Beyond Technology: The Human Side of Telco to TechCo Transformation

In Brief 

"TechCo" has become a buzzword in the telecoms sector, but the term remains misleading and is often oversimplified. While many industry conferences, analysts, and executive communications focus on the technological aspects such as the increased use of data, digitalisation, and automation the true meaning of TechCo transformation runs deeper. It is not simply about deploying disruptive technologies; rather, it involves fundamentally changing organisations, operating models, and people’s skills and mindsets.

The telecoms industry is experiencing rapid change due to factors like globalisation, advances in cloud technology, the ubiquity of data, new edge technologies such as artificial intelligence and the metaverse, the expansion of 5G networks, and unprecedented levels of automation and digitalisation. Although these technological trends are highly visible, the most profound transformation is happening at a structural level. This includes shifts in corporate governance, operating models, methodologies, leadership practices, and the capabilities employees need to succeed.

Drawing on more than 20 years of experience from Sopra Steria Next, we have seen that successfully integrating innovative technologies into a telecom operator’s framework is not just a technical challenge. It requires new forms of partnership, agile organisational models, and renewed corporate culture. At the same time, intensifying competition from OTT (Over-the-Top) providers forces operators to innovate and adapt at a pace never seen before.

In the following sections, this opinion paper explains how companies can approach these far-reaching shifts. The emphasis will be on optimising operations, evolving leadership, and achieving the right balance between technological innovation and organisational agility.

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From technology to corporate culture, our vision of the three layers of telecommunications’ transformation

Telecom operators are being transformed by three major forces: virtualisation, automation, and digitalisation. Virtualisation is replacing traditional hardware with cloud-based software, requiring operators to acquire new skills and take greater responsibility for integrating their networks. Automation, powered by standard APIs and orchestration tools, reduces operational costs and response times, while also introducing new challenges related to AI and sovereignty. Meanwhile, digitalisation now enables customers to access network services directly and instantly, heightening competition with major cloud providers. At Sopra Steria Next, we believe sustainable transformation in telecom is achieved not only through technology, but by evolving people, skills, and corporate culture.

Operational excellence means transforming the company in depth

Large-scale transformation challenges a company’s culture and DNA, requiring disruptive change starting from management. Our experience with a telecom operator’s network virtualisation showed that overlapping transformation plans can stall progress and demotivate teams. Sopra Steria Next draws on deep expertise in managed services, cloud, cybersecurity, and risk management to help telecoms lead successful digital transformations and secure critical assets. A key to success is translating strategic objectives into two or three strong, company-wide performance indicators that guide and prioritise executive projects, reducing inefficiency. Traditional operator structures are siloed, slowing service launches; we help deploy agility across the company to boost collaboration, responsiveness, and innovation. Transformation also benefits from collaborative tools like our Intelligent Network Analyser (INA), which makes network data and modelling accessible company-wide, encouraging cross-functional innovation. Finally, sustainable transformation depends on holistic and transparent change management ensuring staff, customers, suppliers, and partners are supported, trained, and informed at every stage, which sustains operational performance throughout the process.

Telecom transformation is no longer just about technology it’s about changing the way companies operate and innovate. Advances like virtualisation, automation, and digitalisation only deliver value when operators fundamentally rethink their ways of working. Without a true TechCo transformation, telecom operators face becoming low-margin connectivity providers, losing competitiveness to digital natives, and missing out on new opportunities for growth and innovation as digital ecosystems evolve.

The real leaders in this shift are not simply those who deploy new technologies, but those who reimagine team structures, decision-making processes, and embed agility at every level of the business a change in mindset as much as in tools. Sopra Steria Next supports operators by blending advanced technologies with the organisational transformation needed for long-term success, relying on proven strengths in digital governance, operational performance, and agile leadership. The future of telecom will belong to those who are willing to lead boldly, innovate with intent, and adapt continuously.

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