Chiefs at Accenture-backed Vodafone Intelligent Solutions (VOIS) lifted the lid on a drive to sell shared services to third party telecoms providers and other companies, after unveiling initial offerings at MWC25 Barcelona.

Speaking to Mobile World Live after MWC, VOIS CEO Gary Adey (pictured, left) and commercial director Chris Meads (pictured, right) outlined the partnership with Accenture brought what the former described as a “commercial edge” to its shared services operation, as well as products, experience and investment.

Adey noted having previously developed services for use by Vodafone’s operating companies and related entities, there was a “catalyst to change” at VOIS in 2023, given the new Vodafone Group CEO and a change of strategy at the parent company which led to divestments in Italy and Spain.  

“We saw that as an opportunity to shift from just delivering value and services to Vodafone companies to taking our services to the outside,” he said, pointing to a realisation it could repurpose a lot of the innovations already developed and offer them out at a price reflective of economies of scale.

Vodafone announced a plan to commericialise its shared services operation in 2023, with partner Accenture pumping in €150 million for a stake in what became a partnership between the two.

One of the advantages of the tie-up cited by Meads is the fact “Accenture have invested over $3 billion in looking at generative AI and we’ve now got access to that through the partnership,” with it looking at how this technology will be able to improve services across its operations.

The company showcased several demos of the solutions the entity is bringing to market in Barcelona.

These comprised: digital transformation offering VOIS Digital; service management combining the skills of both parties under the brand ServiceNow by VOIS; a private cloud offering; contact centre as a service product; and an offering around digital sales and marketing.   

Cash problems
Explaining the opportunity the pair see for the business, they noted a requirement for operators to get new innovations to market quickly at a time when the mobile industry is not awash with capital.

Meads highlighted “80 per cent of a digital journey in a telco is the same cross-geography and the other 20 per cent is just the regulations, which vary by country”, but claimed “no-one’s going to spend, bluntly, the amount Vodafone has on that digital journey over the last five years”.

He noted there was an opportunity for players to “still differentiate through customer experience” while spending a lot less on “base capability”.

Adey added “pretty much every telco on the planet needs to grow more” highlighting appeal for a concept where “you can pivot more of your skill resources towards a customer and selling, and less towards the middle and the back office piece” was compelling for operators it spoke to at MWC.

In terms of target markets VOIS’ initial focus is the traditional Vodafone and Vodacom strongholds of Europe and Africa.

Although its initial focus was the telecommunications segment, the pair also see potential within the wider B2B segment.