in any large-scale business transformation. If you don’t ensure resilience is high enough before business transformation the outcomes will include:

Disengagement
Project failure
Delays
Change fatigue
Lack of consistency in management styles
Siloed teams, poor communication and conflict between different skillsets and approaches

Our Evidence-based Workforce Resilience Solution

Our solution always starts with diagnosing the mental state and level of resilience of your workforce. This starting point is essential to understand the change readiness of your organisation and it gives a clear indication of any organisational limitations that can frustrate the full success of your change initiative. It prepares you for the initial work that must be completed before beginning organisational change.

Cambridge MC and Aura: Creating a Workforce Resilience Consultancy Platform

We use AURA, a comprehensive assessment tool to help the leadership team make informed change management decisions. AURA will help you uncover pain points at the level of individuals and teams. This data feeds into to a targeted action plan to mitigate risk and improve wellbeing.

The advantages of AURA:

Combines psychometric assessment design principles with real-world experiences of burnout symptoms
Measures 93 symptoms across 5 dimensions of resilience; plotting a scale from full resilience to burnout crisis
Enables profiling of organisations, teams and individuals to target actions for maximum impact
Online reporting: evaluating the data from different angles to highlight practical actions
Empowers teams to build healthier work environments
Provides benchmarking data for your company. This allows you to compare your baseline with industry equivalents; or you can benchmark similar functions with your industry equivalents

Benefits of our Approach and Solution

Our consultancy platform will give your board the necessary ‘hidden’ information to put in place a realistic strategy for change management.

Our approach ensures:

Consistent management styles and messaging: one face and one voice for the organisation
The infrastructure and skills needed to manage a workforce during a period of fast growth
A high-performance culture - we consider mental health and resilience when planning digital transformation (given the rapid shift to remote working this is even more prescient in the current climate)
A more accurate timeline for your transformation
A holistic HR function. HR is generally poorly represented in the boardroom; this is to the detriment of corporate culture. HR is generally tactical, but we want to make it central to all operations
We don’t leave you with just a plan. We check in with you on a regular basis to see how things are going. We then provide a final analysis of your progress, usually 6 months after our initial engagement.

Benefits of our Approach and solution

If you want to find out more about our unique approach to organisational change - including bringing HR functions into boardroom discussion, workforce resilience and change readiness analytics and achieving consistency in management styles and communication across your business then please get in touch with our Head of Human Capital Management - Cees van der Vlugt .

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our people services and full list of capabilities .

Celebrating Pride Month: The Power of Inclusive Workplaces

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 09:04:38 GMT

Authors

What Businesses can Learn from Pride Month

In June our attention turns to Pride month. Marking the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, a week of protests in New York against police harassment of the gay community, Pride month sees a host of parades, concerts and festivals worldwide to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community.

Pride both celebrates how far LGBTQ+ rights have come since 1969 and raises awareness of the issues the community—unfortunately—still faces some 50 years on. And so, particularly during Pride month, it is vital that we reflect on these issues in the workplace. We must attempt to prevent rather than simply mitigate the issues that the LGBTQ+ community face in the workplace, learning to 'walk the walk' rather than merely 'talk the talk' around Pride-related initiatives. We must ensure that we have the correct culture in place to deliver the equality, diversity and inclusivity that our employees, clients and partners both demand and deserve.

“ Diversity happens, inclusion is a choice ”

Harjeet Khanduja, How Leaders Decide: Tackling Biases and Risks in Decision Making

Equality concerns fair treatment of all individuals, while diversity concerns the mix of people from different backgrounds. But what we must really ensure we deliver on as businesses is inclusivity, whereby we not only have this mix of people, but they all feel comfortable being themselves at work, feel valued, and feel included.

Fostering Inclusivity in the Workplace

Realising workplace inclusivity requires changes at both the macro and micro level. It requires businesses to ask difficult questions and to engage in honest conversations as a team. But while inclusivity in the workplace cannot be achieved overnight, businesses shouldn't feel daunted and must not be discouraged from implementing the necessary changes. And there is so much that can positively be done to generate a more inclusive workplace.

Inclusion

The first and most important step to creating inclusivity is education. The moment we decide to challenge our unconscious biases and educate ourselves on others’ perspectives is the moment we decide to expand our understanding of the world and the people around us. Listening to others’ fears and issues gains their trust, allowing them to feel respected and valued in the workplace. Without understanding other cultures, traditions and religions, we could never begin to bring aspects of these into the workplace.

D&I initiatives

Many businesses suffer when it comes to inclusivity because they lack a dedicated Diversity & Inclusivity (D&I) team. Having a dedicated team in place is pivotal to the success of inclusivity initiatives across various levels. At a very basic level, employees should be educated on how to avoid heteronormative, homophobic, and racist language in the workplace; instead using respectful and LGBTQ+ inclusive language.

Among other initiatives, businesses can ensure their workplace is accessible with lifts, ramps and disabled parking. They can ensure they have mental health first aiders on-site and, if physical space allows, consider implementing sensory, prayer and meditation rooms. Businesses can ensure that the company calendar celebrates a wide variety of traditional holidays such as Ramadan and Diwali, and employees can be invited to add important cultural or religious events to this calendar so they can be better represented business-wide.

Your D&I department is unlikely to succeed alone, and so initiatives they set out should empower employees at all levels to drive change across your organisation. These can range from encouraging the return of employee feedback to management (crucially these must then be assessed by the D&I team) to ensuring D&I and HR policies are easily accessible so employees don’t have to jump through hoops to acknowledge them.

Flexibility

One silver lining remote and hybrid working, with flexible working arrangements now here to stay. Such flexibility is key for inclusivity. More able to recruit employees with physical or mental health disabilities, family care responsibilities, and those catchment area, organisations open themselves up to a more diverse pool of otherwise missed talent.

Inclusive cultures enable staff to work in ways that better suit them, ensuring a healthy work-life balance that allows them to deliver their very best for your business.

The Strength of Workplace Inclusivity

There are a multitude of changes that can be made to make your workplace more inclusive. But there will be cynical voices and those who think these initiatives are a form of pandering to social mores. Your management teams might not want to enforce them. And there is almost certainly going to be a tightening of budgets for anything outside business-critical projects. We must acknowledge that not every business can introduce all of the above measures, nor can they all be made overnight. But every change that is made is a meaningful step towards to a happier, more productive and more innovative workforce. Without a doubt, a commitment to D&I will produce a long-lasting return in investment.

Mental wellbeing

The mental wellbeing of staff should be the ultimate focus of any business, and inclusivity is central to mental wellbeing. The bottom line is that generating a culture of inclusivity, a workplace in which everyone feels welcome and comfortable in their own skin, can help to make employees feel much happier at work.

“ It takes no money to respect the individual ”

Harvey Milk, leading political gay activist of the 1970s

You cannot put a price on mental wellbeing; a lesson we all learned from the pandemic. But a happier workforce will actually cut costs as it leads to better staff retention—inclusivity really is a win-win.

Productivity

Feeling more valued and included, a happier workforce is also a more productive workforce; a finding which is evidenced in studies such as that by Oxford University and BT in 2019. A more diverse team is also a team with a broader range of skills and experiences, which helps to boost productivity through the exchange of ideas. Businesses can gain a competitive edge when novel and more creative ways of thinking are introduced, ignited by a workplace culture in which all employees feel they can contribute equally.

Innovation

Being able to see things from different points of view and tackle problems from different angles is what ultimately drives innovation in any business, and inclusivity is at the heart of making this a reality. Creating a more inclusive workplace, in which employees better understand other and their backgrounds, also opens up more opportunities to build relationships with clients and partners from different cultures and backgrounds. A business that can demonstrate that they champion inclusivity in their workplace, 'walking the walk' and not just 'talking the talk', will be much more attractive to new employees from a diverse range of backgrounds. This helps to generate a very positive cycle of recruiting the best talent—a key driver for innovation.

Conclusion

During Pride month it is time to reflect on how we as businesses can do more to foster an inclusive culture in the workplace. Through education, policy and flexibility we can generate inclusivity in our workplaces and drive our businesses to be happier, more productive and more innovative. Ultimately, Pride is all about self-acceptance and being comfortable in your own skin. As businesses we must be proud of, and include, every single employee, no matter their background. We must bring into the workplace the love, friendship and vibrancy epitomised during this month’s Pride celebrations across the world.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our people services and full list of capabilities .

Understanding the Human Capital in your Digital Transformation

Mon, 30 May 2022 09:02:59 GMT

Authors

The Current State

A comprehensive understanding of the mental wellbeing of your workforce has never been more important. After two years of lockdowns, employees are re-entering a workplace that is an uncertain mix of Work From Home (WFH) and on-site hours. This is heightened further by current anxieties around economic instability and a more digitalised environment, potentially leading to a greater feeling of isolation.

It essential to look after the mental wellbeing of your Human Capital (your people). This is also key to understanding change readiness and Development. By bringing the Human Resources (HR) function into the boardroom, you can begin to understand the significance of mental health and its impact on your workforce’s performance and resilience.

Your people should be at the forefront rather than being an afterthought in your business decisions. We bring a series of boardroom solutions that benefit your employees, your customers and your business.

Why Must We Change

In one of my former articles, I wrote about the hidden mental health issues that are hampering your workforce. The pandemic has only increased the vulnerability of your workforce. Current economic conditions also contribute. It is time to recognise that mental wellbeing should be a regular subject on your boardroom agenda, supported by analytics that provide proper insight and actions to improve the mental wellbeing of your company.

There are obvious benefits to caring. A workforce that feels listened to and valued has improved self-esteem and engagement, leading to maximised employee experience and improved customer experience. This is a positive reflection of your company’s values and developed leadership expertise.

This is what it can do for your company:

A positive and engaged approach to work will improve interactions with colleagues and customers
Reduced employee turnover leads to increased retention of more experienced staff, less customer churn and more reliable talent management and succession results
Improved employee engagement and experience
Reduced absence levels with improved productivity and effectiveness
Business success and a contributing HR strategy are deeply Intertwined. This is reflected in innovative and competitive business performance. Failure to address the mental wellbeing of your workforce creates low engagement. Subsequently, limited employee potential and business results will be limited as well.

A dissatisfied workforce will demonstrate very limited change readiness. The University of Oxford has tried to put a figure to the potential loss of productivity caused by workforce dissatisfaction and estimates that on a global scale, a disengaged workforce leads to ‘approximately $7 trillion in lost productivity’. On the other hand, an engaged workforce increases productivity levels by 13%, according to a Gallup report.

Sources:

https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2019-10-24-happy-workers-are-13-more-productive

https://www.gallup.com/workplace/231668/dismal-employee-engagement-sign-global-mismanagement.aspx

Why change now?

In a post-pandemic world, understanding the wellbeing of your employees is not a luxury, but a necessity. This is particularly true as new generations enter the workforce with different attributes and demands. Millennials and Gen Zs have new frames of requirements compared to their predecessors and they are demanding different solutions from employers to thrive in their professional roles.

Research conducted by the Deloitte Global survey (link to source below) shows: 41% of millennials and 46% of Gen Zs shared that they feel stressed or anxious most or all of the time. This appears to be caused primarily by the pandemic, rises in the cost of living, environmental concerns, fear for burnout, financial insecurity, and uncertainty about the future.

All these factors lead to: reduced productivity, less engagement, less change readiness, low self-esteem, reduced interaction focused on positive customer experience and most likely reduced or stagnating business results.

Linking mental wellbeing with the effects mentioned above, it becomes clear that there is no room to further stigmatise the phenomenon ‘mental health in the workplace’. HR must drive many of these changes and, consequently, they must be present and an influence at the highest level of decision-making.

Source:

https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/press-releases/articles/half-of-uk-millennials-and-gen-zs-feel-stressed-most-of-the-time.html

Our solution

Bringing HR into the boardroom is the first step towards a solution:

HR can translate ‘soft’ issues into data and analysis, reducing the unquantifiable argument of ‘gut feeling’. In order to translate real issues into real solutions, we must learn how to demonstrate these changes in a quantifiable way. The HR function must provide data and analytics to support and drive proposed improvements and decisions.

It is essential that HR owns a boardroom concern in terms of driving solutions through data and analysis that leads to quantifiable actions.

A shift from HR to Human Capital Management (HCM) is the next significant step toward a new perspective. Once the boardroom fully understands the investment required to hire and develop staff, as well as understanding that people drive innovation, new products and services, then HCM will have a place at the boardroom table.

Final thoughts

We believe that the current challenge facing organisations, including new priorities among the workforce—evidenced by the Great Resignation—and the difficulties posed by remote/hybrid working—particularly on new hires who may struggle to get a feel for culture and values—makes a strong case for seating HR in the boardroom.

