Entries by Patrick Heffernan, Practice Manager and Principal Analyst

EY and technology: Embedding AI and moving beyond trust

Taking AI further EY’s “six habits” study provides detailed information and assessments of digital transformation leaders’ best practices as well as “actions for the boardroom,” such as “create a culture of continuous learning” and “embed innovation with corporate governance.” In previewing the study, TBR noted that the recommendations for boards to consider when accelerating AI […]

People and productivity: PwC’s approach to helping clients cope with COVID-19

Who is working from home? Do they have everything they need? Can they stay connected? Are they OK? Companies around the world have been struggling to answer those questions in recent weeks as the COVID-19 virus became a global pandemic and suddenly forced many workers, and their employers, to adjust to remote working. As human […]

COVID-19 outbreak allows SAP and SIs to work on their relationships

COVID-19 delays the already slow process of taking S/4HANA customers live For decades, service partnerships have been of utmost importance to SAP (NYSE: SAP). Migrating customers onto S/4HANA is a key part of SAP’s growth strategy, and none of those deployments happen without the involvement of partners. At the end of 2019 SAP reported a […]

Accenture and COVID-19: Challenges ahead

COVID-19 will pressure Accenture’s short-term performance but could accelerate adoption of automation as the company maintains pricing agility While a global health pandemic is not something vendors typically prepare for as part of their business continuity plans, for many, including Accenture, the COVID-19 outbreak will certainly test the resiliency of their business models. As a […]

In time of pandemic, IT services focuses on leadership, partnerships and automation

Accelerated automation Following market leader Accenture (NYSE: ACN), IT services vendors will aggressively adopt automation tools to drive down their own costs, improve remote delivery and retain clients during the global economic downturn. Automation will help ensure standardized delivery, even as engagements, implementation cycles and large-scale integrations change amid more remotely managed IT environments. IT […]

Aligning assets with partners’ complementary solutions: 2019 strategy may be critical for Wipro in 2020

As we look at significant changes coming to the IT services landscape and focus on agile shifts toward a post-COVID-19 world, strategies launched in the last 12 months may prove to be critical for some vendors’ long-term success. Understanding Wipro’s February 2019 moves can point to how the company might perform throughout 2020.  Wipro has […]

Becoming the bridge: EY and its 2020 Global Information Security Survey

TBR perspective EY’s latest Global Information Security Survey illuminates critical aspects of how EY sees itself positioned in the cybersecurity services market, even as it informs on the trends and troubling developments across the information security space. Reviewing a preview of the results, TBR was struck by three elements: First, EY clearly sees itself as […]

AI, Accenture and Amazon: HITS acquisitions update 2020

Accenture’s steady appetite, Amazon’s potential new offering and Google’s uncertain moves Accenture’s acquisition of Clarity Insights follows the company’s INTIENT purchase and rounds out a typically active acquisition year for one of the leaders in TBR’s HITS benchmark. Clarity Insights brings Accenture AI and machine learning capabilities, 350 healthcare data scientists, and healthcare industry clients. […]

Proximity or scale? Will Latin America’s startup scene challenge India’s?

Here’s a simple question: Can a startup scene in nearshore Americas rival the one in India? Could countries and markets geographically closer to the U.S. provide the kind of energy and entrepreneurship coming from India, particularly in emerging technologies? A few weeks ago, TBR analysts spoke at length with a PwC partner in India about […]