After decades of running telecom operators, Ken Campbell is leading the development of PMP Strategy in the UK capital.
From 2011 to 2019, I was successively CEO of the Tunisian telecom operator Ooredoo, then of the Moroccan operator, Inwi. I had never heard of PMP Strategy when I was working for various TelCos in Canada, Eastern Europe and Egypt. But when I started working in Maghreb, I also started working with them from time to time, even though we did not make extensive use of consulting services.
There were at least two. PMP Strategy has proven capable of leading projects from beginning to end, in the context of mergers or partnerships between operators – from strategy to implementation. I also made use of their services two or three times a year, because I noticed that, from their juniors to their seniors, they had a keen experience with TelCos – a rare quality for more generalist firms.
Roland Berger, Kearney and Arthur D. Little.
Gilles Vaqué [president and managing partner at PMP Strategy] offered that I become a senior advisor for PMP Strategy, initially for a few days a month. I had another offer from a large consulting firm but I thought that I could make more of a difference at PMP than elsewhere. Not least because of my international background. I could leverage that aspect of my career better at PMP Strategy than at a large firm; where you are often limited to specific geographical sectors and can’t necessarily move around much. PMP Strategy also gives me the opportunity to sit on the boards of various telecommunications companies – as long as there are no conflicts of interest with the firm’s consulting missions. This highly valuable opportunity lets me keep up with the shifting market trends [Ken Campbell is on the boards of TeraGo and NuRAN in Toronto, Octotel in South Africa, and Upstream in Greece].
We started winning quite a few projects, and so I was naturally more involved with the firm. Furthermore, London also suited me for personal and professional reasons. It’s a pivotal business hub for projects around the world.
Not at all! It is easy with PMP Strategy’s client base in France, to reach out to London. The telecom and consulting market is truly global. To be successful, you may have to be in Cape Town one day, Toronto the next, and then Paris.
Not really true. In 2022, I conducted projects in the Philippines, Canada, the United States, the UK, Ireland, France, Poland, Nigeria and so on! I don’t feel that our footprint is any smaller than what larger firms can do.
Quite frankly, none. There is an outstanding level of training of the firm’s teams and a rigorous recruitment process. And this applies to Paris, but also to Casablanca, Madrid, Montreal and Brussels – all our offices. The firm is also savvy in adapting what works well in the field of telecommunications in France at an international level. Take the development of fibre: in this regard, France is one of the most advanced countries in Europe. And we can bring that level of understanding and excellence to customers in other markets.
I am not sure that a location matters much anymore but it helps to be in the city centre, even if a lot of the work is done remotely. PMP Strategy’s office is in St James’s Square, just off Piccadilly Circus.
We are eight consultants: six juniors, and two more experienced. Reef Read, an Australian associate director who has been a consultant at PMP Paris since 2016 within the TMT practice, works with me in managing the office. He splits his time between Bordeaux and London. We are achieving 2.5 times our initial objectives. We have created relationships with new clients who then return to us – which is a good sign. And from the UK, we have worked in South Africa, Ireland, Poland... and even France!
There are several. We have worked on many altnet efforts – both due diligence and strategy. We were the strategic advisor for the acquisition of a majority stake in National Broadband Ireland by the Spanish infrastructure fund Asterion. Similarly, we were involved in the acquisition of a majority stake in the television and radio broadcaster, Arqiva by the Digital 9 Infrastructure fund.
Not at all. Our pedigree is strategy and operations. We are now also undertaking commercial and operational strategy consulting engagements for operators and expanding to new sectors in energy and transport.
There are very few projects where only consultants from the London office are involved. I like to say we are geographically agnostic. We almost always work with several offices at once. London, like PMP’s other international offices, is not just another flag to fly. It is part of a cultural transformation from a French company to an international company – with English, Americans, Spaniards, Indians, Moroccans, Tunisians, Irish, Italians... even a few Canadians.. A truly international culture. This is our vision for what comes next.
By Benjamin Polle, for Consultor, January 7, 2023
Link to the article