CDC Blog : Skills

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Privacy: The right to be left alone?

Posted At : June 14, 2010 7:37 PM | Posted By : Tim Antos

This blog was written by Robert Ord. Robert is an Associate Consultant who joined Capgemini in March 2010.

Security, safety and privacy. All words we have come to know and love in our day-to-day lives. You may be picturing long queues at airport scanners or having to remember the multiple passwords you have for internet sites. You may even be thinking of your personal technique for covering your pin entry at the kiosk. Whatever security, safety and privacy mean to you, have you ever given a thought to where your data ends up or who has access to it?

Working in a Capgemini community dealing with Border Management, it is words like these that we are talking about. Having the right information at the right time is critical to maintaining the safety of the population. Border agencies need to know who is arriving and where they are going. They need to know what your interests are to determine if you are a threat to the public. These decisions are based on information generated by you; biometrics, profile, activities and friends to name a few. Given the choice, how far would you allow this information to be shared freely?

The news would tell us that we care about privacy. Facebook recently had to change their whole privacy system to answer demands of the public. The colossal data store in Facebook’s (and others) possession is very commercially valuable. I have to ask myself how much trust I place in organisations like this to guard my data as I overtly guard my pin number. Will they mind if they accidentally let slip who my friends are or my mobile number? Well I would. That is part of my identity, the fundamental backdrop of safety, security and privacy. Our identities in the wrong hands can be a frightening and dangerous force.

It is a similar story for virtually all project teams in the professional services world. We handle sensitive data as a matter of routine and we have an obligation to protect this data. A current topical example is the age of The Cloud and the impact it is having on safety, security and privacy. Applications over the internet open new concerns of how to keep data private and secure. Public/private partnerships have the luxury to discuss privacy and designing a suitable framework. Consultants are called upon to assist with these difficult choices, but even making the decision on who should be invited to such a discussion is difficult to consider; open data sources contain millions of records.

I was very privileged to hear a world expert on this subject during a panel discussion at the recent World Congress of IT 2010. A point he made was to define the Latin routes of privacy: denied something. This could be a key in future personal data protection. I do not always have the option of open discussion in items of social importance, but where I do, I have the option to not give my data in the first place and for my data to be left alone. However, we must all take heed a popular quote, “if you try and protect 100% of everything, you end up protecting nothing”.

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“So what do Management Consultants do exactly?”

Posted At : May 24, 2010 2:03 PM | Posted By : Tim Antos

The blog below was written by Laura Duggen. Laura is an Associate Consultant who joined Capgemini in March 2010

This is the question that I am almost invariably asked when talking about my job – generally it immediately follows the “So, what do you do?” question. Everyone you speak to knows that management consultants exist but have no real idea why they exist or what use they are, and whilst we are not quite regarded with the same level of suspicion as bankers, nonetheless there are likely to be a few “give them your watch and they’ll tell you the time” type jokes and general mockery. Trying to explain or answer the question is normally ill-advised. In true British fashion, whatever you say will provide further excuse for mocking from your friends. Which is all very well, but it did make me wonder– what is the ‘right’ answer to that question, and why is it that no one seems to know what we do?

I graduated in 2007, and spent some time working in a start up company before working for the water industry for a couple of years and making the decision to join Capgemini. I know why I wanted to be a management consultant; the variety of work and the intellectual challenge, and also why I wanted to join Capgemini specifically; the collaborative approach (a Capgemini term, which roughly translates as the idea of working ‘with’ as opposed to ‘at’ or ‘to’ our clients), and the feeling of cultural fit with the people I’d met. When I joined, I knew that I was going to do three weeks training but did I know precisely what I was going to be doing after that? Honestly, no. I didn’t know where I was going to be working (Scotland as it turned out) or who I would be reporting to, or what my day to day activities would be, but whilst some of my friends shuddered in horror at the very thought, for me it was part of the attraction. I haven’t been a consultant for long, but I have quickly learnt that flexibility, enjoying change and being willing to adapt to whatever comes your way are essential qualities for this job, and ones that are shared by all Capgemini consultants I have met.

