Employees are all on board for Orange’s data transformation journey
27 February 2023
It's no secret that data and artificial intelligence are having a profound impact on the world of business. The data transformation is changing the way companies operate. At Orange, we are proud to play a leading role in this exciting data journey and to tackle the strategic questions and challenges that come with it, one of those being how exactly data and AI are affecting our activities, strategy and people. We picked the brains of our Director Data and Market Research, Benoit Berthelot, to share his thoughts on the evolution in the field of data & AI and on what it means for all Orange’s stakeholders, including our employees.
Hi Benoit, can you tell us a bit more about yourself, your team and what your job entails?
As the head of Data and Market Research, my goal is to turn raw data into valuable insights and help the company make smart choices based on that info. My team of data experts, analysts and scientists joins forces with other departments like IT, network, finance and HR to make sure our data are qualitative, accessible and governed in a compliant, scalable and future-proof ecosystem. We all work together to prioritize and deliver the most profitable projects based on the most actionable data. Data & AI really is a team effort. Everyone has a key role to play!
What impact does data & AI have on Orange’s business and strategy? Why is it so important and what have we achieved already?
Whereas ten years ago, data was just seen as an opportunity, it is now a cornerstone in our Orange Ahead strategic plan and a must-have in today’s fast-paced telecom industry. At Orange, we get how crucial data & AI are to our success. Whether it’s all about hyper-personalization of the customer experience, building smarter networks, optimizing our phygital channels, data & AI make all our strategic goals possible.
Personalized recommendations proposed across all channels, fraud detection, chatbots ... These are just a few successful use cases already delivered that we can give ourselves a huge pat on the back for. Another reason why we are #ProudToBeOrange in this respect is our strategic partnership with Google. Thanks to this collaboration we will be able to tackle even more challenges and scale up our capabilities in the cloud. This move to cloud is just the beginning of the journey and there’s heaps more to come!
Data & AI allow us to provide our customers with a personalized service, faster response times and a better network coverage and performance. But how does it benefit the Orange employees? Shouldn’t they be afraid that they are being replaced by machines?
Let me reassure you: artificial intelligence needs humans to deliver value at scale. At Orange, we believe in empowering our employees to do their best work. And with our focus on data & AI, by providing superpowers to our employees, we're doing just that! For example, an algorithm will be capable of detecting network issues in near real time and identify the impacted customers. Thanks to this automated process, our teams can concentrate on the definition, the prioritization and the follow-up of the corrective actions right away instead of losing precious time.
Our employees will be able to work faster, smarter and more efficiently than ever before. Gone are the days of tedious manual tasks, which allows for more focus on the more strategic job aspects. Plus, AI-powered systems give real-time feedback and coaching, helping employees perform better and reach their goals. It’s a win-win situation, both for the company and its employees!
How will you make sure that everyone is on board with this whole data transformation and that all employees fit into the revised set-up?
Our employees are our biggest asset, and we’re committed to helping them upskill and continuously learn new technologies. Training is key here, because we know keeping up with technology is essential in today’s fast-paced world. That’s why we have created a specific data & AI training path and implemented an efficient operating model that empowers multi-disciplinary teams to work together in a seamless manner. Our employees are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunities available to them, and we believe that their continuous growth is essential to our success.
Data & AI is a very complex and technical concept. What do you do to make it more concrete for the employees?
It’s actually quite funny, because all employees use and produce data every day without realizing it. But indeed, data & AI is sometimes compared to a black box. With training and initiatives like the Data Day we had on the 13th of February, we want to open it up. The aim of this Data Day was to make data & AI more tangible for our people and inspire them by presenting what our data experts are working on. Data quality, data privacy and data security are everyone’s business! That’s why we wanted an accessible event open to all employees.
Our Data Day was a true team effort. All departments participated to the demos and learning sessions. I want to take this opportunity to thank them for their constant support and enthusiasm.
And let us thank you, Benoit, for this interesting chat. It’s clear that the data transformation programme at Orange is the way forward. With the focus on AI & data, our employees will be able to work more efficiently, continuously upskill and be part of cutting-edge projects. And that’s definitely something to be excited about!
#ProudToBeOrange
Are you interested in joining us on this journey into the future? Can’t wait to have you on board!
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