The mental wellbeing of your workforce can no longer be ignored and must be recognised and valued alongside other critical business activities. As we have written about elsewhere, you should not attempt digital transformation without first measuring the resilience of your workforce. A change initiative forced on an unprepared workforce, particularly if it is experiencing burnout, lack of engagement and siloed teams, will result in delays and potentially failure.

By putting mental health and HCM on the boardroom agenda, you are investing in the success of your workforce and therefore the long-term sustainability of your business. This topic deserves constant attention and prioritisation, and we believe business practices should always reflect this.

To find out more about our HCM consultancy services, including workforce resilience and mental health, visit our People capabilities page.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our people services and full list of capabilities .

Sustainability will be a ‘Licence to Operate’ sooner than expected

Wed, 25 May 2022 09:02:18 GMT

Authors

New UK Procurement Policy changes

A new UK Procurement Policy Note (PPN) has recently set out that all organisation bidding for work with Central Government Departments, their Executive Agencies and Non-Departmental Public bodies with a contract value greater than £5m per annum will need to:

“ Provide a Carbon Reduction Plan confirming the supplier’s commitment to achieving Net Zero by 2050 in the UK, by setting out environmental management measures that they have in place, which will be in effect and utilised during the performance of the contract. ”

The contracting authority must:

“ Verify that the successful supplier meets the selection criteria prior to award of the contract or appointment to a framework agreement or dynamic purchasing system. Contracting authorities may request this evidence at any time during the procurement process where this is necessary to ensure proper conduct. ”

If you think this doesn't apply to you, think again

There is a point to made about the introduction of the new ruling. It isn’t about the size of the award it is focussed on (£5m per annum and above, isn’t a small amount after all) or about the verification process being placed on the contracting authority to prove participants are abiding by the rules or that it’s focussed on the public sector. The point is that this is simply the start of things to come.

We have seen a wave of targets and statements being made by governing bodies, corporates, councils etc., relating to green ambitions and what has already been achieved to date —which is fantastic and truly promising for the whole zero carbon and climate change movement. However, very quickly verification of these actions and achievements will need to be shown in black and white.

Sustainability is no longer a nice to have, it’s your ticket to the game

At Cambridge we are talking to organisations on both side of the procurement fence. Buyers of services and products who are trying to transform their business processes to be both cost effective and sustainable and sellers of services and products who are looking to prove they are cost-effective and sustainable in their business processes.

What is consistent in either camp, is that change needs to happen and organisations need to prove they are doing what they’ve been saying . If not, don’t be surprised if they are left behind.

Let's focus on the seller. If you are a seller of services and not able to prove you are credible and true to your sustainability promises, you will find sooner rather than later, it will be a case of ‘not being allowed to play’. Put simply, your customers will not allow you to ‘pass go’.

We are seeing more and more tenders in both public and private sectors requesting evidence of targets and evidence of actions when it comes to sustainability.

Remember, this isn’t about what you pledge, it’s about proving you are doing what you said you would: “WALKING THE TALK” .

Why do I have to prove it?

Buyers of services or products are also feeling the squeeze and they need to validate that:

They are procuring products and services which are future-proofed
They are buying from businesses who are fit for purpose
Sellers are aligned to their own targets for Scope 3 validation

Should organisations ‘underpromise and overdeliver’?

It sounds strange to even suggest you should ‘undercook’ what you’ve achieved when it comes to sustainability, but the point is, organisations need to be certain about what they’ve achieved, and back this up with strong data and evidence.

How to make it happen:

Make sure you know your data: You need to know where you have started and what you’ve achieved. Without this you will not be able to prove yourself.
Create a clear reporting structure: Accurate, timely management information, will means you can react to under and over-performance rapidly and limit waste. Clear MI is the building block to success.
Be clear on what you are aiming to achieve: Make sure you validate everything you are stating you have achieved and let your clients now it. However, remember no ‘green washing’.
Accreditations: Think this through, pick the right one and not just because it is easy. It should push your business to the next level.

If you would like to talk to the team about the steps required to became ‘sustainability ready’, please get in contact with us.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting is a specialist consultancy drawing on an extensive network of global talent. We are your growth catalyst, assembling a team of experts to focus on the specific challenges of your market.

With an emphasis on digital transformation, we add value to any business attempting to scale by combining capabilities such as marketing acceleration, digital innovation, talent acquisition and procurement.

Founded in Cambridge, UK, we created a consultancy to cope specifically with the demands of a fast-changing digital world. Since then, we’ve gone international, with offices in Cambridge, London, Paris and Tel Aviv, 100 consultants in 17 countries, and clients all over the world.

Find out more about our sustainability services and full list of capabilities .

How to achieve ultra-reliable networks in 2022

Wed, 04 May 2022 08:59:32 GMT

Authors

The challenges of delivering low latency and 5G

The pandemic has brought into sharp focus the need and importance of reliable and flexible networks at home. The switch to remote working and the rapid normalcy of meetings from our desks at home, brought with it surges in internet traffic and demand for reliable, stable connections.

Networks across Europe coped well, for the most part, but there are questions hanging over the near-horizon, about how carriers will adapt and scale for both a growing remote workforce and the predicted rise of new technologies.

5G is part of the answer (but only a part) and its development and rollout will coincide with and drive innovations in IoT, autonomous vehicles, and AI. These emerging technologies also exist within larger tectonic shifts in society and culture, including increasing digitalisation, virtualisation and autonomy in services; and the beginnings of the decentralised application of blockchain technology.

As our society embraces digitalisation, and the process is accelerated by Covid-19, we ask, what are the major challenges faced by carriers heading into 2022 to deliver on twin fronts of both infrastructure demand and customer expectation?

We will discuss the issue of low-latency, particularly in meeting customer expectations. These expectations anticipate the demands of video-centric content, remote working, IoT and gaming. We will also explore metrics for customer experience, and conclude with the impact of 5G technology.

Measuring Quality of Experience for internet connectivity

With a surge in internet traffic during lockdowns potentially being the start of a sustained uptick in demand, including online games and growing markets for streaming games and VR, there is a spotlight on the issue of latency as a key indicator of customer expectation.

Let us first, talk more broadly about indicators of network quality in 2021 and beyond.

Digital Equality - The widening speed gap in Europe

Europe’s internet speeds have increased by more than 50% in the last 18 months. However, this comes at the cost of widening gaps between urban and rural areas and also between Northern European countries and South-Eastern Europe.

The UK too lags behind much of its Western European neighbours when it comes to average internet speed. It was placed 47th on the list in a study conducted in 2020 . In fact, the average broadband speed in the UK was less than half that of the Western European average.

The EU has a stated goal to be the most connected continent by 2030. It has already taken action to do this by ending roaming charges and introducing a price-cap on inter-EU communications. The key goal is for every European household to have access to high-speed internet coverage by 2025 and gigabit connectivity by 2030.

The elevation of internet access as a necessary human right is of course encouraging, and so are the targets set by the EU. However, for these targets to be truly meaningful, there needs to progress on a number of challenges to connectivity across Europe. Redefining the metrics we use to track this progress is also vital.

Measuring Quality of Experience (QoE)

There are a variety of problems with measuring internet speeds in a comparable way. Usually, ISPs present averages across a range of time in Mbps or sometimes the % of plan speed achieved across a range of time.

As bandwidth in many countries in Europe moves towards, and over, 100Mbps, this proxy is becoming a weaker indicator of user experience.

There are also a number of key reasons why figures published by an ISP might be misleading compared to actual user experience.

Some of these problems are as follows:

Lab-testing of internet speed does not replicate the real-world chain of devices/hosts involved in sending and receiving packets

Averages of Mbps ignores speeds at peak periods when the network is congested and networks throttle bandwidth

The ‘plan speed’ does not reflect actual speeds experienced in a household where packet queuing and WiFi congestion and network affects users differently on the customer LAN

This metric ignores latency, which is becoming a better signal of internet experience in an age of video streaming and online gaming (more on this below)

Many voices in the industry are pushing for more holistic Quality of Experience (QoE) metrics to enlarge the current set of Quality of Service (QoS) measurements.

The difference between QoE and QoS is that the latter method is comparable to measuring the success of a call centre by how many calls are concluded in a given day. This metric completely ignores whether a caller’s problem was sufficiently resolved or how satisfied the caller felt about the interaction, the ‘experience’.

Research shows that users are happy when a website loads in under two seconds (QoE). If network management is calibrated with this information, bandwidth saved can be allocated elsewhere if necessary (QoS).

Thus, one characteristic of QoE is the realisation that there are many examples where a better QoS (above a threshold) does not readily impact the user’s perception/experience of the service.

This has some important ramifications in terms of design. For example, services such as online gaming rely on low latency far more than video streaming, where buffering protocols absorb lag. QoE can be used to design SLAs and network management that are specific to the needs of an individual service.

If network providers can achieve methods of gathering QoE data, it can be used to build Autonomic Network Management (ANM) capabilities that use artificial intelligence to allow networks to achieve even more efficient network performance that reacts in real-time to user experience.

Low latency: jitter and packet loss

Bandwidth has generally been king in the history of communication networks. Low latency has generally lagged behind (pun intended) as a priority in the upgrading of networks.

From a QoE perspective, latency can be roughly defined as ‘the delay between a user’s action and the response of a web application’ – in QoS terms, this is the time taken for a data packet to make a round trip to and from a server (round trip delay).

Latency is affected by many variables, but the main four are:

Transmission medium: The physical path between the start and end points i.e. a copper-based network is much slower than fibre-optic.

Network management: The efficiency of routers and other devices or software that manage incoming traffic

Propagation: The further apart two nodes are in the network will affect latency. For every 100 miles of fibre-optic cable it is estimated this adds 1ms of latency

Storage delays: Accessing stored data will generally increase latency

There are two types of latency issue.

One is the ‘lag’ (delay) we defined above, and the other is ‘ jitter ’, the variations in latency that can make connections unreliable. Jitter is usually caused by network traffic jams, bad packet queuing and setup errors.

Impacting the QoE ‘perception’ of latency is also packet loss . Packet loss occurs when packets of data do not reach their intended destination. It is commonly caused by congestion and hardware issues —the issue can be more frequent over WiFi where environmental factors and weak signal are factors. The effect of packet loss is worse for real-time services such as video, voice and gaming. Packet loss is also worse in networks where there are no TCP protocols to retrieve and re-send packets that have dropped.

Why is low latency so important now?

“ All areas of business and private life rely more heavily today than ever before on digital applications. The latency-sensitivity of these applications is not only a hallmark of quality and guarantee of commercial productivity, but also – in critical use cases, a lifeline. ”

Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX International

Recent technological innovations all tend to require lower latency. Cloud applications, mobile gaming, virtual/augmented reality, and the smart home rely on real-time monitoring and fast signal to action responsiveness. The growth of IoT and a world of interconnected sensors dictate that networks have a consistently low latency that is less than human reaction speeds.

Human beings: 250 milliseconds responding to a visual stimulus
4G latency: 200 milliseconds
5G latency: 1 millisecond

Consider the safety implications when your car can react 250 times faster than you. At 100km/h the reaction speed of a human creates a reaction distance of 30m. With a 1 millisecond (1ms) reaction time, your autonomous car can break with a reaction distance of 3cm.

Latency and geography: the effect on user experience (UX)

The maximum affordable latency for a decent end-user experience with today’s general-use applications is around 65 milliseconds. However, a latency of no more than 20 milliseconds is necessary to perform all these daily activities with the level of performance that everybody deserves. Translating this into distance, this means the content and the applications need to be as close to the users as possible. Geographically speaking, applications like interactive online gaming and live streaming in HD/4K need to be less than 1,200 km from the user. But the applications that our digital future will be based on will demand much lower latency – in the range of 1-3 milliseconds. Smart IoT applications, and critical applications requiring real-time responses, like autonomous driving, need to be performed within a range of 50-80 km from the user.

How networks can reduce latency

There are a variety of ways of lowering latency. Businesses can pay for dedicated private networks and links that deliver extremely reliable and stable connections. This is also one of the few solutions that tackles performance gaps in the ‘middle mile’ (the network infrastructure that connects last mile (local) networks to high speed network service providers) of the internet.

Any service which uses the backbone of the internet will run into problems of inefficient routing due to:

Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) for routing (because it has no congestion avoidance)
Least-cost routing policies
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP): It is a blunt-tool protocol that reacts strongly to congestion and throttles throughputHow do I choose the right SD-WAN overlay?

