“Women in Cloud is a unique organization that has allowed me to surround myself with inspiring, talented female leaders,” says Gina Fratarcangeli. Gina further adds that through this organization, she has had face time with women who are building impactful businesses and driving real technological change.
Gina’s intention in joining this phenomenal community is to help women reach their goals by creating a conduit both within the Accenture network and through her association within the broader technology community. She asserts “My personal experiences and the energy within Women in Cloud have caused me to be extremely passionate about economic access and diversity causes. If I can introduce one female entrepreneur to a client or ?nd one Board Member for a woman-led start-up, all the effort will be worth it. I would want my legacy to be -She did everything she could to help everyone she could.”
Gina holds the position of Managing Director, and Market Unit Sales Leader at Accenture and has over 20 years in market development and complex solution offerings for global companies.
Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between Insights Success and Gina Fratarcangeli:
Kindly take us through your journey on becoming a pro?cient leader in the IT and Cloud sector.
In 1995, as a recent college graduate, this new thing called the “internet” was all the buzz. While working at an advertising agency, I attended a presentation from an early internet streaming company and the power of the internet with its personalized advertising and information became clear to me. It was an impactful experience and I knew the internet and its underlying technology were something I wanted to be a part of. Hence, I began my foray into technology.
When the dotcom bubble burst a few years later, I ventured into enterprise technology and learned about how it could drive real business change. Over the next two decades, I worked with tech giants like EDS, IBM and Genpact and watched the conversation really evolve. Technology is no longer relegated to the IT department and it is no longer just considered an enabler of functionality. The usage of technology to address business problems will determine the survival of the organization across all industries. Technology became fun again!
Cloud technology has an impact on businesses and consumers alike that is nearly unparalleled. I am reenergized and eager to experiment with Cloud at Accenture. Cloud promises to bring drastic evolution and growth to a company’s operating models – at a lower cost and with the support of legacy systems, resulting in innovation at an unprecedented rate. My journey has been an interesting one – with lots of twists and turns. I feel my experiences in advertising, consulting and technology have helped give me a strong base of knowledge and perspective to understand that to help companies in the future best serve their customers, technology needs to be leveraged in unprecedented ways – and the cloud makes that possible.
How do you diversify your organization’s offerings to entice the target audience?
As a leader in the cloud space, Accenture helps Fortune 500 companies use cloud technology for business transformation. Many companies think it simply means moving legacy technology to the cloud to save money, but the opportunities are much more signi?cant. Understanding how to use technology and its ability to solve business problems is what the C-suite now needs. One of my favorite parts of my job is helping them understand how the cloud can actually offer much more, such as the ability to accelerate innovation.
It’s really about complete enterprise transformation. We categorize the cloud transformation journey into three buckets: modernize (move legacy to the cloud for cost savings), optimize (gain ef?ciencies working in an agile development model to get products to market faster) and innovate (enable strategic innovation with AI, digital services and platform partners to generate growth). So, before we dive into the mechanics of cloud migration, we help clients understand the full power of what a cloud transformation could mean to their business, including the impact it can have on both the top and bottom line.
How do you strategize your game plans to tackle the competition in the market?
At Accenture, we elevate the conversation to the C-Suite, thereby making the conversation about solving business challenges and adding value. Understanding the client’s business requirements, analyzing their business challenges, and weaving a holistic solution encompassing strategy, technology, and ongoing delivery support is what Accenture does best. We have the industry expertise and the technology to deliver real transformation for our clients. This is just one reason why Accenture works with threequarters of the companies in the Fortune 500.
What are the vital traits that every businesswoman should possess?
It is crucial to stack your customer needs before your own. As a leader, it is important to practice honesty and integrity to serve your purpose. Personally, I always look to build a relationship with my client, not just sell something. An open, honest, transparent conversation about what’s best for your client will impact and grow that relationship tenfold. Over the course of my career, I’ve had to advise clients to work with other vendors from time to time – and that honestly was always appreciated.
Another simple yet critical trait is to do your homework. You need to know your technology, your solutions, and your clients before every conversation. Constantly learning about current offerings and dynamic market conditions will allow you to be informed and provide the best solutions to your clients. Lastly – be fearless! Go out there and try new things to grow. Last year, I gave a Ted Talk on mentoring and supporting women leaders. I was nervous and excited at the same time because this was me speaking from the heart. I loved how that felt and now feel I am at a point in my career where I don’t have to be “corporate Gina” when speaking in public – I am “real Gina”; it’s a much more rewarding experience.
As per your opinion, what roadblocks or challenges were faced by you in a corporate business? And how did you overcome them?
Technology is an extremely complex industry. Women in this space encounter challenges from every angle. As a young professional, I chose a path in sales because I was good at it AND numbers de?ne success unlike in other sectors. Typically, I was the hardest working person in the room and the results were obvious – I knew my achievements would speak for themselves. One of the biggest challenges throughout my career was the lack of other women in the room, which made it dif?cult to ?nd someone to advocate for me. But at Accenture, ensuring diversity is highly valued, starting with our current female CEO. My four years here have shown me what an inclusive culture can be – and how important diversity at all levels is for a growth organization. I am very committed to this effort.
What are your future endeavors/objectives and where do you see yourself in the near future?
I am thoroughly enjoying my time at Accenture and am excited to embrace new opportunities within the organization and continue striving to solve customer challenges. Technology is transforming daily and the next decade will be an exciting adventure in this industry. I hope to be able to continue to support many of the start-ups that I do as both an of?cial and unof?cial advisor — there are so many rising fearless female leaders out there!
Gina Fratarcangeli
