Issuu

BOTS: TECHNOCRATS GET A NEW NAME IN 2019 /26

PA G E S 5 6 VOLUME O6 | ISSUE 09 APRIL 2019 WWW.EC-MEA.COM

MENA’s

Largest and Most Esteemed ..../24

AD-ECMEA-062018

#RevolveDX

CIO Gathering

HUCO: RESTORING HUMAN CONNECTION IN BUSINESS /22

PA G E S 5 6 VOLUME O6 | ISSUE 09 APRIL 2019 WWW.EC-MEA.COM

GAUTHAM RAJ, CEO, EMITAC ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS

mitac Rising AD-ECMEA-062018

After a couple of tumultuous years, Emitac Enterprise Solutions is all set to win the market once again. /32

EDITORIAL

Ready, Steady, Disrupt!

ANUSHREE DIXIT EDITOR A N U S H R E E @ G E C M E D I A G R O U P. C O M

Future IT Summit 2019 was breathtaking! The Armani Hotel ballroom testified the readiness of the GCC enterprises in stepping up their digital transformation game. With over 350 C-level executives in attendance, the event in its fifth edition witnessed the coming together of digital transformation champions, both from the service provider and the end user side, who decoded the term ‘Value’ in all its entirety and struck meaningful conversations around the same. Read a detailed report on the event on page 24. ‘Value’ found its roots deep lying in three key aspects; creating an engaged workforce with relevant skill sets; charting organizational priorities on what is needed and what is not; and resolving the cultural issue of mistaking digital transformation with business transformation. This directly aligns with our cover story for this month— Emitac Rising— where Gautham Raj, the CEO of Emitac Enterprise Solution tell us how he is prioritizing his company’s goals by keeping intellectual property on the top and driving various engagement activities keeping in mind the enrichment and enablement of the workforce. As the system integrator gears up to regain its market positioning, Gautham feels that the magic sauce is the highly resourceful and talented workforce that Emitac boasts of today. Read more on page 32. Walking on similar lines, our exclusive interview with Ashok Chakravarthi Arulmozhi, MD of HUCO, (p22) explores the Human Connection— the core vision of the company— in offering meaningful services to the clients rather than boxes. Also, do not miss our special rendezvous with 2 channel chiefs from SAP and NetApp talk about digital transformation is changing the course of their daily work routine and how they are disrupting the work culture. This and much more in the April issue of Enterprise Channels MEA! Happy Reading! ë

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APRIL 2019 | VOLUME 06 | ISSUE 09

CONTENTS 20

GUEST ARTICLE

#RevolveDX

DEPLOY AI IN B2B SALES ILONA HANSEN, SENIOR DIRECTOR ANALYST, GARTNER

INTERVIEW

RESTORING HUMAN CONNECTION IN BUSINESS ASHOK CHAKRAVARTHI ARULMOZHI, MD, HUCO

CHANNEL CHIEF

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A CHANNEL CHIEF NETAPP MAYA ZAKHOUR, PARTNERS & PATHWAYS LEAD - MEA, NETAPP

04 EDITORIAL

COVER FEATURE

mitac Rising

INNOVATIONS

DC 500 SERIES SSDS

CHANNEL STREET

ADVERTISER INDEX:

DELL 02, FINESSE 07, EMERGENTEL 09, BITS 11, SECLORE 13, EPICOR 15, VALTO 17, RITTAL 19, GISEC 31, TOSHIBA 47, ASBIS 51, UIPATH 55, BTX 56

ENTERPRISE ADVISOR UIPATH RT

STORAGE AND SURVEILLANCE 360

KUWAIT

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CHANNEL

STREET Gulf Bank Selects Dell Technologies Gulf Bank revealed their strategic agreement with Dell Technologies for a digitally transformative

project. Taking significant steps towards sustaining business continuity and scalable data mobility,

the bank will leverage industry-leading storage management and data protection solutions by Dell Technologies, to ensure maximum return on their investment. This collaboration was announced at the Dell Technologies Forum held at Jumeirah Messilah’ Beach Hotel in Kuwait. Themed ‘Make it Real’, this one-day free event brought together Dell Technologies’ seven technology powerhouses together, to help organizations in Kuwait accelerate national and business transformation initiatives with speed and purpose. Kuwait’s strategic Vision 2035 centres on transforming the country into a world class financial hub, with the private sector leading economic activities, fostering competitiveness, and creating an enabling business environment. With this primary goal at the heart of their transformative efforts, Gulf Bank aims to be at the frontlines of emerging industry innovation and embrace datadriven banking – which is evolving as a key driver of operational and competitive differentiation. To this end, Gulf Bank planned to modernize their IT infrastructure with a robust and flexible data management backbone that can effectively store and protect the growing volume of data from multiple sources. Therefore, this project with Dell Technologies is divided into two critical parts – data management and backup.

MOHAP LAUNCHES ROBOTIC SURGERIES PROGRAMME The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) has unveiled the launching of Robotic Surgeries Programme in Gynaecology and Obstetrics. This achievement, which is considered the first-of-its-kind across the UAE, comes within the context of MoHAP’s integrated programme to consolidate the success of robotic surgeries in the country, and also as part of the ministry’s keenness on promoting the culture of innovation and

fostering the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a scientific approach in health services. MoHAP is planning to provide this service “Robotic Surgeries” regularly and constantly. Dr. Zaki Al-Muzaki, head of chest and vascular surgery and robot surgery program at the Ministry of Health and Prevention, said that the launching of Robotic Surgeries Programme in Gynaecology and Obstetrics comes in the wake of the successful use of the

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robot in heart surgeries, noting the fast-growing use of robots and AI in modern medicine. “MoHAP took the precedence in bringing the latest robots due to its capability of accessing the most difficult parts in the human body, besides its high accuracy because of the robotic arm firmness during the surgery. Additionally, the use of robots reduces doctors’ stress and also reduces patients’ pain following the surgery. Currently, robots are used in heart, sleeve

gastrectomy, and urology surgeries,” added Dr. Zaki He revealed the success of 3 robotic surgeries with shorter operative time (around one hour for each surgery), in addition to patients’ speed recovery. They were in good condition and left the hospital without any complications and very little pain. Surgeries were characterized by using small cuts instead of the traditional large-sized and high-risk cuts, that require longer hospitalization time.

CHANNEL STREET

Talkwalker Launches Industry-first AI-Powered Video Analytics

Talkwalker became the first and only solution in the industry to offer brands and agencies AI-powered video analytics. This, combined with Talkwalker’s advanced social media analytics and award-winning image recognition, can discover up to 3x the number of brand mentions, providing clients with a 360° view of their brands in motion, and a complete text, image, and video analytics solution. “We’re such a visually-driven society, especially among Millennials and Gen Z. So many moments happen in video, it’s crucial for brands to be a part of these customer conversations,” says Talkwalker CEO, Todd Grossman. “We found that up to 98% of videos with detected brand logos didn’t mention the brand name. No company could monitor them — until now.” By 2021, Cisco predicts 80% of internet traffic

will be video. Talkwalker now analyzes up to 2,000 images and videos per second, to ensure brands have the data they need to track social mentions and conversations they would otherwise miss. “Our revolutionary technology finds consumer video insights to create campaigns with maximum impact, prevent brand crises by tracking critical videos, and measure the true ROI of sponsorship campaigns,” Grossman continues. The launch of video recognition sees Talkwalker continue to reinforce their industry leadership through artificial intelligence driven insights. Following the successful launch of their image recognition 3 years ago, they continue to lead in technical innovation, and invest further in the Talkwalker AI Engine. Video recognition is just one of the developments that has arisen from this investment.

AVAYA DEEPENS INTEGRATION WITH GOOGLE CLOUD Avaya has revealed further integration with Google Cloud Contact Center AI to provide better experiences for customers and a more efficient workforce, taking full advantage of the powerful artificial intelligence capabilities of both companies. Recognized as a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Contact Center, Avaya extends its leadership in leveraging AI to improve customer experience with more personalized, intelligent and insightful interactions. This includes embedding Google’s machine learning within Avaya conversation services powering the contact center, enabling easy integration of AI capabilities regardless of channel, promoting a consistent and intelligent experience for customers and delivering true omnichannel experiences with AI. Together, Avaya and Google Cloud are providing customers with increased flexibility, efficiency and scalability in deploying powerful and simple communication and collaboration solutions that improve the customer journey. Avaya IX Contact Center is an AI-enhanced, omnichannel solution including voice, email, chat and mobile communications to make customer engagement a competitive advantage that drives growth and brand preference.

SAS TO INVEST $1 BILLION IN AI SAS is investing $1 billion in AI over the next three years through software innovation, education, expert services and more. The commitment builds on SAS’ already strong foundation in AI which includes advanced analytics, machine learning, deep learning, natural language processing (NLP) and computer vision. Educational programs and expert services will equip business leaders and data scientists for the future of AI, with the technology, skills and support they need to transform their organizations. “At SAS, we remain dedicated to our customers and their success, and this investment is another example of that commitment,” said SAS CEO Jim Goodnight. “With our innovative capabilities in AI, SAS helps businesses deter damaging fraud, fight deadly disease, better manage risk, provide exemplary service to customers and citizens, and much more.” The $1 billion investment in AI will focus on three main areas: Research and Development (R&D) innovation where SAS continues to build on the success of its global AI efforts; education initiatives addressing customer needs to better understand and benefit from AI; and expert services to optimize customer return on AI projects.

VISA PARTNERS WITH STARBUCKS & HARDEE’S TO PROMOTE USE OF APPLE PAY Visa has partnered with Starbucks and Hardee’s to accelerate the use and adoption of Apple Pay in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. With Apple Pay, Visa cardholders and iPhone

users can make instant payments using their phone via app or on web. As part of Visa’s partnership with Starbucks and Hardee’s, Visa cardholders will get free upsize/upgrades on their orders when paying

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with Apple Pay. The promotion with Starbucks will allow Visa cardholders to upgrade the size of their Latte, Cappuccino, or Americano beverages if they pay through Apple Pay. The offer is applicable

across all Starbucks outlets (excluding airport stores) in the Kingdom and UAE and is valid for up to four weeks starting March 13, 2019. The Hardee’s promotion will allow Visa cardholders to receive a free dessert

when they buy any large meal of their choice using Visa with Apple Pay. This offer is applicable at Apple Pay enabled Hardee’s stores throughout the Kingdom and will be valid through June 9, 2019.