Efficient network management

One other solution is offered by the latest breed of SD-WAN software. SD-WAN operates as a virtual overlay of the internet, testing and identifying the best routes via a feedback loop of metrics. Potentially SD-WAN can limit packet loss and decrease latency by sending data through pre-approved optimal routes. MPLS does something similar, labelling traffic to ensure it is dealt with on a priority basis; but this service is more expensive than SD-WAN and its architecture is not suited to cloud connectivity.

SD-WAN is a hybrid solution, meaning that the software overlay can route traffic over a host of networks, including MPLS, a dedicated line and the internet. WAN management also includes a host of virtualised network tools that optimise network efficiency. This includes abbreviating redundant data (known as deduplication), compression, and also caching (where frequent data is stored closer to the end user).

To find out more about the range of network infrastructure and SD-WAN services offered by Cambridge Management Consulting visit our capability page.

5G promises ultra-low latency

5G promises to lead us into a world of ultra-low latency, paving the way for robotics, IoT, autonomous cars, VR and cloud gaming. For this to become a reality, new infrastructure must be installed; this requires significant investment from governments and telecoms companies. Most countries need to install much more fibre to deal with the backhaul of data.

During the transition, the current 4G network will need to support 5G and there will be a combination of new and old tech, patches and upgrades to masts. Edge computing will eventually move data-centres closer to users, also contributing to lower latency. It could be many years before we see the kinds of low-latency connections that have been promised.

How 5G and network slicing will end high-latency

With the fifth generation of cellular data, gigabit bandwidth should become the norm, and the frame length (the time waiting to put bits into the channel) will be drastically reduced. 5G moves up the electromagnetic spectrum to make use of millimeter waves (mmWave), which have much greater capacity but poorer propagation characteristics. These millimeter waves can be easily blocked by a wall, or even a person or a tree. Therefore, operators will use a combination of low, mid, and high range spectrum to support different use cases.

The mid- to long-term solution to propagation restrictions is that 5G will require a network of small cells as well as the cell towers to support them (NG-RAN architecture). Small cells can be located on lampposts, sides of buildings, and also within businesses and public buildings. They will enable the ‘densification’ of networks, broadcasting high capacity millimeter waves primarily in urban areas. Because optical fibre may not be available at all sites, wireless backhaul will be a common option for small cells.

Edge computing will further support this near-user vision. Using off-the-shelf servers, and smaller data centres closer to the cell towers, edge computing can ensure low latency and high bandwidth.

“ As latency requirements get lower and lower, it becomes more and more important to bring interconnection services as close to people and businesses as possible, everywhere. Latency truly is the new currency for the exciting next generation of applications and services. ”

Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX International

What is network slicing?

The key innovation enabling the full potential of 5G architecture to be realised is network slicing. This technology adds an extra dimension by allowing multiple logical networks to simultaneously overlay a shared physical network infrastructure. This creates end-to-end virtual networks that include both networking and storage functions.

Operators can effectively manage diverse 5G use protocols with differing throughput, network latency and availability demands by ‘slicing’ network resources and tailoring them to multiple users.

What is realistic progress for 5G in 2022?

According to the California-based company Grand View Research, the global 5G infrastructure market size —valued at $1.9bn in 2019— is projected to reach $496.6bn by 2027.

There are however significant costs associated with 5G roll-out, as well as complications arising from planning regulations (for small cells in the UK alone, separate planning applications have to be files for each cell) and the need to alleviate public health fears about the technology.

There is still also the issue of digital equality (conquering the digital divide). There is a risk the divide could widen further if 5G services are concentrated only in cities, as economics will almost certainly dictate.

The EU recently announced their Path to the Digital Decade , a concrete plan to achieve the digital transformation of society and the economy by 2030.

Read more about the Path to the Digital Decade .

“ The European vision for a digital future is one where technology empowers people. So today we propose a concrete plan to achieve the digital transformation. For a future where innovation works for businesses and for our societies. We aim to set up a governance framework based on an annual cooperation mechanism to reach targets in the areas of digital skills, digital infrastructures, digitalisation of businesses and public services. ”

Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President for ‘A Europe Fit for the Digital Age’

5G has been dubbed by some as the next industrial revolution. If all the technologies that it intends to drive are realised within the next decade, that could certainly be the case. What is achievable in the short-term, however, is less clear and progress could be slowed by infrastructural barriers and rising costs.

As we head into 2022 there needs to be significant work to upgrade legacy systems to integrate with the rollout of 5G and an acceleration laying fibre optic cables to deal with the backhaul of data from the proliferation of 5G cells.

While 5G leads the technological improvement of the network, lowering latency at the network edge also needs to be a primary goal and operators must focus on latency as one element (albeit it a key element) of a holistic strategy to improve the mobile internet experience (and measure this against a robust QoE framework).

Contributors

Thanks to Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX International; Charles Orsel des Sagets, Managing Partner, Cambridge MC; Eric Green, Senior Partner, Cambridge MC; and Tim Passingham, Chairman, Cambridge MC, who all made contributions to this article. Special thanks to Ivo Ivanov, for his quotes.

Thanks to Karl Salter , web designer and graphic designer, for infographics.

You can find out more about Ivo Ivanov on LinkedIn and DE-CIX via their website.

Read bios for Charles Orsel des Sagets , Tim Passingham , and Eric Green .

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our telecommunication services and full list of capabilities

Report on the Vodafone Industry Influencer event in March

Tue, 26 Apr 2022 10:40:01 GMT

Vodafone Influencer Event, by Eric Green

Despite a dreary morning, it was only a short run up the M4 in my electric car to the impressive Vodafone headquarters in Newbury.

While we had our coffee and waited for the formal part of the day to kick off, we all quickly got out our phones and started testing the 5G data speeds.

This has been my most-asked question since the event, and I can confirm the 5G speeds were absolutely amazing. At 678/96.2 Mbps, it is the fastest I’ve ever seen my speedtest app record. But we were there for much more than just playing with Vodafone’s 5G network.

The day's events

The event took place in the Vodafone Customer Experience Centre where there were various displays showcasing how Vodafone have used their network and expertise to solve problems across a wide range of needs and technologies.

That was to be the driving message; that Vodafone was more than a mobile company and their business focus was moving more toward solutions rather than just selling their network. This was highlighted even more by their inclusion of user experience (UX), particularly their work in collaboration with Actual Experience.

The presentations looked at the rise in Mobile Private Network (MPN) that Vodafone is building, especially with the rise in automated workplaces —e.g. automated docks with autonomous cranes in operation 24/7— and how this is leveraging developments in the IoT space.

While it was pointed out that the Internet of Things (IoT) isn’t really that new (it started as much as 32 years ago when John Romkey introduced the first smart toaster that could be controlled over the internet), IoT applications are growing exponentially and Vodafone were keen to point out that Gartner sees them as the leader in the field.

What Vodafone have learned is that one size does not fit all, and they are using 5G/4G and Narrowband technologies to provide the right platforms for the necessary growth in M2M communication through the Internet of Things.

They also showcased their voice roadmap and how they are using their partnership with RingCentral to help clients move away from traditional telephony to UCC solutions.

I was extremely pleased to find that the event was attended by consultants from across the Digital Transformation space. No longer seen by Vodafone as competition, they were keen to inform participants how Vodafone could help them with advice to clients as well ensuring that we had the latest in the Vodafone product strategy: so that we would know exactly when they might be a good fit for future customer requirements.

Overall, this was an interesting day and I hope that more telcos will embrace the consultant community in the same way.

Eric Green

Eric Green is a Senior Partner for Cambridge Management Consulting. He runs the Carrier Club and is an expert at procurement solutions for carriers worldwide.

Eric is highly sought after for his ability to restructure teams, procurement costs , contracts and processes. He is also renowned for designing governance models to improve the efficiency of both procurement and telecom functions.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our digital transformation services and full list of capabilities

Why HR needs to take the lead on workplace mental health in 2022

Thu, 27 Jan 2022 22:06:46 GMT

It’s time to talk about mental health

There is a rallying call for dealing with a subject that should have long been included in your company’s mission, people strategy, leadership programme, and employee experience programmes.

Mental health should have been a boardroom concern for multiple reasons, and now is the time to bring it to the boardroom table with a sense of urgency.

In this short article, I ask: who in the organisation should be leading the discussion, and why is it too costly to ignore this issue?

HR & mental health in 2022

When asked which HR topics will be knocking on the boardroom doors for the next three years, I immediately think of these urgent problems:

The gender pay gap
Equality, diversity, and inclusion
Sustainability and net zero
Digital transformation
Cyber security
The talent gap
Evidence-based management
The unforeseen aftereffects of the COVID 19 pandemic
And the new kid on the block, mental health in the workplace

Many of these issues are linked in some way, and all have a bearing on and are affected by mental health in the workplace.

How did we get here? HR and Covid-19

We have now been in and out of lockdown for almost two years, and we are just starting to realise the profound effect it has had on the working population.

From one day to another we were stuck at home, with no news when we could see family, friends, and colleagues again. In the flick of a switch, our world was turned upside down. It was incomprehensible and unprecedented.

This historic situation has exposed society to a considerable number of states and emotions, from acute depression and anxiety, to claustrophobia, aggression and suicidal thoughts. Mental health services were frequently withdrawn or unavailable.

People lost their jobs, moved onto furlough schemes with little prospect of new job opportunities. We are still uncertain about the full damage lockdowns will have on our economies.

But amid the chaos, there were positives to be found. Many of us started working from home. This brought no daily commute, no excessive expenses, and casual clothes (sometimes pyjamas) instead of suits. With that also came a new level of intimacy. We were invited into each other’s living rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms. Meetings were interrupted by children and pets, causing a smile and a reminding us how strange this all was and still is.

Without being too dramatic, we all came out of the Covid experience bruised and damaged. Being bruised and damaged means that part of the brain is not capable of bringing the workplace to full intellectual fruition, with creativity, innovation and performance. And it certainly reduces our appetite to enter the next company change initiative.

It does not matter if you are a baby boomer, Generation Z or a Millennial, we all have been touched by the effects of Covid-19 and lockdown.

Workplaces also, naturally, include people who had mental health issues prior to the pandemic. Treatment was put on hold with little or no access to mental healthcare. Simply put, this group is now more vulnerable and in more need of our empathy and support at work.

Raising the bar for HR and mental health at work

If HR is to play a leading role in the boardroom discussion about organisational mental health programmes, it needs to prepare for a wide-ranging business discussion.

This discussion must be driven and led by:

Showing how the introduction of mental health programmes will solve, or reduce one or more of the problems on the C-Suite agenda

A mental health dashboard to establish your current organisational state and to address the current estimated organisational costs related to the absence of a mental health programme (to establish your ROI)

Connecting the introduction of mental health improvement programmes with increased longer-term profitability, underpinned by evidence-based management

Preparing managers for supportive conversations with employees about their mental health. This will include new skill set development as part of your mental health programme

Building an awareness strategy and communication vehicles to introduce the importance of mental health (a focus on mental health rather than mental illness)

“Mental health support is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s an integral piece of the culture puzzle when hiring talent and evolving in the new world of work”
Petra Velzeboer, CEO and founder of PVL

An appetite for necessary organisational change and improved employee engagement is necessary, so you should avoid using existing programmes to roll out your mental health programme.

These existing programmes are not fit for purpose. Studies of workplace mental health recommend including the mental health programme in the existing health and safety programmes, or to include them in your employee assistance programmes.

Previous programmes have usually been developed with a different purpose, focus, and outcome in mind. And more to the point, mental health would not be flashing on our radar right now if these programmes had dealt with this complex issue.

Cambridge MC is in partnership with mental health consultancy PVL to help raise awareness of the benefits, both holistic and financial, to mental health programmes at work.

We are entering a new era of work, and these programmes will define those companies that become early champions and consequently attract and retain the best talent.

A free mental health at work webinar by Petra Velzeboer, CEO and founder of PVL

We are excited to announce a joint free webinar with PVL, a mental health consultancy founded by TEDx speaker and mental health advocate, Petra Velzeboer. This webinar is titled “Talent Retention in the New World of Work” and will take place at 2pm GMT on 10 February 2022.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 25 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our digital transformation services and full list of capabilities

Our Guide to Achieving the Right Network Solution with SD-WAN and SASE

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 09:46:35 GMT

Authors

Q&A: What you need to know about SD-WAN & SASE, with Richard Brown

Richard Brown, former COO of Cambridge MC, chaired a panel at the WAN SUMMIT in London earlier this year.

Here he gives a Q&A about the outlook for SD-WAN at the end of 2021 and farther ahead into 2022. He explains how SD-WAN has moved past the hype and is now developing further in anticipation of the changes brought by 5G.

Richard also discusses how SASE will integrate with SD-WAN to create next-gen security and user experience.

