Enterprise Channels MEA

GBM BAHRAIN EMPOWER CLIENTS HARNESS THE FINTECH REVOLUTION/ 06

PA G E S 5 2 VOLUME O4 M AY 2 0 1 7

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ISSUE 10

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THE ‘AVANT-GARDES’ OF INNOVATION As niche technologies like FinTech and Blockchain disrupt the BFSI Sector, OMA Emirates shares how its entrepreneurial spirit found its home in an innovation-savvy region and dictated the growth there onwards. /32

INDIAECM012017

OMRAN SULTAN AL OWAIS, CHAIRMAN & MANAGING DIRECTOR OF OMA EMIRATES GROUP

THE CRITICAL

INFRASTRUCTURE FORUM 2017 DEC 2017

THE NEXUS OF GCC COUNTRIES FOR FUTURE ECONOMY Unveiling the investments, roadmap, technolgies and key infrastructure pillars that put GCC on the map of global competitiveness

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EDITORIAL

Keep the services ‘up and running’

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

May 2017 will mark the commencement of the Holy month of Ramadan. The festivities and fervor would open new platform for the various sectors to bring in the best innovative campaigns, giving that extra mileage to the channel partners to push the business to different edges. There would also be ample time for investing in some crucial R&D for the existing business models and platforms to add some extra layer of knowledge and innovation. With Ramadan night markets and other 24/7 online and physical retail outlets to be operational for the next two months, the retailer would definitely have a tough time in keeping the services up and running.

The solution for this is— striking the right partnership. When we say ‘adding an extra layer of knowledge and innovation to the business models’, it is all about how these sectors can make best use of the technology available rather than adding layers of technology to an already redundant architecture. It is an age of convergence, where one technology would not suffice and many technologies would not be the right choice either. On one hand, where we are talking about pushing the limits of digitization further, some key reports have stated that only a negligible percentage of large enterprises are actually fit to surf the wave.

This leaves a big question on the face of modern ICT. Where is the gap?

Is it in the awareness? Or in the service delivery models? Or in the very basic infrastructure?

From POS to Omni channel experiences, from business downtimes to hybrid storage models, from core digitization to empowering the UAE’s smart models, this issue of Enterprise Channels MEA is putting hybrid models of digitization in one platform.

Do let us know your inputs on the same.

Also as a part of our Exclusive country roundtables, Bahrain would be playing host to EC MEA’s exclusive CIO roundtable ‘All Roads Lead to Services’ on 15th May, 2017 at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Manama.

Do stay tuned for the updates.

Happy Reading and wishing all readers a very happy and blessed Ramadan. ë

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2017 CONTENTS

VOLUME 04 ISSUE 10 M AY 2 0 1 7 W W W. E C - M E A . C O M

COVER STORY

‘CUSTOMER (EXPERIENCE) IS THE KING’ Winning in a highly competitive marketplace is no more a retail CIO’s boardroom soliloquy; it is a playground for the synergies of multiple vendors and partners to explore and exploit. /24

CIO SPEAK /22

DIGITALIZING THE LIFE OF PHARMA’ SHAILESH MANI, IT HEAD, LIFE PHARMA

INTERVIEW /30

CHANGING WORKFORCE ANALYTICS WITH BIG DATA

INNOVATIONS /49

SPECIAL STORY MISSION DIGITIZATION! /46

DELL WYSE 3040 The Wyse 3040 thin client is an affordable, efficient and easy to manage endpoint solution that allows IT managers to keep costs low while supporting basic productivity and light multitasking...

GREGG GORDON, VP OF BIG DATA, KRONOS.

INTERVIEW /31

CYBER DEFENCE BECKONS FOR ‘SPEED’ SUNIL GUPTA, PRESIDENT AND COO AT PALADION

EDITORIAL :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 04 CHANNEL STREET :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 06 FOCUS STORY “FOCUS UAE” ::::::::::::::::: 42 INNOVATIONS :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 49

ADVERTISER INDEX: CIF 02, EMITAC 03, VEEAM 07, REDHAT 09, OMA 11, RAMADAN 13, SPIRE 15, BULWARK 17, FINESSE 19, GISEC 21, SOPHOS 23, STORIT 29, ROUND TABLE AD - BAHRAIN 45, DELL 51, GEC OPEN 52

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CHANNEL

STREET ABDULAZIZ ALDUAIJ, MANAGER INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT AT KUWAIT NATIONAL PETROLEUM COMPANY

KNPC Selects Dell EMC for Data Protection Dell EMC revealed that the Kuwait National Petroleum Company has successfully deployed Dell EMC’s enterprise storage to drive an agile and future-ready business. Through these deployments, KNPC aims to support rapid data growth and create a highly available foundation for round the clock service delivery. KNPC selected Dell EMC’s VMAX3 enterprise storage systems, Vplex Metro and VNX unified storage arrays to create the right storage environment to support data mobility across KNPC’s three data

centers. “Together with Dell EMC we are able to leverage the powerful combination of world class technology with industry expertise to achieve the scalability, performance and availability that is critical to our ability to innovate and excel for generations to come” said Abdulaziz AlDuaij, Manager Information Technology Department at Kuwait National Petroleum Company “As an ICT enabler, we are proud to be working with an innovative organization such as the Kuwait National Petroleum Company and support

MICROSOFT TACKLES CYBER BREACHES AS DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION ADVANCES Microsoft brought together industry experts and prominent technology decision-makers at a media event in Dubai, to demonstrate how Gulf-based organizations can use cloud services to protect themselves against cyber-threats.. “The threat landscape evolves with the technology ecosystem and so cybersecurity is a top priority for Microsoft,” said Mohammed Arif, Windows & Devices Business Group Lead, Microsoft Gulf. “As targets for attacks grow, we expect the number of breach attempts to increase. The Microsoft cloud incorporates security at every level and in every scenario.”

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their ambitious vision to redefine the country’s energy sector” said Samer Saber, Kuwait Country Manager at Dell EMC. Dell EMC’s VMAX3 and VNX unified storage arrays have enabled KNPC to consolidate its storage infrastructure, to increase the level of data availability and enhance the performance of mission critical applications.

Additionally, KNPC deployed EMC’s ViPR controller and ViPR SRM to develop advanced storage automation capabilities to drive cost efficiency and simplify operational management.

GBM BAHRAIN EMPOWER CLIENTS HARNESS THE FINTECH REVOLUTION Gulf Business Machines participated in the 1st AFS Middle East and Africa FinTech Forum as a Platinum sponsor. GBM was the sole Bahraini ICT company to sponsor the event. Abdulla Ishaq, GBM Bahrain’s General Manager, commented: “Forums such as these showcase Bahrain’s prominent regional role in the digital transformation of our economies. Being the first regional FinTech forum to be held in the Kingdom, we feel it was the perfect platform to bring together major players in the FinTech ecosystem and inspire dialogue and knowledge exchange.

As the IBM partner in Bahrain, GBM is keen to partner with the local banks to enable them in providing the best digital experience for their customers.”

CHANNEL STREET

Emirates Transport Driving Institute and Avanza Shake Hands

Avanza Solutions will provide software for the complete automation of processes and operations, from registration and the issuance of licenses, to delivering training material and arranging examinations.

All the operations can now be automated, through a state-of-the-art business automation solution. This solution will enable Emirates Transport Driving Institute to design and deliver training course material, schedule and manage trainings, design and hold examinations, and monitor in-depth analytics for all activities via an automated platform, creating a streamlined process for a faster, more efficient service.

TREND MICRO & CYBER TALENTS COLLABORATE TO FIGHT CYBERCRIME IN EGYPT The CTF competition serves as an educational practice to give participants experience in securing a machine, as well as conducting and reacting to attacks encountered in the real world. Ihab Moawad, VP of Trend Micro Middle East and Africa said, “Collaborating with Cyber Talents on this competition is a major contribution to the cybersecurity industry in fighting cybercrime in Egypt, raising awareness of and finding solutions to the top cybersecurity challenges.”

SEAMLESS MIDDLE TO SHOWCASE NEW BENCHMARKS IN PAYMENT SOLUTIONS Seamless is set to open its doors on 1-2 May 2017 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The large-scale conference is a seamless continuity from the Middle East’s largest and longest running conference of 17 years – Cards & Payments Middle East.

Recently partnering with the Arab Federation for e-Commerce, the League of Arab States and the Council of Arab Economy Unity, Seamless Middle East 2017 will be held Under the Patronage of His Highness Lieutenant-General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, and will bring together 10,000 attendees of the worlds entrepreneurs and innovators from across the ecommerce, retail and payment industries.

Seamless Middle East 2017 comprises of three specialist conferences: Seamless Payments will bring together the entire payments ecosystem to discuss, debate and evaluate alternative payment strategies and technologies in today’s rapidly changing payments landscape. Seamless Ecommerce is the region’s leading ecommerce event for those wanting to grow and develop their business in the digital world, as Ecommerce is fast becoming a crucial component in every business strategy. Seamless Retail will enable retailers to adapt, grow and thrive in this new world of connected commerce, accelerating retail with new ideas, exciting innovations and cutting edge technology.

RIVERBED FLEXES ITS WI-FI MUSCLES WITH XIRRUS Riverbed Technology signed a definitive agreement to acquire Xirrus.

This will expand Riverbed’s SD-WAN and cloud networking solution Riverbed SteelConnect with the integration of a robust and proven suite of advanced, high density

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and cloud-managed Wi-Fi solutions, offering Riverbed customers and partners the power of unified connectivity and policy-based orchestration. “Xirrus is a strategic acquisition for Riverbed, providing us with a leading enterprise-grade

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Wi-Fi solution, and enhancing SteelConnect to deliver an unmatched SD-WAN offering that will help further fuel our growth in this hot market,” said Jerry M. Kennelly, Riverbed Chairman and CEO. JERRY M. KENNELLY, RIVERBED CHAIRMAN AND CEO.

CHANNEL STREET

The ‘Pure’ ‘Star’ Partnership

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SECONDS

OSGP ALLIANCE TO HOST 2ND ANNUAL SMART GRID SECURITY SUMMIT The 2017 Smart Grid Security Summit will highlight information on the ‘Threats’ to understand the current and the future threat landscape and ‘Approaches’ to mitigate threats in the most effective and comprehensive way possible, supported by relevant ‘Case Studies’ from the field.

Bo Danielsen, Chairman of the OSGP Alliance said: “We are confident that the conference will be a platform for brainstorming on issues critical to the region while contributing to its economic and environmental health.”

