A prominent figure in the IT industry, Miriam Murphy was named CEO Europe of NTT Ltd last year. She has a wealth of experience in overseeing IT services across multiple countries and managing large organizations. We met her to discuss about NTT's growth strategy, the role of NTT Luxembourg in Europe and internationally, their commitment to education and innovation, and much more.

An exclusive interview with Miriam Murphy

Can you briefly describe your job?

"I'm responsible for overseeing IT services across 14 European countries, managing an organization of over 5 000 people. My role is also to represent the European theatre within our global board, from a strategy perspective but also from an operational model and business performance standpoint. So, I have overall responsibility for the strategy and profit and loss of the region".

What is your growth strategy built around?

"Our offerings are broad across IT services, operating from edge-to-cloud with core priority areas. Our Network-as-a-Service offering is an established part of our portfolio, such as our managed services platform, as well as regionally delivered services. Our operations in Europe and globally cover our clients’ cloud transformation journey support, and our system integrator business provides technology solutions in areas such as networking, collaboration, data centre, and security". 

"Managed services are at the core of our business, where we provide consulting support to architect solutions, and deliver implementation services, ongoing management and support".

NTT Luxembourg will celebrate its 30th anniversary this year. What role do they play in Luxembourg and abroad?

"Having such a long pedigree in a market like Luxembourg is a fantastic achievement. NTT Luxembourg is a trusted advisor for clients in sectors like public, healthcare, finance, and education. This unique position allows us to support digital transformation in all segments, which has become crucial in the post-pandemic era. NTT Luxembourg's ability to support the faster pace of acceleration is crucial. The company’s investment made 30 years ago has been accelerated due to the progress made in the past three decades".

"Also, in a market where Luxembourg serves as a landing spot for international businesses, NTT Luxembourg has experience working with worldwide clients, which has contributed to its success over the years. As a good example, NTT is helping IP management specialist Dennemeyer with digital transformation from Luxembourg, alongside partners like Microsoft".

What were your impressions following your meeting with students at a Cloud BTS program with which NTT is partnering?

"Engaging with the next generation of technology leaders at an early stage in their careers is crucial to make them aware of the diversity of opportunities the IT sector can offer, which is greater than ever. Students are involved in a program that supports technical skills and enables them to be ready for real-life workplace situations. Seeing their enthusiasm and interest is wonderful".

"As a business committed to supporting communities we work in, NTT has been partnering with the Cloud BTS for 5 years. This partnership is key to support initiatives in Luxembourg, hiring the best talents from the school and helping them grow locally first, and then internationally. Some are really keen to have experience in other countries and we can help them on this level. Moreover, they could be working for our clients and other business partners. That’s why making them know and understand who NTT is, is very important".

"We invest in developing new skills, working with partners to identify, educate and recruit talent locally and globally to keep up with market needs. Compared to last year, NTT Luxembourg doubled its training budget to implement new technology. Our teams are involved both in the curriculum but also in the delivery of some of the programs in the training".

What is NTT's level of involvement in the innovation field?

"NTT has a strong commitment to R&D, with a global annual R&D budget of around 3.6 billion dollars, focused on both immediate and long-term future innovations. This includes various areas such as the development of new forms of electronic and electric transmission, all heavily focused on how technology can support sustainability globally. This commitment to innovation is deeply rooted in the company culture, from our core in Japan to our solutions architects working with clients".

Last year, NTT DATA and NTT's overseas business initiated a process of merger in order to expand their global business. What can you tell us about this integration?

"By bringing together the skills in consulting and in vertical specialization that NTT DATA has with the foundational commitment and skills we have in system integration and managed services, we can offer our clients an end-to-end experience in their digital transformation".

"This integration will also allow us to address bigger projects on the local market and provide unique selling points for our clients. Even if it's a very exciting time and we have already started working with some clients in Luxembourg, we are taking time to analyze the right solutions as well".

"So, this is not a classical merger, but rather a complementary alignment of companies that extend their capabilities in the market".

What highlights can you point out from your first year in office?

"There are two big highlights for me. The first one is the relationship - often long engagements - we have with our clients and the diversity of clients we work with. The second highlight is the talent we have in the organization and our ability to put that talent to use in very innovative ways, like we did with the Tour de France. Managing all of the technology behind the race and turning it into the largest interconnected stadium in the world is really exciting".

Interview by Nastassia Haux