What is SD-WAN and how does it work?

A Software-defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) is an overlay technology that allows enterprises to use any combination of transport services, including DIA, LTE, broadband services, as well as MPLS.

SD-WAN simplifies management of a WAN by decoupling the hardware from its control mechanism. This concept is similar to how software-defined networking implements virtual technology to improve data centre management.

Gartner has defined an SD-WAN as having four characteristics:

The ability to support multiple connection types
Dynamic path selection, for load sharing and resilience
A simple interface that can be configured
The ability to support VPNs, and 3rd party services, such as WAN optimisation controls, firewalls and gateways

SD-WAN is a key enabler to allow enterprises to connect users to applications via an efficient and flexible system, offering increased performance and Quality of Experience (QoE).

What are the benefits of SD-WAN?

SD-WAN uses a centralised control function to direct traffic across the WAN with intelligent programming. This delivers much greater application performance and efficiency, significantly improving Quality of Experience (QoE) for the user. Other benefits include productivity, agility and reduced costs.

Traditional WAN architecture was never designed to support cloud applications and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). Typically, in scenarios where a router-centric architecture is used with cloud applications, all the data is backhauled to a hub or branch data centre where centralised firewalls provide protection. This can result in poor QoE due to high latency and restricted bandwidth, particularly where expensive MPLS is used as the backhaul.

The SD-WAN model is designed to fully support a hybrid environment, with applications hosted in on-premise data centres, public or private clouds and delivered via SaaS services such as Office 365 and SalesForce, with direct and secure routing of user traffic from their location.

Has SD-WAN moved past the hype phase?

SD-WAN has finally moved through the hype phase. In one recent survey, 50% had either deployed or are in the process of piloting and rolling out SD-WAN.

As recently as three years ago, SD-WAN was being touted as the solution to drastically reduce the cost of the underlay network. The concept was to harness the error correction and load sharing capabilities of the overlay to drive out enterprise grade performance over multiple cheap broadband connections.

It is striking how much understanding and thinking has moved on.

The anticipated move by enterprises away from expensive single vendor MPLS networks and traditional managed router networks is certainly happening. However, the driving factors are often more about keeping up with demand than cost savings.

The reliance on cloud-based services in all areas of business has driven network traffic patterns from traditional hub (data centres) and spoke (users and sites) to user direct to the cloud.

Users need high quality connectivity across the internet to digital applications and public cloud services. And they need ever more bandwidth. The pandemic has also accelerated SD-WAN adoption across most sectors. Despite a high baseline set in 2020, figures show that SD-WAN continued to grow at a stellar rate in 2021.

The move to remote working and the continuation of hybrid working models has created a sustained demand for deployments that provide a fast and stable network for remote collaboration among teams. Vendors are constantly updating their packages; finding new ways to meet the challenges set by IT departments.

What do I need to know about my network underlay?

It’s also become clear that underlay quality is still a factor to be considered. It is simply not enough to say: ‘it’s the internet, what do you expect?’ Internet connectivity must perform consistently to a level that meets business needs.

It’s not enough to solely rely on clever programming within the SD-WAN overlay to overcome bad internet connections. This does help, particularly when you hit temporary patches of poor performance, but nevertheless careful consideration is required to select the internet providers that can deliver the performance you need. With huge growth in streaming, and technology that requires real-time output, networks must also deliver on latency.

Understanding where internet providers peer to other providers to route your user/site traffic to mission critical internet destinations is vital knowledge, particularly internationally. It’s common to find your traffic is actually routing through multiple countries simply because you chose an ISP that did not have peering locally.

What is SASE and does it replace SD-WAN?

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) is a security model that was initially proposed in a report by Gartner in August 2019.

Essentially, SASE combines SD-WAN and security services such as CASB (Cloud Access Security Broker), FWaaS (Firewall-as-a-Service) and Zero Trust, delivering them together as a single cloud service.

Security policies enforced on user sessions are tailored to set requirements based on four factors:

The identity of the connection
Context – the health and behaviour of the device and sensitivity of the resource being accessed
Security and compliance policies
An ongoing assessment of risk in each session

The ‘edge’ part of SASE is usually delivered through PoPs or vendor data centres close to the endpoints —the data centres, users, and devices. In some cases, SASE vendors own the PoPs, while sometimes they use a third-party supplier. The philosophy of SASE is to bring security closer to the user, allowing for authentication and then direct access to resources to reduce latency.

In short, no SASE does not replace SD-WAN. It is more like the peanut butter to SD-WAN's jam.

It is a security extension that will offer many other advantages and help realise the future benefits of 5G and Edge computing. SASE is an evolution of SD-WAN but it does not fundamentally replace or change the infrastructure. It is, at this stage, more a philosophy and a model to improve security protocols in an SD-WAN overlay.

What are the benefits to SASE?

Gartner predicts that 40% of enterprises will have SASE adoption plans by 2024.

Because it is a single service, SASE reduces complexity and cost. Enterprises deal with fewer vendors, and the amount of hardware required in branch locations declines.

IT departments can set policies via cloud-based management platforms, and the protocols are enforced at distributed PoPs close to end-users.

Users have the same access experience regardless of what resources they need and where they are located. SASE simplifies the authentication process by applying appropriate security policies depending on the nature of the resources requested.

SASE also supports zero-trust networking, which bases access on user, device and application, not location and IP address.

Are there disadvantages to SASE?

Unfortunately, getting your underlay right is not as straightforward as we might hope. SASE can also cause performance issues.

You might have great connectivity from an office in Rio de Janeiro to a public cloud service in Sao Paulo over the internet, but if you have to send your traffic to a SASE provider in Miami first, you are unlikely to get the performance you need.

Another disadvantage is a lack of standard or official criteria for SASE. This means some vendors may offer services that do not meet your requirements or the expectations of the model.

We recommend that enterprises take several key things into account:

Analyse uptime and availability SLAs, along with the breadth of PoPs for connectivity
Assess network and network security capabilities. SASE platforms do not excel at all network functions and services collectively, so evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. For example, some may excel at SD-WAN and traffic optimization, while others are more focused on CASB or VPN replacement.

There are other issues that are not addressed in the Gartner report. This creates grey areas that will need further research and analysis:

Scalability
Latency
Meeting other requirements: redundancy, reliability, MTTR, customer service
New metrics for measuring the effectiveness of new parameters in a new environment
Lack of any official description/standard

How do I choose the right SD-WAN overlay?

SD-WAN overlays are being managed in a variety of ways from internally managed through to buying in a fully managed service. However, as discussed at the WAN summit, ‘vanilla’ managed SD-WAN services are likely to fall short.

In our experience, enterprises were often disenchanted with their traditional managed router service from suppliers, as the race to the bottom on costs often led to suppliers offering only simple ‘up/down’ monitoring of links and fault handing and little more. At the same time enterprise expected a lot more from a ‘managed service’, such as proactive performance monitoring and intervention.

SD-WAN takes both expectations and requirements to a whole new level, because the network is interacting with applications, not just acting as a pipe. While early SD-WAN adopters tended to manage their networks in-house already, and carried on doing so with SD-WAN, others have moved towards a co-managed model where there is a division of responsibility between a supplier with the technical know-how and operational capability to handle faults, and the customer with deeper understanding of their whole ecosystem.

As Network-as-a-Service matures, we will see operators and service integrators that integrate and operate with enterprise clients closely enough to move the boundaries again; so that enterprise takes less of the load.

Research suggests that if enterprises consider existing skillsets, vendors, products and timing of hardware refresh cycles as migration factors, they will reduce their SASE adoption time by half.

AI operations is likely to be the next paradigm. Automation and AI will have a vital part to play in the fast triage of issues and self-heal in the network and is likely to be an important component in bridging the gap between customer expectations of a managed SD-WAN service and affordability.

Despite the investment required to implement SD-WAN and SASE, by both suppliers and enterprise clients, the eventual benefits of improved performance and reduced costs inevitably leads to a convergence between network and security. Remote working and the continuation of hybrid working models has also given SD-WAN a boost

It will be interesting to find out what the cloud giants, AWS, Microsoft and Google, offer as their own SASE recipe to fight off competition. This is an evolving market, and there will be a long list of hybrid models and integrations before the playing field levels out.

The growth of IoT and Edge computing will only increase the need for SaaS applications and cloud storage. To move away from on-premises architecture and security, the SASE model will need greater adoption; this way, end users and devices can gain secure access to all the resources they require with protection from security located close to them. Once users are authenticated, they have direct access to resources, which improves latency.

This convergence will mean enterprises need to consider how they adjust their organisational boundaries to reflect this new reality.

Will SD-WAN help prepare for 5G?

5G will emerge as another important underlay access service to sit under the SD-WAN overlay. Those that have adopted SD-WAN already are likely to find it easier to adopt this access technology that trying to plug 5G into a traditional router network, providing an important and cost effective network access method of particular use cases.

SASE and 5G also offer complimentary benefits —SASE being the best model to create security authentication at the network edge, rather than having direct traffic back to the core. SASE can offer automatic verification and authentication gateways between the user and the enterprise where they are located. It will allow endpoints to access private 5G network slices, authenticating users not only as they cross the enterprise boundary, but also according to rules and hierarchy as they access each specific application.

Early adoption of the SASE model and integrated services, paves the way for a secure 5G network and complete cloud security strategy in the future. With a security and network management platform combined with 5G flexibility and speed (particularly over the last-mile), companies will be prepared for the inevitable confluence of SD-WAN, SASE and 5G.

These future technologies make it an exciting time for SD-WAN. We are past the hype and now well on our way into full adoption. With the advent of SASE, Edge compute and 5G, there will be huge leaps forward for performance, in both bandwidth and latency. AI will also create decision-making at nodes, creating faster and more intelligent network routing.

Find out about our SD-WAN, cloud & network transformation services

Building on decades of experience delivering network change, we have the skillset to deliver the complex network transformation programs necessary to prepare for agile change in rapid markets.

We can transition your network from data centres to the cloud and hosting space such as Azure and AWS. As digital tools and data analytics become increasingly mission-critical, agile networks are required to underpin rapid movement in IT and business strategies. We help you make the right choices among the hype and the myriad options on offer.

Find out more about our SD-WAN and network architecture consultancy services

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our digital transformation services and full list of capabilities

Achieving ultra-reliable networks in 2022: the challenge of delivering 5G and low latency

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Tue, 19 Oct 2021 15:15:57 GMT

Capacity Europe 2021

This article was written to support a panel discussion at Capacity Europe 2021 on 21 October in London. The panel is titled ‘How Digitalisation is Driving the Interconnectivity Landscape’, and it is being moderated by Charles Orsel des Sagets , Managing Partner for EMEA, LATAM & APAC. Contributions to the article were made by Ivo Ivanov , CEO of DE-CIX International; Tim Passingham , Chairman at Cambridge Management Consulting; and Eric Green , Senior Partner for Telecoms Procurement. Thank you to everyone involved.

How the pandemic has shaped the roadmap for internet connectivity in Europe

Measuring Quality of Experience for internet connectivity

Let us first, talk more broadly about indicators of network quality in 2021 and beyond.

Digital Equality - The widening speed gap in Europe

The UK too lags behind much of its Western European neighbours when it comes to average internet speed. It was placed 47 ^th on the list in a study conducted in 2020 . In fact, the average broadband speed in the UK was less than half that of the Western European average.

Measuring Quality of Experience (QoE)

As bandwidth in many countries in Europe moves towards, and over, 100Mbps, this proxy is becoming a weaker indicator of user experience.

There are also a number of key reasons why figures published by an ISP might be misleading compared to actual user experience.

Some of these problems are as follows:

Lab-testing of internet speed does not replicate the real-world chain of devices/hosts involved in sending and receiving packets

Averages of Mbps ignores speeds at peak periods when the network is congested and networks throttle bandwidth

The ‘plan speed’ does not reflect actual speeds experienced in a household where packet queuing and WiFi congestion and network affects users differently on the customer LAN

This metric ignores latency, which is becoming a better signal of internet experience in an age of video streaming and online gaming (more on this below)

Many voices in the industry are pushing for more holistic Quality of Experience (QoE) metrics to enlarge the current set of Quality of Service (QoS) measurements.

Thus, one characteristic of QoE is the realisation that there are many examples where a better QoS (above a threshold) does not readily impact the user’s perception/experience of the service.

Low latency and packet loss

Bandwidth has generally been king in the history of communication networks. Low latency has generally lagged behind (pun intended) as a priority in the upgrading of networks.

What is latency?

Latency is affected by many variables, but the main four are:

Transmission medium: The physical path between the start and end points i.e. a copper-based network is much slower than fibre-optic.

