IT Brief New Zealand - Technology news for CIOs & IT decision-makers
Story image

Telstra & Cognizant form AI-focused strategic partnership

Wed, 1st May 2024

It has been announced that Telstra and Cognizant have entered into a five-year strategic partnership. The partnership is devised to employ artificial intelligence (AI) to boost innovation and transform experiences throughout Telstra's corporation, both internally and externally.

Cognizant will be assisting Telstra to adopt modern product engineering practices, facilitating improved customer experience and enhanced speed to market. By tapping into its global capabilities, Cognizant will be able to support Telstra's strategy for more efficient software engineering and IT operations, along with the decommissioning of legacy systems. It will also introduce new work methods that will enhance operational and workforce efficiency.

Kim Krogh Andersen, Group Executive Product and Technology at Telstra, affirmed that the choice of Cognizant as a strategic partner for their software engineering and IT function is a key part of Telstra's simplification and consolidation journey aimed at sustainable growth. Kieran O'Meara, Head of Software Engineering and IT at Telstra, also expressed confidence that the partnership will bolster their modern software engineering capability and redefine industry standards through innovative methodologies and AI integration.

Besides offering improved customer experience and quicker speed to market, Cognizant's modern product engineering strategies can also help develop a superior engineering experience that supports employee experience. This is intended to cultivate a modern and innovative culture within Telstra. Furthermore, the strategic partnership with Telstra is expected to contribute towards the promotion of a continuous learning culture, with diversity being a catalyst for innovation.

"Telstra is a global leader in the way they are using innovation to transform their products and customer experiences, and we are proud to support them on this journey as one of their strategic IT partners," stated Ravi Kumar S, CEO of Cognizant. It's clear that such strategic partnerships are critical in an advancing technology environment for the achievement of shared goals such as digital leadership and superior customer experiences.

Jane Livesey, Head of Asia Pacific and Japan at Cognizant, expressed excitement about the partnership, revealing that it was built with a customer-centric focus and a relegation from conventional contracting and delivery models. "Through our shared accountability for outcomes and transformation, we are driven to improve operations, build efficient engineering teams, and reinvent the way we work by using the best of modern technology," Livesey explained. "By combining our deep technology skills, software engineering abilities, and digitisation know-how, our goal is to rewire Telstra to unlock new opportunities and deliver unparalleled value for its customers."

In line with Telstra's growth strategy, the partnership represents a significant milestone. By introducing new ways of working to fast-track Telstra's software engineering and IT capabilities, the partnership soughts to harness modern technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) thus driving innovation and enhancing operational efficiency.

Follow us on:
Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on X
Share on:
Share on LinkedIn Share on X