An overview
groupelephant.com is a largely employee-owned group of companies, nonprofits and impact investment organizations, with a strong global presence. The Group is characterized by a primary strategic imperative in terms of which it goes ‘Beyond Corporate Purpose’ in its day-to-day activities.
groupelephant.com has an unconventional approach to philanthropic activity. Rather than implementing a traditional corporate social responsibility program and simply donating funds to charities, in ‘Beyond Corporate Purpose’ it has a multi-zoned operating model (comprising for-profit, nonprofit and impact investment zones) that provides it with a professional, institutionalized delivery capability in the area of nonprofit activity and impact investment. Primary focus areas are the preservation of at-risk Elephants and Rhinos, through the economic upliftment of rural People in areas adjacent to the threatened species, or another definition of ‘ERP’, if you will.
The relatively recent and alarming rise in the slaughter of elephants and rhinos is based on the overlapping of two socio-economic phenomena, viz. (1) the rise in affluence in China and other Asian countries that are the greatest consumers of ivory and rhino horn and (2) the increase in poverty among rural communities in Africa. These communities have become the instruments of well-organized crime syndicates and funding from the illicit trade in ivory and rhino horn is also evidently finding its way into the coffers of terrorist organizations. The ERP strategy is to combat the widespread slaughter of elephants and rhinos in Southern Africa by alleviating the pressures associated with poverty in rural communities in areas adjacent to the threatened species, which pressures have been and are conducive to the proliferation of the slaughter of elephants and rhinos.
By eradicating poverty through (initially) donor-funded activity (Zone 2), followed by impact investment (Zone 3) projects, the plan is to realize economic benefits for these communities through wildlife economies, ecotourism activities and agriculture. The value of Elephants and Rhinos are worth more to communities on a multi-year basis through ecotourism than they are dead, for the value of their ivory and horn, respectively.
Through Zone 2, the Group also implements a range of tactical measures designed to combat the poaching problem, since the overall strategy is based on medium-term effect, which will not yield immediate benefits. In the multi-zone model:
'Zone 1' comprises a number of for-profit boutique firms, each specializing in services and software products that address areas that are based on Enterprise Resource Planning (‘ERP’) systems and that are non-core, yet business-critical to large commercial enterprises and public sector agencies. Professionals in Zone 1 focus on delivering solutions designed to enhance organizational value, for myriad industries and sectors;
'Zone 2' comprises a professional, institutionalized nonprofit capability focused on the preservation and protection of Elephants and Rhinos in the wild, and the economic upliftment of rural People in adjacent areas (‘ERP’); and
'Zone 3' comprises companies focused on ecotourism asset management, wildlife-related property developments in furtherance of the objectives of the Elephants, Rhinos & People’ program, and any for-profit activity that does not fall into Zone 1 but that benefits either Zone 1 or Zone 2.
Zones 2 and 3 collectively implement our ‘Beyond Corporate Purpose’ activity, in the form of the ‘Elephants, Rhinos & People’ program.
Employing more than 3,500 people, groupelephant.com includes EPI-USE, which is the world’s largest and most experienced independent SAP HCM specialist and which has emerged as a leader in designing, building and implementing Cloud-based, hybrid and on-premises HR/Payroll systems for large, complex multinational corporations. With a suite covering more than 40 countries, EPI-USE is the world’s largest independent purveyor of SAP country versions for regions in which SAP does not offer a standard payroll solution. In its 35-plus year history, EPI-USE has implemented or been involved with more than 1,000 SAP HCM-based solutions around the world.
Through a proprietary range of add-on software products, EPI-USE’s clients have access to world-class productivity tools to enhance their existing or planned implementations of SAP HCM. EPI-USE Labs, the Group’s software arm, also offers non-HR related SAP data management and landscape transformation software and services.
In addition to the SAP-focused businesses, groupelephant.com also includes separate boutique brands specializing in other business-critical, non-core software and services including group reporting, software quality assurance, bespoke software development, mobile applications and access, and data services.