CHANNEL STREET

Smart Dubai’s Future Blockchain Summit Returns in April

SECONDS

UIPATH PARTNERS WITH ITIDA UiPath has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Egypt’s Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA) to help build the country’s national capabilities in RPA. His Excellency Dr. Amr Talaat, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, witnessed the signing of the partnership between Maha Rashad, Acting CEO of ITIDA, and Karan Dixit, Vice President of Sales, UiPath Middle East and Africa. SEIDOR MENA SIGNS MCDONALDS UAE Fast food chain McDonalds UAE is making a big step in company digital transformation choosing SAP’s next generation business

Smart Dubai’s Future Blockchain Summit returns to the city next month, as the Emirate continues its surge towards becoming the world’s first government to execute all applicable transactions using blockchain technology by 2020. In line with the Dubai Blockchain Strategy, the second annual Future Blockchain Summit will take place April 2nd- 3rd at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). Officially hosted by the Smart Dubai Office, the two-day event will bring together an agenda-setting global pool of technology visionaries, government bodies, the world’s biggest brands and industry first-movers to push blockchain forward and champion its adoption on a global scale. Future Blockchain Summit 2019 will shine the

spotlight on excelling blockchain technologies, moving conversation beyond theoretical use-cases and into real-life opportunities. It will look at blockchain use across the world’s most integral industries, including retail and ecommerce, healthcare, transportation, education, food, hospitality and tourism, energy, fintech and banking, safety and security. It is expected to welcome more than 8,000 international visitors, and will host speakers from world-renowned brands like Coca-Cola, Tencent, Johnson & Johnson, Maersk, HSBC, eBay and Lufthansa. Government entities including du, Dubai Land Department and Dubai Health Authority will all be on-hand to showcase their advancements and use cases in the revolutionary technology.

suite S/4HANA and Cloud HCM SuccessFactors, to better serve tech savvy customers who increasingly use technology to engage with brands and enabling employees succession within company. TELECOM EGYPT AND NOKIA SIGN MOU Telecom Egypt has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Nokia to introduce 5G network and test use cases. This announcement took place during the GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain. The MoU has been signed by Adel Hamed, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Telecom Egypt, and Amr K. El Leithy, head of the Middle East and Africa market, Nokia, in the presence of a number of dignitaries from the two companies.

KIERON POLLARD VISITS THE FUTURISTIC NANOM SPORTS CLINIC Cricketer Kieron Pollard, who plays for the Peshawar Zalmi Team in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), visited nanoM Healthcare, an Emirates Healthcare company, earlier this month. Pollard underwent a variety of health assessments at nanoM, the Dubai-based state-of-the-art sports and human performance facility, including an ECG, a BodPod test, 3D biomechanical analysis of his bowling and batting and a V02 max test – which determines the maximum amount of oxygen the body can use during physical activity. Pollard, who also had consultations with nanoM’s expert doctors, said, “nanoM is very impressive; they have all the equipment and technology to assess sports professionals under one roof.” Dr Jennifer Walsh, Head of Sports and Human Performance at nanoM, said, “We were pleased to host Kieron Pollard at our facility, which is designed for athletes who want to enhance their performances, address existing sports injuries and prevent potential injuries. In line with Dubai’s aim of becoming a hub for medical tourism, nanoM is at least a decade ahead of its time.”

VISA AND PAYMATE TEAM UP Visa and PayMate have revealed expanded collaboration to provide Visa’s issuing financial institution clients in the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA) region with access to PayMate’s proprietary payment platform for their corporate customers’ payments needs. This move follows Visa and PayMate’s initial launch in India in 2017. PayMate’s cloud-based platform digitizes the entire procurement-to-payment cycle for businesses and helps large enterprises and SMBs to transition from traditionally slow and costly forms of payments like cash and checks to real-time and efficient digital payments.

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CHANNEL STREET

UAE’s General International Selects Epicor ERP

General International Group, a provider of specialised engineering services to the UAE & Africa market, has selected Epicor ERP in the Cloud and will deploy the system on the Azure platform to help optimise operations and introduce new

operational efficiencies. The move to Epicor ERP will serve General International’s current business growth cycle by consolidating data collection and eliminating replication. The company will be able to automate several processes that were labour-intensive under its legacy platform, and improve the speed, accuracy, and flexibility of reporting. The cloud-based ERP solution from Epicor will open the door to newfound efficiencies in business continuity, cybersecurity and risk management, as well as carry the benefit of 24/7 support and disaster recovery. The cloud model is also expected to deliver up-to-the-minute upgrades, faster time to value, and significantly lower capital and human resource investments. “The Epicor ERP cloud solution stood out clearly for us as having strikingly granular flexibility and impressive scalability,” said Sameh Awad, Director at General International Group. “Often with these platforms you have to make compromises on functionality, however, Epicor ERP was a great fit because it caters to such a wide range of use cases. Additionally, ease of implementation and ease of use were critical factors, so our day-to-day operations did not suffer a hit from delays and learning curves. It was also important for us to find a vendor who could be a trusted partner in our growth journey, and work with us long term. The flexible licensing model was a further welcome bonus.”

R&M PUBLISHES DATA CENTER HANDBOOK 2019 R&M has made available the ‘Data Center Handbook 2019’. The all-new Data Center Handbook by R&M promotes a wide variety of valuable insights, to meet the challenges and expanding needs of cloud architecture. The handbook, aimed primarily at planners and operators of data centres, is a rich source of information on how to successfully design, build, manage and support a data centre. R&M’s Data Center Handbook 2019 also contains detailed and user-oriented answers to all questions pertaining to the infrastructure and operation of a data centre. Topics include networking technologies and next-generation structured cabling and the Handbook places an in-depth emphasis on automated infrastructure management (AIM). Based on years of experience built up by experts who provide support for the construction and equipping of data centres throughout the world, the handbook also serves as a reference work on relevant standards, technical terms, trends, and applications. It helps customers achieve an optimum data centre layout and to plan cabling architecture as well as reduce energy needs and select security solutions. The document also offers practical solutions for nextgeneration 100, 200 and 400G networks.

BIOS MIDDLE EAST AWARDED VCSP PARTNER OF THE YEAR BIOS Middle East has been awarded “The VCSP Partner of the Year” by Veeam Software, the market leader in Backup and Disaster Recovery, at the recent 2019 Veeam Partner Summit held in Lebanon. The Veeam Cloud and Service Provider (VCSP) award recognized BIOS Middle East for its Veeampowered services in 2018 and

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dedication to enable its clients’ business continuity and the Always-On Enterprise. “One of the secrets for Veeam’s success lies in its ecosystem” said Vasily Vaganov, Vice President Eastern EMEA and Middle East at Veeam Software. “BIOS Middle East is an example of an ambitious partner who is able to initiate

projects among SMB and enterprise customers. They made a great contribution to the popularization of Cloud technologies in 2018 across the region.” Ian Grisdale, Director at BIOS Middle East, who accepted the award on behalf of the company said, “Business continuity is one of the most common challenges

that companies across industries and geographies face today. With Veeam, we can provide systems and data availability to support business applications in any organization that has to meet recovery time and point objectives. We are deeply honored for the VCSP Partner of the Year award and we are definitely excited to work with Veeam.”

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CHANNEL STREET

Etisalat Opens RPA Centre of Excellence Etisalat has launched a Robotic Centre of Excellence, which is using robotic process automation (RPA) to deliver automated solutions for greater efficiency and customer service. The initiative is part of Etisalat’s key activities to mark UAE Innovation Month. The centre, which soft launched with six RPA robots in February last year, currently has 76 software robots performing 745,000 autonomous transactions in Etisalat’s Business Care and Order Management back office functions. The introduction of robotic process automation is part of Etisalat’s endeavour to drive the digital future and empower society which is in line with the UAE Vision 2021, where the

national innovation strategy has identified digital technology as one of the top seven primary national sectors. Salvador Anglada, Group Chief Business Officer at Etisalat, said: “As we move further into the digital age, there is a growing need to turn towards emerging technologies to streamline operations and inject greater efficiency into business processes. The opening of Etisalat’s Robotic Centre of Excellence addresses the evolving needs of our customers, with robotic process automation services improving overall efficiency, speed and accuracy of our back office team, with the aim of further enhancing customer satisfaction.”

WEB CLIPS DUCAB CHOOSES ORACLE CLOUD Ducab will strengthen its global transportation and delivery network with Oracle Cloud Applications, accelerating Ducab’s expansion into new markets within and outside the UAE. The company will leverage Oracle Cloud Applications to bolster its customer deliveries, introduce innovative services, and enhance collaboration with its suppliers. EMIRATES ISLAMIC TEAMS UP WITH EMARATECH Emirates Islamic has partnered with emaratech to enable individuals and businesses to make electronic payments for a range of government services via the noqodi payment gateway. Through the new tie-up, Emirates Islamic’s

BOOLE SERVER AND VAD TECHNOLOGIES SIGN A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP

individual and corporate clients can top up their

Boole Server revealed a strategic collaboration together with VAD Technologies. Boole Server will introduce BooleBox, its secure enterprise collaboration platform, into the region thanks to the award-winning marketplace of VAD Technologies. BooleBox Cloud will be immediately available in the portfolio of VAD Technologies’ Cloud Division. Potential users have the possibility to purchase BooleBox with a simple click of the mouse. “The passion and know-how of the leading VAD in the region is key to a successful path towards the innovation curve of the security file sharing landscape in the Middle East” says Valerio Pastore, President and Founder of Boole Server.

smartBUSINESS platform, mobile app and

noqodi wallets and make eVoucher payments through various channels such as the bank’s online banking, and ATM machines. ETIHAD ESCO SIGNS STRATEGIC MOU WITH MEFMA Etihad ESCO signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Middle East Facility Management Association (MEFMA) to increase collaboration between in the two organizations in various fields including building market capabilities. Under the terms of agreement, Etihad ESCO & TAQATI – the

MOVEMENTS

NUMBER GAME

SPECTRAMI appoints YASSER ALI as GM for Egypt, Levant and North Africa Cristal Group has appointed MENNO DE BOER

Dubai Energy Efficiency Program (set up under Etihad ESCO) will promote MEFMA’s facility management courses such as Ta’seesy, Muhtarif and Mustadam among relevant

$300bn

as COO

stakeholders. AL TAIF ISLAMIC BANK SIGNS DEAL WITH FINASTRA Al Taif Islamic Bank has chosen Fusion Islamic, Finastra’s core banking solution dedicated to the Islamic market, to kick start its retail business. The move will provide the new challenger bank’s customers with a consistent

ISS Appoints SHAWN MATHER as Director of Sales for US

AMD Appoints MARIO SILVEIRA as Corporate VP of Sales for EMEA

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The global investment in blockchain is expected to reach US$300 billion by 2020: IDC

and user-friendly experience in branch and across all digital channels, whilst complying with Shari’ah requirements.

