IFS has announced the appointment of Markus Persson as the Global Industry Director for telecommunications. He joined the company in November 2022 from the Swedish multinational networking and telecommunications company, Ericsson. He joined Ericsson in 1994 as a Senior Operations Consultant at Ericsson Toshiba. During his career, he has worked in Japan in several management positions and most recently was responsible for the strategic direction of their OSS/BSS portfolio. He will now help lead IFS’s growth in the sector working with the global sales team on their opportunities.
Marne Martin, President of Service Management, EAM and Industries at IFS, comments, “We welcome Markus to the IFS team at a significant point in our growth in the industry and look forward to adding his depth of knowledge, skill and expertise to our global team. Rising customer expectations, shifting business models and disruptive competitors have made service a key component and differentiator for future success and growth in the telecommunications sector. The ongoing march of technology creates myriad opportunities for ambitious telcos and we are excited to support them in their business transformation journey.”
Telecommunications a growth target for IFS
IFS Service Management is used by over 100,000 Telecoms engineers. Customers include Saudi Telecom Company, Eltel Norway and BSkyB. The focus of IFS in the Telecomms sector is its leading service management tools including IFS Assyst. Service Management license revenues have grown 105% over the last year with wins across Belgium, France, Sweden, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Greece and Germany.
Last Year Proximus, the main Belgian telco operator, selected IFS as its next generation field service solution. The project saw it migrate from Click Software to IFS Cloud solutions. It aims to strengthen its field workforce and deliver higher levels of efficiency, using AI to optimize planning and workforce scheduling. Proximus is using the capacity management features of IFS to balance the demands of residential against higher priority business customers, ensuring both get adequate service.
Its Field Service Management tool was a leader in the 2022 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Field Service Management, for the seventh time. However, it has slipped to a contender in the latest G2 Grid for Field Service Management. Persson will hope to help change that.
Markus Persson commented, “Unlike other vendors, IFS offer a single platform that enables organizations to manage the full-service lifecycle, including intensive asset management and complex workforce management. The breadth and depth of their solution offering is well placed for the telco industry and is proven by their significant business success in the sector in recent years. I am excited to join the global team not only to help further their success with new business wins, but to also guide and help existing customers to greater success in an ever evolving and fast-paced industry.”
Persson will be present at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this year, though IFS does not appear on the exhibitor list.
Enterprise Times: What does this mean
Waiting three months to announce this appointment seems slightly odd. Doing so just before MWC makes sense, but is unclear how people will meet and find Persson without an exhibition stand. What the appointment does show is the growing importance of the Telecommunications sector to IFS. It does not appear to have had a Global Industry Director for Telecoms specifically. It appears as though with recent wins IFS has decided to further invest in the sector.
Persson recently published a set of predictions for the telecommunications industry, it gives an insight into the approach to market that IFS will take. His three predictions were:
- Virtual and physical, mix and match
- Enter the age of the telecom platform with open APIs
- Sustainability will be delivered by going digital