The Group currently comprises the following brands, with SAP-related businesses in blue text:
Advance (bespoke software development, mobility, data services and IoT);
AiR (Advance IoT Router, ‘AiR’, is a Cloud-based hardware and software IoT solution designed to dramatically simplify and lower the cost of data acquisition, for myriad industries and IoT use cases);
Business Services (Group Reporting & Analytics);
Camarade (a worldwide ‘gig’ economy-based staff augmentation platform);
ClearSky (global Infor HCM and Finance services, application management, proprietary software products and implementation accelerators);
Cognetics (Full spectrum of automation technologies, including RPA, Application Integration and Artificial Intelligence);
Diceros (Managed cybersecurity services focussed on intrusion prevention, detection and response);
EMS (Employee Managed Services, comprising a range of comprehensive and hybrid, payroll-related managed services);
EPI-USE Services for AWS (an Advanced AWS Partner, offering tailor-made AWS Cloud solutions for businesses that need a reliable, managed cloud infrastructure);
EPI-USE & EPI-USE Global Services (comprising multiple service lines in the area of Human Capital Management);
EPI-USE Labs (proprietary software, landscape transformation services and Cloud migration services);
Evolutio (operationalizes data platforms like AppDynamics and Splunk to monitor, troubleshoot and secure enterprise systems);
G3G (SAP Enterprise Management - Finance, Logistics and Analytics - services with an emphasis on new-generation Cloud-based HANA technology, digital transformation, application management, infrastructure technical services and hosting);
Glyde (specializing in client-side services for organizations implementing Workday, to better manage risk and improve implementation outcomes for clients. Glyde currently addresses Human Capital Management, Payroll, Financials, Time & Absence, Talent & Performance, Security, Benefits and Integrations);
Hyperboliq (specializing in proprietary software assets for the Higher Education sector);
iCon_Berlin | i/Con Frankfurt (specializing in middle-market Human Capital Management and Payroll in Germany, and German-language markets);
iD2 (Smart Metering solutions - hardware and software, for power utilities);
iLAB (Software Quality Assurance services);
iSphere Cloud (Cloud hosting and associated managed services);
K5 Business (regional SAP implementation and managed services for on-premises and Cloud systems, covering a wide range of SAP modules);
konkconsulting (bespoke software development, SAP Human Capital Management implementations, Cloud architecture design services, and cross-platform enterprise integration services);
Kreon (IoT solutions, electronic component development, integration of electronic subsystems, embedded hardware and software development);
Liminal.Health (Health Management and Microsoft Dynamics);
LogBox (Electronic Medical Record Systems);
Magnisol (Supporting clients through the implementation and embedment of Ceridian Dayforce, a fully integrated HCM, WFM, Payroll and Talent Management solution);
Metagrated (provides business-critical security and integration services through trusted security networks and technology);
Rivor (Business Process Outsourcing and Advisory services);
Sapconet (SAP Finance-based custom development, integration, mobility, data services and the IoT);
Stratview (Hyperion-based Group Reporting, Enterprise Performance Management and Oracle HCM Cloud);
Tusk (Brand, marketing and training solutions across multiple platforms);
VantagePoint (SAP BTP (Business Technology Platform) and OneStream specialists focusing on Planning, Analytics, Reporting, Consolidation, and Artificial Intelligence); and
Valcann (Advanced AWS Consulting Partner providing a range of Cloud Computing solutions, including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Cloud Operations (CloudOps), as well as Cloud Automation and Orchestration with a specific focus on Windows and SAP workloads); and
Zimele (SAP-based Utilities, Real Estate, Building and Energy Management solutions, products and outsourcing).
groupelephant.com has operations in 40 countries spanning the Americas, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe, the Nordics, the Asia-Pacific region and Africa, and is able to effectively and efficiently service the needs of global clients, whilst addressing the objectives inherent in ‘Beyond Corporate Purpose: Elephants, Rhinos & People’. The Group has earned a strong reputation around the globe for successfully and cost-effectively addressing challenging technology-related issues for large, complex organizations and its client portfolio includes some of the largest and most respected multinational corporations.
In addition to a stellar private sector client portfolio, the Group has deep experience in providing solutions to government and public sector agencies in multiple geographies around the globe.
For more information, please write to info@groupelephant.com.