A RECIPE FOR GROWTH

OMAR AKAR, REGIONAL VICE PRESIDENT, MIDDLE EAST & EMERGING AFRICA, PURE STORAGE, ON HOW C-LEVEL EXECS CAN RESOLVE THEIR DIFFERENCES ON TECHNOLOGY’S ‘INVEST TO GROW’ DEBATE

There is no question that regional businesses accelerated their digital transformations overnight to accommodate the changing working arrangements brought on by the pandemic. COVID-19 called for swift action, and that is what we saw. According to research from AppDynamics, 78% of surveyed UAE technologists pointed to digital transformation projects having been implemented within weeks rather than the months or years it would have taken before the pandemic.

IT budgets were redirected towards cloud migrations and quick wins that would support business continuity. Boards and C-level managers were united in the pursuit of two things — employee safety and short-term changes that would shield the business from market upheavals. While this was undoubtedly necessary at the time, senior executives can find themselves stuck in a play-itsafe mindset that continues to postpone longer-term, strategic investments.

Many of the region’s organisations have found a way to return to a semblance of normality. While nothing will be the same as it was before the pandemic, the quick wins and firefighting phases are behind us. Hybrid work is largely established and accepted, with arguments now being made for a refocus on strategic investment. This has led, in many organisations, to a triangular power struggle between the CEO, the CFO and the CIO. Chief executives want to focus on revenue growth, but financial leaders are wary of large capital outlays, preferring to remain budget conscious. Meanwhile, the CIO wages their timehonored battle to win over the CEO and CFO and convince them that a long-term technology strategy, which is necessary in the digital age, requires investment. In the tumultuous early stages of the pandemic, the CFO’s case was more easily made, and frequently won out.

In 2022, the region is in recovery mode and that means greater competition. In order to compete, organisations need to pinpoint where to invest in order to drive growth.

Business agility is a priority

In a post-COVID technology environment, flexibility is key as it allows senior executives to build agile businesses. Legacy infrastructure does not provide this flexibility or agility and is insufficient to enable quick pivots to new opportunities. Therefore, investing in this area is vital. A Pure Storage survey revealed 83% of decision makers considered an agile strategy essential in being able to innovate effectively and grow.

In this climate, not only is the CEO’s forward-looking, growth-oriented perspective gaining the upper hand, but the CIO’s contribution to future growth is more readily accepted. The pandemic demonstrated the value IT teams could add to an enterprise. After technology proved pivotal to survival for the region’s enterprises, other business areas are now open to hearing from CIOs about what role technology can play in the next chapter of the corporate story.

According to a recent global study from ESG, the top three factors being used to justify IT investments are the need to tighten cyber security, the need to deliver timely business intelligence, and the need to enhance the customer experience. Long-term strategy can be seen at work in these priorities. They demonstrate an awareness of the risks to the business of, say: a ransomware attack, a missed opportunity, or being unresponsive to customer needs. Indeed, the survey drew a direct correlation between technology investment, customer experience, and business growth.

Business-focused technology investment

Thankfully, regional leaders, on both the technology and business side are aware of the value technology adds and the problems it can solve. The best platforms and tools should empower a business to take action and make it competitive. This will ensure an enterprise can remain relevant to customers, partners, and investors, adding value for all stakeholders.

The rise of flexible consumption models as a standard and cloud-like operating models provide good news for the CFO. This means that cost of ownership is easier to calculate and project, and that the days of large capital expenditure are over. Asa-Service models also allow the growthminded CEO and the strategy-minded CIO to try new tools and platforms, and if they don’t work, remove them from outgoings as there’s no long-term commitment.

The CEO will embrace investments that bring agility and the ability to adapt to customers in real time. Technology which can be consumed in a cloud-like manner, scaled up and down when needed, will appeal to the CIO. The CFO will be comforted by growth-driven investment that is predictable and controllable. As 2022 progresses, more and more regional businesses will accept that a growth strategy no longer needs to be relegated to the “future plans” pile. It can occur right now, in a way that will please CFO, CEO and CIO alike.

THE NEED FOR SPEED

NEW CISCO STUDY FINDS THAT WORKERS ACROSS THE UAE CONSIDER HIGHPERFORMANCE BROADBAND ESSENTIAL TO ECONOMIC GROWTH AND HYBRID WORK

Cisco’s latest Broadband Index report reveals that over 70 percent of respondents in UAE state that the reliability and quality of their broadband connection are crucial to economic and societal growth.

According to the global survey of almost 60,000 workers across 30 countries about their home broadband access, quality, and usage, economic and societal growth will not happen without universal access to fast and reliable internet.

Hybrid Work Depends on Quality Internet

The success of hybrid work hinges on the quality and availability of the internet. 3 in 4 respondents in the UAE state the reliability and quality of their broadband connection are important to them. Dependence on highperformance Internet access is further underlined by the fact that 63 percent of respondents actively use their domestic broadband service for seven hours or more each day. Meanwhile three or more people use the internet at the same time in 77 percent of households.

60 percent of respondents state they use a form of mobile technology to connect to the Internet at home; this includes using their mobile phones, or a 4G or 5G hub. Fibre-optic broadband is used by 16 percent.

“Networks and digital technologies are at the heart of the big economic and social transformations happening in our region. Demand for broadband connectivity has increased exponentially since the beginning of the pandemic,” said Reem Asaad, Vice President in the Middle East and Africa, Cisco. “With the rise in remote and hybrid working, businesses are required to enable the collaboration and effectiveness of all employees, regardless of location. We created the Broadband Index to understand how the pandemic has impacted the use of broadband and customers’ expectations around the globe, including the Middle East and Africa.”

Critical for Small and Medium Enterprises

More than half of the UAE workforce now relies on their home internet to work from home or run their own business. This is especially critical for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), that do not have the same resources and IT infrastructure of larger enterprises. A new digital business environment has emerged where ambitious entrepreneurs and start-ups can prosper, fostering innovation across industries. Broadband will therefore play a key role in the growth and evolution of this core segment.

Security Is Vital

In order to work-from-anywhere, employees need to connect to their company’s networks and applications from outside the office, accessing private data across multiple locations, through multiple devices, via public and private networks.

Workers are becoming increasingly aware that safety and security, as well as speed and reliability, will be vital to the success of hybrid working. Security is a key consideration for many workers as 64 percent responded they would pay more to ensure a safer broadband connection.

A Look to the Future

Access to fast and reliable internet is critical to future economic growth, according to 75 percent of respondents. 74 percent think everyone should be able to securely connect to fast and reliable internet, regardless of location.

A further 73 percent claim access to fast and reliable Internet services is vital for maintaining a well-educated population. This is a cornerstone of the UAE Government’s ambitious AI vision 2031 program, as well as Abu Dhabi Vision 2031. When asked about which critical service they would prioritise when using their broadband connection in the future, 24 percent highlighted education.