Epicor ERP Positioned as a Visionary in Gartner 2018 Magic Quadrant for Cloud ERP for Product-Centric Midsize Enterprises

CHANNEL STREET

Site24x7 CloudSpend Now Available Site24x7 revealed the general availability of Site24x7 CloudSpend, its cost analytics solution for public cloud platforms. The new solution is aimed at bridging the gap between capacity planning and cost optimization for resources running in Amazon Web Services (AWS) environment. CloudSpend’s business intelligence (BI) insights enable businesses to visualize runaway expenditures and implement effective budget controls, while reducing operational expenditure (OpEx) across multiple accounts. Public cloud adoption has witnessed exponential growth in recent years, and according to IDC, spending on public cloud services and infrastructure is forecast to reach $210-bil-

lion in 2019, an increase of 23.8% over 2018. The market is forecast to achieve a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22.5% with public cloud services spending reaching $370-billion in 2022. With public cloud being cost effective and easy to set up, businesses tend to leverage them to digitize their services and achieve their business goals faster. This often leads to complexities that arise due to unmonitored, underused or idle cloud resources on various platforms in multiple accounts, resulting in overspend. To eliminate these undesired expenses, organizations need a solution that can help monitor and optimize their cloud costs without impacting their services.

NISSAN AND DOCOMO TEST I2V TECHNOLOGY USING 5G IN MOVING VEHICLE Nissan and NTT DOCOMO, INC. are putting Nissan’s Invisible-to-Visible technology through its field test in a moving vehicle, using DOCOMO’s fifth-generation mobile communications connectivity. The technology, first revealed at the CES trade show in Las Vegas in January, is being tested at Grandrive, Nissan’s proving ground in Yokosuka, Japan. Invisible-to-Visible, or I2V, is a future Nissan Intelligent Mobility technology that merges the real and virtual worlds. By combining information from sensors outside and inside the vehicle with data from the cloud, it helps drivers “see the invisible” – such as what’s farther down the road, behind a building or around the corner. I2V also connects drivers and passengers to the Metaverse, a virtual world where people can interact through avatars. Family, friends or others in a remote location can appear inside the car as three-dimensional, augmented-reality avatars to provide company or assistance. For the field test, the companies are using DOCOMO’s high-speed, large-capacity, low-latency mobile 5G connectivity to transmit avatar data wirelessly into the test vehicle, and in-car camera views from the vehicle, in real time. The test vehicle is based on Nissan’s NV350 Caravan.

EMIRATES NBD JOINS FORCES WITH DIFC Emirates NBD together with FinTech Hive unveiled a new program where they are certifying FinTechs that collaborate, cocreate and innovate using Emirates NBD’s API (Application Programming Interface) Sandbox. Launched by Emirates NBD Future Lab™ in 2018, the API Sandbox is a first in the region, marking an important milestone in the bank’s AED 1 billion digital transformation programme. The platform, which has been opened up to developers and FinTech firms, consists of over 200 APIs and 500 end points covering retail, corporate and SMEs. Developers also have access to over five million simulated customer transactions based on the BIAN (Banking Industry Architecture Network) model. “All registered FinTechs in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) that build effective, working prototypes or demos using the APIs will have the opportunity to present to senior leaders from the bank for a chance to collaborate,” said Abdulla Qassem, Group Chief Operating Officer, Emirates NBD . Furthermore, registered FinTechs who use the API Sandbox and demo their prototypes working on the Sandbox, will also receive a signed certificate from Emirates NBD and DIFC FinTech Hive acknowledging their participation and certifying their capabilities.

AXITRADER COMPETITION TO IDENTIFY MIDDLE EAST’S TOP ONLINE TRADER AxiTrader has launched a competition to identify the Middle East’s top online trader using its cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) analytics platform, PsyQuation. PsyQuation is an AI-powered analytics platform, which uses a unique algorithm and machine learning to identify the most profitable trading characteristics and applies them to analysing individual traders’ performance. Having been developed by a team of world-class

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experts in trading behaviourists and data science, PsyQuation is currently rolling out following its initial global launch, including in the Middle East, a key growth market for AxiTrader. Based on data from more than 120,000 traders worldwide and tens of millions of trades, PsyQuation provides traders with a PsyQuation Score, a proprietary ranking tool which predicts the future performance of traders by understanding the skill,

risk, behaviour and history profile. In other words, it finally answers the question “Can I be a profitable trader?” To celebrate this cuttingedge technology, AxiTrader is running a month-long competition with an exciting range of prizes up for grabs, including a trip to London and access to best-in-class trading courses. To enter the competition, participants need to register before Monday 18 March 2019 and then trade a minimum of 30 trades

before Friday 19 April. And there’s no need to be a current AxiTrader customer to win – traders just require an online trading account which is MetaTrader4 compatible (a Microsoft Windows based trading platform, also known as MT4 and widely used by online forex trading brokers) so that it can be linked to the PsyQuation platform. The winner will be announced at a select gathering at Dubai Opera House on Monday 22 April.

should be a fundamental right for every organisation!

ERICOM SOFTWARE IS A LEADER IN SECURING & CONNECTING THE DIGITAL WORKSPACE Ericom's offerings include innovative remote browser isolation, secure remote access & zero trust browsing solutions

CHANNEL STREET

Microsoft Rises, du and Etisalat in 9th &10th Place Respectively

The technology & telecom industry in UAE has maintained its rank as #2 among 15 industries researched for the third year in a row in MBLM’s Brand Intimacy 2019 Study. Microsoft has demonstrated the strongest growth in the industry, rising to #2 this year from #5 in 2018 and #8 in 2017. Meanwhile, despite a decrease in its overall Brand Intimacy Quotient (BIQ), Apple still ranks #1 in the industry and overall in the Brand Intimacy Study. Brand Intimacy is defined as the emotional science that measures the bonds we form with the brands we use and love. Top intimate brands outperform top brands in the S&P and Fortune

500 indices for revenue and profit. Consumers are also more willing to pay price premiums for intimate brands and less willing to live without them, according to the Brand Intimacy 2019 Study. “Technology & telecom is a critical industry for the UAE’s competitiveness and efficacy. The feeling of enhancement through technology is palpable around us, and this industry is a natural vehicle,” said William Shintani, Managing Partner at MBLM. “Microsoft has successfully entered the cloud-based services arena and revitalized its brand to deliver key innovative services, repositioning themselves in the hearts and minds of their consumers.”

TIME HOTELS ELEVATES GUEST SERVICES WITH AVAYA With the communications and collaboration solutions from Avaya guests of TIME hotel properties can now expect minimized holding times while contacting hotel support, through the channel of their choice. The new Avaya platform helps make it possible for the group to automate key guest services including wake-up calls, reservation reminders, and requests for information on hotel services and local attractions. TIME Hotels operates four brands, with eight properties currently under management across the region, and seven projects expected to open within the next 12 months. Explaining the group’s decision to upgrade its communications infrastructure, Joseph Fayad, corporate director IT, TIME Hotels, said, “Connectivity today is a critical aspect of the hospitality industry. It is essential to have proper infrastructure to provide the reliable services our guests need.”

HPE SIGNS STRATEGIC MOU WITH ADSSSA Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Abu Dhabi Smart Solutions and Services Authority (ADSSSA), to accelerate the Abu Dhabi government’s digital transformation efforts. The agreement was signed by H.E. Dr. Rauda Al Saadi, Director General, ADSSSA and Fabio Fontana, Vice President and Managing Director, HPE Middle East, in the presence of H.E. Jassim Al Zaabi, Chairman, Abu Dhabi Executive Office and Antonio Neri, President and CEO, HPE. The signing of the MoU was one of the highlights of the recent meeting between H.E. Jassim Al Zaabi and Antonio Neri, where they also discussed the ambitious plans and projects that Abu Dhabi government is currently implementing as part of its commitment to deliver the highest levels of service performance and efficiency for the citizens of the Emirate. During the meeting, H.E Al Zaabi hailed HPE’s proven global track record of delivering exceptional experiences and the highest quality of solutions for its customers. As part of the MoU, HPE will deliver key innovations and technological advancements to help ADSSSA achieve its ambitious objectives.

TAFAWUQ LAUNCHES STATE-OF-THE-ART FACILITY MANAGEMENT TRAINING CENTER Tafawuq Facilities Management, a subsidiary of the UAE-based Eltizam Asset Management Group, inaugurated the Tafawuq Facilities Management Training Center. Highlighting the company’s commitment to continuously improving daily operations as well as service delivery in line with the

group’s Vision 2021 for business transformation, the training center will offer a range of courses to Tafawuq operations staff, also providing them with opportunities for professional growth. The recently opened Tafawuq Facilities Management Training

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Center will deliver courses and training programs covering key learning areas such as mechanical, electrical and plumbing training according to the international standard SFG20; training on cleaning techniques aligned to British Institute of Cleaning Science (BICS); training on safe work

practices in line with British Safety Council standards; customer service training; and training on local regulations related to facility management (FM). The courses and modules will be designed to enhance employees’ skill sets and knowledge through continuous learning.

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GUEST ARTICLE

DEPLOY AI IN B2B SALES

B2B CIOs must introduce AI to the sales organization to free sales reps from administrative tasks and augment their decisions.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has become an integral part of life. Devices are full of smart helpers that offer suggestions on when to wake up, go to sleep or take a nap. They recommend new artists for playlists or a movie for the evening. They remind users to be active, stay hydrated and eat healthy. AI technology has become a companion for our daily life with one notable exception: The B2B sales organization. As soon as employees sit down at their desks, they have to make decisions about how to structure the day or when to call clients. Further, these decisions are being made with no data about the most efficient or effective way to do so. “AI augments sales staff, but does not replace them” “AI technologies already impact the way we structure our lives as consumers, but there is hardly any AI support in professional environments,” says Ilona Hansen, Senior Director Analyst, Gartner. “B2B sales especially could benefit tremendously from AI support.” Gartner predicts that by 2020, 30% of all B2B companies will employ some kind of AI to augment at least one of their primary sales processes. Before introducing an AI program into the sales department, clarify what the new technology can do and where its limitations lie. AI finds statistical correlations hidden in data. It can automate repetitive sales tasks. It furthermore can offer insights and provide recommendations on what to do next or differently. However, AI doesn’t understand the business, nor can it make client-related decisions. “AI augments sales staff, but does not replace them. What it will do is reduce administrative sales work to give sellers more time to prospect, find new revenue and upsell existing clients,” Hansen says. How AI can improve the sales process Before investing in a pilot project, meet with sales managers and look at the potential use cases to determine which will work best as a starting point. The most promising results for B2B sales organizations are based on three types of AI technology: • Predictive analytics finds correlations between

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n I L O N A H A N S E N , S E N I O R D I R E C T O R A N A LY S T, G A R T N E R

and among data points. Those tools automatically create the insights that managers and sales reps need. For example, they can determine a prospect’s likelihood to become a client or forecast sales. • Prescriptive analytics supports guided selling. The AI suggests activities based on the sales methodology. This can be a next-best action to move a deal to the next sales stage or a pricing model based on a prospect’s known preferences. • Natural language processing, text and senti-

ment analysis understands and analyzes the context of customers’ questions and their behavior. It can alert sales reps if signs of dissatisfaction are discovered. “AI for sales is still in its infancy, but B2B CIOs should start their path now and adapt as new trends and technologies arise,” Hansen says. “If deployed correctly, AI can automate almost half of administrative sales work, point sales reps to the most lucrative deals and foster a better relationship with existing clients. It’s a perfect addition to any B2B sales organization.” ë

INTERVIEW

Restoring Human Connection in Business

ESTABLISHED IN THE MARKET APPROXIMATELY 3 YEARS AGO, HUCO HAS ALREADY MADE A WIDE FOOTPRINT AS A LEADING SOLUTION PROVIDER IN THE REGION. ENTERPRISE CHANNELS MEA HAD A QUICK CHAT WITH THE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE COMPANY, ASHOK CHAKRAVARTHI ARULMOZHI, WHO TOOK US BACK TO THE INTERESTING HISTORY OF HUCO.