NIDAL OTHMAN, MANAGING DIRECTOR AT STARLINK

SAGE DISCUSSES INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION 4.0 Sage held a luncheon discussion on Industrial Revolution 4.0 and the role it plays in business innovation. The event delved into the upcoming introduction of VAT in the GCC and the role technology can play in making the process easy and seamless. “SMAC (social, mobile, analytics, and cloud) technologies, advanced robotics and artificial intelligence are driving the fourth industrial revolution,” said Mr. Keith Fenner, Vice President – Sage Enterprise Africa and

StarLink became a certified member of the Pure Storage Partner Program and will now distribute Pure Storage’s All-Flash enterprise storage solutions to its customers . Nidal Othman, Managing Director at StarLink said, “We see huge synergy between our datacenter and cloud objectives and the simplicity and efficiency of Pure Storage’s All-Flash portfolio.”

“Our all-flash arrays provide the scalability, reliability and performance required for the cloud era,” said Christian Putz, Director EEMEA, Pure

Storage. The Pure Partner Program provides partners with the benefits, tools, training and support they need to be successful which includes: a best-in-class incentive framework; a demo purchase program featuring significant discounts on products differentiated by partner tier; a fully automated partner marketing platform”. Pure Storage and StarLink together increase reliability, performance and security for customers transitioning to the cloud.

Middle East HR TECH TOOLS EVOLVE TO HANDLE FEEDBACK, PERFORMANCE, AGILITY “Keeping up with technology developments affecting HR is becoming a tough task. The managerial processes for human resources across the globe is in a state of fluidity.

Especially in the UAE and GCC which will see two new shifts with the onboarding of nationalization and VAT policies in the coming years, the importance of employing and using the appropriate tools for HR functions cannot be stressed more” commented Sidh N.C, Director,

OVH INTENTS TO ACQUIRE VMWARE VCLOUD AIR BUSINESS

QnA International.

MARKETO AND INFOR PARTNER TO POWER THE ENGAGEMENT ECONOMY

VMware and OVH revealed that OVH intends to acquire the VMware vCloud Air business. vCloud Air is VMware’s cloud offering based on the software-driven data center and is designed specifically to meet enterprise needs delivering a secure, hybrid cloud experience. After the close of the acquisition, OVH will operate the service as vCloud Air Powered by OVH, will continue to leverage VMware’s hybrid cloud technology, and will closely partner with VMware on go-to-market and customer support around the three proven vCloud Air use cases: data center extension, data center consolidation, and data center recovery.

Marketo and Infor have partnered to deliver engagement solutions that enable enterprises to build lasting relationships and drive revenue in the Engagement Economy. “The explosion of digital technologies and touchpoints has made it challenging for enterprises to deliver the experiences that customers demand today,” said Steve Lucas, CEO, Marketo.

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CHANNEL STREET

KSA’s Cloud Analytics Market to drive Saudi Vision 2030

The 15-fold growth in the Kingdom’s cloud analytics market will drive Saudi Vision 2030 industry vertical innovation, business leaders announced at the recent SAP Saudi Cloud Day. Through 2019, the Kingdom’s cloud analytics market will top SAR 280 million in 2019, up from SAR 20 million in 2014, according to a recent Micro Market Monitor report.

“Cloud solutions enable manufacturers to support Saudi Vision 2030 goals of increased localization and diversified economic growth.

With the cloud, Saudi organizations can gain real-time supply chain, customer, and employee insights for better decision-making and new digital business models,” said Mohammed Al

Nasser, Managing Director and Board Member at the construction conglomerate Al Nasser Trading and Import Company. Recognizing innovative deployments, Al Nasser Trading and Import Company with partner ISYX Technologies, received a gold award in the SAP Europe, Middle East, and Africa Quality Awards.

“Cloud solutions enable organizations to have real-time visibility and make better decisions that fuel Saudi economic growth,” said Ahmed Al-Faifi, Managing Director, SAP Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Yemen. Al Nasser Trading and Import Company used cloud solutions from digital transformation enabler SAP to improve materials planning by 40 percent.

TERADATA UPDATES ITS ‘CUSTOMER JOURNEY’ ANALYTICS SOLUTION Teradata revealed several enhancements to the Teradata Customer Journey solution that will give marketers easier access to analytics, dynamic visualizations, machine learning and predictive simulations. Most companies struggle to understand their customers’ journeys, much less actively manage them.

This upgrade, which combines Teradata’s expertise in data integration, advanced analytics and multi-channel interaction management, boosts marketers’ ability to treat every customer as an individual, increasing response rates, reducing churn and ensuring greater customer satisfaction.

Customers have come to expect a personalized and relevant experience in every channel, be it digital, mobile or in-store.

Teradata provides businesses with a flexible and scalable platform for advanced multigenre analytics and real-time, multi-channel interaction management.

“We want businesses to grow by delivering more sales, reducing churn and improving customer satisfaction. In this release of Customer Journey, we are putting more analytics into the hands of marketing, so they can build a deeper understanding of customer experiences and then proactively optimize related journeys,” said Dan Harrington, Executive Vice President, Consulting & Support Services at Teradata.

“Customer engagement has become more complex, costly and problematic with the multiplicity of channels, technologies, analytic applications and new competitive pressures,” said Suzanne Smith, Director Enterprise Analytics at Lowe’s Companies.

VEEAM HOSTS MIDDLE EAST PARTNER SUMMIT 2017 Veeam Software hosted its annual Partner Summit in early March in Abu Dhabi for all Veeam Platinum and Gold ProPartners across the Middle East region.

Mr. Gilles Pommier, VP Channel EMEA at Veeam Software who attended the event and delivered the keynote address said, “The

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Summit was designed to help regional partners stay ahead of their customers’ evolving technology priorities, bringing together business and technology experts from Veeam to share insights into the latest technology innovations, opportunities in the cloud space, success stories and more.”

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Mr. Bertram Collins, Head of Portfolio, Solutions and Marketing at CNS, a Veeam Gold partner said, “The Summit is a great partner enablement initiative and one that we look forward to every year. Veeam continues to display deep signs of growth as customers begin to understand the importance of

Availability as the corner stone of their digital transformation strategy.” Mr. Sanjay Shangloo Head of Product Management & Alliances, Almoayed ICT based in Bahrain said, “Veeam’s solutions today are the best fit for the market when the drive for digitization is picking up speed.

wishes all readers May the blessings of the holy month bring prosperity in abundance to all

www.ec-mea.com, www.gec360.org

CHANNEL STREET

Batelco Re-enhances Niche, Resilient Data Center

WEB CLIPS AOC JOINS HANDS WITH SDC MMD, Asia Pacific brand licensing partner

Batelco has expanded its Salmaniya Datacentre facility. Batelco embarked on the expansion and enhancement project to meet the growing demand from the Enterprise segment for cutting edge hosting solutions. Batelco has upgraded its current Datacentre capabilities with globally renowned services and systems.

Companies who make use of the latest technologies in their business environments can now benefit from high power capacity racks and enhanced onsite support to meet their complex demands.

of AOC and AGON has joined hands with Dubai based distributor SDC to market AGON range of gaming monitors and also its premium range of monitors across GCC. The business development manager at AOC in Middle East Africa, Sameh Gamal said, “It is our pleasure to partner with SDC and their experience in gaming market with various other leading brands and network of resellers convinced us that they will play a key role in increasing the presence of AOC brand in the region.”

BATELCO BAHRAIN CEO ENG. MUNA AL HASHEMI

CISCO RECOGNIZES ITS ‘PARTNERS IN SUCCESS’

COMMSCOPE & KATHREIN PARTNER TO ACCELERATE INDUSTRY EVOLUTION

A new five-year research project to

CommScope and Kathrein entered into a long-term global agreement to cross-license portions of their patent portfolios, increasing each company’s ability to develop new solutions, serve customers and compete in the global market. Under the agreement, both companies can access and implement the other company’s patents and technologies globally. The cross-license agreement relates to passive base station antennas, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and filters. Ben Cardwell, senior vice president, CommScope Mobility Solutions saud, “CommScope engineers will enjoy greater freedom of design, accelerating our research and development in antennas and filters, while Kathrein gains access to our valuable digital DAS patents.”

the UAE, Oman, Pakistan, Afghanistan and

develop Cisco presented awards to its top performing Tier-2 channel partners from Yemen which form part of the Cisco Middle East’s – East region. These awards were in recognition for their outstanding performance in 2016 across 14 categories and were presented at a gala awards ceremony held at Fairmont Hotel Palm Jumeirah in Dubai.

IT CONTINUES TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD IN 2017 Worldwide IT spending is projected to total

MOVEMENTS PETE PETERSON is Xerox’s SVP Global Channel Strategy

MARCO LANDI, President, Polycom EMEA, Adds Asia Pacific to Portfolio

Panasonic Appoints HIROKI (HARRIS) SOEJIMA Managing Director for Middle East & Africa

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NUMBER GAME

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$3.5 trillion in 2017, a 1.4 percent increase from 2016, according to Gartner. This growth rate is down from the previous quarter’s forecast of 2.7 percent, due in part to the rising U.S. dollar. “The strong U.S. dollar has cut $67 billion out of our 2017 IT spending

$

forecast,” said John-David Lovelock, research

Billion

Breach Level Index (BLI) revealing that

IUS will grow from $21.3 billion in 2016 to $37 billion in 2020 acc to Gartner

data records were compromised compared

vice president at Gartner.

HACKERS TARGETING LARGESCALE DATABASES ACROSS INDUSTRIES Gemalto released the findings of the 2016 Middle East data breaches are up 16.67% compared to 2015. Additionally, 45.2 million to 38.5 million in 2015, across the Middle East region. Identity theft was the leading type of data breach in 2016, accounting for 59% of all data breaches

CHANNEL STREET

Epicor iScala to Support Global Business Growth Epicor has made available the Epicor iScala that is designed specifically to support small to medium midmarket companies and subsidiaries of larger multi-nationals located in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. The iScala features a brand-new user interface in addition to new functionality that help companies drive cost efficiencies, take advantage of new global growth opportunities, and protect the business.

“Economic volatility, changing regulations, and digital disruption necessitate astute business decisions. Every company, regardless of size or location, needs to continually transform its operations to increase productivity and profitability to stay competitive,” said Robert Sinfield, Director, product marketing, Epicor Software. According to the company’s IT Manager Robert Hipp the retail environment has seen a great deal of change and consolidation over the past decade. “Each year, as new players enter the field, iScala has enabled us to carefully track, analyze, and strategically predict customer buying habits.”