Network management: The efficiency of routers and other devices or software that manage incoming traffic

Propagation: The further apart two nodes are in the network will affect latency. For every 100 miles of fibre-optic cable it is estimated this adds 1ms of latency

Storage delays: Accessing stored data will generally increase latency

Jitter

There are two types of latency issue.

One is the ‘lag’ (delay) we defined above, and the other is ‘jitter’, the variations in latency that can make connections unreliable. Jitter is usually caused by network traffic jams, bad packet queuing and setup errors.

Packet loss

Impacting the QoE ‘perception’ of latency is also packet loss. Packet loss occurs when packets of data do not reach their intended destination. It is commonly caused by congestion and hardware issues —the issue can be more frequent over WiFi where environmental factors and weak signal are factors. The effect of packet loss is worse for real-time services such as video, voice and gaming. Packet loss is also worse in networks where there are no TCP protocols to retrieve and re-send packets that have dropped.

Why is low latency so important now?

“All areas of business and private life rely more heavily today than ever before on digital applications. The latency-sensitivity of these applications is not only a hallmark of quality and guarantee of commercial productivity, but also – in critical use cases, a lifeline”
—Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX Internationa l

Human beings: 250 milliseconds responding to a visual stimulus
4G latency: 200 milliseconds
5G latency: 1 millisecond

The relationship of latency and user experience to geography

How networks can reduce latency

Any service which uses the backbone of the internet will run into problems of inefficient routing due to:

Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) for routing (because it has no congestion avoidance)

Least-cost routing policies

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP): It is a blunt-tool protocol that reacts strongly to congestion and throttles throughput

SD-WAN, latency and efficient network management

To find out more about the range of network infrastructure and SD-WAN services offered by Cambridge Management Consulting visit our website .

5G promises ultra-low latency

How 5G and 'network slicing' will end high latency

Edge computing will further support this near-user vision. Using off-the-shelf servers, and smaller data centres closer to the cell towers, edge computing can ensure low latency and high bandwidth.

“As latency requirements get lower and lower, it becomes more and more important to bring interconnection services as close to people and businesses as possible, everywhere. Latency truly is the new currency for the exciting next generation of applications and services”

—Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX International

What is network slicing?

Operators can effectively manage diverse 5G use protocols with differing throughput, network latency and availability demands by ‘slicing’ network resources and tailoring them to multiple users.

What is realistic progress for 5G in 2022?

According to the California-based company Grand View Research, the global 5G infrastructure market size —valued at $1.9bn in 2019— is projected to reach $496.6bn by 2027.

The EU recently announced their Path to the Digital Decade , a concrete plan to achieve the digital transformation of society and the economy by 2030.

Read more about the Path to the Digital Decade .

“The European vision for a digital future is one where technology empowers people. So today we propose a concrete plan to achieve the digital transformation. For a future where innovation works for businesses and for our societies. We aim to set up a governance framework based on an annual cooperation mechanism to reach targets in the areas of digital skills, digital infrastructures, digitalisation of businesses and public services.”

—Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice President for ‘A Europe Fit for the Digital Age’

Contributors

Thanks to Karl Salter , web designer and graphic designer, for infographics.

You can find out more about Ivo Ivanov on LinkedIn and DE-CIX via their website .

Read bios for Charles Orsel des Sagets , Tim Passingham and Eric Green .

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC) is an international consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes have a better impact on the world. Founded in Cambridge, UK, initially to help the start-up community, Cambridge MC has grown to over 200 consultants working on projects in 22 countries. Our capabilities focus on supporting the private and public sector with their people, process and digital technology challenges.

Cambridge Management Consulting has offices or legal entities in Cambridge, London, New York, Paris, Dubai, Singapore and Helsinki, with further expansion planned in future.

Find out more about our SD-WAN and network architecture consultancy services .

Find out more about our digital transformation services and full list of capabilities .

Around the World in 80 Ways: Our 19,000km Charity World Tour

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 08:35:47 GMT

A team challenge during lockdown

Starting last year, during the height of the pandemic we were all worried about the effects on exercise brought about by working remotely, and our global team being in varying severities of lockdown. As both a fun way to promote activity, and a charity drive, we developed the idea of a virtual tour to the majority of cities where we have consultants based. To travel, we would convert exercise done weekly by our team into kilometres travelled as the crow flies.

The route

The most efficient route was calculated by the son of our former Chief of Staff, who worked out the most efficient route himself and calculated all the distances for us. Thanks Reuben, you are a genius! The cities, and cumulative distance (km), in order (*we omitted sea miles in this challenge):

Running, cycling, galloping and more

To join the challenge staff just had to track their various activities and enter the km into a spreadsheet. Julian Hoyle, Former Data Analyst, created a conversion tool to turn almost any exercise into km. This included walking, running and cycling, of course (easily tracked on apps like Strava), but we extended it to include activities like horse riding, yoga and tennis too.

Pete Nisbet, Managing Partner of edenseven, our sustainable transformation company, kindly collated km travelled and gave weekly updates at our partner meetings: placing our current position on the map and telling us miles to go till next destination. Whenever we reached a destination, amid much virtual fanfare, the consultant at that location chose a charity and a donation of £100 was made for each city by the company.

Just a few of the charities we supported:

British Exploring Society (Cambridge, UK)

Variety, the Children's Charity (www.variety.org.au/vic/) (Melbourne, Australia)

The National Autistic Society for Brighton (UK)

Community of Sant'Egidio (Rome)

Ozkroky (ozkroky.sk) (helping homeless people to return into a normal life) (Bratislava)

Triangle Génération Humanitaire (trianglegh.org) (Lyon, France)

Casade David (Sao Paulo, Brazil)

Freedom8848 (Canada)

20ans1 Projet (20ans1projet.fr) (Paris)

In total we travelled almost 20,000km and raised over £1,600 for our charities. Everyone contributed in some way, either by running a marathon, dog walking, horse riding, long weekend hikes, mountain hikes in Canada and more.

Will we do it again?

The challenge started on 22 January 2020, and we finished in July 2021. In our first week we collectively travelled 1,029km. It has been a great success for the team, promoting a shared experience of physical activities and we even learned a bit more about each other on the way.

We look forward to our next challenge, but in the meantime I’m going to put my feet up.

About Us

Cambridge Management Consulting is a specialist consultancy drawing on an extensive network of global talent. We are a growth catalyst, assembling a team of experts to focus on the specific challenges of your market.

With an emphasis on digital transformation, we can help any business attempting to scale by combining capabilities such as marketing acceleration, digital innovation, talent acquisition and procurement.

Spaced out: the future of offices and the global effects of remote working

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Wed, 16 Jun 2021 11:16:44 GMT

Are offices a thing of the past?

“If you can go into a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office and we want you in the office”

—James Gorman, CEO of Morgan Stanley

It hasn’t been a great year for the office. Perhaps the bells sounded a while ago. With cube farms and Dilbert in the nineties, the failure of a workspace revolution by WeWork, and then a spiky virus sequel named SARS-CoV-2. Was the office space doomed to fail or does it just need a rethink?

As workers around the world wait to see if they are called back, Covid-19 fears will limit numbers on-site and there’s even a risk that rats nested and chewed up your office while you were way.

The heralding and doubts over remote working have peaked and troughed over the past 12 months. Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, famously declared that there was no ‘creative combustion’ in virtual meetings, and said he wanted his staff back in the office as soon as possible. Likewise, the CEO of Morgan Stanley recently told staff that if they can go to a restaurant in New York they have no excuse to not be in the office. But many will go kicking and screaming. Lots of us really like remote working; statistics differ but around two thirds of workers in the UK would prefer to continue working from home on a hybrid model. Yet reports also suggest that roughly one in three home-workers state their hours have increased and many feel an expectation to be available at all times.

Research done before the pandemic had already associated productivity increases with remote working. This is put down to less breaks and (surprisingly) less distractions at home. Many companies that switched to WFH during the pandemic echoed these findings. The reality of this productivity spike and its longevity are still fuzzy. Some workers are more productive at home while others work better in the office. Much of the research is contradictory because there are so many factors at play —which might explain why tech companies are thriving without an office while Wall Street banks are clamouring for staff to return.

There were many reports and headlines about burnout. Zoom fatigue became an acceptable form of exhaustion last year (if home schooling your kids wasn’t exhausting enough). The hypothesis put forward is that video calls omit many of the non-verbal cues we use to show interest, leading to an intense focus on words and eye-contact, which drives up our cognitive load.

Lastly, quality of life has affected by remote working in various ways. Some families ditched London for Cornwall. Many of us got rid of a long and frustrating commute. On average, it has been calculated that UK home-workers save about £40 per week. It’s easier to make yourself something for lunch or go for a run on your break. Your dog is much happier having you around more (cats polled said they remain ambivalent).

Overall, the jury is still out on remote working. As we slowly phase out of pandemic restrictions, we thought it timely and relevant to ask what the future of offices and workspaces might look like post-pandemic.

Six big changes to how we work

01 – The hybrid model

Probably the way most companies will go. This model entails employees coming into the office for 1-2 days a week. This way companies can shrink their office space and potentially redistribute their workforce. Productivity gains hopefully continue while some of the cohesiveness and face-to-face nature of working in the same space are maintained. In some cases, workers will be able to choose how many days they come into the office and change that preference depending on the nature of a particular project.

02 – Data collection

One of the potential inevitabilities of increased remote working will be digital tools to monitor employees’ worktime, such as virtual clocking in and out, tracking computer usage and monitoring internal chat and emails. Some of the additional tracking isn’t Orwellian on the face of it, as companies are currently trying to understand employee engagement and wellbeing through these tools. However, such holistic understanding probably serves the same end goal of improving productivity and might be viewed negatively if employees feel their spheres of public and private life are converging to their own detriment.

03 – Wellbeing and the employee experience

Pressures and burnout during the pandemic, as well as the encroachments of family life and home-schooling, meant that many managers were directly involved in measures to help the wellbeing of workers. This might have been extremely difficult for some and perhaps they considered it outside their remit, but there are signs this kind of role will continue and that leadership itself will grow to encompass and include greater degrees of mentorship. It is likely that job flexibility will become the norm, providing more options to adapt work to family life and other commitments.

04 – The knock-on effects of remote working

Writing from the perspective of a digital transformation consultancy, it is easy to forget that many jobs can’t be relocated to home. Approximately a quarter of workers are in transportation, food, cleaning and maintenance. Many of these jobs will be affected by the closure of offices and the thinning out of commercial areas. Everything from coffee shops to train companies will potentially be affected by falling revenue. Remote work will benefit a minority but it risks magnifying inequalities at a social level. If this trend is inevitable, which it probably is, we need to rethink how our high streets function and also our economy as a whole. There might be some hidden positives. As our workforce becomes more distributed, there could be a larger network of hubs across the country, rather than just the powerhouse financial centres. Jobs and wealth might spread out a bit more and feed into local economies.

05 – The creativity dilemma

It is often reported that creativity suffers virtually, and face-to-face collaboration is required to really get those creative juices pumping. I have not found any studies to back up this claim, but it is repeated anecdotally by many creative agencies and artists around the world. Many creatives have said the pandemic imposed a linear, corporate culture on their work habits, stifling their creativity. They faced a diary full of Zoom meetings which gave them little time to think and grow an idea. Many creative teams have said they found it much harder to collaborate virtually on projects. Their emphasis is often on the fragile nature of creativity, how it can’t be reduced to a process or repeated in the same way. Sometimes, as with so many creations, a perfect alignment of time and place is required. Was Abbey Road the sixth Beatle?

It might be too early to answer this question, but if you are a creative business (and what business problem doesn’t require creativity) then this issue isn’t going away soon.

06 – Pay grades

Another potential thorn for remote working is the potential for pay grades to be adjusted to reflect the cheaper cost of working at home. CEO of Morgan Stanley, James Gorman, said, in typically direct fashion, that if staff expected New York wages they better work in New York. Generally speaking, remote working is attached to well-paid jobs (often in tech) so this might not appear to be an immediate concern for job markets. However, globalisation has long spurred a general shift toward cheap remote labour and digital tools make it easier for companies of all sizes to benefit from freelancers working in poor countries. This raises questions about wage standards and ethics.

Conclusion

The pandemic shunted us forward a few years and sped up a more gradual trend towards remote working. Zoom fatigue and a diary full of video calls is a reality that are we are still adjusting to. It is clear there are both gains and losses in this new era and the dust is yet to settle. Business leaders must continue to show empathy. They must coach their teams and discover better ways of working. Companies need to collect data and encourage feedback. Businesses must be agile. They must be able to pivot quickly and adopt new working patterns. Digital transformation is key, and the right tools are essential. Managers need mentoring and extra training to help them adapt to leadership with remote teams.