ASHOK CHAKRAVARTHI ARULMOZHI, MD, HUCO

n B Y: D I V S H A B H AT < D I V S H A @ G E C M E D I A G R O U P. C O M >

ow important is a human connection in a modern-day business? Extremely important might be the answer but how many of us have taken that step ahead to create this connection? With organizations prioritising on business and technology, the skill of connecting with people has taken a back seat. Even in today’s era of digital innovation ruled by artificial intelligence and machine learning, the sheer impact that a person can deliver cannot be replaced by technology, believes Ashok Chakravarthi Arulmozhi, Managing Director, Huco. During their earlier days, Ashok and his business partner Dilip Kalliyat, currently the President for HUCO realized the lack of knowledge in the market on how infrastructure can bring efficiency to business. The duo noticed that the market needs more consultative approach rather than just selling products. Together, they incorporated

a company that addressed this void and named it “Huco”, which is formed from the words “human” and “connection”. Since its establishment, Huco is the only company having the highest number of successful desktop transformation projects in the Middle East, says Ashok. In the end user computing space, Huco has delivered more than 85 projects across all verticals of the market. “Today, Huco stands tall as one of the only 2 partners in Europe and the first partner in the MENA region to have all 4 master services competencies from VMware. Huco is one step ahead of the curve in delivering services around Hybrid Cloud Infrastructure, End User Computing, Software Defined Networking and Automation. We have top skills around DevOps and completely understand the containers/Kubernetes space. We have deep knowledge in these domains and have resources who have done major implementations

in the region. Apart from Hybrid Cloud and DevOps, the two other focus areas are Cyber Defence and Analytics,” he said. Today with over 45 consultants, the company competes with some of the largest companies in Europe, Middle East and Africa, and have done transformational projects in Germany, Saudi Arabia and UK. More than a quarter of their services revenue comes from the European region and they recently won the coveted VMware Service Partner of the Year 2018 for the METNA region. “This year, Huco aims to be the largest Hybrid Cloud Infrastructure service delivery partner in the entire region. Clubbed with strategic solutions and services, the goal is to be the top player in the industry”, he says. The company is also developing a tool in CICD (Continuous Integration, Continuous Delivery) for DevOps. Huco looks forward to be a vendor independent company. “Our value proposition is clearly based on the business use-cases of the customer. We deliver services for VMware, Dell Technologies, Nutanix and other vendors as well”. In his closing note, Ashok states that his top priorities will never change. “Incubating world-class talent and an employee first attitude that delivers repeated customer delight” ë

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GEC OPEN FINALE

DAY ONE

5 ANNUAL GEC OPEN TH

GOLF CULMINATES IN A GRAND WORLD FINAL IN DUBAI India’s Ankit Mohindra becomes Global Champion. Thai golfers Benja Rattanaphan and Phum Ketkham secures podium finish.

EC Open, a global corporate golf tournament, recently organised the World Final of 2018-19 season- Dubai Corporate Golf World Cup. The GEC Open World Final was the culmination of 54 golf rounds played across 34 countries in 2018. The winners of these qualifying rounds, top amateur golfers and industry stalwarts, came together for the World Final. The world final was held over two days at Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Fire and Earth Course. Testing their mettle at two very different layouts that are home to few of the most reputed professional tournaments on the European Tour,

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ANKIT MOHINDRA,

Commented “I am extremely happy to have come here and finished on top of the leaderboard. I thoroughly enjoyed firstrate golf experience at two of the world-class golf courses, as well as all the arrangements done by the oraganisers. The tournament also provided us with an opportunity to network with amateur golfers and leaders from various industries who all share the common love for the game of golf. It was also a rich cultural experience. This victory will stay with me.”

GEC OPEN FINALE

DAY TWO

TUSHAR SAHOO, FOUNDER & MANAGING DIRECTOR, GEC OPEN

Commented “We are thankful to all participants for making this journey to be with us in celebration of another year of outstanding golf, networking and new friendships. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent your country on the world stage against likeminded competitors from across the world. We are confident that the golfers will truly enjoy the GEC experience for a long time as true ambassadors of Global Enterprise Connect. We recognise our sponsors, OMA Emirates, bizgolf, Chase54, African+Eastern, Egypt Air, Andromeda and Callaway for their continued support and patronage for the event. We are thankful to the management and golf operations team at Jumeirah Golf Estates for a seamless execution of the competition.”

the amateurs displayed grit and determination in their endeavour for the coveted trophy. Played in the individual Stableford format with ¾ handicap index allowance, the player with the best total stableford score of two days, in a single best Nett category, is crowned Global Champion with prizes also presented to 2nd and 3rd place finishes. As the first day came to a close, playing off a five handicap, Thai golfer Phum Ketkham carded 43 Stableford points. Phum had qualified from the national qualifying round at Nikanti Golf Club in Thailand. Following him with 38 stableford points was Neeharika Thangamma from Bengaluru, India with 10 handicap. Third position was occupied by Benja Rattanaphan who also hails from Thailand and is the second qualifier from the South Asian nation along with Phum. Playing off a 19 handicap, Benja scored 37 points on the opening day. In the evening, the players attended a networking and camaraderie-building dinner at the Jumeirah Golf Estates ballroom. The

intimate affair presented the amateurs with an opportunity to get to know each other and build new friendships and business relations. The second and final day of GEC Open World Final 2018-19 moved to the Earth Course of the prestigious Jumeirah Golf Estates. The best 60 golfers from 34 countries under the fold of GEC Open 2018 came together for the final round of golf of the 5th edition. India’s Ankit Mohindra who qualified from Delhi NCR qualifying round held at Classic Golf Resort near Gurgaon consolidated on his first-day score of 37 points with a superb round of 33 Stableford points. The overall score of 70 Stableford points was enough to propel him to the top of the leaderboard and take home the coveted trophy. Benja Rattanaphan, a national winner from Nikanti Golf Club in Thailand, scored identical scores of 70 Stableford points but had to settle for runner-up position due to a higher playing handicap. The third position again went to a Thai golfer in Phum Ketkham who carded a twoday total of 67 Stableford points.

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#RevolveDX

COVER STORY

The 5th edition of The Future IT Summit held on 13th March at The Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa was a staggering success. Attended by over 300+ key decision makersâ€” including top government officials and leading CIOs from the GCC and Africa region, the Future IT Summit 2019 explored the IT landscape of the GCC countries. With some thought-provoking presentations, competitive solution showcase, live demonstrations and expert panel discussions, the summit was a huge advantage for the attendees and partners to take away some knowledgeable experiences.

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COVER STORY

SPEAKER

SAMER SEMAAN, DISTRIBUTION MANAGER GULF AND UAE, DELL TECHNOLOGIES

ABDULAZIZ ALORAIJ, FOSS DIRECTOR, MCIT SAUDI

ELIE KAMEL, REGIONAL MANAGER, NETAPP

LOAY ALNAKHAL, ICT AMBASSADOR, DUBAI MUNICIPALITY

IBRAHIM TALIB AL WARDI, ACT. DIRECTOR & GENERAL MANAGER OF E-SERVICES ITA, OMAN

AMBASSADOR ALI JASSIM ALARADI, DIRECTOR INFORMATION SYSTEMS DIRECTORATE, MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN

MIKE O’ HARA, TERRITORY ACCOUNT MANAGER, NUTANIX

“THANK YOU FOR ORGANIZING A MAGNIFICENT EVENT AND FOR INVITING ME. IT WAS A PRODUCTIVE PLATFORM TO GAIN AN INSIGHT ON UPCOMING TRENDS AND FOR NETWORKING WITH BEST-OF-THE-BEST.” NITIN BHARGAVA, MASHREQ

“THE EVENT WAS ABSOLUTELY ASTONISHING FROM ALL ASPECTS. IT WAS VERY WELL ORGANISED AND WAS PLEASURE TO BE PART OF IT.” HASHIM SAEED, AZIZI DEVELOPMENTS

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EXPERT PANEL DISCUSSION: ‘RevolveDX – Ready, Steady, Disrupt. The Panel was a blend of leading digital disruptors, who looked into how the industry leaders are staying calm while being at the verge of disruption and what the future holds in store— for the service provider and the end-user.

“IT WAS A GREAT EVENT, LEARNED CURRENT TRENDS, TECHNOLOGIES AND LATEST UPDATES ON INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES. LOOKING FORWARD SIMILAR EVENTS IN FUTURE.” RONALD STEWART DSA, OSN

The expert panel discussion, moderated by the Editor of Enterprise Channels was chaired by Sh. Khalid Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, CIO, King Hamad University Hospital, Samer Semaan, Distribution Manager – Gulf & UAE, Dell Technologies, Mike O’Hara, Territory Account Manager, Nutanix, Syed Mohammed Naqvi, Head of MIS, Data & IT Governance, Al Hilal Bank, Ajay Rathi, Digital Evangelist, Meshal M Alfouwais, Digital Transformation Initiative Manager, Saudi Electricity Company.

“CONGLOMERATION OF THE TOP ICT SECTOR PROFESSIONALS. GREAT SHOWCASE OF ICT ACHIEVEMENTS ACROSS THE REGION.” SH. KHALED ALKHALIFA, KHUH

UNVEILING THE BOTS

As a critical step towards further establishing the Global CIO Forum (GCF) to be the single voice for CIOs globally, GEC Media Group brought out the industry-first edition of ‘BOTS— The Book of Titans’, a special yearbook that celebrates the success of the world top 200 CIOs of the digital world and their projects. The yearbook was unveiled in a gala ceremony amidst the presence of VIPs, dignitaries and some renowned CIOs who successfully made it to the list of 200. The World CIO 200 were chosen after a deep-dive into the mega projects and accomplishments of the CIOs based on the nominations submitted for the CIO 200 Awards. The Roadshow held between May to November 2018, covering ten countries, honored 1280 CIOs from UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Ghana, Kenya, Egypt and India. The award categories (Next-Gen, Leaders, Masters and Legends) were set based on the career span of the CIO and celebrated every single project or CIO who brought a difference to the organization— significant or small.