Since I’ve joined I’ve seen consultants work in project management, communications, stakeholder management, HR, training programmes, website migration and supply chain. I’ve known them working in sewage treatment works, on trading floors, in breweries and with factory production lines. This is naming only a fraction of the roles and environments that you might end up being involved with and the only thing I can say for certain is that you can expect the unexpected!

Hopefully you can start to see the conclusion that I came to. The reason that it’s difficult to answer the question ‘What exactly is it that management consultants do?’ is not because we do nothing, but because we do so many different things. What we do in essence, is provide the expertise, guidance and support that helps our clients address their challenges and deliver value. This is determined by the client, their culture, their organisational structure, their industry, their timescales, their budget and their challenge. It’s as simple, or as complicated, as that. So whilst I’m sure there are many wiser and more experienced people out there who would be able to say this much more eloquently, for now I’ve found my answer – ‘It depends.’

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The variety of opportunities makes consulting a great option for graduates

Posted At : March 5, 2010 5:17 PM | Posted By : David Kunzmann

The blog below was written by James Simpson. James is an Associate Consultant who joined Capgemini in March 2009.

The opportunity to work across multiple industries and gain experience of different services was one of the main reasons that attracted me to apply for a career as a Management Consultant. For anyone currently going through a similar application process, I can tell you that in my first year at Capgemini Consulting on the CDC programme my expectations have definitely been met in gaining this variety of opportunities.

Since joining, I have had experience of projects in Utilities, Retail, the Education and Health sectors. My assignments have varied from helping to implement operational improvement programmes, designing a new five year strategy for a UK wide health network and supporting the implementation of Government policy through to delivery. In addition, I spent four months on an internal role within the Capgemini Wardour Street offices supporting one of the key Capgemini Account teams supporting their future sales strategies and monthly forecasting budgeting processes.

There is no such thing as a “typical” assignment as a graduate at Capgemini Consulting, but any opportunity you are presented will give you the opportunity for continuous learning and development that will help serve as a fantastic basis for your future career. In my first year I feel I have learnt so much from the people I have worked with and the training I have received. I now also recognise how much more there is still to learn!

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The start of my consulting career…

Posted At : May 27, 2009 8:24 PM | Posted By : David Kunzmann

After returning from my travels earlier this year, it was finally time to kick-off my consulting career with Capgemini. New joiners take part in a two-week induction programme, ran by members of the Consulting Development Community (CDC). You stay away in a variety of pleasant hotels, which gives you a taster of life as a consultant. The schedule included team games, presentations from the leadership team (including Tom Blacksell, CEO), interactive sessions on consulting skills and evening socials, all culminating in a short case study at the end.

All of this sounds quite daunting, but it was a fantastic experience. The induction is run solely for the new graduate intake, and as so it has a great social atmosphere. The evenings provide a chance to relax and get to know your new colleagues, and there is plenty of organised fun as well. I had to organise a Monday Night of Fun, which I did on a “monsters of consulting theme” – all-in-all quite random but very enjoyable.

The sessions in the day start to build core consulting skills such as storyboarding, effective meeting management, presentation skills and strategic analysis. The sessions are run by experts across the business, and as such you get to meet a lot of people in a short space of time. It was incredibly valuable to meet so many people, as building up a network of contacts is important in a consultant’s career.

On the final Friday we were all told where our first project assignments would be. It was time to say some temporary goodbyes as we were all sent to various parts of the country to put the skills that we had learned into practice. After the induction I had made some fantastic friendships and was very excited about getting my career with Capgemini going.

David Kunzmann is an Associate Consultant who joined Capgemini in March 2009.

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Technology savvy..? No, me neither!

