Industry news

Millions of meetings are held daily by people who speak different languages, with varying levels of fluency, which can compromise efficient and natural communication. Considering the need for professionals to express their best ideas in any language across the world, Woopi, Stefanini Group's Artificial Intelligence (AI) company, created and launched an AI-based simultaneous translation platform, Voicero.

The product is integrated with leading collaboration platform Microsoft Teams, and is available through Azure Marketplace and AppSource. Voicero allows real-time voice translation, meaning a professional can speak Korean and others can hear it in the language of preference.

"Through our distribution agreement with Microsoft, we're confident the tool will become accessible to anyone, anywhere on the planet," says Alex Winetzki, Woopi CEO and Director of R&D at Stefanini Group.

Read more on PR Newswire here.

Teleperformance, a global leader in outsourced digital integrated business services, today announced it has been named to The Global Sourcing 100® list in the Leader category for large established global firms for the 8th consecutive year by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals® (IAOP®).

"Teleperformance has long been at the forefront in leveraging emerging digital capabilities with our vast high-touch experience and domain expertise to deliver simpler, faster and safer operations at lower cost for our clients," said Teleperformance Chairman and CEO Daniel Julien. "The International Association of Outsourcing Professionals' continued recognition of our capabilities and the impact we deliver is another testament to the success of our transformation into a digital integrated business services company."

Read more on PR Newswire here.

There is little doubt that AI has taken the tech sector by storm in recent months. Indeed more column inches in the mainstream media than any other tech subject in a long while. I’ve been testing ChatGPT for a few months now and admit to being highly impressed. But at the same time, I can also see the dangers.

I have been at the forefront disruptive technological change for many decades during which I have seen the devastation it can wreck on established businesses. Just look at how Amazon affected bookshops, how streaming affected the music industry or UBER affected taxis.

Read more on TechMarketView here.

Business process operator EXL has published a strong set of FY results that sees the business increase revenue to $1.41bn compared to $1.12bn for the previous year, an increase of 25.8% on a reported basis and 27.3% on a constant currency basis.  Adjusted operating margin for FY 2022 was a healthy 18.3% although down slightly on the 18.6% achieved in 2021.

Read more on TechMarketView here.

It is estimated that there are eight million missed hospital appointments each year with an annual cost to the NHS of around £1.2bn. Last month, the NHS launched a renewed drive to reduce hundreds of thousands of missed hospital appointments every month, to help boost the recovery of elective services. AI and digital technologies are going to play a key role in improving the patient experience, aswell as reducing cost, maximising existing resources and helping to fill the labour shortage gap.

Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, which supports a population of 1.2m people, with an average did not attend (DNA) rate of 8%, has announced it is piloting an Artificial intelligence (AI) solution that predicts likely missed appointments and offers back-up bookings.

Read more on TechMarketView here.

Move is part of a downsizing and restructuring effort that could affect thousands of employees

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is said to be getting ready for a fresh wave of job reductions that will impact several divisions globally.

The move is part of a downsizing and restructuring effort that will impact numerous employees, potentially reaching into the thousands.

The Washington Post reported, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter, that Meta intends to shift certain leaders into positions that do not involve managing others, thereby reducing the levels of management between company CEO Mark Zuckerberg and its interns.

Read more on ComputerWeekly here.

Stefanini Group has launched a Transformation Office to drive innovation and digital transformation on behalf of its clients.

“Pursuing large-scale innovation is a lofty task for organizations to achieve, which provides Stefanini an opportunity to drive prioritization and business value for our clients,” said Chris Schmidt, chief innovation officer at Stefanini.

“Compelling both internal and external collaboration, this office will allow cross-functional client needs and solutions to deploy in a seamless, simultaneous manner. We’re eager for clients to experience innovation and digital transformation on an even more elevated scale that significantly moves the needle as they pursue broad, complex business objectives.”

Read more on Mi Tech News here.

Supply chain mapping is the process of recording, storing and using information gathered from suppliers who are involved in a company’s supply chain. Building on our existing supply chain guidance, we’re pleased to announce new guidance that focusses explicitly on this process, aimed at at procurement specialists, risk managers and cyber security professionals.

Supply chain mapping follows the principles of all good risk management; organisations need to understand the risks inherent in their supply chain, and then introduce security measures that are in proportion to the likelihood (and impact) of those risks materialising. The goal is to have an up-to-date understanding of your network of suppliers, so that cyber risks can be managed more effectively, and due diligence carried out.

Read more on National Cyber Security Centre here.

KPMG was the first US Big Four firm to cut jobs amid a weaker economy and reduced demand for consulting services – laying off 700 people in its advisory wing.

The cuts, which were announced Wednesday in an internal memo, affect nearly 2% of KPMG US’ workforce. None of the layoffs were partners.

Carl Carande, vice-chair of the US advisory business, said in the memo the staff reductions were required to “better align our workforce with current and anticipated demand in the market.”

Read more on Consulting.us here.

This briefing looks at the legal and practical issues arising in connection with women in the workplace going through the menopause. Although there has been an increase in discussions about the menopause in the media, there is still a stigma attached to it. We look at what employers should be considering in terms providing support, such as training managers and implementing a specific menopause policy as well as the potential legal risks if issues are ignored or badly handled.

Menopause in the workplace statistics

Women over the age of 50 have been the fastest growing group in the workforce for a number of years, meaning that more are working through the menopause (and perimenopause), which, for many, will bring challenges. Symptoms will vary and can be both physical and psychological, ranging from hot flushes and headaches to increased anxiety and depression. Employers should be aware that the average age for a woman to go through the menopause is 51 and most experience symptoms between the ages of 45 and 55. However, the menopause may also start earlier due to surgery, illness or naturally. In addition, symptoms may start years before the menopause, during the perimenopausal phase. According to the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, nearly 8 out of 10 menopausal women are in work, 3 out of 4 women experience serious symptoms and one in three of the workforce will soon be over 50.

Read more on Lexology here.