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COVER STORY

WTX – WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY TRANSFORMATION

GEC Media Group and e-Safe introduced the WTX – Women in Technology Transformation. A 30-minutes power-packed session comprising four women leaders from the GCC; Alia Al Hammadi, ex Director of IT at ENEC and CEO and Co-Founder of Dubai Freelance Company; Aisha Suleiman Ahmed Al Ali, Managing Director of Experts Department, Ministry of Justice; Maya Zakhour, Head of Distribution and Alliances, Middle East & Africa, NetApp; Sherifa Hady, Interim Managing Director – South Africa and Distributor Director-Central Eastern Europe Middle East & Africa at Hewlett Packard Enterprise. The panel was moderated by Mohamed Mustafa Saidalavi. Mustafa is a Founder and Chief of 2 Not-For-Profit Organization in UAE & India and 25 years of stellar IT professional and humanitarian career in UAE. An internationally recognized social entrepreneur, Mohamed is currently heading to build an Asia & Africa regional capacity on Child Online Protection. The panel shed light on key areas as; Achieving Women Safety online in a Geography Agnostic Jurisdiction, Driving UAE towards a safer Haven for Women, From Empowerment to Further Peace, Safeguarding the digital

“ONCE AGAIN, ENTERPRISE CHANNELS MEA MANAGED TO HAVE A VERY SUCCESSFUL EVENT WITH MULTIPLE INTERESTING SUBJECTS AND IDEAS DISCUSSED SUCH AS WOMEN IN TECHNOLOGY, CHILDREN SAFETY ON THE INTERNET AND WITH TECHNOLOGY IN GENERAL, AND THE EXCELLENT END WITH THE CATALYST AWARDS.” MARIO FOSTER, AL NABOODAH GROUP ENTERPRISE

“IT WAS A PLEASURE TO ATTEND THE IT FUTURE SUMMIT 2019 AND GET TO KNOW A GROUP OF LEADING IT COMPANIES AS WELL AS LEADING IT PROFESSIONALS.” AHMED ALAHMAD, NAKHEEL PJSC

footprint and integrity of women online.

TOP 10 BEST IT COMPANIES TO WORK FOR IN 2019 The Awards honored the companies that have demonstrated extraordinary leadership with a proven track record of growth, profitability and essentially employee happiness. The event also extended opportunities for companies to network with the industry leaders and government officials.

THE WINNERS OF THE TOP 10 IT COMPANIES ARE: DELL TECHNOLOGIES

ZEBRA TECHNOLOGIES

VALTO TECHNOLOGIES

EMITAC ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS

RUBRIK

NETAPP

RHIENBRUCKE IT CONSULTING

ARROW ECS SAI GLOBAL

STORIT

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COVER STORY

CATALYST AWARDS

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COVER STORY

2019 WINNERS

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COVER STORY

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COVER FEATURE

GAUTHAM RAJ, CEO, EMITAC ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS

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COVER FEATURE

mitac Rising After a couple of tumultuous years, Emitac Enterprise Solutions is all set to win the market once again. Gautham Raj, CEO of EES is holding the reigns tight and steering the company in the right direction with its most core asset – Intellectual properties. n W O R D S : A N U S H R E E D I X I T < A N U S H R E E @ G E C M E D I A G R O U P. C O M >

mitac Enterprise Solutions, in its forty three year of existence, has surfed through many waves of transformation in the market. As opposed to Darwin’s theory of survival of the fittest, Emitac has been riding steady on the theory of survival of the dynamic. After a dynamic shift in the upper management and rising above the rumors in the market, the system integrator is all set to reaffirm its position in the market with a result-driven and a seasoned veteran on board as a CEO— Gautham Raj. Additionally, the company has recently undergone massive ‘re-visioning’ and structural changes. After establishing a strong hold in the UAE market, EES is all set to venture into other countries with a quiver that carries more ‘Services’ than ever. As the market evolves to adapt to the ubiquitous technologies, EES has stepped in at a very exciting phase. “I joined the company with one vision—to rise above the tide and come out with a much stronger portfolio and messaging in the market,” says Gautham. “We are transforming, we are ready.”

ADAPTING TO THE EVOLUTION There has been a significant change and evolution in the role of an SI in the past few years, according to Gautham. Earlier, in the wake of any crisis or need, the customers reached out to the SIs as the latter had a pool of rich and talented resources. Later, when

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COVER FEATURE

the economic boom happened, vendors started stepping up their resources, started opening new offices and hiring local talent. “Now we have reached a time where, owing to economic situations, vendors are again scaling down on the resources. But, many system integrators have not been able to cement this opportunity. This is where I see myself playing the most critical role as the CEO,” says Gautham. “One of my key priorities has been to attract and retain as much intellectual property as possible.”

ALL ROADS LEAD TO SERVICES EES is aiming to further strengthen its position as a stronger service player. The highly upgraded and customized business units of EES assures that the customers can keep their operational worries at bay and focus on the

core business objectives. For many organizations. customers are moving from CAPEX to OPEX and a huge focus is on BOT (Build, Operate, Transfer). Emitac sees this as a high growth opportunity. “This year, Cloud comes as a reality to the Middle East market. So all our efforts are going in the direction of creating a perfect hybrid story for the customers,” says Gautham with a smile. “In order to align our vision with that of the customers, we have had some significant alliances that further empowers the hybrid IT environment of an organization.” In addition to strengthening our partnership with HPE, Emitac stretched up new alliances with Huawei, Lenovo and 3i-Infotech.

Gautham plans to help customers to transform their environment to a truly Hybrid One. On the other hand, Emitac’s deep-rooted expertise in enterprise infrastructure and managed technology solutions which comes from a long experience across a broad customer base in the region, seamlessly dovetails with 3i Infotech’s global experiences in managed services, business optimization services, mobility, and data analytics. With expertise across key growth verticals such as Banking, Financial Services, Insurance, Government, Manufacturing, Retail, Distribution, Telecom and Healthcare on either side, this partnership has what it takes to offer the best of breed in technology solutions.

By leveraging the industry leading software defined portfolio from HPE, Huawei and Lenovo along with the legendary services of Emitac,

THE WORLD IS YOUR MARKET Gautham says that with Cloud in your service

HYBRID JOURNEY SIMPLIFIED

CRITICAL ALLIANCES

EES BUSINESS UNITS

l Hybrid IT division enables customers to choose the right technology ingredient

l Partnership with Azure and AWS for Cloud Migration

l Hybrid IT: aims to make EES the best-inclass SI of choice

l Strategic Partnership with 3i Infotech to provide advanced digital technology Solutions

l Service Excellence: specializes in implementing projects and infrastructure maintenance solutions

l Partnership with World -class solution providers l Cloud Application services l Cloud Transformation and migration l SaaS l 24x7x365 Managed Cloud services

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l Partnership with CloudHealth Technologies for cloud management l Partners with Syngrafii to deliver legally compliant & highly secured Signature Solutions throughout UAE.

l Business Transformation: transformation and modernization of customers’ IT environment

COVER FEATURE

portfolio, the world is your market. “If you have your own intellectual property, then you have the biggest advantage with Cloud. The restrictions of geography is no longer there and cloud enables you to offer anything and everything as a service. So, with the strategy to build our own intellectual property, Emitac Group scouted the market and concluded the acquisition of a company called Lattice. The acquisition provides us with a number of IPs and the largest of them is for facilities management.” Reflexion— one of the critical platforms offered by Lattice is a computer-aided facilities management that runs the biggest communities in UAE in the real estate and construction sector. Aligning with the vision of the UAE government in going paperless by 2025, Emitac has shook hands with a company called Syngraffi. “A lot of paperwork can be digitized but cheques are

still a reality. Syngraffi is an e-Signature solution that provides an end-to-end e-Signature solution with all the workflow. It has a unique patent to sign cheques with wet ink remotely, thereby solving the last mile issue in digitization.,” says Gautham. “Our innovation runs parallel with the market needs,” he adds.

THE MAGIC SAUCE Emitac Enterprise Solutions was one of the proud winners of the Top 10 Best IT Companies to Work for Award in 2019 at the recently held Future IT Summit 2019. “Creating an engaged workforce is our magic sauce. If you can manage talent and create an environment where people love to come to work, half your job is done,” says Gautham. “It’s a conscious strategy and all my team members

will vouch for it. We have a bell in the office. Whenever someone strikes a deal, significant or small or achieves anything, he or she comes and rings the bell and the entire office celebrates that moment. Every Thursday, we have three hours of learning sessions, where the entire team, including me, sit down to learn. These are a few cultural changes that we have initiated in the company thereby making Emitac not only the best place to work for current employees, but also the preferred employer for the top talents in the market.

THE REBOOT According to Gautham, when he joined Emitac in 2018, the ‘Reset’ button had already been pressed. “I stood at the threshold of a golden opportunity where I had to boot up the machine with a new operating system. Emitac is ready!” Gautham signs off. ë

GAUTHAM’S TOP 3 PRIORITIES

Establish leadership position across Middle East by propelling the IPs

Be a leader in the Hybrid Cloud Management

Attract and retain the top talent

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ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

UNVEILING OF NUTANIX’ NEW CHANNEL CHARTER IN AUGUST 2018

utanix unveiled a new Channel Charter entitled ‘Power to the Partner’ that is reflective of a new approach required in today’s changing marketplace. Traditional channel programs need to evolve or they will never enable partners to be successful. A program is dictated by rules and guidelines, while a charter is about empowering partners to be successful in the market. In today’s cloud era, Nutanix’ charter focuses on the new generation of “born-in-the-cloud” solution providers. A new kind of approach is required for these kinds of channel partners, going beyond typical programs with tiers and clip levels. Flexibility is a key feature of the charter. It is not a one size fits all channel program. The Nutanix charter includes new marketing tools, multi-touch campaigns and other tools that will help partners brand themselves to customers along with targeting new customers in the market. In December 2018, Nutanix enhanced its channel charter to

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extend opportunities to value-added distributors (VAD) and global systems integrators (GSI) along with additional opportunities for resellers. The new updates provide benefits to partners across industry, size and function in order for all Nutanix partners to succeed and grow with their Nutanix business. As part of the new components of the program, Nutanix has laid out features designed specifically for VADs to provide access to incentives to help them easily capitalize on the multicloud, multi-platform and multi-workload opportunities in the market. Distributors can now leverage multiple resources throughout the sales lifecycle and can easily grow and improve their businesses alongside Nutanix. Benefits for VADs under the new program include: • A self-service channel for simplified quoting and ordering with a new value-added Distributor Price Book • Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Integration to give distributors a faster time to revenue with Quote-to-Cash Automation

ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

partners will see further benefits from investing time and resources into selling Nutanix solutions. Starting in February 2019, Nutanix is also providing partners with XLAB software licenses for Scaler and Master partners. In order to obtain more autonomy over selling Nutanix products, Scaler and Master partners will now have access to full-featured licenses for a broad range of Nutanix software solutions to leverage in their lab environments.