At Cambridge Management Consulting we follow a hybrid model, but our workforce is spread out across 14 countries. We have performed successfully as a remote team for many years now. We’ve learnt many lessons along the way, but we are always learning, always refining our procedures and tools.

About Us

The outlook for Project Management in 2021

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Wed, 24 Mar 2021 11:29:38 GMT

The forecast for 2021

61% of CEOs say their business model will be more digital in the future.

Amid all this doom and gloom, there is an equal abundance of opportunities ahead—and a healthy dose of survival instinct has kicked in. But this is a case of adapt and get ahead or be left behind. There is no choice but to follow rapid changes in consumer behaviours. There is an emphasis on digital and providing new ways to interact with services.

The projects you carry out and your associated business strategies in 2021 are of make-or-break importance. At the same time, runaway costs must be avoided, and projects must deliver ROI. In this article we will talk about our own challenges and how we are preparing for an unprecedented year. Then we talk about specific challenges and changes to expect in Project Management across 2021.

Finally, we suggest some of the benefits of outsourcing your Project Management in the current climate: what should influence your decision to use a Project Management consultancy?

What we've done and will do this year

We have and still are planning expansion in 2021 because we know that we have to set up the pieces and put them into play to create a sustainable model for growth projects. We started the year with the launch of edenseven, a sustainability transformation consultancy for the energy and utilities markets. While this was part of our growth model it also expresses our company values and the ethics of our team.

Last week, we announced the acquisition of Straxia, a network-centric IT consultancy. This gives us additional scope for larger projects and expands our capability to deliver both infrastructure change and expert project management. Both of these business developments are part of a wider plan to be more agile in the marketplace.

Why Project Management must be Agile

Agility is the project team’s ability to quickly change the plan as a response to customer or stakeholder needs, market or technology demands in order to achieve better project performance. It is a set of tools, methods and also a philosophy. The agility of teams must be measured, rather than assuming that it is just an approach which can be applied and the achieved.

An adaptive and responsive project management system is the only choice for complex projects carried out against uncertainty and rapid change. Projects in 2021 will operate in an unprecedented environment: they must continually evolve and have the means for constant feedback and the ability to pivot. Agile teams are a necessity as we emerge from lockdowns and attempt to invigorate our economies with digital transformation and sustainability projects aligned with a model of long-term growth.

The specific challenges ahead

Project Management will be a key area for companies struggling to emerge stronger from the pandemic and react to market changes. Here are some of our predictions and the skills needed for a successful Project Management Office (PMO) during the pandemic:

It is critical to ensure projects deliver long-term growth.
Project managers must provide clarity for all roles and responsibilities. The project must have a detailed plan of communications.
The risks of runaway project costs must be met with an agile strategy and detailed KPIsfor each project stage and each department. Feedback must lead to the necessary communications, and then high-level meetings to pivot quickly.
Aim for high-impact and high-visibility projects. For example, your sustainability strategy is an opportunity to showcase your values and generate news, as well as aligning business goals with long-term growth.
A greater focus on relevant data to increase agility and gain an evolving ‘version of the truth’.

The decision to outsource your Project Management can have huge benefits, addressing all of the above. It doesn’t suit every project or every business, so your decision should be led by the following considerations.

The major factors to consider when you outsource Project Management

Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) and a Project Management Office as a Service (PMOaaS)

The most important factors affecting your business and the decision to outsource Project Management skills, leaders and team members are:

Size of your business: this will have an impact on the number of staff you have available to assign to projects and move around to address issues and keep projects on target.
Skills and knowledge: perhaps the biggest barrier to doing large-scale project management. Do you have the knowledge and skills and experience to see a complex project through end-to-end?
Hiring: related to the above. With 78% of the workforce switching to remote work, it can make hiring strategic and experienced project managers far more complex. If you build a team across the organisation, and with new hires, it can be expensive and risky.
Data: have you identified the types of data you need to successfully run your project and check progress? If you can’t gather the right business intelligence you might want to hire in experience and get this fixed from the beginning.

Advantages of outsourcing your Project Management

Done right, outsourcing Project Management allows you to access a fully structured servicethat is transparent and aligned with your business strategy and values.

You are also buying in the exact skills required for your project. In this scenario, the advantages are clearly definable:

Higher level of experience and knowledge: project management is a highly specialised area that requires attention to detail, confidence, organisation and deft communication skills. Talented project managers are in high demand and short supply.
Objectivity: hiring in external experts comes with the advantage of an objective view of the landscape. The bias and blind spots of internal teams and entrenched ‘ways of doing’ can often be avoided as your business expands to include new approaches and ideas.
The runaway costs associated with many project management failures are replaced by predictable monthly billing and flexible cost structures.
A flexible service: your project management is more agile and it can be increased or decreased at vital stages in the project evolution. Extra staff and expertise can be brought in when required, for a short duration if necessary.
KPIs and SLAs relevant to each department: in order to remain agile, departments must be trained to use relevant metrics to assess their progress towards project KPIs and adjust their strategy and workload as required.

PMaaS can offer your organisation access to a scalable project management at a flexible and predictable cost via a structured Managed Service, underpinned by KPIs and SLAs.

Our services

If you would like to discuss our Project Management capability, please contact our team .

We offer both Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) and a Project Management Office as a Service (PMOaaS). Our global team combines a huge amount of industry experience: we don’t use consultants, we only hire experts with a track record of leading teams, transforming businesses and undertaking large and complex projects.

Our Project Management team is led by Jason Jennings, an industry expert and Director of Project Pros. Jason has delivered complex technology solutions for large international organisations across multiple territories. He is known for delivering significant cost saving and improved technology-to-business alignment. He specialises in transformation, programme and project management, contract negotiation, outsourcing and interim management.

Read Jason’s bio or go to www.linkedin.com/in/jason-jennings-3268222/

Cambridge Management Consulting acquires Straxia and extends its digital transformation capabilities

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Wed, 17 Mar 2021 21:21:17 GMT

Press Release: London, March 18, 2021

Cambridge Management Consulting (Cambridge MC), a global digital transformation consultancy, announces an expansion of its telecommunications capability with the acquisition of network infrastructure consultancy, Straxia.

As global markets emerge from the pandemic, digital transformation is vital to adapt to a new set of consumer behaviours. The acquisition of Straxia widens the portfolio of services offered by Cambridge MC, allowing more routes for clients to build a digital strategy that drives growth.

For a decade, Straxia has built a reputation focussed on infrastructure transformation and sourcing, more recently using SD-WAN technology to transform networks and migrate services to the cloud.

Cambridge MC Chairman, Tim Passingham, explains how this acquisition expands the company’s services, “I’m delighted to welcome the Straxia team to the Cambridge MC family. Straxia widens our telecommunications vertical knowledge, expands our large-scale project and programme management capabilities, and consolidates our technical skillset.”

Richard Brown founded Straxia in 2009, rooting the business in a strong ethos that earned loyal partnerships. He joins Cambridge MC as a Director and General Partner. Richard comments, “I’m pleased that we can bring our capabilities to Cambridge MC. Merging Straxia’s project management, service management, and sourcing services with Cambridge MC’s wider capabilities brings further benefits to our clients. As part of the leadership team, my intent is to build on our combined strengths to offer cohesive and agile digital transformation, enhancing our world class teams with years of practical experience.”

The acquisition of Straxia is the latest in a series of successes that Cambridge MC has recently enjoyed. Earlier this year, the company launched a new environmental consultancy, edenseven, in response to climate change. In 2021, Cambridge MC will open offices in Dubai and Lagos, Nigeria.

For more information on Cambridge MC’s extensive suite of services, visit www.cambridgemc.com .

The Role of KPIs in a Post-Pandemic Landscape

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Fri, 19 Feb 2021 13:00:41 GMT

The difference between metrics and KPIs

A KPI is a form of metric. Metrics are any measurement that tracks a specific business activity or outcome. KPIs help and guide organisations toward their goals. To put it a slightly different way, KPIs are strategic and align with business goals, whereas metrics are tactical (they just tell you something useful).

To function effectively, KPIs must be linked to your company’s strategic goals. They should then be broken down into KPIs both vertically (at each business level) and horizontally (by department for example). Each department should only deal with a handful of carefully selected KPIs.

The first lesson of KPIs: the map is not the territory

No matter how good your data is, it is always a slice of reality. Sometimes managers get too fixed on data, on shortfalls, on targets. Why was productivity lower this month? Rather than looking for wider issues and trends, they might just wave a finger. In her Ted Talk on the downfall of Nokia (www.ted.com/talks/tricia_wang_the_human_insights_missing_from_big_data?language=en), Tricia Wang, an ethnographer, noted how big data failed the former mobile phone giant. Nokia relied heavily on quantifiable data about the here-and-now, and the company failed to see the sweeping changes on the horizon: the smartphone in your pocket.

This article, among other things, sets the human factor alongside digital. One must not supplant the other.

Get the basics right: if you are a senior leader or manager setting KPIs, make sure your company adopts these rules

Make sure your KPIs are realistic. If your KPIs are unrealistic you risk putting huge pressure on teams who will potentially manipulate the metrics or take damaging shortcuts as the only means of success.
Always attach context and human insight to your KPIs.
Choose a handful of focussed KPIs. Too many KPIs leads to confused messaging and an inability to separate wheat from chaff. It is overwhelming for both management and staff.
Make sure KPIs at every level feed into the overall strategic vision.
Share information about high-level goals, what the current levels of performance look like, how should it be and why, and how the future looks. Make sure employees feel connected to your high-level KPIs.
Include employees in setting departmental KPIs.
Ask employees to set their own KPIs.
Too often KPIs fail because they can’t be measured with a meaningful or unbiased method. Make sure your KPIs have a quantifiable outcome. The exceptions to this rule are Value-driven KPIs and CPIs (see below).
If you have the resources to do so, include Value-driven KPIs and CPIs (see below).
Don’t focus on the system over the people. This is a golden rule and something we talk about a lot at Cambridge Management Consulting.

Be careful: KPIs can make things worse

Unfortunately, it’s still commonplace to find KPIs that track tasks completed per X (where X is a period of time, usually a day, week or month), with little distinction made between complex and straightforward tasks. While averages taken over a longer period can be useful, this is a simplistic and demotivating way to compare employees and usually ends in corner-cutting or manipulation of stats. Senior management should be careful pressing for data on cost-to-serve (i.e. how much does it cost on average to serve a client) if, for example, the tasks being measured vary considerably in duration depending on complexity.

Another common fault in the design of KPIs is creating data just for the sake of it. There is occasionally an obsession with producing data sets without asking whether these metrics are actually useful and add value. As we noted earlier, what distinguishes KPIs from other metrics is their alignment with and contribution to the strategic goals of the company.

Setting individual KPIs at annual reviews—when this is done wrong—can be extremely demotivating. Some leaders think they have skirted this problem by asking employees to set their own targets, but this can be either a positive or negative experience depending on a variety of factors. There is a tendency to do these things off a checklist and fulfil the pantomime of ‘set and forget’. In times of Covid-19, with workplaces changing rapidly, it might be necessary to review KPIs more frequently. With remote-working now the norm, KPI appraisals over video-chat should be delayed if there are more pressing problems in your team.

To make KPIs successful, you need to build a positive culture within your team first and foremost. Make sure your team are engaged and motivated and have the digital tools necessary to perform well in a remote environment. Once you have this foundation, you can set team KPIs, making sure they are realistic and can be measured without bias. It is too easy for managers to hide behind a KPI dashboard, managing stats and not people.

Include your team in setting these goals and demonstrate how they fit into the overall strategic vision; also agree how they should be measured. Then set KPIs per role, also with contributions from employees. Whether you should set KPIs per role or per individual depends on your business, how your team functions best and your leadership style. If setting KPIs per individual, be careful that you do not seem to be punishing someone unjustly or forcing individuals to compete against one another.

At both team and role level, consider setting Value-driven KPIs (see below). This could also be summarised as ‘don’t lose sight of quality’ since quality is generally underrepresented in metrics. The immediate rebuff is to say quality is hard to measure, which it is (and this was one of our KPI rules: stick to what you can measure), but if you have the resources to do so, produce KPIs for quality and values using ethnographic methods and digital tools.

KPIs and remote-working

We’ve recently seen businesses struggle with communicating a message of relaxing productivity—while their employees juggle work and home schooling—while also doubling down on departments that are underperforming. There are conflicting views about whether remote working in good or bad for productivity. JP Morgan Chase made the news when the CEO Jamie Dillion stated in late 2020 that no ‘creative combustion’ was occurring in video meetings. He voiced his intention to get employees back to offices as soon as possible. Yet, when surveyed, employees regularly report their productivity as equal or higher while they are remote working.

