Paul Maya, CEO Mexico, Atos • Interview
What makes North America your largest global business unit (GBU), and what role does Mexico play within that unit?
Based on business volume, a GBU can be a country like France or Germany. In the Americas, our business is split into two regions: North America—which includes Canada, the US, Mexico, and Central America—and South America—which includes Colombia, Brazil and the rest of the South cone. From a business perspective, North America is the largest GBU for the group from an external revenue perspective. Mexico holds strategic value as we have hybrid operations. We operate as a global delivery center based in Monterrey, supporting US contracts along with some other global contracts based in Europe. We also support our contracts based in Mexico. North America is the largest GBU because it is the largest IT consumer market in the world, with the majority of the Fortune 500 corporations’ headquarters. Our strategy in Mexico is to support US contracts, optimizing operations costs on a constant basis. These are the main advantages versus other countries with offshore operations like India and Malaysia.
What is your current market share in Mexico, and what strategies do you have to increase it?
Our current market share is low because the sector is still niche. Our plan is to grow as much as possible and compete against those with a large market share. One of our main objectives is to rapidly develop our Industry 4.0 capabilities, and we are working on digital transformation and IoT POVs and projects with major corporations. We plan to move faster with our hybrid cloud project, IoT, cybersecurity, and digital workplace. These are the four areas we are using to trigger growth in Mexico. One differentiator is our global presence. We can support global corporations based in the US or Europe to understand the market in Mexico and help them localize solutions to any local regulations or requirements. Another key advantage is our large footprint in Mexico, which includes our large group of engineers and subject matter experts.
Regarding the digital transformation, what are the most important elements every company should invest in?
Every C-level of our client base wants to increase revenue and improve operating margin or cash flow. If an IoT project can help in any of those three areas, they should pay attention to it. Basically, an IoT project connects things via the internet to an advanced analytics machine or appliance that can detect the interactions and give recommendations according to the process in real time. If companies use the right approach to analyze the data, it can help improve delivery cycles, parts, logistics—all for proactive procurement and maintenance.
What are some projects you are working on in Mexico, and which companies are you collaborating with?
One of our main sectors in Mexico is manufacturing. Within manufacturing, the automotive segment is one that has been growing the most. Some projects include infrastructure projects, digital workplaces, service desk capabilities, transformation of service desks, global SAP rollouts, and aligning local operations with international HQ guidelines or standards. In addition, we support hybrid cloud projects that help clients transform legacy infrastructure into public or private clouds. The main way to achieve the efficiencies that each industry needs is through IoT projects of predictive analytics, robotics, and AI. We can talk about manufacturing, but the financial sector is also involved in it with fintech initiatives. Some say it represents a risk to a well-established bank, though some of the major banks are already transforming into fintechs in some areas. Eventually, that will be the future. Fintech is a financial service someone can get without human intervention. For example, a user can use a website to apply for a car loan, home loan, investment or mortgage without having to see anyone in person. More traditional banks are offering such tools and services already with little to no human intervention. ✖
“One of our main objectives is to rapidly develop our Industry 4.0 capabilities, and we are working on digital transformation and IoT POVs and projects with major corporations.”