LAUNCH OF ‘VELOCITY’ - A CHANNEL PROGRAM TARGETING STRATEGIC, MIDMARKET-FOCUSED PARTNERS

• New incentives to reward VADs for focus, enablement and partner management at the Pioneer level within Nutanix’s largest selling geographies Power to the Partner is also adding a new Influence Incentive Program, which rewards partners who significantly contribute to a customer purchase. Partners with strategic relationships and influence with customers who may not be transacting on the sale of a deal - can now receive an Influencer Incentive if they are Scalers, Masters or authorized GSI partners. Additionally, since the original launch of Power to the Partner, Nutanix has further clarified distinctions between the reseller partner tiers in the charter. Partners will now have discounting and pricing on approved opportunities which are enhanced as they move up the tiers of the charter. With new distinctions between tiering, BASSAM AL MASRI, SR. MANAGER CHANNEL, NUTANIX MIDDLE EAST

In June this year, we launched the Nutanix Velocity channel partner program targeted at key partners focused on the mid-market. It includes accelerated selling processes, incentives and marketing investments for strategic, mid-market focused channel partners. As part of the program, Lenovo is joining forces with Nutanix to provide specific HX product bundles for mid-market customers based on the HX appliance. In addition, the companies are jointly launching a new hyperconverged software-ready product offering, designed specifically for enterprise customers called Lenovo ThinkAgile HX Certified Nodes. Through this new program, Nutanix is enabling partners to demonstrate to customers in the mid-market how hyperconverged infrastructure can help provide an elegant solution to their needs without the cost and security challenges they may face with public cloud-only models. Nutanix is looking to prioritize and reward partners who invest the most in the company’s business.

WHAT DOES NUTANIX’S PARTNER ECOSYSTEM LOOK LIKE? Our partner ecosystem includes technology alliance partners, system integrators, Managed Service Providers (MSPs), OEM partners, Consulting partners and training partners. ë

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CHANNEL CHIEFS

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A CHANNEL CHIEF SAP

08 AM

At work early to ensure that our day-to-day operations are on track, and that we are reaching our indirect revenue targets for the region. I’ll also give a quick check on the news, the SAP JAM portal, and social media so that I’m up to date on the latest business and technology news in the region.

10 AM

Conduct a workshop with one of larger MENA partners where we share plans, ideas, exercises, and thinking across borders. The SAP Global Partner Organization often facilitates interactions between channel partners and additional SAP departments, including Pre-sales, Sales, and the Industry Value Engineers to provide our end-users with the right solutions that meet their business needs.

12 PM

Team-building lunch. A big part of the SAP corporate culture is coaching and mentoring young talent.

02 PM

Group training on digital skills. MENA is driving digital transformation, especially on the cloud, to enable Intelligent Enterprises. Our staff need the knowledge and skills on how emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, blockchain, and the Internet of Things can transform customer experiences.

MOHAMED KHAN, CHANNEL HEAD SAP GLOBAL PARTNER ORGANIZATION IN MENA

03 PM

Conference calls with our Middle East South and Middle East North business teams, and marketing and communications teams, to map our strategic business plans and partner enablement activities by country.

04 PM

Calls with SAP Global Partner Organization, outlining new partner resources, upcoming events, and solutions schedule. We are continuing to emphasize our SAP HANA in-memory platform, SAP S/4HANA in-memory business suite, and SAP C/4HANA customer experience suite, and Qualtrics experience management and CallidusCloud CRM.

06 PM

I spend a lot of time with my family. In the evening, we may attend my son’s school football tournament, Skype with our daughter in university, and raise our young son. In the evening, we often watch cricket matches together.

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CHANNEL CHIEFS

A Day in the Life of a Channel Chief - NetApp “AS A WOMAN LEADER, I FIRMLY BELIEVE IN LEADING BY EXAMPLE AND CONTINUE TO MOTIVATE AND EMPOWER MY TEAM AND THE CHANNEL BY PLACING MY TRUST AND CONFIDENCE IN THEIR CAPABILITIES”

MAYA ZAKHOUR, PARTNERS & PATHWAYS LEAD - MEA, NETAPP

or a channel chief, channel is not just a part of his/her day-to-day life, it is more of an ongoing journey. As channel partners need to master 360-degree front to ace their game, being an advisor to them and to steer the channel in the right direction, channel chiefs need to be in the habit of constant learning and development. It is not just limited to selling your own product anymore, as it now includes everything in terms of technology and knowledge. This would mean an advisor has to educate partners on rapid technological advances, digital transformation initiatives and partner organizations so that they can benefit and grow their

business. Most importantly, our efforts should add value to our partners’ business. Investing maximum efforts into understanding their businesses and needs and aligning them properly in ways that ensure business growth is the strategy I personally follow. As a woman leader, I firmly believe in leading by example and continue to motivate and empower my team and the channel by placing my trust and confidence in their capabilities. Constant improvement of skill sets through acquiring practical experience is very important for a channel chief to become an influential leader capable of providing effective guidance to part-

ners and distributors. Focusing on innovation as the key differentiator helps me develop and strengthen sales through channel. The role of channel partners is critical in any organization’s success. They are fundamental in our mission to build resultoriented information technology infrastructures required to succeed in today’s digital transformation era. A successful channel chief knows this and values their contributions, while leading them forward, not just looking at alliances and providing solutions but also ensuring correct pricing, profitability, incentives. ë

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FEATURE STORY

MULTI CLOUD UNLOCKING THE REALITY!

The multi-cloud industry is expected to triple in size by 2020 as the Middle East organizations are aiming to add more value to the business by using this platform. However, industry leaders point out the challenges that this transition will bring. Read on…

n B Y: D I V S H A B H AT < D I V S H A @ G E C M E D I A G R O U P. C O M > n P H O T O : S H U T T E R S T O C K

s organizations undergo digital transformation and continue to increase their cloud consumption, many companies are finding that a ‘multi-cloud’ approach is the new norm. According to IDC’s CloudView Survey, the vast majority of cloud users are running more than one type of cloud deployment and work with more than one major cloud provider — and this new world of ‘multi-cloud’ comes with new challenges and new priorities. According to a report by Markets and Markets, the Middle East’s cloud applications market is set to triple to USD 2.4 billion by 2020.

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THE MIDDLE EAST APPROACH Though the cloud adoption in the Middle East is in its early days, we can see some major investments by global cloud service providers in the region. According to a survey carried out by Equinix among more than 1,200 senior IT professionals from across Europe, Middle East and Africa, show the rise of multi-cloud and the evolving role of the data center. According to the survey, more than seven in 10 (71%) organisations are likely to move more of their business functions to the cloud in the coming years. 60% of EMEA IT leaders cite proximity to cloud

FEATURE STORY

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FEATURE STORY

“WITH MULTICLOUD, IT GETS TO FOCUS ON THE KEY DRIVERS OF ENTERPRISE INNOVATION AND DIFFERENTIATION–APPLICATIONS AND DATA,” AARON WHITE, REGIONAL DIRECTOR – MIDDLE EAST AT NUTANIX.

“SECURITY AND PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS OF MULTICLOUD CONNECTIVITY CAN BE CONFIDENTLY ADDRESSED THROUGH THE CAPABILITIES OF PRIVATE CONNECTIONS AND VIRTUALIZATION,”

“MULTI-CLOUD IS HERE TO STAY AND THAT IT HAS THE POWER TO TRANSFORM BUSINESS OPERATIONS FOR THE BETTER,”

JEROEN SCHLOSSER, MANAGING DIRECTOR, EQUINIX MENA

DR. CHRIS COOPER, GENERAL MANAGER FOR LENOVO DCG, MIDDLE EAST, TURKEY AND AFRICA

“EXECUTIVES SHOULD BE MAKING STRATEGIC DECISIONS ABOUT THE APPROPRIATE ENVIRONMENT BASED ON THE TYPE OF DATA AND THE APPLICATIONS MAKING USE OF THAT DATA,” JAMES PETTER, VP INTERNATIONAL, PURE STORAGE

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service providers (CSPs) as an integral factor when choosing a data center in their local market. “Over the last year demand for cloud services has been very strong but the lack of ‘In-Region deployed’ cloud platform has been a barrier to adoption. 2019 will be the first year that both government and enterprise have choice in building hybrid cloud structures,” said Jeroen Schlosser, Managing Director, Equinix MENA. “As both public and private cloud continue to mature, many companies opt for both, leveraging multiple clouds to satisfy their diverse enterprise computing needs. Multicloud allows companies to choose the right cloud for each workload, be it a mission-critical core application such as enterprise resource planning, or cutting-edge cloud-native analytics apps. With multicloud, IT gets to focus on the key drivers of enterprise innovation and differentiation–applications and data. Multicloud combines on-premise operations with services and applications running on multiple cloud providers, which enables organizations to capture the benefits of each platform while mitigating their downsides,” said Aaron White,

Regional Director – Middle East at Nutanix. But what are the challenges/benefits that it brings with it?

ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES & UNLOCKING ITS BENEFITS The task of designing and building a multicloud infrastructure will be different for every enterprise. For many, the process will involve linking legacy, on premise applications, etc with a range of resources and services provided by the external cloud service provider. Yasser Zeineldin, CEO of eHosting DataFort believes that adopting a multicloud strategy comes with its own set of challenges. “Managing multi-cloud solutions from different vendors across different cloud environments can be difficult and time consuming. If not monitored and managed properly, it can lead to several operational issues. Many regional organizations are signing on managed cloud services providers to assist them with their multi-cloud solutions, where they will manage issues with interoperability, infrastructure,

FEATURE STORY

“SERVICE PROVIDERS THAT CAN HELP ORGANIZATIONS BUILD THEIR PRIVATE CLOUDS WHILE DRIVING BUSINESS AGILITY AND MANAGING THEIR COSTS, WILL INCREASINGLY BECOME IN-DEMAND” PAUL POTGIETER, MANAGING DIRECTOR – UAE, DIMENSION DATA

“SYMANTEC’S ULTIMATE GOAL IS TO SECURE BUSINESSES IN THE CLOUD GENERATION ERA,” GORDON LOVE, VICE PRESIDENT OF SYMANTEC REGION

“BY WORKING WITH MULTIPLE CLOUD SERVICES PROVIDERS, ENTERPRISES CAN LESSEN THEIR DEPENDENCY ON A SINGLE PROVIDER AND CAN ALSO AVOID VENDOR LOCK-INS, DATA CENTER OUTAGES AND BANDWIDTH ISSUES,” YASSER ZEINELDIN, CEO OF EHOSTING DATAFORT

network, storage, backup management and monitoring, security and other challenges. By partnering with a trusted managed cloud services provider, organizations will be able to monitor

their cloud solutions from one single place and avoid complications. They will also get regular maintenance and 24x7 support to ensure issues are resolved quickly,” he said. But regardless of the challenges, it is likely that an organization will end up with a multi-cloud infrastructure in which various IT services are delivered by different cloud providers. According to a report, 90% of companies will have a portion of their applications or infrastructure in the cloud this year. Among the many lessons learned in that migration over the last several years is the need to drive efficiency and cost savings while meeting strategic business needs. This means setting data free, but doing so in the most efficient manner possible, which in many cases is vastly different than operations today. In the coming months, IT departments will review their investments made in first generation public cloud and evaluate their return on investments from operational expenditures. Increasingly IT departments are assessing the benefits of spending the same amounts on private clouds and this approach is gaining traction in market segments with high value transactional data. Service providers that can help organizations build their private clouds while driving business agility and managing their costs, will increasingly become in-demand said Paul Potgieter, Managing Director – UAE, Dimension Data. The bottom line according to James Petter, VP International, Pure Storage is “Executives should be making strategic decisions about the appropriate environment based on the type of data and the applications making use of that data. For example, applications that typically run consistently day after day and week after week— mission critical, steady state apps that run all the time without a lot variance—are better-suited to an on-prem instance. It’s simply less expensive

than running such apps persistently in the cloud.”

