AND Digital is a fast growth tech company on a mission to close the world’s digital skills gap. 随着他们向北方扩张, 我们想和他们的俱乐部主管谈谈, 马尔科姆·西格瑞夫来找出是什么让AND与众不同, learn about their people-first approach and hear their ambitious plans for the next five years.
首先，你能告诉我们全球最大的博彩平台AND Digital和你作为一个企业的目标吗?
AND Digital works with organisations to accelerate the development of digital capabilities - that means helping organisations get more from both the tech they invest in, 他们打造的数字产品和他们打造的数字团队.
自五年前开始以来，我们的发展速度相当快. 去年, AND在《全球最大的博彩平台》评选的英国增长最快的公司中排名第九, 在欧洲排名第24位. When we started, we set ourselves a big goal to grow to more than 500 people by 2019. 离年底还有几个月, 我们很高兴地说，我们已经超过了这个数字.
我们的使命是缩小世界上的数字技能差距, 这显然不是一件容易的事. 我们需要很多技术人员来帮助我们取得成功, which is why this growth and the ongoing learning and development of our people is so important for AND.
我们完成了计划的前五年, and right now we’re in the final stages of shaping the next five years with goals that are equally as ambitious, 如果不是更多的话，但我有信心我们会到达那里.
太棒了，你在公司里的角色是什么?
I joined AND around 18 months ago to help build a presence in the North - kicking things off in Manchester.
在全球最大的博彩平台迅速建立AND之后, we have now expanded across West Yorkshire and opened two new clubs in Leeds and Halifax. 现在, 我们的计划是在北方开更多的俱乐部, 以及整个英国, 响应对我们服务的需求. 每个俱乐部由80-100名会员组成, 这很容易表示在1的范围内,未来五年将有200个技术和数字职位.
建立AND在该地区的影响力是一件非常成功的事情. I couldn’t be happier that the work is resonating really well and we're in a strong place: we're hiring the right people, 我们的客户也很好.
削减成本, 创新, 或增长, 启动大多数数字化转型项目的驱动因素是什么?
我想这里面有他们所有人的元素, but initial conversations start with growth and 创新 - especially with clients that have serious sponsorship from their senior executives.
许多公司意识到，不实现平台现代化会抑制它们的发展, 在遗留平台上工作, 现有的工作方式和数字化能力. Often, they haven't invested in that part of the business because it's treated as a cost centre. So, 当涉及到尝试移动的速度, 他们意识到他们需要提高自己的数字能力, 还有他们的技术.
Upskilling and making our clients’ people more effective is another key driver for digital transformation. 我认为这是And Digital特别突出的地方. We recently worked with a client who assumed we’d replace individuals - but we upskilled them instead. That team is now probably the highest performing element of their technology function.
转型的最大障碍是什么?
获得高级管理层的支持是关键, 因为数字化转型必须得到高层的认可和支持. 你还必须有合适的组织结构, making sure you've got the right processes and leadership styles to support what is a complex process.
People sometimes have a misconception that transformation work involves replacing existing teams. 事实上, 与我们的大多数客户, 从数字的角度来看，我们最终都把他们的团队转移到了正确的地方, and creating new roles as we start to unlock the value of digital and technology for that client.
我真的很喜欢, 当我去拜访客户时, I almost inevitably know I'm going to create jobs for that client and that region, 以及提高技能和使人们的工作/生活明显更好. 这是我们在AND的转型过程中的一个重要部分.
AND Digital目前在英国最适合工作的公司中排名第15位, 《十大正规博彩网站评级》在北方排名第三, could you describe what makes your culture unique and why people want to work for you?
The key thing to us is we are genuinely a people-first organisation - so much so that appearing in the The Sunday Times Best Companies To Work For list is my number one KPI.
我们的观点是，如果我们善待我们的人民, they’ll do right by our clients and the numbers will look after themselves - and this genuinely works.
当其他公司以销售为动力时，我们关注的是我们的员工. 在这方面, we’re very out of kilter with the rest of the marketplace and I'm proud of what we do in that space.
哪些新兴技术最具变革潜力, 如何把它整合到你所做的工作中?
This is an interesting question, because there's probably three or four different angles to this.
我要说的是基于云计算的人工智能和机器学习. It’s potential has been massive for a while and regularly makes the tech headlines, 但直到最近我们才真正开始看到计算能力, scalability and practical use cases emerge that mean it can become something of use for a wide variety of businesses, 不只是几个.
There's a lot of constraints because, to do it properly, you've really got to unpick the data. This means improving its quality, normalising and opening it up, linking it and so forth.
能够为我们的客户释放这种潜力, 这是无法逃避的基础工作, 确保机构具备:
合适的人, in the right place and at the right time - not easy when AI and machine learning is still very much an emerging skill set as much as it is emerging tech.
Moving away from the traditional data and architecture monoliths most organisations are locked into.
这对客户来说绝对是一笔巨大的回报, but there's lots of work to do to get to that stage where you’re ready to unlock it. 一旦组织接受了这一点，就必须进行相当彻底的变革, it’s easier to unlock the value that cloud-based AI and machine learning can bring.
最后一个问题, what do you think the technology sector in Manchester will look like in 10 years time?
A number of cities across the North are now really investing in the technology sector, 这非常令人兴奋, 我认为全球最大的博彩平台目前在这方面处于领先地位.
科技产业在全球最大的博彩平台已经很成熟了, and its community is probably more joined up than most other major UK cities outside of London, 所以我认为全球最大的博彩平台是最重要的.
I hope others cities in the North can work together and create something that's successful on a global scale. The momentum is there and organisations are already delivering great things within the community.
整体, 我对十年后我们的发展感到兴奋, because I don't think the technology sector is going to slow down any time soon - that particular snowball only ever really gathers speed.