Despite the lack of good data on productivity levels, the function of KPIs doesn’t necessarily change in a remote environment. However, if your team is struggling, or if certain members of your team are underperforming—perhaps with other team members being forced to take up the slack—, it might be worth changing to a more value-based KPI system for the time being. Switching to broader targets across the team might allow you to concentrate efforts on morale or the introduction of digital tools without going into the ‘red’ on your KPIs.

The benefits of including Value-driven KPIs in your metrics

To avoid some of the pitfalls of using performance indicators for your team, make your targets value-driven—connect them to value behaviours or make some of your higher-level goals value-based. This should connect up with company-wide Values and commitments to devote time/energy/money to social causes. In the third sector these kinds of Value-driven KPIs are being discussed in white papers and touted as the future of performance management. However, the idea is also making its way into the private sector and it can be recontextualised in a number of ways.

Leaving aside the high-level Value-driven KPIs for now, what does a Value-driven KPI look like at an individual or team level? The emphasis is on soft skills: creating positive behaviours such as teamwork, creativity, going the extra mile for customers/clients and so forth.

One of the smaller transitions might be changing from a score-based appraisal system to a list of competencies—ironically, it is often the case that organisations switch from a list of competencies to a score-based system to gather better data across the business!

The obvious advantage of using Value-driven KPIs is that they will more closely mirror the real-life values that employees are motivated by and which they hold about their jobs and lives. The downside is cost and time. Companies that wish to make these performance indicators measurable (and, of course, they must be measurable to function as metrics) must invest in ethnographic tools and methods, and train their management team accordingly. This can be an expensive and time-consuming.

It is interesting to note how this paradigm shift has already started. Automated surveys, using a Likert scale, are regularly sent out by companies and they are an attempt to obtain the sort of qualitative data that tells a business how it is performing against its own set of values (it should also be noted that sometimes this data has a different agenda).

Value-driven KPIs are part of a much greater cultural shift occurring across the business landscape, one in which values are central to strategic vision. It also relates to the Jeff Bezos mantra of designing everything you do around customer expectations—which leads us to Customer Performance Indicators (CPIs), as discussed below.

Coaching and KPIs

There is huge value in coaching for leaders when it comes to the introduction and management of KPIs, and targets in general. As we have already shown, the way in which targets are discussed and the whole culture around them is key to their success. The human factor weighs in heavily. Some managers have the communication skills necessary and can build motivated teams around a healthy adoption of metrics. For others, they may feel weighed down by data and how to implement it without creating the familiar disconnect between management and team (the cold, calculating spreadsheet vs. the emotional human). When you think of what you value about your job, how many of those things are represented in your metrics?

For leaders struggling with the complex soft skills to navigate human and digital, coaching can revitalise the relationship dynamic between you and your team. Take a look at Cambridge Management Consulting’s Leadership services to find out how we can help with this central tenet of performance management.

A new metric: Customer Performance Indicators (CPIs)

As a disclaimer, we should first mention that businesses should think extremely carefully before introducing more KPIs. You may already have Critical Success Factors (CSFs) and Key Risk Indicators among many other metrics. However, our article ends with a necessary and timely discussion of Customer Performance Indicators (CPIs). These relatively new performance metrics place the customer experience at the heart of your success as a business: your client or customer is the measure of your successful outcomes.

Think about it this way. High-level KPIs such as tracking revenue measure your customers in terms of what they produce for your company. CPIs turn this around and measure the business in terms of what it produces for customers/clients.

The first stage is to find out what your customers/clients value most when they buy your product or use your service. This requires ethnographic tools combined with surveys and questionnaires or focus groups to gather and analyse qualitative data. The most effective method is contextual inquiry, an ethnographic research method where specially trained researchers speak with and observe customers as they think about or try to achieve specific outcomes.

Once complete, these ethnographic methods reveal a mixture of Value-driven and quantifiable metrics (which can be captured by your KPIs). A Value-driven CPI might relate to how a customer views reputation or environmental impact before making a purchase, whereas a more straight-forward, quantifiable CPI might simply be the time it takes for you to reply to an enquiry or how long it takes to deliver a product. Once again, we can see how Amazon has totally dominated the retail market by concentrating on CPIs and ensuring all of their KPIs deliver on those targets.

Once you have identified your CPIs, you can link them up with your strategic goals, and then to your internal KPIs and Value-driven KPIs. CPIs are sometimes recommended as the best measure of growth, because your customers/clients are the biggest levers when it comes to generating revenue.

If you are thinking about implementing CPIs, it is a complex undertaking which requires significant planning and resources and external expertise. But it almost certainly is worth the effort for medium to large businesses who want to scale while shifting their focus to core values and a customer-centric outlook.

“We’ve had three big ideas at Amazon that we’ve stuck with for 18 years, and they’re the reason we’re successful: Put the customer first. Invent. And be patient.”

The time is now – Cambridge Management Consulting launches edenseven

karl@simplifiedideas.co.uk (Karl Salter) — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 10:24:43 GMT

edenseven is a new energy and environmental consultancy combining digital transformation and sustainability.

Cambridge Management Consulting has today announced the launch of edenseven – a new subsidiary of the Cambridge Management Consulting group dedicated to energy and environmental transformation. edenseven is being launched by co-founder Tim Passingham in partnership with experienced non-executive and Green Tech investor Chris Rowley with Pete Nisbet, former MD of Mitie Energy, leading edenseven as Managing Partner.

edenseven will help companies transition to a sustainable model that accelerates their financial growth. As businesses within public and private sectors prioritise net zero targets and plan their Covid-19 recovery, there exist both significant risks and opportunities. As a leading innovator in digital transformation, Cambridge Management Consulting is launching edenseven to help businesses maximise their opportunities and manage their risks through the application of digital technology to the net zero challenge.

Combining Cambridge Management Consulting’s ability to extract value from data with edenseven’s knowledge of the environmental sector, sustainability transformation can be delivered at scale, helping organisations implement data-led strategies, on-target and on-time.

Pete Nisbet, Managing Partner of edenseven, explains: “We saw an urgent need for a management consultancy that can link technology understanding and market experience to enable sustainable growth. We see data analytics as central to the company-wide changes required to deliver net zero commitments.”

Chris Rowley, co-founder and Non-Executive Chairman of edenseven, explains why he is excited about edenseven: “Sustainability should be at the core of business strategy. It is the future. Leaders that transform swiftly will benefit their stakeholders and their businesses. We’ve founded edenseven because we firmly believe in the opportunity to deliver rapid transformation with real business benefits.”

Tim Passingham is Chairman of Cambridge Management Consulting, co-founder and Non-Executive Director of edenseven, and adds: “We have wanted to launch a business focussed on climate change since the inception of Cambridge Management Consulting. edenseven will help us magnify the positive impact we seek to have on the planet. We can help bring our digital skills to corporates struggling to really understand how they are progressing towards net zero and help them accelerate that progress.”

edenseven will initially operate in ten countries and serve companies internationally. Like the other Cambridge Management Consulting companies, edenseven will also donate over one percent of its profits to charity and support all of its staff, consultants and associates to give at least one percent of their time pro bono to support environmental causes.

To find out more: www.edenseven.co.uk

Will your digital road map cope with rapid change in 2021?

jwilton@cambridgemc.com (Jon Wilton) — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 12:27:23 GMT

3 steps to help your digital transformation success in 2021

4 min read

Step 1: Define what Digital Transformation means for your business

Digital transformation is a concept hindered by the fact it is often whispered about in mythic proportions. This is because it represents totemic change: a change not just in structures across an organisation but, for it to succeed, a change in concepts, processes and mindsets.

Definition: a vertical- and horizontal-slice strategy using digital technologies to create or modify existing business processes, culture, and customer experiences to meet rapid changes in customer and market requirements.

Digital Transformation will be a different journey for every business. Once begun, the precepts must become deeply embedded in both thinking and doing, and it must continue to evolve.

We tend to discuss digital transformation in the context of medium to large companies spending sizeable budgets on enterprise-wide technology solutions. However, in the wake of the pandemic, it is hard to imagine any company that did not implement some kind of digital transformation in 2020—no business can exist apart from the digital tools reshaping how we live.

“At least 40% of all businesses will die in the next 10 years… if they don’t figure out how to change their entire company to accommodate new technologies.” —John Chambers, Cisco

Step 2: Concentrate on people not just processes

It is easy for digital transformation to go wrong. It is often wrongfully assumed that implementing digital systems (either automating a process or upgrading technology) will automatically bring greater efficiency. Push too hard for fast results and the whole operation can fail dramatically.

First of all, systemic change must be driven by the customer or market¬¬ from a change in expectations or behaviour. This can include a shift towards a digital product or the way a product is delivered, e.g. streaming music rather than buying physical media. In the past few years, many companies have been forced into rapid transformation journeys to keep up with markets disrupted by startups redefining products, services and business models; the rise of app-only banks such as Monzo and Starling being a prime example.

Once a requirement for new technologies and/or automated processes is identified, then a comprehensive strategy must be aligned with clear business objectives.

What is often overlooked in a plan is the human factor. Leaders must follow a people focused, not a process focused approach. Here are some points to consider:

• Is the task being digitalised for workers meaningful? Sometimes new technologies come with a steep learning curve and initial glitches and problems which take time to iron out. Are employees invested in and incentivised in these new systems?

• Have you accounted for the extra time and skills required to learn and become comfortable with new technologies and processes? If not, employees become anxious and demotivated. Make sure adequate training and supervision are provided during the rollout.

• Have you accounted fully for the impact on staff? What are they set to gain? If a new system is only beneficial to the company then it is natural that employees will resist changes. You may need to use some PR resources to ensure positive uptake and to prevent misinformation.

• Change fatigue - the saturation of change in an organisation, especially over long periods—also disruption and problems—will cause stress, burnout, negativity and resistance.

Recently, emphasis has been placed on the importance of aligning your IT capability with your business objectives in order for digital transformation to succeed. Let us take a look at why this is so important.

Step 3: Align IT with your business strategy

The main aim of aligning IT with business objectives is to prevent the kind of silos that CEOs have been complaining about for years. Strategic IT-business alignment achieves:

• Faster time-to-market

• More purposeful productivity

• Increased agile responsiveness of teams

• Improved collaboration across the organisation

• Co-creation of processes with other departments, leading to better understanding of the end-product/process and involvement of end-users

• Reduced costs

It is imperative that businesses in 2021 realise and articulate their digital roadmap, aligning objectives across the organisation and integrating IT goals with company-wide goals. IT leadership must be involved in C-level strategic planning.

IT should not be a support function to other teams; instead, IT must be incorporated into the processes and there must be transparency and inclusion at all levels. This can be achieved as part of a wider approach to create more collaboration and cross-functional teams in your business:

• Create new platforms or encourage use of video calls for different teams to collaborate. Try to create a single language across your organisation and avoid jargon that is isolated to one department.

• Rotate staff and make new connections between teams. Introduce a mentoring scheme. Organise meetings between teams with coffee and lunch provided.

• Link up goals and KPIs for teams and departments to the company vision and digital roadmap.

• Ensure transparency for decisions made at senior and C-suite levels. If an employee doesn’t know why a key decision was taken at management level, there has been a failure in communication.

• Create a vibrant and inclusive company culture – get first-hand feedback and learn about your company. Make it easy for employees to make suggestions.

Follow in Amazon’s footsteps and make the customer/client the end goal in every business decision. This can help align everyone behind a single vision that sweeps through the company vertically, creating cohesion between different layers. Enact your vision with purpose, and ensure all teams are clear on their goals and how these goals link up with KPIs and the digital roadmap.

“There is no alternative to digital transformation. Visionary companies will carve out new strategic options for themselves — those that don’t adapt, will fail.” —Jeff Bezos

Working from home: the highs, the lows, the chainsaws

Mon, 14 Dec 2020 18:45:23 GMT

Adapting to the New Normal

While video calls and remote working were already a frequent part of life at a management consultancy, 2020 completely dialled back the physicality of being in the same room as colleagues and clients. It’s hard to define exactly what we lost, what we still don’t have back; but we feel it, especially as the year draws to a close and we realise it may still be a long time before we see some of the people we work with every day.

We adapted quickly, since agile teams and technical solutions are our daily bread. Our chairman has strived to preserve a feeling of community and team spirit. From online coffee breaks to a virtual beer break (the alcohol is real thankfully) on Friday afternoons, we have continued to bond and grow as a team despite the physical separation.