TACKLING THE SECURITY CHALLENGE A hybrid cloud model brings both improved security and added complexity. And with complexity comes the potential for new vulnerabilities. Managing this increasingly complex system will be one of the biggest challenges in the coming years believes Gordon Love, VP, Symantec region. “This is the reason why Symantec has been developing a new range of products around cloud protection,W he said. “Symantec’s ultimate goal is to secure businesses in the Cloud Generation era. Symantec’s Integrated Cyber Defense (ICD) platform unifies cloud and on-premises security to provide threat protection, information protection and compliance across all endpoints, networks, email, and cloud applications, already used by companies around the world. One of the other ways businesses can use the cloud more securely is through direct, dedicated interconnections between network and cloud providers and users and data, bypassing the hacking and performance risks of the public internet. Moving enterprise IT infrastructure to the edge, where proximate, direct cloud and carrier interconnections can be deployed via growing numbers of concentrated cloud/network provider and business ecosystems, is a great way achieve lower latency, said Jeroen. Lenovo DCG believes that multi-cloud is here to stay and that it has the power to transform business operations for the better. “Over the next five years, the use of multi-cloud and AI will become much more pronounced and enterprises around the world will increasingly leverage these new technologies to play a crucial role in their IT infrastructure,” said Dr. Chris Cooper, General Manager for Lenovo DCG, Middle East, Turkey and Africa. ë

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ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

STORAGE AND SURVEILLANCE 360 KUWAIT

xpansion and construction of new hotels, shopping malls and public infrastructures across GCC countries have spurred the video surveillance storage market in GCC countries. According to a research, GCC Video Surveillance Storage market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.5% during 2017-2023. GEC Media along with our Partner Toshiba

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spotted the growth and did a roadshow across the GCC to find out how ready are the markets in adopting the storage and surveillance systems. The roadshow kicked off in March 2018 in Saudi Arabia followed by UAE, Oman, Qatar and ended in March 2019 in Kuwait. The roadshow touched upon some of the key aspects of the countryâ€™s storage and surveillance market. The last leg of the roadshow held on 6th March

2019 at The Millennium Hotel and Convention Center, Kuwait witnessed the right mixture of CIOs and channel partners. The roundtable was highly successful in putting forward the regional appetite of the country in embracing innovative storage models. Like any other GCC market, it is mandatory in Kuwait to have surveillance cameras. In 2015, the government of Kuwait released a new regula-

ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

HOTEL & CONVENTION CENTER, KUWAIT

6TH MARCH 2019

tion regarding the installation of CCTV and surveillance system. “It made mandatory to use the IP camera with pre-defined specification and storage capacity which will definitely force many organization and business units to replace the existing surveillance and storage system. Since it is a requirement by law, Kuwait market will and have to invest more on this regard,” said Biju Thomas, IT Director, The Millennium Hotel & Convention Center. Yedhu Vijayan, Asst. IT Manager, Gastronomica believes that there is vast opportunity in the country for Storage and Surveillance. He says – “If you are running an organization in related with customer service or any other, surveillance cameras need to be in place, for which storage is also important.” But persistence is the key says Danny Kuriakose, Sales Manager, Global Supplys. “The market is great, dominated by one vendor, availability of stocks, great warranty replacement, and better partnership policies that allow penetrating into market, but you will not get instant gratification, persistent is the key. And worth every penny investing.”

THE NEW LAUNCH Going by the prediction that by the year 2025, 166 zettabytes of data will be produced, Toshiba launched the 16TB in the market. The new MG08 Series HDD is the industry’s largest capacity 16TB Conventional Magnetic Recording (CMR) HDD, offering a storage density boost of 33 percent compared to 12TB drives, and 14 percent more then 14TB drives. “There is need for

bigger capacity drives that are more efficient and less time and energy consuming,” said Santosh Varghese, VP, Toshiba Gulf. “The explosion of big data and the penetration of IoT devices have driven the need for increased memory capacity in enterprises. Innovations in speed, capacity and interfaces have been re-writing the DNA of next generation enterprise storage. As data dwells in the modern enterprises as the new currency, it becomes equally important to have a next-generation vault that is intricately built to not only store it, but secure it as well,” added Santosh.

THE BUSINESS MODEL Toshiba is well known for its channel policy. They have an in-country business model. “We don’t believe in doing business remotely. For Middle East and Africa, we have headquarters based in Dubai. From Dubai, we have in country distributors for all the places,” said Santosh. Toshiba believes that in country distributors add much more value than regional distributors as they know the pulse of the market. They know the products and technologies used in the market. “We have one of the best channel partner programs – P for P – Profit for Performance. If the sales person achieves the target, they can achieve points and benefits which can be monetary or gifts.

CLOUD READY? The conversations during the roundtable took an interesting turn when we checked if the market is cloud ready. Surprisingly, cloud storage or cloud application are still far way in Kuwait Market. As an end user, Biju said “Customers are not willing to keep their data outside their network; but the trend is gradually changing. As an initial change, companies are moving their communication channel to Office 365 instead of having own exchange system. The transition to cloud environment will take little more time.” Organizations are also looking for more case studies to understand the ROI and security issues related to Cloud infrastructure. While most of the channel partners and end users had to say that Kuwait will still take time, Yedhu was of different opinion. The IT Manager believes that the market has already started moving towards cloud storage. “We used to have exchange for email services earlier, but now how many have their on-premise email server? I do agree that organizations have an insecure feeling moving towards cloud storage, but still the adoption is on.” The roundtable was highly successful is putting forward the thoughts of the industry leaders and partners. Toshiba had good interactions and looks forward to some potential partnerships in the country. ë

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ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

THE POWER OF STRONG PARTNERSHIP

“TOSHIBA’S COMMITMENT TO ITS PARTNERS THROUGH YEARLY WORKSHOPS AND DISTRIBUTOR EVENTS THAT INTRODUCE NEW PRODUCTS IS A KEY FACTOR IN THE SUCCESS OF TOSHIBA’S PRODUCTS IN THE LOCAL MARKETS”

very successful over the years. Being close to the market they are able to give ABM better support and remain in constant contact with the market and its needs and developments. What prospects do you see in the Kuwait market for investments in storage and surveillance? More and more homes, businesses, and needless to say government sector are reverting to 24 hour surveillance, thus the investment in storage and surveillance is key to keep up with the growing demand in the market. Describe your core strengths and how do you differ from your competition? Why should a vendor choose ABM? Established in 1983 we have built very strong partnerships with the government sector, large businesses, SMBs, and retail sector. Our product portfolio is diversified and includes international brand names like Toshiba, Brother, BenQ, Kardex, and Diplomat to name a few. Our core strength as a company lies in offering our customer their entire IT solution needs be it computing, storage, security, printing, or visual.

KAMAL ABOUL HOSN,

GENERAL MANAGER, ABM KUWAIT

Being established in 1983, how has the journey been so far for Arabian Business Machines? Arabian Business Machines Co. (ABM) partnering with Toshiba started in 1983 and our business has seen tangible growth over the years. We started our business in photocopiers and have diversified into wide range of IT products and solutions. Toshiba products are highly rated and requested in the market. Tell us about your partnership with Toshiba Gulf. Our partnering with Toshiba Gulf has been

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What kind of training or certifications have been provided by Toshiba to stay in line with their vision and grow the business? Toshiba’s commitment to its partners through yearly workshops and distributor events that introduce new products is a key factor in the success of Toshiba’s products in the local markets. The weekly updates on the storage and surveillance hard drives have been key in assisting our sales team. What are ABM’s top priorities for this year? ABM’s top priorities for 2019 are to increase revenue, acquire new products that complement our current ones, relaunch Toshiba laptops and expand our business for Toshiba storage and surveillance products. ë

UPTO

10TB CAPACITY

SUPPORTS UPTO

CAMERAS

247

OPERATION

READY FOR

NVR, DVR HYBRID DVR & RAID STORAGE

180 TB/YEAR WORKLOAD

UPTO

256MB BUFFER SIZE

ROTATION VIBRATION

RV SENSOR

VERTICAL ANALYSIS

DISRUPTIVE TECH IN BUILDING MARVELS

The rise of smart cities in the GCC is significantly driving technological investments in the real estate and construction sector. As the regional government makes several strides in re-thinking the landscape with newer collaborations, we take a close look into how 3D printing, AI, drones, IoT, AR & VR etc are reshaping and reimagining the experience of both real estate brokers and investors

n W O R D S : A N U S H R E E D I X I T < A N U S H R E E @ G E C M E D I A G R O U P. C O M > n P H O T O : S H U T T E R S T O C K

highly urban population, booming tourism, large influx of expatriates, rise in per capita income and a favorable geographyâ€” if these were not propellers enough to accelerate the real estate and construction sector in the Gulf region, today we see a paradigm shift here with the rising use of emerging technologies.

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Saving operational costs and energy efficiency is on the priority list for the construction giants with a strong pipeline of projects spanning across the hospitality, residential and commercial units providing a major boost. Moreover, after a unbridled patch of years with non-stabilized oil prices, the region is finally getting back on the fierce track of progress and aggressive expansions.

The UAE has already commenced on its expansive affordable residential construction project to accommodate as many as 385,000 expatriate workers in a bid to improve the living standards for expatriates, who are increasingly returning to South Asia due to the rising rents. Additionally, the regional governmentâ€™s initiatives are also helping to attract private investment for the regional

VERTICAL ANALYSIS

“XPEDEON’S FULLY INTEGRATED SUITE OF APPLICATIONS ENSURES THAT YOUR ORGANIZATION HAS COMPLETE CONTROL OVER THE OPERATIONAL PROCESSES AS WELL AS ACCESS TO INCISIVE COST AND MARGIN INFORMATION CRUCIAL TO DECISION MAKING.” JANAK VAKHARIA, CEO, ALGORITHM SOFTWARE

“WE ARE SEEING STRONG ARABIAN GULF REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION DEMAND FOR OUR OPEN AND INTERNET OF THINGSENABLED ECOSTRUXURE ARCHITECTURE, WHICH CAN INTEGRATE BUILDING MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS TO ENHANCE PERFORMANCE AND OPERATIONS.”