ROBERT SINFEILD, DIRECTOR OF PRODUCT MARKETING AT EPICOR SOFTWARE

ANDRYAN IT HELPS DUBAI AIRPORTS TAP INTO FULL HR POTENTIAL Andryan IT Solutions has completed its most significant software integration project to date, supporting the migration of Dubai Airport’s HR systems to a cutting-edge cloud-based platform. Andryan has brought together technical know-how and the latest software solutions to streamline a number of HR functions at the world’s largest airport by passenger numbers. These include payroll management, workforce planning, learning and development, performance management and recruitment systems.

VMWARE EXPANDS PARTNERSHIP WITH SAMSUNG VMware expanded partnership with Samsung to deliver a next generation unified mobile and desktop experience to solve mobile workforce challenges. As enterprise mobility becomes increasingly common, endusers struggle with disparate mobile and desktop experiences when using enterprise desktops, mobile applications and cloud services.

Integration between VMware Horizon and Samsung Desktop Experience will enable end-users to dock a Samsung Galaxy S8 smartphone and deliver to the device full Windows desktops and applications using a single set of credentials. Onthe-go access to Windows, mobile and cloud applications will be delivered from VMware Workspace ONE through a common digital workspace experience.

“VMware and Samsung share a common vision of helping Galaxy S8 end-users experience the full capabiltiies of the device while delivering an elegant end-user experience,” said Sumit Dhawan, SVP and GM, End-User Computing, VMware.The Workspace ONE solution integrates application and access management, unified endpoint management and virtual desktop and application delivery. This integration helps organizations evolve siloed cloud and mobile investments, and unify the end-user experience across devices using a platform-based approach.

ARAGON NAMES UNIFY AS INDUSTRY LEADER IN UCC Unify was recently recognized as an industry leader in the first Aragon research globe for Unified Communications and Collaborations. A research and advisory firm specializing in guiding enterprises in technology and strategy decisions, Aragon examined 14 major Unified

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Communications and Collaboration providers to create a detailed analysis of the most competent vendors within the voice, video, messaging, communications, and collaboration markets. It ranks UCC providers as either a Leader, Innovator, Contender or Specialist by analysing an orga-

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nization’s strategy, performance and reach.In the report, author and lead analyst Jim Lundy noted that Unify’s strengths, including UCC expertise with OpenScape, vertical industry solutions, a wealth of cloud deployment options and a strong PaaS platform with Circuit in particular,

helped to solidify its ranking as a leader in the industry. “Circuit, Unify’s Mobile Collaboration platform, a key component of Atos Digital Workplace, supports messaging, voice, and video and includes seamless integration with OpenScape,” noted Lundy.

CHANNEL STREET

HID Global Shapes a Secure Connected Environment Organizations across the Middle East are increasingly investing in mobile access control solutions and seeking to upgrade from legacy to the latest smart card technologies in order to create more connected, smart environments. Enabling the use of smartphones and wearables to open doors for greater mobility and moving to advanced smart card technology are dramatically expanding the use of a single device beyond physical access control. “Innovative Middle East companies, particularly banks, are seeking to deploy the most advanced access

INFINET WIRELESS HOSTED INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL PARTNER CONFERENCE

control technologies as part of their goal to expand the capabilities of a smartphone or smart card,” said Wisam Yaghmour, Director of Sales MEA, Physical Access Control Solutions EMEA with HID Global. Government establishments such as Mohammed Bin Rashid Housing Establishment in Dubai has recently successfully implemented HID Global’s Seos smart cards and HID Mobile Access solutions, making it possible for MRHE employees to use a combination of smart cards, smartphones and wearables to open doors throughout the facility.

SYMANTEC TAKES ‘LONGHORN’ BY THE HORNS Spying tools and operational protocols detailed in the recent Vault 7 leak have been used in cyberattacks against at least 40 targets in 16 different countries by a group, Symantec calls Longhorn. The tools used by Longhorn closely follow development timelines and technical specifications laid out in documents disclosed by WikiLeaks. The Longhorn group shares some of the same cryptographic protocols specified in the Vault 7 documents, in addition to following leaked guidelines on tactics to avoid detection.

Longhorn has infected 40 targets in at least 16 countries across the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa. Longhorn’s malware has an extensive list of commands for remote control of the infected computer. Most of the malware can also be customized with additional plugins and modules, some of which have been observed by Symantec.

Throughout its investigation of Longhorn, Symantec’s priority has been protection of its customers. Through identifying different strains of Longhorn malware over the past three years, connecting them to a single actor, and learning more about the group’s tactics and procedures, Symantec has been able to better defend customer organizations against this and similar threats.

InfiNet Wireless recently held its 8th International Partners Conference in sunny Colombo, Sri Lanka. Bringing together 72 attendees from over 25 countries, the two-day conference, with a mix of presentations, success stories, practical workshops and team-building activities, gave the InfiNet team an opportunity to share its financial results for 2016, global strategy for 2017 as well as some exciting new product developments.

Kamal Mokrani, Global VP, InfiNet Wireless said, “The Middle East outperformed most other regions, growing at over 22%, and today is our second biggest market behind the CIS region. Despite the slowdown in several Middle East economies, driven by low oil prices and political unrest, we continue to see strong demand for our solutions in the service provision and video surveillance market sectors”.

Andrey Koynov, CTO at InfiNet Wireless said, “InfiNet has always been a technologyfirst company. We made some significant investments in R&D in the past 18 months or so, effectively doubling the size of our team. The net result of this investment is the launch of a few brand-new products, as well as several product improvements made to our existing platforms, headlined by the release of the industry-leading, carrier grade, point-to-point solution InfiLINK XG 1000”.

“Our partners are central to our growth strategy – while we have the technology, our partners have the local market knowledge, feet on the ground and relationships that are vital to our success” concluded Dmitry Okorokov, CEO at InfiNet Wireless.

HP TO REINVENT MPS MARKET WITH NEW A3 PRINTERS HP is launching its new A3 multifunction printers (MFPs) in the UAE. This next generation portfolio is designed to provide qualified channel partners the ability to offer higher levels of customization that meet a wider range of customers’ printing needs.

The new A3 portfolio trans-

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forms today’s copier experience for customers and service professionals by offering advanced security features unmatched in the marketplace, affordable color via HP’s PageWide printing technology, and longer device uptime via HP’s Smart Device Services technology. “We set out to offer our

partners a robust portfolio of A3 MFPs with disruptive technologies and a range of finishing options to meet current and future printing needs,” said Stephane Rogier, Head of Print Business unit, HP “Today, we’re delivering on that promise, along with our mission to continue reinventing the market. Using

the vast knowledge we’ve gained through our large-scale commercial printers, we streamlined our designs, improved print speeds and enabled higher-quality printing for a lower cost.”

CHANNEL STREET

EES Sponsors CIO Roundtable in Bahrain

Emitac sponsors a leadership roundtable on the potential returns Managed Services and Cloud Services can bring to enterprises, in partnership with Enterprise Channels MEA. The event is aimed to gather leaders from various sectors to hear on how they could accelerate efficiencies and make the most of their technology

investments by focusing on their core business competencies while Emitac would manage their IT. Representatives and the senior leadership team from Emitac Enterprise Solutions will be on site to explain how the power of Managed Services could be harnessed to create an OPEX savvy enterprise

TRIO OF NEW XEROX VERSANT PRESSES BOOSTS AUTOMATION “The Versant’s productivity, automation and inline finishing modules have already established the presses as workhorse fixtures in thousands of print-for-pay shops and in-plant settings globally,” said Ragni Mehta, vice president and general manager, Cut Sheet Business, Xerox. The Versant line gives printers greater capacity, output and inline automation tools such as a spectrophotometer, full-bleed booklet maker, punch, square fold trimmer and other advanced finishing tools for just about any application needed. he presses handle everything from trimmed and finished marketing collaterals, direct mail, signage, reports or full-bleed magazines on a range of media types and sizes from envelopes to 26-inch/660mm banner prints.

MEA IOT INVESTMENT TO REACH $7.8 BILLION IN 2017 This will be one of the topics falling under the spotlight at the Internet of the Things Expo 2017, which runs at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 21 – 23 May. IoTx 2017 will highlight how Middle East and Africa investments in IoT alone are estimated to hit USD7.8 billion this year, according to a report

by MarketsandMarkets.As global cities become smarter and more connected, the Internet of Things is poised to play a transformative role in enhancing living standards and improving services for the general public. The challenge for governments, councils and urban planners will be ensuring the security of smart cities while also delivering heightened services which protect the functionality of connected communities, their residents and the service providers operating with them.

“IoTX 2017 is the place to be for organisations and stakeholders to explore the latest technologies and solutions and learn to harness IoT- generated data for businesses to thrive in future” said Trixie LohMirmand, SVP, Exhibitions & Events Management, DWTC. The interactive experience will provide visitors with a glimpse into the future of transportation, with a VR simulation providing a true-to-life look and feel of the Hyperloop journey.

The Hyperloop will enable people to travel between Al Ain and Abu Dhabi in 8 to 12 minutes. The smart capsules transporting between 28 and 40 people are equipped with sensors designed to enhance comfort and safety.

SONY GOES BEYOND DEFINITION AT NAB 2017 Sony is highlighting innovations in imaging, High Dynamic Range (HDR), IP and media solutions that enable the creation of dynamic content and increase workflow efficiencies for a range of applications and productions.

“In addition to driving the latest technological trends and

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innovations, Sony is honing our focus on the customer experience to become a long-term, strategic partner for our customers,” said Peter Kyriakos, head of marketing, Sony Professional Solutions MEA. “At NAB we will be displaying new products, updates to current products and a range of workflow solutions that meet the

ever-changing needs of customers – from 4K live production and HDR to IP live production, media solutions, asset management and everything in between – allowing them to be in control of their future.” For HDR, Sony offers system, workflow and choices of recording formats that deliver unprecedented flex-

ibility in every HDR production Sony is also expanding its HDR capabilities in two enhancements, HD HDR Live broadcasting and Instant HDR workflow. Sony can offer the widest choice of video formats depending on users’ production requirements.

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the production completely.

