INTERVIEW: Scott Gegenheimer, CEO of operations at Zain Group (pictured), argued “technology is generally the easy part” for operators undergoing a digital transformation, with the biggest challenge coming from “the culture, the organisation, the people and processes”.

Speaking to Mobile World Live at Mobile World Congress, he said: “You have to make sure you are hiring the right people, bringing in people that are maybe from outside telecoms, bringing in internet people, you’re upskilling your current employees as well. The culture part is probably the biggest issue you have to deal with, making sure everyone is aligned and on the same page, so you can move forward with your digital transformation.”

The evolution of Zain’s operation is enabling the company to improve its customer service, with the digital-first approach reducing contact with call centres and customer complaints: “The customer continues to evolve, they are becoming more digital native, and they are doing everything through their smartphone, so you have to continue to stay very close to your customers,” Gegenheimer said.

In addition to benefits for customer service, there are also opportunities for operators to streamline their operations: “When you start doing your digital transformation, you are pulling a lot of your cost out. For me, digital transformation has to start with a simplification, you’re simplifying your rate plans, and then this moves back into the operations, and all of a sudden your IT stacks and everything gets simpler, and you can pull costs out”.

Click here to view the full interview, which also covers issues including monetising mobile data and opportunities related to 5G.