March 2017

10 APAC / March 2017 , increased level of automation, and greater collaboration are imperative to success. In all areas, there is a continuing move to the cloud and a desire to derive greater value from data. As such, the challenge is for Civica to maintain its position as an established provider of market leading solutions and to continue investing in developing innovative new solutions. Civica expects the demand for digital solutions and technology- based services to continue as organisations strive to respond to the changing needs of citizens and to meet cost and efficiency challenges. Civica is well placed to offer effective, value-adding and transformational solutions to customers and to build on markets on an international scale. How would you describe your client base? Civica has a wide range of clients from the UK, Asia Pacific, and North America. Civica’s focus is the global public sector, across all levels. Many clients operate across government, health & care, housing, transport and education sectors. Civica also operates in regulated markets, including travel and transport, financial and legal services, telecoms and utilities. Civica supports 2,000 major customers in 10 countries, streamlines services to 100 million people and businesses and helps implement systems that administer over $190 billion annually. What do your clients say about the products and services you offer? After announcing that it has contracted Civica Education to implement a $32 million upgrade on its School Information System, Bevan Doyle (Chief Information Officer for the Department of Education, Western Australia) said the following: “The School Information System (SIS) will underpin the delivery of education services in Western Australia over the next 10 years. As well as the cost savings we’ve identified, there will be significant operational improvements for our schools, benefitting staff, students and parents. “Over the past twelve months we’ve undertaken a thorough procurement process and selected Civica as our partner.” Civica has excellent customer retention with many having used our services for over 20 years; customers that have expressed high levels of satisfaction with the products and services that Civica has provided. What role does staff play in the success of your firm? Civica recognises that our people and culture is what makes it successful and differentiates us from our competition. Civica’s strong position as a trusted partner for customers is based firmly on the sector expertise, service values and commitment of our people. We often recruit from within our market sectors and regularly it is people who have worked with us as clients who seek opportunities to join us, bringing their sector expertise with them. Civica’s people do what they do with the strong conviction that they are making a real positive difference in their communities. Civica is a business that does things that its people are proud to be part of. Whether it’s to do with education and libraries, helping teachers teach and students learn, in government helping citizens interact with their agencies, or in health insurance getting claims paid more easily, staff can see the work they do making a real impact which is a further encouragement in itself. Civica is an organisation that promotes equality and diversity within the workplace and actively seeks to encourage further involvement of women in the IT industry. Civica understands that providing flexible working conditions is a key factor in ensuring that women can continue to pursue their careers while raising young children. Consequently, Civica implemented its “Agile Working Programme” over 18 months ago, which allows for a flexible working environment by giving employees the freedom to adjust their schedule and location based on both professional and personal commitments. With these policies in place, 35 percent of Civica’s employees are female, which is seven percent higher than the industry standard. Civica is also planning to develop a number of programs in 2017 that support greater female participation in the ICT industry, such as mentorship programs for high-performing women, as well as recruitment programs at a university graduate level that will encourage both young men and women into ICT careers. Do you have any plans for the future that you would like to share with our readers? As the digital revolution is poised to change the way organisations operate, Civica will continue to pursue key strategic acquisitions, which will significantly increase the scope and scale of its digital services for customers. As well as adding to its capabilities in the public sector, Civica will also look to extend its position within regulated private sector markets, including travel and transport, financial services and critical infrastructure. We also see markets across the globe following the UK public sector lead into managed outsourcing and seeking partners that can deliver business outcomes against a backdrop of increased financial pressure. Further Comments Civica has experienced significant growth in the APAC region over the past three years, driven by a focus on training and development of staff, multi-country support, as well as an increase in new product investment and new acquisitions, with an equally strong focus on sharing best practice and providing consistent great customer service across the group. We continue to look for new opportunities in the markets where we have an established presence For example we have recently launched a new Community Protection business unit for Australia and New Zealand. Civica’s focus on critical software, digital transformation and outsourcing is already delivering for the group and provides us with great growth opportunities for the future particularly in the Asia Pacific Region. Richard Fiddis is Managing Director at Civica International, based in Sydney, Australia.