SHAILESH MANI,

IT HEAD, LIFE PHARMA

Digitalizing the Life of Pharma SHAILESH MANI, IT HEAD AT LIFE PHARMA IN AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWWITH DIVSHA BHAT ON HIS PROGRESS OF TAKING LIFE PHARMA TO A PAPERLESS ORGANIZATION WHICH HAS EVENTUALLY ENHANCED EFFICIENCY AND DECREASED COSTS.

Could please tell us something about Life Pharma We, LIFE PHARMA FZE, is an integrated pharmaceutical company concentrated to provide affordable healthcare products to people all across the globe. We have facilities with highest international standards and accreditations from various authorities globally. Our facility is manufacturing How was IT architecture when you joined in 2015 and what transformation have you made so far?

When I Joined, we had implemented SAP and it was functioning with the basic functionalities and infrastructure was already done. A lot of

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time was consumed on a daily basis by each department for carrying out numerous manual processes. The implementation has allowed us to successfully establish a Batch Record system. So, with the implementation, we have seen a huge amount of paperless activity, as previously these reports would have been sent to different departments for approval in the form of a 90 – 100-page document. Now, the reports are sent electronically. Also, this new electronic process means that the signatures cannot be altered, as it is digitally logged in the system.Around 600 – 700 log books were there in whole production area which we removed in a years’ time. So, those details are getting recorded in the system on a real-time basis.

Also 10000 sheets per month were removed from

What benefits or added value has the project yielded?

The authenticity of that data is more accurate.

Another activity which we targeted is the Quality Assurance process. Again, as it is a pharma industry, it was time consuming for a person to get all the things approved. So, we made most of those QA activity documentations like Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). Earlier, we had to go through the manualrecords to see who was trained in which process before we could send it for approval. Now, the system is completely optimised on the SAP software. Once the procedure has been passed by staff and approved by QA, the system notifies remaining staff members who are yet to complete the training. Also, filing a change control document was previously a tediousjob. If any changes to a process had to be made, a change control document had to be filled out. This document previously needed several approvals from QA and the consent department before it could be implemented, which wouldbe a long process. But after the ERP implementation, the change control documents are now uploaded in the system and it has reduced the approval time and has been a huge benefit to us.

Should CIO’s change the business or lead it?

I will say we should lead the business. The software’s or IT system is a support function. It should support the business to grow rather than blocking the process to the business. We should develop a system which will enable the business to grow in a more efficient way. So, for a CIO, whoever is enabling this digitization into the organization, they should always have a business continuity plan available in place like DR set up or manual set up or whenever they are implementing suggestion or solution to the management, they should attach a solution for what if.

What if it doesn’t work? What is the plan B? Is it true that healthcare is spending a lot on technology in the Middle East?

Yes. If you see in the Middle East, there are limited healthcare manufacturing companies.

More automations are coming into healthcare industry.

Message to competitors All the industries are going towards digitization.

I suggest my competitors, if they have not started now, start immediately to achieve the goals in a very better way. ë

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05.10.2016 18:54:21

COVER STORY

OPPORTUNITIES AND GROWTH IN RETAIL

‘CUSTOMER (EXPERIENCE) IS

THE KING’

Winning in a highly competitive marketplace is no more a retail CIO’s boardroom soliloquy; it is a playground for the synergies of multiple vendors and partners to explore and exploit. The smart device in your customer’s hand is their shopping mall, their shopping kit, point of sale and tracking device. A few seconds of downtime, a small glitch in payment, an unfriendly user interface… can cost a retail brand a fortune.

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n B Y: 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 PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

S

hoppers will definitely shop till they drop, but the question today is; are the modern high end retail brands and luxury online outlets armed enough to satiate the needs of an ever-hungry customer?

Talk about the acquisition of Souq.com by amazon, the introduction of the new AR feature by IKEA, or the new benchmarks set by some of the leading retail brands, this sector is perhaps the most dynamic of industries where digitization and big data have a big role to play. As experts have been saying, this is just the tip of the iceberg; the challenges are profound. The new demand era in retail requires a robust IT infrastructure, and the retail industry needs to adapt to this or perish.

As RenukaJagtianiof Landmark Group recently said, “As Landmark, our focus is value, we value those whose lives we touch. The customer is at the heart of our business, and we change and evolve with them.” It is no more just the customer who is at the center of the business… it is the customer experience, his journey and the options/channels available for the customer to enhance his retail experience that is the king.

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“The next-generation mobility efforts require apps that personalize the consumer experience based on identity and location.”

-MANISH BHARDWAJ, SR. MARKETING MANAGER, MIDDLE EAST & TURKEY AT ARUBA, A HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE COMPANY

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“What we see is a marked increase in the use of Payment Service Providers (PSPs) now making an entry to enable businesses to focus on their core activities.”

-NIRANJ SANGAL, GROUP CEO, OMA EMIRATES GROUP

“Always on, always available” – This is what is required of retailers today” -GREGG PETERSEN,

REGIONAL DIRECTOR, MIDDLE EAST AND SAARC, VEEAM SOFTWARE

COVER STORY

WHAT SAYS THE CIO?

“With vast experience in serving retail customers, Intertec Systems will continue focus on IT Consolidation and Managed Services which will play major role on reducing the operational cost of retailers.”

-VENKATESAN S, SENIOR SALES MANAGER – UAE & OMAN, INTERTEC SYSTEMS

E-commerce is borderless, this great threat to local retail business specially branded products segment. To mitigate local business risk and became a part of global e-commerce ecology, investment not only in new retail ecosystem is a must but also in securing.

-

PARTHA P PATHAK, CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER, EBRAHIM K KANOO, BAHRAIN

THE TRENDING RETAIL Chatbots for enhanced customer experience

n

Partnership with 3rd parties to fulfill modern retail needs

n

Sensory customer experience

n

n

The rise of speciality stores

Same day shipping to become more prevelant

n

Geo-fencing and Geo-targeting

n

n

GPS Trackers

Loyalty programs inprove customer experience

n

n

Virtual retail

For C-Stores in Oman, technology penetration varies based on geographical presence. In capital or other densely populated region we see excellent infrastructure (connectivity and other peripheral services), however for remote locations infrastructure is still evolving. Hence for capital region stores we see a very encouraging technology usage.

-

SAKET WAGH, HEAD OF IT, ENHANCE OMAN (W J TOWELL COMPANY)

RISING UP TO THE BUZZWORDS While some retailers believed that, a new and fresh app or web interface would uplift their brand image or attract more customers, some retailers toiled on enhancing the customer experience by reading the user behavior and patterning the online shopping journey. The phase of instant adoption has definitely stepped down and more and more CIOs are taking time to think which model would best fit their business and channeling their investment likewise.

UAE— SPRINGBOARD TO THE MIDDLE EAST ONLINE RETAIL According to reports, the retail industry has the potential to generate $506 billion in digital business value through 2018. The multi-channel shopper is fueling a wave of digital disruption that threatens to put nearly half of retailer leaders out of business if they don’t transform themselves digitally The first wave of enterprise mobile apps generally failed to take advantage of technologies that personalized the experience of consumers based on who and where they are. And when they did take advantage of location, they ceded control of their data to third-party vendors. The next-generation mobility efforts require apps that personalize the consumer experience based on identity and location. It’s essential to offer an omni-channel experience that engages them in a contextually relevant manner – from home to the retail store. In this space, Aruba sees vast potential for its solutions. “For retail engagement, Aruba Meridian-powered mobile apps and location capabilities give customers a unique and memorable shopping experience wherever they happen to be – at home, in the store and anywhere in between,” says Manish Bhardwaj, Sr. Marketing Manager, Middle East & Turkey at Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company.

According to reports and studies, the UAE e-Commerce market is valued at $10 billion (Dh36.7 billion) by 2018. Today it is the fastest growing business in UAE with consolidation happening in the market with business deals such as Amazon taking over souq.com and with other big players such as noon.com, the market is all set for growth both for business and customers.

Retailers are set to make inroads into providing easy and convenient systems and processes for their customers to avail of customized and personalized service standards. All this is possible with very strong technological advancements.

From apps, to brand engagement, it will also bring in new technology and innovation in the

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COVER STORY

HOW SHOULD A CIO RISE UP IN THE GAME? Process should take precedence over tools

n

Phased adoption of new technology against consumer and logistics needs driven insights

n

Include strong elements of testing innovation and clarity about ROI expectations

n

Adapting and introducing new and innovative technology ensuring seamless transactions

n

Initiate and adopt social selling solutions such as Soldsie and Like2Buy

n

Keep driving in their social media initiatives

n

ecommerce market place through CRMs, Payment solutions, etc.

CLICHES TO BE ERASED Is Omni-channel dead? OR Is Omni-channel the continuing trend?

Opinions are polarized. Yes, on one hand we have experts saying that rather than confusing the customer by giving him numerous options, the BI should understand the customer behavior and promt him the most suitable or preferred choice of channel. On the other hand, market leaders are encouraging more and more investment in Omni channel as giving customers the option they want is the only way to retain them. Let us have a look at what are the other clichés that we need to erase off.

According to Venkatesan S, Senior Sales Manager – UAE & Oman, Intertec Systems, “Old school loyalty programs are on their way out.

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This isn’t to say that loyalty programs won’t be successful. But it’s important to note that simply implementing rewards won’t be enough to stay competitive.”Intertec also anticipates that retailers will leverage technology to make this happen.

Traditional loyalty programs will be replaced by mobile-based ones that not only make it easier to redeem rewards, but also enhance the consumer experience.Aruba says that a mobile centric approach is a realistic future that they see and keeping this in perspective, they are offering a comprehensive portfolio that allows retailers of all sizes to deliver mobility-centric networks, security and management services that are tailored to the needs of their stores, corporate headquarters, warehouses and outdoor environments.

According to NiranjSangal, Group CEO of OMA Emirates Group, “What we see is a marked increase in the use of Payment Service Providers (PSPs) now making an entry to enable businesses

to focus on their core activities. A Retail PSP authorizes commercial banks and other licensed PSPs offering retail, government and peer to peer digital payment services as well as money remittance.

According to Gregg Petersen, Regional Director, Middle East and SAARC, Veeam Software, whether companies sell online, manage card payments, or a warehouse, any form of downtime cripples the business. Retailers today need to ensure that their company’s e-commerce platforms have reliable backup and recovery solutions that help avoid downtime.

FINALLY The 24/7 retail will be driving the need for new and added layers of innovations to the omni channel experiences. The customers have taken over the ownership. Its time for an overhaul now. ë

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MY OPINION

to improve patient safety and outcomes and Manufacturing to increase production throughput & quality.Third party studies on Kronos customers reported benefits to the value of 3-6% of the annual wage cost with a payback between 12-18 months.

