Serge Kampf

Serge Kampf possessed a unique blend of technical understanding and acute business acumen. After earning degrees in Law and Economics, he began his career in the early telecommunications industry, joining the French computer manufacturer Groupe Bull. During his time at Bull, he recognized a fundamental shift occurring in the corporate world: businesses were acquiring expensive computer mainframes but entirely lacked the specialized organizational and technical expertise to integrate them into their operations effectively.

Serge Kampf founded Capgemini (originally Sogeti) in 1967 in a small apartment in Grenoble, France. At a time when the IT industry was dominated by large American hardware manufacturers who viewed software as an afterthought, Kampf pioneered the concept of independent IT services and consulting. He realized that the true value of computing lay in solving specific organizational problems, not just selling machines. Kampf aggressively expanded the company across Europe through a series of shrewd, strategic acquisitions, notably acquiring CAP and Gemini Computer Systems in the 1970s. His leadership style combined deep operational decentralization with a fierce entrepreneurial spirit, allowing the company to rapidly adapt to the evolving technological landscape. By consistently championing the role of the independent technology consultant, Kampf built Capgemini into one of the largest and most respected multinational IT consulting and outsourcing firms in the world, serving as its chairman until 2012.