Prysmian and Microsoft: cloud computing and smart working, agents for business transformation

Milan, 13^th February 2018 – Prysmian Group, world leader in the energy and telecom cables and systems industry, announces its partnership with Microsoft to launch an all-round digital transformation project based on a cloud-first strategy. The cornerstone of this innovative path is smart working, a model that has taken shape at the same time as the move to the new Milan Bicocca headquarters: this model will increasingly steer the Group — made up of 21,000 employees in 50 countries — to higher productivity and improved work-life balance. The smart office, namely the ability to make people’s work easier, is having a major impact.

Technological innovation has always formed part of the DNA of Prysmian, whose solutions have facilitated important engineering works throughout the world, such as the world’s tallest skyscraper, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, and the world’s largest aircraft, the Airbus 380. As all these solutions are the result of the ingenuity of Prysmian’s “task forces” and in order to grow precisely in this direction, the company has decided to focus on innovative productivity tools that allow people to work together in an increasingly more efficient and effective way. This is why the new Milan headquarters have been designed using smart working principles, and a cultural and organisational change has been launched, together with Microsoft, to support the operations of individuals and teams. First and foremost, all PC desktops have been eliminated and employees given mobile devices, including 2-in-1 Microsoft Surface convertible laptops, to provide more immediate and faster access to the company’s tools and information resources anywhere, any time. The project to adopt Office 365 and Windows 10, already found in 25% of the world’s offices, is currently underway. One of the cloud productivity platform’s other solutions, Yammer, is used as business social network to facilitate the sharing of useful content and collaboration.

With so many international offices, Prysmian has also examined a way of providing users with cloud-based Skype for Business communication and collaboration tools. Skype for Business is the main videoconferencing tool, through which videos, meetings, chats and VOIP telephone calls are transmitted. Thanks to 4ward, a Gold Partner in Cloud Productivity and Communication, its architecture has been set up so that it can be integrated with the solutions already used, in order to minimise impact and reduce implementation times. The digitalisation of the Private Branch Exchange (PBX) network and the introduction of the cloud approach have provided small offices with flexibility by centralising operations. In addition, using videoconferencing through the cloud voice has improved the quality of calls by eliminating any lag and sync issues. In the case of meetings involving people from several countries, today any user can call a local phone number, which is supported by the Microsoft network, with the advantage of being able to optimise costs and count on a more reliable and secure service.

Prysmian’s Digital Transformation project has also involved other Microsoft solutions: some of the application architecture’s basic components have been migrated onto the Microsoft Azure cloud platform, which has proved to be the natural choice for hosting the SharePoint collaboration features. In addition, the entire Azure authentication process has been implemented by installing Active Directory Federation Services to assure optimal security logic.

The collaboration between Prysmian and Microsoft is already proving to be a winning formula, because the technology responds naturally to the company’s strategic requirements. The benefits extend beyond the purely economic aspects and materialise in a new way of working that is far more environmentally friendly: offices are becoming paperless and paper use has fallen by 60%; there are fewer printers; country meetings are now organised only via Skype for Business. Efficiencies on the strictly IT front are significant, since the cloud makes it faster to install software packages which are updated automatically.

This is all reflected in time and cost savings combined with the possibility to allocate resources to added value projects.

“In Prysmian, IT is a true business partner for internal and external customers: it has become a strategic hub that enables digital transformation. The adoption of cloud solutions provides Prysmian with greater security, reliability and flexibility. We are enthusiastic about this project which sees us working closely with Microsoft, because we believe that their investment ensures technology in line with business requirements and supports business growth in an ever more dynamic market. So, smart working is a key project on our digital transformation path. By adopting Microsoft tools, we can provide our users with an integrated, quality user experience. For example, SharePoint allows news published on the Intranet to be viewed from mobile devices as well, and Skype for Business significantly reduces movements of people who need to organise meetings. This is a gradual, but constant, revolution, with the aim of developing an ever more mobile and virtualised working environment, and we are confident that smart working will be able to offer a competitive edge and support our Group’s growth”

commented Stefano Brandinali, Prysmian Group Global CIO.

“Smartworking is a steadily growing model: in 2017, more than 300,000 employees had experienced smartworking in Italy, 60% more than in 2016 according to the Observatory of the Milan Polytechnic. This is an encouraging scenario, and one that is definitely facilitated by the new Italian law on smartworking. However, there is still far to go and we are a long way off the European average: and this is why it is essential to focus on the new technologies and promote examples of excellence of Italian companies that are benefiting from smartworking,”

stated Vincenzo Esposito, Director of Enterprise Division, Microsoft Italia.

“Prysmian’s example is emblematic of how cloud computing can shape a modern workplace and accelerate collaboration and lean working, providing increased productivity, sustainability and efficiency. Microsoft has worked in close contact with the company to put into effect the shared vision of a new productivity, in which people are more connected and motivated through technology. The adoption of Office 365 and Skype for Business, for example, enables the company’s information flow and applications to be accessed anywhere and anytime, and the sharing of insights and strategies that contribute to the Group’s growth. We are confident that this experience will be able to offer inspiration to many other organisations.”

“Our mission is to ‘help companies in the digital transformation process to create a better way of living and working’. It has been truly exciting for us to have found in Prysmian a company that drives innovation in all aspects of productivity, and is not frightened to change current methods. Here, we did not need to overcome prejudices and were thus able to focus solely on cloud-based process innovation and optimisation: this allowed us to complete the project successfully, despite the very challenging project schedule, and to lay the foundations for a new standard to be replicated in all offices, enabling a reliable and high-performance modern workplace scenario”

highlighted Christian Parmigiani, Executive VP - CMO of 4ward.