How does your channel ecosystem look like? How do you go to market?

Kronos has a number of local, global and industry partners capable of delivering local implementation, training and support services.

Examples local partners include Bytes Technology Emirates, Andryan IT, BlueTree. Example Global partners include IBM, Infosys, Accenture and Tech Mahindra. Example industry partners include Health Matrix.

GREGG GORDON,

VP OF BIG DATA, KRONOS.

CHANGING WORKFORCE ANALYTICS WITH BIG DATA ENTERPRISE COMPANIES HAVE BEEN TRACKING AND MANAGING MACHINES AND INVENTORY CLOSELY FOR YEARS. THESE RESOURCES ARE OFTEN A SIGNIFICANT EXPENSE AND THEREFORE HAVE RECEIVED PRIORITY, YET THE WORKFORCE DATA WAS OFTEN LEFT UNUSED, STORED ONLY FOR COMPLIANCE.

Tell us about Kronos and your regional operations? How long have you been operating in the Middle East?

Kronos industry-centric workforce applications are purpose-built for industries including manufacturing, healthcare, retail, hospitality, logistics and government. Kronos Middle East is headquartered in the UAE and has been in operation since 2010. Global clients in the Middle East are: PepsiCo, Nestle, McDermott, National Oilwell Varco, DHL, Tiffany & Co & Pfizer. Example local Middle Customers are: Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, National Ambulance, Dubai Roads & Traffic Authority,

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Dubai Parks & Resorts, Ferrari World, Hikma Pharmaceuticals, Al Naboodah Construction, Dulsco & Emal.

What are the cutting-edge solutions that you bring to the market?

Kronos Workforce Management Solutions cover Time & Attendance, Scheduling, Absence Management, Activities and Labour Analytic helping businesses control labour costs, improve employee productivity and engagement and reduce compliance risk.

In addition Kronos offersIndustry-specific solutions for example: Retail to improve customer satisfaction and increase sales, Healthcare

What were the key takeaways of the inaugural Kronos Live Middle East event? How did it benefit your customers and partners?

KronosLIVE was a great opportunity to provide customers, future customers and partners with an update on Kronosâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; global footprint specifically the Middle East expansion, key future product releases and advanced modules such as Workforce Analytics (Big Data).

In addition, KronosLIVE provided an opportunity for customers and partners to share implementation experiences, business benefits and best practices.

Tell us about your recent partnerships with Dubai Airports?

As part of the HR Transformation program, Dubai Airports recognised the importance of streamlining their current workforce management processes including Scheduling, Time & Attendance and Leave Management.

Dubai Airports chose to implement Kronos in the cloud to achieve rapid deployment. Phase I saw Dubai Airports go live with the system for its 3,000 strong employees while Phase II (planed later in the year) will extend the system to over 5,000 contractor workforce.

Kronos will help Dubai Airports l Improve workforce productivity by matching employee schedules to business demand l Control costs by optimizing workforce deployment & better managing overtime l Increase workforce compliance to organization policies by consistently enforcing best-practices and rules l Improve fatigue management l Reduce admin time & eliminate paperwork by automating schedule/roster creation, overtime, sick leave and shift management. ĂŤ

MY OPINION

What kind of demands did you see in the region for emerging security solutions?

2016 has been arguably the year with the highest number of data breaches. Recent reports show that more 4.2 billion records were stolen.

Other reports suggests that most business who have suffered a breach have had financial impact.

It was also the year that saw innovative attacks such as attacks on IoT devices being used for large scale attacks.

Which was your highest yielding sector for the year 2016? Or let us put it this way, from which sector did you see the highest demand for your security solutions?

Banking sector continues to be our highest yielding sector which is also the sector which has seen highest number of threats worldwide in 2016.

SUNIL GUPTA,

PRESIDENT AND COO AT PALADION

Cyber Defence Beckons for ‘Speed’ PALADION HAS PREDICTED A FEW CYBER THREATS IN 2017 AND ALSO WHICH ARE THE KEY STRATEGIES THAT ORGANIZATIONS ARE MOST LIKELY TO ADOPT IN THE YEAR 2017

From the business side, how was the year 2016 for Paladion?

2016 was a very exciting year for Paladion from many aspects. We saw about 40% growth in our sales across all regions. We saw increased investments from our clients beyond perimeter security. We also saw some of key clients demanding

for analytics based solution to prepare themselves to handle fast changing threat landscape. We launched our new “High Speed Cyber Defense” offerings which was lapped up quickly by some of our key clients who are early adopters of new technology and solutions. We saw huge traction in our next gen offering in H2 of 2016.

What solutions did you showcase at the recently held Finsec and how are these solutions catering to the demands for the modern BFSI landscape?

We showcased our new Cyberactive ADR service offering. This offering leverages our next gen platform called RisqVu which is a big data platform and combines power of Machine Learning, AI and Automation to provide advanced and high speed Threat Hunting, Response and Remediation.

How do you see 2017 coming along?

We believe 2017 is going to be the year in which world will see larger and more sophisticated threats. Paladion has predicted a few cyber threats in 2017 and also which are the key strategies that organizations are most likely to adopt in the year 2017. We expect to see a spurt in the following strategy trends: The key cyber security strategies will be: 1) Organizations will adopt machine learning based analytical solution to detect the uknown attacks 2) Advanced end point threat detection solutions will be adopted more in 2017 3) There will be more demand for automated incident response platforms and services 4) Vulnerability management will become more continuous and intelligent.

5) And finally, organizations will start adopting technologies and services from cloudops and devops security. ë

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COVER FEATURE

MR. OMRAN SULTAN AL OWAIS, CHAIRMAN & MANAGING DIRECTOR, OMA EMIRATES GROUP

“If a technology brings value to the business, it will prevail”

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COVER FEATURE

OMA EMIRATES

THE ‘AVANT-GARDES’ OF INNOVATION As niche technologies like FinTech and Blockchain disrupt the BFSI Sector, OMA Emirates shares how its entrepreneurial spirit found its home in an innovationsavvy region and dictated the growth there onwards. 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 >

A

vant Garde’— if we turn over the pages of literary glossary, we can associate this word with the growth pattern that OMA Emirates Group has set for itself and thus created a benchmark of its own in being an innovative payment solution provider.

‘If a technology brings value to the business, it will prevail’. This belief has been the spine of OMA Emirates Group’s innovative journey as a competitive payment solutions provider in the region. As the company is all set to expand its fame to international horizons, Omran Sultan Al Owais, Chairman & Managing Director of OMA Emirates Group shares his heart on how the entrepreneurial spirit found its home in an innovation-savvy region and dictated the growth there onwards.

As a payment service provider, OMA Emirates

has had a strong association with the Banking, Financial Services and Insurance sector. But the niche solutions that the service provider embedded into its portfolio has empowered the company to taste success in various other sectors as well with added market opportunities like— retail, public sector transportation, self-service business such as kiosks and vending machines, and parking solutions.

FROM A SMALL SHOP TO ONE-STOP-SHOP “When the company was conceptualized, it started with just three employees and we used to be a supplier of stationaries for banks and financial institutions. Our close associations with banks, passion for innovation and the desire to create a niche in the market definitely lifted up the entrepreneurial spirit and within a short span

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COVER FEATURE

FOOTPRINT ACROSS THE GLOBE

OMA Emirates Group will provide an in-house centralized card issuance solution to QIIB, a leading bank in Qatar

OMA Emirates is partnering with Austria based SKIDATA for parking management solutions

OMA Emirates has invested in India based MobiSwipe, a company that specializes in Mobile Point of Sale (mPOS) solutions

of time, OMA entered the payment solution and card protection and personalization domain,” says Omran.

After establishing a firm foot in the local market the company then ventured into the GCC market at large by expanding in Oman, Qatar, Bahrain etc. Recently OMA has also set foot in the international markets with implementation and partnerships in Serbia, Morocco, Vietnam, India etc.

A STEP AHEAD OF THE COMPETITIONS Being a local company that entered into this sophisticated field of payment solutions, against the few European companies that were dominant at that time, definitely helped OMA a long way in forging tight knit relations with the banks and financial institutes. But this definitely doesn’t mean that things came the easy way for the company. It was innovation all the way that kept customer and customer experience at the heart of all services and solutions.

“The three pillars on which our business thrives is— Customer trust, Service quality, and Affordable price. We wanted to create that difference in the market and bring products well in advance before the customer demand. EMV, for example, was one of the solutions that we brought to the market as pioneers and develop products that were compatible with EMV. The one distinguishing factor of OMA that we go to a customer and make them aware of what they would require in the next two years and thereby make them ready for that well in advance and provide them with the required solutions and services.

VALUE ALL THE WAY

OMA Emirates to support Oman’s Bank Sohar with Advanced POS Terminal

New geographical ventures – India, Vietnam, Indonesia, parts of Eastern Europe

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“We provide a wide range of services to the market than any other service providers. We have been here in the market for a very long time now and understood the nerve of the banking sector very comprehensively. We started off as a very basic stationary supplier but today we provide approximately 95% of all banking services. The difference in our way of business is that we can complement the services and solutions of other service providers. If a customer is using the services of any other portfolio and if they are facing issues, we intervene and offer them our services. This strength of ours has brought to close to many customers who are our loyal customers now.

‘SEAMLESS’ TECHNOLOGY The Payment Solution Provider is all set to

COVER FEATURE

2%

7%

Growth in African market – Approximately 2%

New customers added in 2016-2017- 7%

25%

Growth in Asian market – Kickstarted in 2016 and anticipate good growth in 2017

50%

Growth in Middle East – Approximately 50%

showcase its new range of solutions designed for the retail, hospitality, banking and transport sector at the Seamless Middle East 2017. In an attempt to target these business, OMA has launched the iSMP and iCMP range of PoS machines that provide payments anytime and anywhere within a store, hotel or restaurant, transport, etc. OMA will also launch the OMA POS Heart Beat, a PoS monitoring tool that monitors and tracks deployed PoS terminals for connectivity, maintenance and necessary alerts.

The only solution of its kind in the Middle East, it is an independent system that works with all types of terminals. OMA Emirates Group, according to Omran, has always been receptive of any changes or new technologies. In fact, they claim to be the pioneers in implementing technologies before they penetrated the mainstream business in full swing. “There was a time when things were happening very fast and it was all about growing the services portfolio. Earlier credit cards were used on imprinters and we saw that adopting POS would be the next wave of change in the market and we did that. We had to adapt the best technology and provide the best services available to the customers. It is a natural process— we grow with the demand, the customer and the technology.

