Information Technology & Data Analytics

Executive Summary(Madi will add at end)

Company/Client Profile (Jordan)

Kering is a global luxury group that is based in France. A lot of top tier luxury brands are under kering. These brands include Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Yves Saint Laurent (YSL). According to Kering’s website, “Kering manages the development of a series of renowned houses in fashion, leather goods, jewelry and watches”, (Disko, 2021). They also have a company called Kering Eyewear.

Kering started off as a timber company. In 1999 Kering transformed into a luxury company after Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent joined them. The Washington Post mentioned, “Kering purchased 42% of Gucci and 100% of Yves Saint Laurent, (Ramakrishnan, 1999). In 2001 Bottega Veneta, Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga joined Kering. These five luxury brands were one of the most well known brands in the fashion industry.

In 2012, Kering shifted their focus from luxury to sustainability, (Borge, 2016). The group has an environmental profit and loss account to keep track of their progress. According to MacCarthy, “In 2017, the group presented its new sustainability program which targeted a 40% reduction of its global environmental impact by 2025, a strategy aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals”, (MacCarthy, 2017). They also started to commit to full carbon neutrality in 2019 under its operations and supply chain, (Hughes, 2021).

Our client, Peter Peng, is an alumnus of New York University. In 2012, he took a graduate program in NYU for Management and Systems. The concentration was Strategy and Leadership. He has a lot of experience in the technology industry. His experience includes: IT innovation, process improvement and project management, cost saving initiatives, strategic analysis, vendor management and talent acquisition. He has a history in increasing his team’s productivity by guiding and leading his staff towards a common goal. He is able to put himself in the perspective of both a manager and stakeholders. This is from his ability in developing strong relationships through effective communication with technologists, senior management and clients or business partners.

Mr. Peng works for the luxury group known as Kering. From August 2016 up to August 2021, he was a manager for End User Solutions & Security. His line of work was crucial to the company, because he was responsible for coming up with solutions and providing security for people who use the product. Most end users do not have the skill or understanding of the product designers, which is why it is vital for Mr. Peng to be able to communicate and help them.

As of September 2021, he is the director of Technology Operations and Infrastructure while being the head of End User Solutions and Security, Networking, and PCI Audit and Compliance teams. His line of work stretches from the United States to Canada and the Latin americas, and is responsible for covering the Kering corporation and the various houses/brands under Kering. In total, Mr. Peng has been with Kering for five years and five months.

Stakeholder/Company Needs(Yanlin Zhu/Andy)

Must contain SWOT Analysis

Peng highlighted within our discussion the importance of the networking system across all of Kerings physical locations. In terms of Pengs improvement project, the network is critical in ensuring point-of-purchase kiosks and store technologies are properly and consistently connected to each store's internal network, which in-turn has reliable connection to the internet. Poor connections or failures within network hardware, like routers, can have significant downstream impact. The most obvious impact is inability to complete in-store transactions, however this goes further as workers within stores use additional wireless technologies, like iPads, to interact with customers. Failure of these systems can also result in the immeasurable loss of employees to build relationships with clients, and productivity.

Firstly, there is a lack of methods to proactively identify issues that may be occurring, with the latest technology. Secondly, the poor connection of Wifi and failures within network hardware has a negative impact on in-store transactions and interaction with customers. Thirdly, they are not sure what’s out there in the market, so they need to find what kind of technology and products can overcome the challenges they face.

The need is to find an AI that can notify the company early whether there is a disconnection in the system. There is no budget for the AI, however we should give a low, medium or high budget so they have an understanding of how much they need. The system is connected to the “Meraki Cameras” which will also stop recording/shut down when the system is disconnected. The client is interested to see if there is an AI that can connect to the cameras too.

In finding an AI that can connect to the system, they want to know what security measures are being done and what information they take or keep. The top priority is to identify disconnection in the system and notify them and a high level of security in the AI.

Citation

Borge , J. (2016). Kering unveils results of 2012-2016 sustainability targets. InStyle. Retrieved December 4, 2021, from https://www.instyle.com/news/kering-2012-2016-sustainability-targets-results

Disko. (n.d.). Luxury group kering. Kering. Retrieved December 4, 2021, from https://www.kering.com/en/group/

Hughes, H. (2021, March 9). Kering group commits to full carbon neutrality. FashionUnited. Retrieved December 4, 2021, from https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/kering-group-commits-to-full-carbon-neutrality/2019092445412

MacCarthy, L. (2017, January 26). Kering to transform luxury industry with next-Gen Sustainability Strategy. Sustainable Brands. Retrieved December 4, 2021, from https://sustainablebrands.com/read/product-service-design-innovation/kering-to-transform-luxury-industry-with-next-gen-sustainability-strategy

Ramakrishnan, S. (1999, November 16). Gucci to buy parent of Yves Saint Laurent. The Washington Post. Retrieved December 4, 2021, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/1999/11/16/gucci-to-buy-parent-of-yves-saint-laurent/1971b749-2e0c-448f-86b3-57dd492b6999/