BrazilAlvarez & Marsal launches a Digital business unit in EMEA
Alvarez & Marsal has expanded its services offerings in EMEA with the launch of a new unit: Digital.
The new wing will advise clients on how they can conceptualise and design new digital business models, and with bringing these plans to life. This includes supporting the implementation of solutions and emerging technologies, the scaling of solutions within the organisation and with helping clients leverage digitised ways of working to unlock long-term value.
“We’re seeing increased demand from clients for practical advice on how every aspect of a business can be digitally enabled sustainably and at scale,” explained Antonio (‘Tony’) Alvarez III, Managing Director and leader of Alvarez & Marsal’s EMEA division.
Speaking of the major ambitions the firm has for its new Digital wing, Alvarez III said, “By 2026, we expect 30 per cent of our EMEA revenues to be powered through digital.”
Digital practice
The plan builds on two pillars. The Digital practice itself expects to grow into one of the firm’s larger practices by 2026. “We’ve developed a unique proposition that is built on data and analytics, customer and workforce experience, sales and marketing, and new digital business models in a way that strongly complements our existing service offerings,” explained Alvarez III.
“The Digital unit will work across Alvarez & Marsal’s sectors, including consumer, retail, industrials and automotive, healthcare, life sciences, financial services, hospitality, and technology, media and telecoms. “We’re already significantly investing in talent and developing teams that combine a unique blend of specialists from the top professional services firms and those with operational backgrounds.”
Integrated offerings
Accelerating its impact, the consultancy will also embed its digital know-how across “all of our service lines, including corporate transformation, restructuring, turnaround and private equity performance improvement services.”
Alvarez III: “Companies require holistic solutions that deliver quantifiable and sustainable value, rather than ‘trendy’ digital prototypes and projects developed in isolation that can’t be scaled across the business. As advisers, it is our responsibility to move beyond this hype.”
Jean Laurent Poitou
Leading the new arm is Jean Laurent Poitou, a Paris-based Managing Director who brings more than three decades of consulting experience at Accenture with a focus on digital transformation to the role. Most recently, Poitou was a Senior Managing Director and member of its Global Leadership Committee. He led Accenture’s Applied Intelligence businesses in Europe and played a large role in driving the growth of Accenture Digital’s Industry X.0 practice.
He specialises in helping Fortune 500 and public sector companies transform their businesses by applying technologies such as data science, data engineering and artificial intelligence, and enhancing business process through applying robotics, automation and digital customer experience solutions.
Poitou: “When applied and scaled effectively, digitalisation can be transformative in terms of driving bottom and top-line growth. I am looking forward to growing the Digital practice in EMEA by bringing together teams of consultants, data scientists, engineers and technologists to build a differentiated offering with the skills and expertise needed to set up clients for long-term success.”
Alvarez & Marsal is one of EMEA’s fastest-growing consulting firms among the larger, global players. Over the past four years, the US-headquartered group has trebled both people and revenues in the region.