However, the transfer of collaboration to Zoom and Teams has not been without its moments of‘teachers having technology failures in the classroom’. Add to that kids bursting in with gleeful faces of disruption, boisterous pets, and some incredible floating objects as people get swallowed by their custom backgrounds.

So, we decided to end the year with some personal stories from our team, who have shown a great sense of fair play by sharing their most amusing, sometimes embarrassing, moments in team calls. A way to remind us that life goes on and everyone has an equal chance of making a fool of themselves in front of a camera.

The one with a chainsaw

A Managing Partner had a bit of a shock earlier this year when her elderly neighbour, who does some work in the garden (every Monday, whether she wants it or not), started banging on the window during a client call. It was an important call, so she tried to ignore the neighbour, as usually he wants to know how to send an email or where Facetime has gone. As he kept on banging, she started to lower the blind, as inconspicuously as possible, and he followed it with his head until the room was almost in darkness. Eventually he went round to the front door and started banging there. When her husband answered the door the neighbour asked if he could have a plaster because he’d accidentally cut into his own leg with a chainsaw. Suffice to say, he needed more than a plaster and was rushed to A&E.

The one with a kiss through a window

Passion is reserved for sports matches and glimmers of sunshine here in the UK. Across the channel however it is possible to show public displays of affection. On a call with one of our French partners, there was a certain amount of stunned silence when he got up, went to the window and kissed a mysterious lady outside the window. We later found out it was his wife, but he has remained coy about it (playing up to stereotypes we suspect) and when questioned about it in another meeting replied: ‘was she blonde or brunette’? Our new dating capability launches in spring 2021. It will be entirely managed out of Paris.

The one with the bathrobe

One of our new associates gave a novel introduction to the team when he joined a call in his bathrobe, not realising his camera was turned on. To make matters worse, it wasn’t even an ‘on brand’ Cambridge MC bathrobe. To be fair, I suspect that during 2020 there is a rather large group of people who have made a similar mistake. It only happens once they say.

The one where the boy fell into a pond

One of our Managing Partners was in a call with about twenty of the team, with her backdrop being the garden outside. Suddenly there was a descending cry of ‘Muuuummmmmyyy!!!!!!!’, as her ten-year-old fell from the tree he was climbing and plunged straight into the pond. Silence from him, silence from the team, ‘I’ll be right back’ from the mum.

The one with the Brazilian farmers

One of our more unusual projects this year was a training project set up by one of our Managing Partners. He wanted some of the team to play angry Brazilian farmers so that researchers could practice talking to angry Brazilian farmers. Two of our team went to great lengths and dressed up in whatever it is Brazilian farmers wear (all I know is there was some significant involvement from a series of floppy leather hats). It went very well, and we are thinking of branching out into other nationalities of grumpy farmers.

That brings to a close some of our best anecdotes this year. We worked hard and we have come out stronger. We have high hopes for next year and will keep on smiling as we hope you will too. Best wishes to you and your family from everyone here at Cambridge Management Consulting.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Where My Social Conscience Came From

Thu, 26 Mar 2020 15:09:37 GMT

Between 1948 and 1970, nearly half a million people moved from the Caribbean to Britain, which in 1948 faced severe labour shortages in the wake of the Second World War. This migration of British Nationals was later referred to as ‘the Windrush Generation’. My parents were of that generation and arrived in the UK in the 1950s.

As they were deeply religious, on arrival in Britain they joined the black churches that started to spring up, to satisfy their need to worship. These churches started out as meetings in a living room of one of the congregation. However, as immigration continued, those congregations quickly grew larger and the services moved to church buildings.

A large proportion of the children of the Windrush generation grew up in ‘the church’. I was one of those children. At church, in Newport, South Wales, I gained a supplementary education that included extra lessons in reading and writing, from a very early age.

Gradually, the churches started to find a political voice, which did not come easily. This is because some of the more traditional black Christians continued to believe that their main purpose was to focus on church life, rather than to participate in public life.

My father, a factory worker, became a lay preacher and officer of a church with a large congregation that had a high profile in the community. Even though he became a community leader, he would say that he was not interested in politics. In fact, he would often call politics the art of “politricks”. However, due to his standing in the community he developed a very strong social conscience and was acutely aware of the problems that affected a lot of people in the community, such as being impacted by the poverty premium or having issues with school institutions. Therefore, he always involved himself in activities that did something to help people in the community.

His whole persona was centred on this aspect. He encouraged the whole of his family to develop this sense of responsibility; to contribute to causes that helped alleviate inequalities for people in disadvantaged and underserved communities. Whoever they were, whatever their backgrounds, and wherever they lived.

At the heart of my father’s plans for his childrens’ future, was to leave a legacy of social mobility for them and for his grandchildren, using education. He would often say, “silver and gold may fade away, but a good education will never decay”. His expectation of us was to do well in our education.

Supplementary to this was my mother’s drive to encourage us to be financially literate. When we were old enough, she introduced us to the benefits of saving by opening building society accounts for each of us and introducing us to the Caribbean ‘pardner’ system. The pardner system is where a group of people, the 'pardners', agree to pay a regular sum or 'hand', to a trusted person or 'banker', usually an older, respected member of the community, on a weekly basis. Every week, one member of the group received the total amount or 'draw', contributed by all of the partners. Joining a pardner helped me purchase my first bass guitar and helped me to keep my first car (affectionately known as my ‘banger’) on the road.

Even though our family belonged to a working-class community, this did not stop my parents from finding opportunities to help those that needed our assistance. Therefore, I have followed my parents’ example of giving back and have involved myself in activities that promoted equity of opportunities to groups of people that would ordinarily not have access to them.

The need to do this was amplified when I started my own family in the City of Bristol, where I have lived for over 25 years. Once my children started to go to school, I became very motivated to be involved as a volunteer in educational settings. Therefore, I became a school governor in primary schools, secondary schools (where I became Chair of Governors) and post-16 provision. I was also a standing invitee member of the Children & Young Persons Scrutiny Committee in Bristol City Council as well as the chair of a social enterprise that, amongst other things, operated supplementary schools in Bristol.

I have also held several Non-Executive positions, that allowed me to contribute to advocating for disadvantaged communities in gaining access to financial services and attaining access to employment opportunities. This included being on the board of the award-winning St Pauls Carnival and being on the board of the Bristol Credit Union.

My passion for understanding how innovation and emerging technologies can be used for business advantage, has allowed me to contribute to ‘levelling up’ in disadvantaged communities, by getting involved with charities that create new pathways for young people interested in STEM. Assisting young people to develop and reach their full potential in the area of STEM, is also a core theme for Cambridge Management Consulting.

One of the charities that Cambridge Management Consulting is supporting, is DigiLocal CIO (www.digilocal.org.uk). The charity aims to nurture a passion and capability for engineering creativity in young people, in Bristol and the West of England. DigiLocal is also very keen to support underrepresented groups and introduce them into technology. They work closely with community centres, high tech companies, universities, STEM ambassadors and other partners across the region and internationally to deliver high quality, age-appropriate, scaffolded activities on a weekly basis.

DigiLocal utilise programming languages and platform technologies to engage young people in technology-based projects, to support problem solving skills vital to life-long learning and careers.

This complements Cambridge Management Consulting’s goal to link capable young people with organisational capabilities that can be used in nascent markets. The company aim to assist with identifying the core dynamic processes of innovation, necessary for the 4th Industrial Revolution, or 4IR.

4IR has accelerated the transformation of industry and is distinguishable by its development of cyber-physical systems. With cyber-physical systems, technology interacts with human and machine in new ways. This interaction changes the capabilities of people and machines, and augments technology into people’s lives. This has fuelled the digital economy through the introduction of emerging technologies such as AI, machine learning, adaptive manufacturing, and ‘clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats’ (CRISPR), to name a few. The digital economy is characterised by the recombining of talent, capabilities and expertise, with new markets to satisfy new needs often via platform businesses.

“Data is the new oil driving the economy globally—and artificial intelligence is the engine shaping our future.” - Young Sohn, President and CSO of Samsung Electronics and Chairman of HARMAN International industries

Platforms are organisations that act as hubs made up of core technologies, standards, and tools that provide benefits to companies, sets of companies, or users. Platforms can facilitate retail and buying of services, connect people to jobs and allow people to share and access digital code. Platform business models are becoming a prominent part of the digital economy and represent a shift away from traditional notions of firms and markets.

Cambridge Management Consulting is supporting DigiLocal CIO to maintain their sustainability during these unprecedented times. However, they are planning to be more involved by providing volunteers for some of DigiLocal’s existing projects and collaborating with them on new ones. For example, Cambridge Management Consulting are collaborating with DigiLocal on the formation of an entrepreneurial ecosystem, with companies from the high-tech sector and a financial cooperative, for the purpose of engaging young people from underrepresented communities, in STEM, business management and financial management. The plan is to create a platform business challenge.

The challenge will allow young people to experience the whole innovation lifecycle from ideation to value capture and then assist them with managing the platform business. The activities will emphasise the importance of developing non-cognitive skills like perseverance, conscientiousness, teamworking and interpersonal skills. These skills can be integrated into STEM learning to provide the need for innovation and an entrepreneurial attitude, as well as the emotional and social intelligence required in today’s nascent markets.

“4IR will require a much more blended learning experience, with skills such as creative ingenuity and placing emphasis on design, entrepreneurship and ethics being required alongside technical STEM staples.” – The Institute of Engineering and Technology

On Optimism and Team

Wed, 11 Mar 2020 15:09:37 GMT

This time last week, I felt compelled to write about optimism. Why? Because I felt optimistic. More optimistic than I have done in a long time. Optimistic personally, optimistic professionally.

I started to write this piece, then stopped. Should I say it out loud? Does optimism have a place at a time like this? –when life as we know it has ceased, people are dying, others selflessly risking their lives to serve and save others. What right do I have to write about optimism? What am I doing to make a difference? Not a lot: working from home, isolating myself and my family, trying to be a good citizen and not become a burden to our amazing NHS –only what we should all be doing; the bare minimum.

Yes, the world is an uncertain place at the moment, but what’s made me feel optimistic is what I have been observing and learning about the other human beings that I work with.

As a company shifted online and connected only by video conferencing, like so many others, we have a policy of two communal online coffee breaks and one Friday beer break a week. These three half hour punctuations, within our busier than ever working week, have become little oases in the vastness of what we are all dealing with. What started as a bit of fun has become a lot of fun and, like an oasis, an essential place of respite and rejuvenation for us as a team.

Cambridge Management Consulting is a company founded on the principals of connectivity; not just in telecommunications where so many of our team have worked, but human connectivity with our clients.

Covid 19 has made manifest our connectivity. We cannot see the virus that has so altered our everyday lives. Yet if we can metaphorically substitute the impact of the virus for positivity, we can trace the consequences of our actions as they ripple out from us, across the world, both in business and personally.

This virus has made visible our effects on each other and in amongst all the chaos it has caused, has given some unexpected windows of clarity. It has taken away layers of formality that the world of work can place upon us all. I have always respected and admired our team for their extraordinary capabilities in the workplace, but now I admire them for the extraordinary humans that they are too; the parents, the partners, pet owners, mountaineers, artists, runners, cooks, musicians… their facets are endless. I don’t just know them as technologists, managers, financiers, colleagues, but as people now. This is one of the things that this strange time has shown me and a gift that it has given me. We have been forced to slow down, take stock, consolidate and consider and we are doing those things together, as a team and for the team.

Our current enforced lack of personal interaction has magnified the threads of society’s fabric. It is no longer acceptable to be inward looking and introspective –now we must build a cohesive web if we are to come through this period intact. We should no longer think of our actions affecting only ourselves or our own business, but we must become integrated into something that, without us all pulling together, will fall down.

Individual freedom is crucial of course, but if we only focus on ourselves then we lose track of the bigger picture. This temporary loss of freedom is for the greater good. We must have a new perception of the world and the impact of our actions; keep our heads high and look to the future.

The awfulness of Covid 19’s impact cannot and should not be underestimated, but it is important to find a light in the darkness and to learn if we can from this universal crisis. We need others, need our communities, our teams in all their forms. We need them for the very basic human interactions that inform so heavily on our wellbeing. How vulnerable we are when we exist in isolation. We cannot discard the freedom of the individual, but at a time like this, we have to look to our human networks for support and add strength to build foundations for the future.

We must learn lessons about importance of community now, for when this crisis has passed. We must take those lessons forward into a world which will undoubtedly be changed, and use them to be better. We must nurture the new and deeper relationships we have found within our teams and take the greatest care of those precious new elements.

Good or bad, our words and our actions affect others in our business and in our personal lives. We must choose to make them good, because the humans inhabiting both those lives are one and the same. And they are the reasons for my optimism.