THE 2016 MARKET Every year brings its own kind of challenges. The pace with which the cards and payment industry is evolving, customers do not want to settle for less. “The times are getting more challenging and we have to adapt to these changes. So far, we have been in sync with the technologies and we do not see any challenges in our way. Our loyalty programs have been garnering great reception across the region. We introduced our loyalty program in Serbia and the acceptance has been very good.”

Anticipated growth for 2017 – Over 25%

Certification: ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management certification

12%

Growth in managed services portfolio – 12%

New acquisitions in 2016-17 – MobiSwipe in India.

Banking and Finance sector has been leading the way for OMA since decades until they saw a widening demand for payment solutions from other sectors like retail, transport, healthcare and specially the government. “Initially we did not work with the government sector as they did not have much interest in cards and payment solutions. But now the growth of eGovernment and eServices have been changing the game and the government is in the lookout for innovative solutions and this has opened many doors for us to penetrate and explore further horizons in secure payment.”

“In 2017, we want to consolidate our business, but if there are any acquisitions coming our way we will look into it favorable. The Indian market would definitely be our huge focus in 2017 as we have invested a lot in that market and we anticipate a good number from that market.”

BEING THE CHANGE MAKERS Omran says that the actual competition started approximately ten years after they started, for every services that they provide. “But we always rose above the competition, because we provided end-to-end services and had a wider range of portfolio and hence it was easy for us to gain customers.The EMV and card issuance for example; we have moved from central issuance to branch issuance where a person can go and apply for a card in any branch and get the card from any branch within 2-3 minutes while he/she is waiting. This is an innovation that we have brought to this market. We have nearly all the services that a banking or insurance sector would need. Now, we are considering to move to core banking services as well.”

“Moreover our security systems have never

New Loyalty programs- Set to introduce a new Closed Loop Platform - OMEGA

New products- iSMP and iCMP range of PoS machines, OMA POS Heartbeat

been breached and we are counting on that system.”

PEEPING INTO THE FUTURE DEMANDS Mobile payments are all set to rule the roost and OMA Emirates says its set for the future.

“Whether it is NFC, mobile payment or mobile wallet, we are ready for it. If there is a technology that can best work for a business, it will prevail; because at the end of the day what customers want is ‘services’. We are here to support our customers to meet the challenges that 2020 will bring along and mobile payments are an integral part of that.” ë

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FEATURE STORY

Decoding the ‘age’ in storage It is a new and unprecedented era for storage, presently, with the development of virtualization and opex storage models. With the line of legacy diminishing, enterprises are moving to the software defined storage system from traditional enterprise storage system to provide cost effective real-time storage services.

n W O R D S : 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 > P H O T O : S H U T T E R S T O C K

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ver the past few years, the enterprise storage industry has evolved significantly. The storage market is undergoing an exciting transformation, driven by the disruptive forces of flash and cloud. In the Middle East, cloud is driving significant IT infrastructure spending in enterprises and government departments. “In particular, Middle East organizations can find massive business benefits from hyper-converged infrastructure, with industry surveys showing it can cut hardware costs by 30 percent downtime by 70 percent and database size by 80 percent” said Savita Bhaskar, COO, Condo Protego. As private sector is embracing the digital transformation, governments are also launching initiatives such as e-learning, healthcare and smart technologies. Enterprises see the value in a cloud strategy and, as such, migration to the cloud will continue throughout 2017.

RETHINKING STORAGE Enterprises these days are completely different from the enterprises in the past; in the way organizations are structured and in the strategies enterprises adopt for long-term success.

Large, midsize, and small enterprises and government

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entities alike are moving IT to the cloud and consuming Infrastructure -as-a-service, Platform-as-a-service and Software – as- a-service. Customisable solutions are getting increasingly popular, such as the Managed EdgeCloud, which is a low-cost, on-premises, converged infrastructure solution that is managed and supported remotely, delivered seamlessly as a subscription by a managed service provider or systems integrator.

“Modern enterprises are rethinking storage due to more and more IT managers becoming a lot more comfortable with the idea of moving company data to the cloud. In the Middle East, many businesses have introduced network-attached storage (NAS) to replace their file or backup servers, especially considering its cost-effectiveness along with a rich and growing set of features. The need for cloud-based collaboration tools that don’t sacrifice users’ privacy and ownership of data will continue to grow” said Mike Chen, Sales Director at Synology.

ENTERPRISE STORAGE-AS-A-SERVICE Over the past few years, Middle East organizations are seeing

FEATURE STORY

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FEATURE STORY

“We have a range of servers and storage that can address both capacity and performance, while reducing overall equipment needs and therefore total cost of ownership” -COSTA BOUKOUVALAS,

“It is vital for organizations to work with specialized data management channel partners to develop longterm digital strategies” -SAVITHA BHASKAR, COO, CONDO PROTEGO

CEO, AGILITYGRID

“We look to continue to innovate the enterprise storage market with reliable and affordable ways to centralize data storage, simplify data backup and access data on-the-go” -MIKE CHEN, SALES DIRECTOR AT SYNOLOGY

17bn

USD

The Software-Defined Storage market size is estimated to grow from USD 4.72 Billion in 2016 to USD 22.56 Billion by 2021, at a CAGR of 36.7%.

USD

23.76bn

The Cloud Storage market size is estimated to grow from USD 23.76 Billion in 2016 to USD 74.94 Billion by 2021, at a CAGR of 25.8 % from 2016 to 2021.

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STORE & FORGET DATA

provided by third party service providers. This can be impactful especially if sensitive data is leaked to unauthorized parties. Overall, this can affect manageability and data ownership, which will eventually result in data loss and more expenditure for the organization. An example of data leakage on public cloud can be seen when Dropbox was hacked in 2012 that lead to the leaking of 68 million passwords on the internet.

This accounted for two-thirds of the cloud firm’s customers.

“Data, and access to data on time, is changing the way we use data. Especially in the area of video surveillance where access to data can be quite crucial. While the products we have do not need a lot of resources to “baby sit” it, we do use some dynamic analytical software that can deliver powerful business insights as and when our customers need them. This greatly increases the value of the data and helps contribute to the ROI of their storage solutions” said Costa Boukouvalas, CEO, AgilityGrid.

Christian Putz, Director, EEMEA, Pure Storage said, “We aim to deliver a data platform that enables our customers to build a new class of applications and to extract new insights from data – we call this data advantage”.

One of the main concerns for organizations when it comes to cloud storage is the privacy & security of their organization data for public cloud servers

FLASH TECHNOLOGY IN DEMAND

strong interest in hybrid storage solutions and innovations such as all-flash storage, converged infrastructure, hyper-converged infrastructure that best meet their business needs in on premise or cloud-based solutions that best meet their needs. In the region, cloud is driving significant IT infrastructure spending in enterprises and government departments. As private sector is embracing the digital transformation, governments are also launching initiatives such as e-learning, healthcare and smart technologies.

Customers continue to see the value in a cloud strategy and, as such, migration to the cloud will continue throughout 2017.

“Flash is gaining broad acceptance in almost every enterprise although adoption has been particularly fast in finance, retail analytics, research, defence, healthcare and oil and gas sectors.

Analytics in particular has driven the adoption of flash in these industries, as it is now possible to monetise previously uninteresting data and gain new insights from these that can lead to faster decision making and identifying new business opportunities” FadiKanafani - Regional Director Middle East & Africa, NetApp

FEATURE STORY

“The Pure FlashArray is always-secure with customers’ data encrypted at all times and without requiring key management or configuration” -CHRISTIAN PUTZ, DIRECTOR, EEMEA, PURE STORAGE

ENTERPRISE STORAGE TRENDS DOMINATING IN 2017

“NetApp data fabric provides a cohesive and wellintegrated way to manage enterprise data regardless of the infrastructure upon which it resides” -FADI KANAFANI, REGIONAL DIRECTOR MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA, NETAPP

Hyper-converged storage continues its ascent

Public cloud storage will continue to grow

High-quality encryption is the go-to standard for information security

The rise in the demand for enterprise storage is driven by flash and virtualization. Flash technology has revolutionized the storage market.

Storage performance is crucial for enterprises, especially if some of the core business processes such as web analytics, time-critical financial transactions, or actionable analytics are heavily dependent on speed.According to Frost & Sullivan the GCC’s cloud market will grow to USD 216 million in 2020, with the UAE playing a leading role in cloud security. Customers continue to see the value in a cloud strategy and, as such, migration to the cloud will continue in 2017. In the majority of cases, a hybrid cloud solution is preferable for most customers.

CHANGING TECHNOLOGY LANDSCAPE The business climate these days require organisations both private and public to step up with the evolution of technology. They strive to meet demands for greater connectivity and greater data storage capability amid external factors such as strict data privacy regulations.When it comes to the hyper converged infrastructure (HCI) appliances are in many ways a natural expansion of the success of the CI market, as customers continue to look for increased simplicity and convenience.

HCI solutions promise to build on the ability of IT to more simply deliver predictable performance, speed up time to market, share hardware resources, and integrate solution vendor support.

“There is no doubt the market for HCI is exciting, diversifying, and growing extremely fast. Demand will only increase for the promise of a vastly simplified solution for on-premises IT infrastructure. Just as all vendors offer converged solutions today, they will all no doubt offer HCI. Most organizations will continue to require a mix of consumption models, from cloud services to software-only, with CI, HCI, and traditional appliances in between” said Fadi.

FINALLY Flash increases and more advanced data reduction technologies become available Hybrid and all-flash arrays are beginning to take hold beyond high-performance computing

The year 2017 promises to be a great year for enterprise storage innovation. The future of enterprise storage is moving towards the software defined storage. The Software-defined storage technologies will monitor and move data automatically so that applications are indifferent to where the data resides in the future. Unfortunately, traditional storage system has not been able to keep pace with the demands of modern enterprises.So, a growing number of enterprises from all industries are turning to software defined storage. ë

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SPECIAL STORY

RETHINKING eCommerce in a

DIGITAL AGE Ahead of one of the biggest payment solutions, eCommerce and retail event ‘Seamless Middle East 2017’, we take a close look at where the industry stands and take some crucial opinions from the key stakeholders in the domain.

n B Y: 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 >

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e all have come across mind storming quotes like— ‘The future is now’ OR ‘Necessity is the mother of all innovations’ at multiple stages in our life, irrespective of how we could apply it practically to our day to day lives. But! With the pace with which eCommerce, eRetail and online payment models are channeling their growth, these idioms seem to have come to life. A young and tech-savvy generation of millennial, the diminishing timelines, the demand for omni channel payment gateways etc have fuelled the need for innovative in eCommerce.