Posted At : February 15, 2009 8:38 PM | Posted By : Jessica Childs

Many people think of Capgemini as a technology company. Although it is highly likely that you will be placed on project roles that are IT related, it is reassuring to know that you don’t need to be technologically gifted to participate fully in project life. All you need is a lot of common sense, great people skills and the capacity to learn quickly.

Since November, I have been on a highly technology based project: the last place I thought I would end up for my first main role. I was pretty apprehensive at first, however the support has been fantastic and we have had daily training/catch up sessions to ensure none of the team feels out of their depth.

In short: the project I am working on is introducing a brand new IT solution into a large Government Department. I have personally been the face-off to ten of the clients for the project (which has been great exposure and the kind of responsibility you can expect to encounter very early on in your career at Capgemini). I have had to communicate frequently and in a clear, concise manner, the technology requirements and propositions of the project. This has been a great learning process as I have been required to quickly understand technology terms, concepts, etc and then relay these messages back to the client side.

My role so far has been to make this seemingly technology based project as humanly friendly as possible so that those on the client side can embrace the change. This approach seems to encompass a lot of the projects at Capgemini: so, if you had any worries that this company is too technologically focused for you: think again! Capgemini welcomes graduates from all kinds of degree backgrounds with all kinds of different skills and this is what makes it such a great place to work.

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Saatchi stable. School of Rem Koolhaas. House of Chanel. Capgemini CDC.

Posted At : December 5, 2008 6:40 PM | Posted By : Lysette Cheuk

OK, budding consultants in the Consultant Development Community may not be critically acclaimed artists but being creative is a huge part our working life.

Coming from a background in advertising I was prepared to keep my creative juices in their box when I joined. However as the weeks flew by it was increasingly obvious that creativity is an important component of what we do and deliver.

One of our main aims is to work collaboratively with our clients so we must think carefully about how we make the most effective use of their time. Distilling large amounts of information into key messages and digestible diagrams, armed with brown paper, post-it notes, blu-tack and scissors, is an art in itself. These invite clients to fully interact and engage with the material resulting in co-created solutions to add value to their organisation.

Not only do we create tools like this but we also consider how to maximise the space we have by creating environments to obtain the best results from client time. Some sessions also begin with icebreakers which we can be creative with to encourage interaction and help attendees feel at ease.

These skills are taught and tried at CSW (see Fran’s post) and can also be found in our internal work. Finally, it bubbles over into the CDC socials, for instance, I have to think of a secret santa present for my intake with a budget of £0. Ideas are most welcome!

Lysette is an Associate Consultant who joined Capgemini Consulting in September 2008. She is currently working on a Marketing, Sales & Service Service project for a major Governmental department.

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CSW – what’s it all about?

Posted At : December 2, 2008 4:49 PM | Posted By : Fran Wilkinson

When you first join the CDC, you will undergo three weeks of training; two weeks in Woking/London and a third week at Consulting Skills Workshop (CSW) in France. CSW gives you an invaluable insight into the Capgemini way of working and equips you with the key consulting skills you need for a client-facing role.

The timetable at CSW is pretty intensive (be prepared for 8am starts!) however, the skills you gain from the course will prove invaluable throughout your consulting career. Here, you will discover the magical world of Brown Papers, RACI Charts, Bi-directional Transformation maps and many other tools we use when working with clients.

CSW is not just about hard work – the week includes a range of team-building exercises and social events. As well as expanding your mind at CSW, also be prepared to expand your waistline – meals are a gastronomic extravaganza and the bar is a great place to let off some steam. For the fitness fanatics out there, Les Fontaines also plays host to a pool, gym and tennis courts.

Personally, one of the best parts of CSW (apart from the four course dinners!) was the chance to get to know colleagues from across Europe. Despite differing business styles and the occasional language barrier, I found there to be a genuine sense of team spirit and willingness to share knowledge and ideas.

CSW is compulsory for all those new to Capgemini Consulting, so if you are accepted onto the CDC, look forward to one of the most rewarding weeks of your life!

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