Technology

TOP TEN: Opportunities and Legal Risks Considerations When Embracing New Technologies

Posted: 05/05/2017 - 19:54

The opportunities

For organisations that are looking to strengthen their position in established industry sectors, adopting new technologies may provide the opportunity to: 

1. Demonstrate innovative thinking to customers 
Proving to customers that your organisation is committed to continually improving the manner in which it conducts its business by adopting new technologies should lead to better customer awareness of your business and a stronger reputation for customer service. 

Will apps or chatbots determine the supply chain's future?

Posted: 04/25/2017 - 00:58

Over in Silicon Valley, the latest battle for technological dominance is on. On the one hand, you have apps. Apps have been with us for nearly ten years, but 2016 marked the first year that mobile internet use overtook desktop internet use. This trend, which shows no sign of slowing down, puts apps on the front page of the internet — so to speak.

Is procurement the key to unlocking innovation within organisations?

Posted: 04/22/2017 - 02:10

Depending on your business sector, the department you work in or your job function, innovation means different things to different people. Procurement professionals may view innovation as a long-term strategy, given the tremendous potential for delivering efficiencies and cost savings over time, while other business functions may see it differently. Their interest might be focused on enhancing performance and processes, delivering slicker workflows or increased speed to market.

Cognitive solutions: beware the black box and big promise

Posted: 04/13/2017 - 22:42

In a maturing market, buyers are becoming increasingly aware that the umbrella term “intelligent automation” comprises a broad spectrum of functionality, ranging from teachable bots that execute repeatable and scripted tasks, to more advanced cognitive tools that apply pattern recognition and language processing capabilities to analyse data, make decisions and learn from experience.

Software-Defined Networking (SDN): the future of networking?

Posted: 04/13/2017 - 00:20

Over the past two decades, networking has been severely limited: it simply could not keep up with new demands from businesses in an increasingly digital world. However, that is all about to change thanks to the creation of software-defined networking, or SDN. Part of an ongoing wave of “virtualisation” in the IT industry, SDN allows people (particularly businesses with large IT systems) to control network behaviour through a handy piece of software, instead of having to go into the network infrastructure and alter things manually.

Life Lessons: Rick Sturge

Posted: 04/11/2017 - 03:51

Rick Sturge is EVP Business Development at Firstsource Solutions, with over two decades' experience in outsourcing and business transformation. We turned to Rick for the latest in our Life Lessons series - and received lessons aplenty...


What has been the single most significant development to impact your profession or area of business during your career, and why?

Man and machine: the future awaits

Posted: 04/06/2017 - 03:05

Statistics are a lot of fun, and contentious too. Yet they permit us to remain fairly grounded. Let’s start with the obvious. From self-driving vehicles and semi-autonomous robots to intelligent algorithms and predictive analytical tools, machines are increasingly capable of performing a wide range of jobs that have long been human domains. A 2013 study by researchers at Oxford University posited that as many as 47% of all jobs in the United States are at risk of “computerisation”.

Is RPA a roadblock to digital transformation? What CIOs need to know

Posted: 04/04/2017 - 01:46

Robotic process automation (RPA) is all the rage these days, and with good reason. Software bots that replicate the way humans perform repetitive, rule-based tasks are driving significant cost savings and productivity increases. For as little as $10,000 a year, an enterprise can implement and maintain a bot that performs the routine work of five to ten people. Moreover, RPA can deliver a wide range of business benefits such as improved data collection and accuracy, auditability and compliance.

The future of retail outsourcing: Amazon versus Walmart

Posted: 03/28/2017 - 07:17

Wow! Isn’t it amazing how quickly things change? In the early 2000s, the very pinnacle of outsourcing was Walmart. Walmart didn’t outsource its own operations. Instead, it made history by working with offshore suppliers, introducing American consumers to low-cost Chinese goods. Consumers fell in love with the low prices, and Walmart grew to 14,000 stores, becoming the biggest corporation in America.

The future of outsourcing is clear: trust me

Posted: 03/28/2017 - 06:11

Trust is at the root of all successful outsourcing partnerships. Without trust between all parties, commercial relationships can break down. And as I’m sure you know it’s far more expensive to get new business in the door or find new partners to work with; than it is to keep the status quo.

So how can outsourcers build and maintain trust? I may be biased but I firmly believe that the availability of technology that provides round the clock oversight is the answer.

The tip of the infosec iceberg?

Posted: 03/21/2017 - 08:12

Recent stories by, amongst others, the BBC detailing large, well-organised and presumably very profitable scamming organisations targeting UK TalkTalk customers have hardly helped the already-lowly reputation of offshore contact centres - but may unfortunately be only the tip of a perilous iceberg.

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