More than the technology, the demand of the time is for ‘Collaboration’. Collaboration between the retailers, banks, solution providers and distributors. For a customer, it is all about the experience. Today, information, or data, is the king. Modern eCommerce and online retail avenues have redefined the term ‘shelf life’ and have given the customer a couch and megabytes of data to browse through the alleys of luxury and pay smartly. Not surprisingly at all, the e-commerce market in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is expected to grow to $20 billion (Dh73.4 billion) by 2020 from $5.3 billion in 2015, as online shopping grows in the region, according to a report by global consultancy AT Kearney. Payment gateways are getting redefined with an added layer of security to them.

Retail mobile giants are rising up the competition by introducing innovative and easy-touse payment models that puts the wallet right into the device. For example, Samsung Pay is now widely available in 14 countries including the United States and India that enables a customer to make credit card and debit card payments via their handsets.

Fintech disruption on the other hand is forcing the retailer, banks and merchants to rapidly adopt to new payment landscapes. The payments, banking and financial sectors

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SPECIAL STORY

“With the right incentive plans and government backing, the UAE can become breeding ground for technology firms that are looking to make next generation products and platforms.”

-WAQAS MIRZA,

“As connected environments become more of the norm, we are starting to see an uptick in demand for a combined physical access control and computer login solution.”

-WISAM YAGHMOUR,

are currently undergoing a fast-tracked periodof progress, defined by innovations and developments in technology and regulation. According to Sirish Kumar, CEO and Co-Founder, Telr.com “There seems to be a tug of war between the hackers and the FinTech service providers. Hence, the sector is always innovating and utilizing the best of technology to ensure bullet- proof security of sensitive customer data and information. Biometric technology in ensuring security of customer’s data should be introduced in end 2017. The same technology will gain mainstream acceptance in 2018. In addition to biometric technology, there are other disruptions in the sector as well, including Face Scan, Iris Scan and more.”

According to WaqasMirza, Managing Director & Chief Marketing Officer, Avanza Solutions, a new opportunity presents itself to its leadership, new technologies are evolving the landscape of business at a global level. Companies that are now worth billions started off as garage ventures but through proper incubation and resource allocation have made massive impact and have

disrupted old practices to become leaders of their respective domains. “Our opportunity now lies in our history, where, like Jebel, Ali we should replicate the same in technology. With the right incentive plans and government backing, the UAE can become breeding ground for technology firms that are looking to make next generation products and platforms. Serving as a technology hub where technology companies can come in add value to their offerings and spread them globally,” says Waqas.

An ‘informed’ customer also wants to be a ‘secure’ customer. One one hand where he is agreeing to click on the small box that stamps his consent on the unread (in majority of the cases) *terms and conditions, on the other hand he wants to make sure that his information is ‘HIS’ information.

“Security is a top concern for financial institutions across the region. Innovative Middle East companies, particularly banks, are seeking to deploy the most advanced access control technologies as part of their goal to expand the

MANAGING DIRECTOR & CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, AVANZA SOLUTIONS

“payment gateways would have to invest and innovate for spreading merchant education, especially in the regards of cyber-security.”

-SIRISH KUMAR,

CEO AND CO-FOUNDER, TELR. COM

DIRECTOR OF SALES MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA, PHYSICAL ACCESS CONTROL SOLUTIONS EMEA WITH HID GLOBAL

capabilities of a smartphone or smart card,” said WisamYaghmour, Director of Sales Middle East and Africa, Physical Access Control Solutions EMEA with HID Global. “End-users benefit from being able to use their device of choice to open doors plus for secure access to many common activities in the workplace. For example, as connected environments become more of the norm, we are starting to see an uptick in demand for a combined physical access control and computer login solution.”

In its ‘Getting in on the GCC e-commerce Game’ report, AT Kearney stated that e-commerce contributes about 0.4 per cent to the region’s gross domestic product (GDP). In addition, 34 per cent of major GCC retailers have an e-commerce presence.

The region has always been fertile for innovations— tried and tested. The Seamless Middle East 2017 will definitely be a showcase for those innovations that would drive the region’s capabilities, specially the UAE’s for its mega expo 2020. ë

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FEATURE

FOCUS UAE

REIGNING ‘SMART’

Integrating technology into the city’s core services and creating a ‘smart city’ that adds to the quality of the citizen’s lives has been a vital transformative component for UAE’s success in torch-bearing the smart movement. n B Y: A I S H A N I Z A M U D D I N K H A N < A I 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

I

t is fact that UAE is the most digitally advanced countries compared to its Middle East counterparts. This is possibly due to the UAE government’s initiative in adopting and implementing new digital technologies such as the successful Smart Dubai project which aims to put Dubai on the word stage by making it the world’s smartest city. Dubai is also successfully getting ready to welcome many visitors around

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the world for theWorld Expo 2020.

As UAE plans to host the Expo 2020 and welcome millions of visitors from around the world, digital services will be a focus and the Smart Government Initiative drives this concept.

EXPO 2020 Leading upto the Expo, UAE SMB’s will have to become digitally connected. 2 major business sec-

tors will see business booming due to the Expo; hospitality and retail, followed by aviation. Digital connectivity for these sectors is essential as guests from around the globe fly in to Dubai. This would also lead to the expansion of infrastructure as new facilities and systems will be built.

Integration of technologies and technological components will play a key role. “The rise in smart buildings, big data analytics &IoT will

FEATURE

THE LEADERS’ PERCEPTION

“The rise in smart buildings, big data analytics &IoT will inevitably lead to the question of integration of these technologies. From a System Integrator’s perspective, implementing these complex solutions across a portfolio of vendors and customizing partner solutions to the need of the business is what drives us.”

-SANJAY AHUJA,

“Sharjah is emerging because it is an untapped market, and it is new. Sharjah is definitely known and positioned well worldwide when it comes to art, and that is helping us to emerge in different places because we are known in the art scenery.”

-

H.E. SARA AL MADANI, BOARD MEMBER, SHARJAH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY.

VICE PRESIDENT – MEA, AGC NETWORKS

inevitably lead to the question of integration of these technologies. With the growing IT complexities, businesses are looking towards SI to guide them and bring to them the best in class solutions. As systems start to get more and more complex and continue to expand, businesses find it hard to increase IT staff with the required skills.

Organizations are turning towards managed services in order to cut costs and increase business efficiency,” Sanjay Ahuja, Vice President – MEA, AGC Networks

UAE’S GROWING INFRASTRUCTURE “When we look at a city’s growth, we consider its infrastructure to be at the core. This means new facilities and systems will be put in place to cater to the growth of the city. From a network security vendor point of view, all new facilities and infrastructure will need the highest levels of security, considering the growing threat landscape and intensity of cybercrime in the region. Fortinet has

a unique vision and ability to accurately predict what solutions will be needed to protect networks of the future and keep increasingly sophisticated attacks at bay,” Alain Penel, Regional Vice President – Middle East at Fortinet.

IoT will continue to transform consumer applications like never before and technology will continue to further penetrate our lives.Examples of this include personal fitness, connected cars and home automation. The next five years will see IoT transforming consumer applications like never before. Personal fitness, home automation and connected cars are a few examples of how far technology has penetrated our lives. Similarly, IoT will spur significant changes throughout the modern facility whereby offices, hospitals, manufacturing plants and college campuses will all get smarter.

UAE has a rapid growth pattern in technology adoption and utilizing some of best innovations in the world. “Inspite of the high level of internet penetration and mobile users in the

The idea of UAE Innovation is that each government entity has to work hard in making life of citizens easier, happier, and efficient. The Dubai 10X initiative empowers the idea that the future is now, and it is a clear schedule for Dubai growth within 10 years.

-LOAY AHMED ALNAKHAL ICT PROJECTS HEAD AND DM AMBASSADOR, DUBAI MUNICIPALITY.

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FEATURE

“Finesse is now full-fledged in enabling digital transformation for our clients, offering cloud solutions & services and managed services in addition to the integration expertise we offer. We are catering to the ever increasing use of cloud, mobility, social and virtualization.”

-SUNIL PAUL, CO-FOUNDER AND COO OF FINESSE

1000

“The new mega worldclass infrastructure projects coming to UAE on the next 5 year will have a demand for cost saving printing solutions as well as video instruments requirements. We are well positioned to meet these demands.”

-JASON WHILEY,

REGIONAL VICE PRESIDENT – MIDDLE EAST AT FORTINET

DIRECTOR OF SALES, EPSON MIDDLE EAST.

The Dubai 3D Printing Strategy aims promote the status of the UAE and Dubai as a leading hub of 3D printing technology by the year 2030.

Dubai’s target is to complete 100 smart initiatives and 1,000 smart services by the end of 2017

“What Fortinet has consistently done is anticipate the threats and vulnerabilities of the future, then begin building solutions before these threats even emerge – sometimes even years before.”

-ALAIN PENEL,

UAE, consumers are not adopting mobility as much as the rest of the world. This is particularly obvious in the adoption of e-commerce in the ME region. On one part we have the sellers who have not been able to leverage the technologies to advertise and market their products and services as effectively. On the other hand we have users/ consumers that are apprehensive about and show some conservatism towards online purchases.

On an enterprise level, security concerns create a hindrance in adopting mobility. The region has to quickly transform a digital world enabling data to be accessed from anywhere,” says Sunil Paul, COO and Co-founder of Finesse.

FINALLY

Cloud, the Internet of Things (IoT) and analytics to be key areas of technology investment for manufacturers in the region

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25%

Dubai’s key goal is to ensure that 25 per cent of buildings in Dubai are based on 3D printing technology by 2030.

