The E.L.I.T.E. Experience At Capgemini

A well-organised first day of induction kick-started the on-boarding of the E.L.I.T.E. General Management Program 2017. The first week comprised of multiple leadership sessions that focused on Capgemini strategy, introduction to the company and FS (Financial Services) as well as domain knowledge sessions by industry experts that gave key insights into the emerging trends in core business domains. There were sessions focused on various business domains such as primers on Insurance, Banking & Capital Markets etc., and also sessions giving a glimpse into technological horizons such as Blockchain, Big Data, API Economy and emerging FinTech trends.   Week 2 was packed with interactions with Global CXOs and heads of Business Units. Insights into the various verticals of Financial Services Strategic Business Unit were shared, and there were extensive interactions with most of the members of the Executive Committee. It was interesting to understand from Thierry Delaporte, CEO, FS SBU his views on the transforming industry landscape and the essence of "La Niaque". Leadership interactions continued on through Week 3 which also held customized Pinnacle Workshops that focused on intention based communication. Week 4 offered a glimpse into CSR activities of Capgemini. We learned more about the Plan India organization, whose vision is of a world in which all children realise their full potential in societies which respect people’s rights and dignity. Plan India is a member of the Plan International Federation and is a nationally registered independent child development organisation committed to creating a lasting impact in the lives of vulnerable and excluded children, their families and communities. We visited a model school in a village which falls under this foundation. One of the key points was the emphasis on sustainability of the project and it was heartening to see the immense community involvement and how the people of that village supported this initiative. The NGO representatives stated that they appreciated Capgemini’s approach to CSR as the company does not just donate items as part of a checklist, but instead takes the time to identify the real needs and gap areas, running the initiative with a well-rounded project plan. In Week 5, we headed to Capgemini University in Les Fontaines for the Consulting Skills Workshop. It had some interesting examples for topics ranging from High Performing Teams, Hypothesis Driven Analysis, Collaborative Process Mapping and Transformation Mapping to Storyboarding and other core consulting skills. A view into Capgemini’s frameworks for Strategic Scoping, Financial Analysis, Top-down Business Case, Bottom-up Business Case and Benefits Tracking were good takeaways. The live scribing was also interesting with well-articulated graphics highlighting the key points.     Overall a value-adding journey with diverse experiences and leadership interactions, now transitioning to the start of challenging projects.