Process Excellence news – Accenture, Celonis, Ericsson, Flair Airlines, SAP & more

PEX Network brings you the latest news in process and operational excellence (OPEX), business process management (BPM), digital transformation, process mining/intelligence, low-code technology, intelligent document processing (IDP), Lean Six Sigma, Kaizen and more.

Week of 03/18, 2024, includes:

• Mindflow secures €5 million funding to redefine operations through AI automation
• Flair Airlines demonstrates ongoing operational excellence
• Celonis launches Sailfin AR app suite powered by process intelligence and AI
• TourReview appoints Juana Muro as COO to drive operational excellence
• Accenture acquires Arηs Group to expand digital transformation capabilities across Europe
• Ericsson creates new US business to assist government digital transformation
• SAP and NVIDIA partner to accelerate generative AI adoption

Mindflow secures €5 million funding to redefine operations through AI automation

No-code & AI-driven automation and orchestration platform Mindflow raised €5 million in a seed funding round as it seeks to redefine cyber and IT operations through AI-powered automation. Investors include Nauta Capital, Thales and Olivier Pomel, co-founder of Datadog. Mindflowʼs platform makes building, adjusting and monitoring automation flows easier for technical and non-technical users, the firm said.

The new funds will be allocated to augment its existing R&D team by bringing in additional AI experts dedicated to advancing AI capabilities and making the best of generative AI large action models (LAMs), Mindflow added. “Mindflow will create a new text-to-actions experience. Simply prompt what you wish to accomplish, and our AI handles the tedious parts, managing tasks across your tools and bringing in human approval for critical decisions, said Fabrice Delhoste, co-founder and CTO.

Flair Airlines demonstrates ongoing operational excellence

Canada’s premier budget airline Flair exhibited a continued dedication to operational excellence and dependability with a February 2024 completion factor of 96.4 percent. With 1,784 out of 1,850 scheduled flights completed, the achievement reflects Flair’s reputation as a dependable and cost-effective choice for air travel among Canadians, reported Travel and Tour World. Flair welcomed 293,592 passengers in February, with a booked load factor of 89 percent (the percentage of network-wide seats sold to paying passengers). It saw its on-time performance (OTP) – measuring flights arriving within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival time – improve to 51.2 percent.

“In February, Flair again demonstrated its commitment to operational excellence and serving the needs of Canadian travelers,” said Stephen Jones, CEO of Flair Airlines. “As the sole ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) in Canada, we embrace the opportunity to carry more passengers on-time to destinations across North America, while offering low fares. In this ever-evolving landscape of air travel, it’s crucial that air travel remains accessible to all Canadians.”

READ: PEX Guide: What is operational excellence?

Celonis launches Sailfin AR app suite powered by process intelligence and AI

Process mining leader Celonis announced the launch of the new Sailfin Accounts Receivable (AR) app suite, developed in collaboration with Sailfin Technologies, which it acquired in 2022. The apps use process intelligence, automation and AI to improve AR operations. The suite includes collections, disputes and credit management as well as cash applications apps.

“The Sailfin AR apps are a true value accelerator for finance operations,” said Harit Nanavati, GM accounts receivable at Celonis and founder/CEO of Sailfin Technologies. “Our customers get the benefits of Celonis’ superior process intelligence as well as Sailfin’s industry-leading AR capabilities. The result is a combined solution that’s better than the sum of its parts and 100 percent focused on helping organizations improve AR execution.”

READ: 7 process mining myths debunked

TourReview appoints Juana Muro as COO to drive operational excellence

TourReview, an AI-driven travel review platform, announced the appointment of Juana Muro as its new chief operating officer to lead strategic initiatives, achieve operational excellence and drive sustainable growth. With a focus on harnessing cutting-edge technologies and data-driven insights, Muro said she wants TourReview to become a premier platform for comprehensive reviews for tour operators. “I am thrilled to join TourReview at such an exciting juncture in its journey. I am deeply committed to advancing our mission of empowering tour operators with actionable insights and driving operational excellence across all facets of our platform,” she added.

José Arozarena, CEO of TourReview, said Muro’s track record of success and commitment to innovation, coupled with her keen understanding of operational dynamics, positions her as a driving force to guide the company through its next phase of growth.

Accenture acquires Arηs Group to expand digital transformation capabilities across Europe

Accenture has agreed to acquire Arηs (pronounced Aris) Group, a technology services provider focused on supporting public sector transformation across Europe. The acquisition will enhance Accenture’s public service offering, drawing on a wide range of innovative solutions to help clients take advantage of a full continuum of technology expertise and accelerate their digital transformation, according to a press release.

“We are committed to providing our public service clients with the right people, guidance, systems and processes to help meet the evolving needs of their constituents,” commented Jean-Marc Ollagnier, Accenture CEO for Europe, Middle East and Africa. “The acquisition of Arηs Group will help scale our capabilities with a highly skilled workforce, a history of successful public service delivery and valued technical certifications that can quickly be mobilized to serve our clients in Europe.”

READ: 10 digital transformation pitfalls and how to avoid them

Ericsson creates new US business to assist government digital transformation

Swedish equipment vendor Ericsson established the Ericsson Federal Technologies Group (EFTG), a new entity dedicated to delivering 5G-driven digital transformation across multiple agencies in the US federal government. The US government’s digital transformation intends to accelerate innovation by focusing on the speedy adoption of commercial technologies. EFTG will be led by Christopher Ling, who has extensive experience in growing federal and commercial businesses in advanced technology and cyber security, the company said.

“Connecting individuals, businesses and national security depends on secure, reliable and resilient 5G infrastructure,” commented Yossi Cohen, president and head of Ericsson North America. “We are excited to build on existing projects with the US government including the DoD where Ericsson provides the foundation for multiple 5G prototype deployments and expand into additional government agencies with our innovation and leadership.”

SAP and NVIDIA partner to accelerate generative AI adoption

SAP and NVIDIA announced a partnership expansion focused on accelerating enterprise customers’ ability to harness the power of data and generative AI across SAP’s portfolio of cloud solutions and applications. The companies are collaborating to build and deliver SAP Business AI including scalable, business-specific generative AI capabilities inside the Joule copilot from SAP and across SAP’s portfolio of cloud solutions and applications –underpinned by the SAP generative AI hub. The generative AI hub facilitates relevant, reliable and responsible business AI and provides instant access to a broad range of large language models (LLMs), SAP stated.

“Enterprise customers want to leverage state-of-the-art technology that delivers real business value,” said Christian Klein, CEO and member of the Executive Board of SAP SE. “Strategic technology partnerships, like the one between SAP and NVIDIA, are at the core of our strategy to invest in technology that maximizes the potential and opportunity of AI for business. NVIDIA’s expertise in delivering AI capabilities at scale will help SAP accelerate the pace of transformation and better serve our customers in the cloud.”

READ: 7 free AI training courses for business leaders

PEX Report 2024 global state of process excellence

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