UAE is well on its way to build its solid future shifting from oil and it definitelyrealizes that technological innovation is the best way possible to succeed in today’s digital age. The Dubai Smart City initiative has well positioned Dubai on the world stage to becoming the smartest city in the world. With the arrival of the Expo 2020, the UAE is gearing up to becoming an even more connected country. ë

15TH MAY, 2017 MANAMA, BAHRAIN

ALL ROADS LEAD TO SERVICES

VENUE

THE RITZCARLTON, BAHRAIN

AN OPTIMAL SHIFT TO SERVICES AND OPEX-SAVVY ENTERPRISES

EXCLUSIVE CIO ROUNDTABLE

HOSTED BY

BROUGHT BY

POWERED BY

emitac ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS

www. gec360.org

FEATURE STORY

MISSION DIGITIZATION! It is a fact that the digital transformation is growing at the speed of light. Demands of customers rise faster than the organizationsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; corporate changes. Companies need to be able to adapt to this fast paced technological change so that they stay competitive in the market. The shift to a complete paperless world has put pressure on companies to stay up to date. With an Internet of Things value of USD 14.4 trillion by 2020, Middle East organizations face increasing urgency to digitize or be left behind.

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

D

igitalization is about making the business ready for tomorrow’s consumers and tomorrow’s business models. Today, a company in the region is able to reach the global market to launch its products and services.

They are no longer limited to geographical boundaries. Traditional business models are being challenged and made irrelevant.

MENA’S DIGITAL MOVE The enterprise communications market has prominently shifted away from on-premises systems to hosted/cloud solutions. Businessesneed to be able to adapt to fast emerging technologies and putting technologies to the best use in order to provide the best service. And to do this, business need to stay up to date with the technological market.

Dr Hichem Maya, Head of Industries, SAP MENA says,“For Middle East enterprises, digitization is centered on real-time solutions that can cut time and costs, meet customer and citizen needs, and develop innovative Digital Economy business models. The Middle East is well-positioned to drive digitization thanks to robust ICT infrastructure, government visions, and innovative leaders.”

However, the Middle East faces acrucial need for IT to have a seat in the boardroom. Digital CIOs, or Chief Digital Officers, can break down silos and bring together lines of business to identify how digital solutions can solve business challenges and opportunities. Showing the growth, industry reports predict 60 percent

of global organizations will have Chief Digital Officers by 2020.

CIOs drive the organization-wide digital shift by partnering with technology companies and channel partners to develop long-term digital strategies, identify the right solutions, and upskill staff.

“Organisations that have implemented digital solutions in the Middle East have grown and differentiated themselves from their peers. They have defined new business and operating models.

They have created new revenue streams while cutting back on cost. They have disrupted and redefined the competitive landscape by offering highly personalized services to their clients. In the growth journey, they have cut across boundaries and established a global reach for their product and services,” says PrabuBalasubramanyan, Executive Director, TransSys Solutions. Now a company in the region can reach the global market to launch its products and services. They are no longer limited to geographical boundaries.

Traditional business models are being challenged and disappearing.

DIGITALIZATION IN THE MODERN ENTERPRISE Succeeding in today’s business climate means embracing digitization. The digitization of the enterprise is opening up new markets and creating ecosystems that are extending across multiple sectors and verticals. Retail, healthcare, banks, and smart cities are all empowered by connectivity, advancements in storage and bandwidth, and developments in cognitive technologies. Cloud

Trends for Enterprises to adapt in 2017 Adaptability: modern enterprises succeed when they adapt to industry and marketplace shifts as well integrate new technology into the enterprise operations and culture.

Growing importance of the user experience: an excellent user experience, incorporating customer needs and values, will retain customers Rapid Innovation: enterprises need to have proactive innovation to stay competitive in the changing marketplace.

Embrace the remote workforce: young professionals prefer flexibility, hence having mobile technology and bandwidth proliferation available will help retain top talent.

The advent of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR): the move towards AR and VR will deliver new ways to connect with customers and offer unique interactions.

Application program interfaces (API): APIs enable multiple platforms to bring an ecosystem which is flexible and fast.

Big data and analytics: analytics drive business by showing how customers think, their wants and how the market views an enterprise’s brand Digital transformation is driven by (IoT): IoT provides awareness into a customer’s mind. IoT is making cities smarter and making enterprises efficient.

14.4tn Internet of Things value to reach 14.4 trillion USD by 2020

16% 60% of Global organizations to have Chief Digital Officers by 2020

1,000 According to the BT CIO Report, which interviewed more than 1,000 CIOs across in eleven countries, CIOs are continuing to be more central to the boardroom and the overall business strategy.

artificial intelligence (AI): AI is becoming a reality as technology advances. AI can work with humans to solve complex problems.

Destroying silos: breaking silos will enable the growth of innovation and make collaboration easier.

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FEATURE STORY

“SAP is working closely with ME organizations, channel partners, and educational institutions to develop digital strategies based on S/4HANA real-time business suite for Digital Economy success.”

-DR HICHEM MAYA,

“We extend our cloud advisory services to help client transition to a cloud deployment model..”

-PRABU

BALASUBRAMANYAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TRANSSYS SOLUTIONS.

HEAD OF INDUSTRIES, SAP MENA

Who is a digital CIO? A digital CIO is the one who helps the organisation embark on a digital transformation journey by following some of the fundamental steps, which include: Build a common digital vision by working in close collaboration with key stake holders n Build the digital strategy by engaging all relevant business functions n Re-evaluate the IT architecture, to validate if supports digital solutions such as cloud, mobility, analytics and validate the IT system security. n Embed sophisticated algorithms to extract value from the continuous data generated with a predictive analytic layer n Invest in building a digital capable team. This would include reskilling existing team members or reassigning new/different responsibilities or recruiting new team members laterally n Establish the organisation Cloud computing strategy by moving non-core applications to Cloud computing. This could also be by adopting the best of both worlds i.e. a Hybrid Private/Public Cloud n Forge partnerships to pilot the digital experiences and fast track its Go-ToMarket launch. n

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“At BT, we believe in the digital possible - the amazing potential of digital to change not just businesses, but also communities, nations and the wider world.”

-WAEL EL KABBANY, VICE PRESIDENT FOR THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA, BT.

adoption is also shaping up enterprise digitization. With new technologies coming into the market, enterprises will need to transform the way they do business.

“Several organizations in the Middle East have commenced their digital transformation journey and some forward thinking organizations are ahead of their competitors. Services driven industries such as telecom, banking & finance, aviation, healthcare, retail, media and entertainment, travel and hospitality have been early adopters of digital technologies. Government and public sector organisations in the region have been responsible for setting the pace of adoption.

Public and private partnerships have been instrumental in leading innovation,” says Prabu Balasubramanyan.

FINALLY The digital world is advancing at the speed of light with new technologies coming out faster than before. This transformation is accelerating the transformation of business activities, processes, and competencies to maximize the return for business. It is reshaping every aspect of a business. With the advancement of digital, businesses need to have thorough planning, vigilant collaboration, and the input of every department. ë

INNOVATIONS

KEY CAPABILITIES n Compatible with Citrix, Microsoft and VMware virtual workspace environments n Provides a cost-effective endpoint solution that is highly secure, yet easy to deploy and manage. n Industry’s first entry-level Intel x86-based quad-core thin client, delivering robust connectivity options n Also, the first entry-level thin client to feature an Intel Atom X5 1.44GHz quad-core processor that supports up to 2GB DDR3 RAM and 8GB flash. n Delivers 30 percent better performance than previous generations n Easy to mount on the back of a monitor for a clean, de-cluttered workspace.

Dell Wyse 3040 The Wyse 3040 thin client is an affordable, efficient and easy to manage endpoint solution that allows IT managers to keep costs low while supporting basic productivity and light multitasking. It is ideal for customers across a range of industries, including highly-regulated sectors such as retail, finance, healthcare and education.

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XEROX 29 CONNECTKEY Xeroxlaunched 29 ConnectKeyenabled printers and multifunction devices with simple and secure on-the-go capabilities, cloud connectivity, and access to productivity boosting features and apps. The new ConnectKey portfolio transforms traditional printing devices into smart, connected workplace assistants that reflect the evolving needs of today’s businesses.

Personalized workflows, one-touch access to the cloud and multi-layered security features are the new print, copy and fax.

The new products are identified as the Xerox VersaLink and Xerox AltaLink series. The VersaLink devices are designed for small workgroups and distributed teams, and include 19 printers and multifunction printers. The AltaLink series includes 10 MFPs designed for larger workgroups or print volume needs.

KEY CAPABILITIES n Help organizations create workflows tailored to their specific operations n The tablet-like touch screen interface can be personalized for different work environments or individual users. n Information flows easily from the device to cloud repositories like Dropbox, Office 365 or Google Drive. n Mobile workers can print wirelessly from any computing device. n Offers protection from unauthorized access to devices n ConnectKey-enabled devices offer added security – ensuring they are monitored and trusted in even the most security-conscious environments.

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INNOVATIONS

Base 8 Fibre System

MIXIT DuraTek USB-C Cable

Siemon expanded its line of LightHouse advanced fibre cabling solutions with a comprehensive Base 8 plug and play system consisting of fibre enclosures, modules, adapters, assemblies and jumpers.

Belkin launched the latest cable in the MIXIT DuraTek cable portfolio, thereby expanding its already robust USB-C collection with the new MIXIT DuraTek USB-C cable. Belkinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s MIXIT DuraTek USB-C cable is USB-IF Certified and comes with a 5-year limited warranty.

There are currently 50+ mobile devices using USB-C technology and this number is growing.

KEY CAPABILITIES n Enables 100% fibre utilisation, eliminating the need for conversion cords or modules. n Provides a complete end-to-end Base 8 fibre system for the most efficient support of current and future 8-fibre applications. n IncludesSiemonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s high density FCP3 fibre enclosure along with snap-in Base 8 modules that feature three 8-fibre MTPs to 24 LCs to support 10 Gb/s applications n Also includes MTP adapter plates to support day-one 40 Gb/s or 100 Gb/s applications. n Available in single mode and in standard and low loss OM3/OM4 multimode fibre n Features smaller diameter RazorCore fibre to significantly reduce cable diameter of assemblies and supporting a 2mm diameter MTP jumper n Includes Base 8 MTP to LC hybrid assemblies as an alternative to modules for support of 10 Gb/s. n Base 8 MTP to LC BladePatch assemblies feature the innovative push-pull latch activation of the BladePatch connector.

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KEY CAPABILITIES n Reinforced conductors with Kevlarfibre offer added durability, protecting the wires inside from damage. n DuPont Kevlarfibreis used in a broad range of industrial and consumer products, airline and aerospace components. n Longer, flexible, strain-relief absorbs stress from bending to prevent breakage n Double-braided nylon forms flexible, durable cable jacket n 4-foot length

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