“WITH THE ADOPTION OF BIM TECHNOLOGY IN THE MIDDLE-EAST, CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES CAN ACHIEVE BETTER WORK QUALITY, FASTER DELIVERY, REDUCTION IN CONFLICT AND BUILD COST, BETTER PREDICTABILITY AND PERIODIC REVIEW IMPROVEMENTS.”

HANAN DARWISH, CLUSTER PRESIDENT – GULF AND PAKISTAN, SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC

residential real estate market, further driving the number of units across the nations. Significantly on the other hand, there has also been a growing interest in refurbishing the existing infrastructure with recent innovations in retrofitting and reverse engineering.

ENERGY EFFICIENT Data from construction intelligence platform ProTenders released at the end of 2018 revealed the GCC’s infrastructure sector is valued at 1.14tn. Shifting market requirements and an increased pressure on cutting costs have beckoned the need for high-end innovations in the sector and technology crept in with all its charms. Energy efficient buildings, as we mentioned earlier, has been on the rise in the GCC and Schneider Electric is seeing huge potential. “The Arabian Gulf faces three mega-trends that are especially impacting the real estate and construction industry: urbanization, digitization, and industrialization. Buildings, which consume 40% of energy, present a major opportunity for energy-saving solutions. Integrated smart buildings can optimize costs and energy efficiency, improve performance and daily maintenance,

ADITYA SHAH, MD, MBM AMNEX

and enhance property value and occupant experiences. We are seeing strong Arabian Gulf real estate and construction demand for our open and Internet of Things-enabled EcoStruxure architecture, which can integrate building management systems to enhance performance and operations,” says Hanan Darwish, Cluster President – Gulf and Pakistan, Schneider Electric. “One of the best Arabian Gulf examples of energy efficiency solutions in action is the Hilton Garden Inn Mall of the Emirates (MoE), which has digitally transformed with Schneider Electric. Hilton Garden Inn MoE, the largest Hilton Garden Inn outside of the United States, has achieved LEED Gold certification and enhanced energy efficiency, operational efficiency, and guest control,” adds Hanan.

MANAGING WORKFLOWS EFFICIENTLY There is a dire need for diverse IT solutions that not only bridge the gap in constructing cost-effective models, but also provide real time view of the anticipated profitability. According to sources, proponents of technology have pointed to a lack of automation and adoption of technol-

ogy as the primary reasons for the industry’s poor performance. Construction is one of the least digitized industries worldwide, and has resultantly failed to significantly increase worker productivity in decades. Janak Vakharia, CEO of Algorithm Software says that the construction market needs a strong business workflow to ensure complete control over the operational processes. Algorithms Software has been developing and supplying fully integrated business management systems to small, medium and large Civil Contractors, MEP Contractors and Real Estate organizations throughout India, the Middle East and United Kingdom for over 20 years. “The construction industry has many aspects that demand diverse IT solutions to support key processes. It is important that clients select the right product, but it is equally important to select a partner who can demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the industry with a proven, demonstrable track record of delivering ERP solutions in rapidly changing environments,” says Janak. “Xpedeon’s fully integrated suite of applications ensures that your organization has complete control over

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VERTICAL ANALYSIS

the operational processes as well as access to incisive cost and margin information crucial to decision making. With a near real-time view of cost and margin at completion information, you have early visibility on the anticipated profitability of projects and analysis of why variances have occurred. With a strong business process Workflow infrastructure at the core,” he adds. Middle-East has seen tremendous infrastructure growth in the past 25 years. These projects were not only complex but also has to be finished within tight deadlines. This indicates companies to use technology like GIS, Building Information Modeling (BIM) for planned project completion. “Geographic Information System (GIS) is a broad framework for gathering, managing and analyzing data. What more would you ask for than to integrate spatial data with non-spatial data? That is exactly what the result is when GIS is integrated with BIM. It efficiently analyzes spatial location and organises layers of

“WITH SMART CITIES ENABLING GREATER OPPORTUNITY FOR BUSINESSES, ENHANCED CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, LEVERAGING AI IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IS HIGH ON THE AGENDA OF THE REGION’S GOVERNMENTS”

information in visual maps,” says Aditya Shah, MD, Amnex Middle East .

CTRL+P The industry is seeing a remarkable growth in the 3D printing. According to a report, Elite for

$2.38tn

USD67bn

The GCC construction industry has over 27,000 planned projects in the pipeline adding up to about $2.38 trillion

The GCC FM market was estimated to be valued at around USD 44.1 billion in 2017 and expected to reach over USD 67 billion by 2022

USD26.6bn

12.4% $34.8bn The 3D printing is expected to reach $34.8 by 2024

AI in the construction and manufacturing industry is forecast to contribute 12.4% in 2030 to the region’s GDP

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RAMESH JAGANNATHAN, RESEARCH PROFESSOR OF ENGINEERING, VICE PROVOST FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP, AND MANAGING DIRECTOR OF STARTAD

Saudi Arabia remains the leading FM market in the region accounting for around 56% (USD 24.6 billion) of the total FM spends, followed by the UAE with around 26% (USD 11.7 billion)

$585.3bn The kingdom has $585.3bn worth of projects across the planning, design, tender, and construction stages.

Construction and Development Co., a Saudi Arabian construction company is leading the way. It has purchased the BOD2 3D construction printer, which is described as the world’s largest, from Danish company COBOD International. The machine will be the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia, COBOD mentioned in a statement. This purchase is expected to help the kingdom meet its Vision 2030 economic mandate of delivering millions of homes. Similarly, Artificial Intelligence is (AI) in the construction and manufacturing industry is forecast to contribute 12.4% in 2030 to the region’s GDP through its ability to automate, according to PWC. With AI enabling greater worker productivity in labor intensive industries it is no wonder that it has the potential to contribute so much to the economy. “While adoption of AI in construction is behind the curve comparatively to other industries, the construction industry is well poised to leverage AI advances made in adjacent sectors. These include smart cities and transposition, logistics and supply chain for off-site construction, employment of robotics for pre-fabricated construction and 3-D printing and image recognition algorithms,” says Ramesh Jagannathan, Research Professor of Engineering, Vice Provost for Entrepreneurship, and Managing Director of startAD.

FINALLY In an attempt to reduce human labor by 70% and cost by 90% across different sector, Dubai’s 25% new buildings will be 3D printed by 2025. Technology is ready, are we? ë

ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

#AUTOMATION FIRST

Glimpse into the executive roundtable powered by UiPath on Automation First POWERED BY

UAE

March 18, 2019

o thrive in an ever-changing market, companies must be bold and innovative in their approach. They must move efficiently, and operate at hyperspeed. This is where the

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automation first mindset comes in, enabling the enterprise to quickly adapt to change and thrive in the business environment. Organized by GEC Media Group and powered by UiPath, the Automation First roundtable was held in UAE on 18th

ENTERPRISE ADVISOR

SAUDI ARABIA

March 26, 2019

March at The Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa and on 26th March at Burj Rafal Kempinski, Riyadh. Presentations by senior thought leadership and various best practices, were shared with the attendees on what is Robotic Process Automation

and its impact on businesses in the future. The roundtable saw a full house CIOs/ IT Heads from various verticals actively discussed the automation strategies and how it can benefit the business. ĂŤ

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INNOVATIONS

DC 500 SERIES SSDS

Kingston Digital Europe Co LLP, the Flash memory affiliate of Kingston Technology Company, Inc launched its new Data Center 500 Series Enterprise SSDs. DC500R is optimized for read-intensive applications while DC500M is optimized for mixed-use workloads. Both SSDs in the DC500 Series implement Kingston’s strict Quality of Service (QoS) requirements to ensure predictable random I/O performance as well as predictable low latencies over a wide range of read and write workloads.

PURE STORAGE HYPERSCALE AIRI Pure Storage has launched the industry’s first complete portfolio of solutions for any AI initiative, from early inception to large-scale production. An all-new hyperscale configuration of AI-Ready Infrastructure (AIRI) is designed to deliver supercomputing capabilities for enterprises that pioneer real-world AI initiatives and have grown beyond the capabilities of AI-ready solutions available in the market today. Built jointly with the leaders of AI supercomputing, NVIDIA and Mellanox, hyperscale AIRI delivers multiple racks of NVIDIA DGX-1 and DGX-2 systems with both Infiniband and Ethernet fabrics as interconnect options. In addition, Pure Storage announced FlashStack for AI, a solution built jointly with Cisco and NVIDIA, to bring AI within reach for every enterprise. Hyperscale AIRI requires a network compatible with large high-performance computing environments. Mellanox’s highperformance network delivers the industry’s lowest latency and highest bandwidth network for Hyperscale AIRI.

A P R I L 2019

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KEY CAPABILITIES n Optimized for read-intensive applications (DC500R): Responsiveness from low latency and consistent I/O performance delivers businesses the QoS needed in demanding read-centric workloads n Optimized for mixed-use applications (DC500M): An exceptional balance of consistent I/O delivery and high read and write IOPS performance to manage a wide range of transactional workloads n Reduce application latencies: Data center’s hosting databases and various web-based applications can leverage the predictable I/O and latency performance. n Data Integrity Protection: ECC protection with advanced read/disturb management safeguards against data corruption for end-to-end data protection. n On-board (PLP) Power Loss Protection: Reduce the possibility of data loss and/or corruption on ungraceful power fails via power capacitors and firmware. n Form Factor: 2.5 Inch n Interface: SATA Rev. 3.0 (6Gb/s) - with backwards compatibility to SATA Rev. 2.0 (3Gb/s) n Capacities: 480GB, 960GB, 1.92TB, 3.84TB (DC500M 3.84TB capacity available in later Q2) n NAND: 3D TLC n Self-Encrypting Drive (SED): AES 256-bit Encryption

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KEY CAPABILITIES n Is purpose-built to enable data architects, scientists, and business leaders to operationalize AI-at-scale for every enterprise n Is built to address the manageability challenges and productivity barriers by delivering a seamless and flexible end-to-end AI pipeline solution n Now supporting NVIDIA DGX-2, delivers a simple yet powerful architecture n Allows organizations to utilize the true power of AI by eliminating the challenges that prevent organizations from deploying AI-at-scale. n Data scientists can begin building applications with containerized AI frameworks n Allows enterprises to scale beyond NVIDIA DGX-1 to DGX-2

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APRIL 2019 SAUDI ARABIA

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