Smart SMB March 2019 by Business Media International

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PUBLISHED BY Business Media International REGISTERED OFFICE: Office 10, Sharjah Media City www.bmi-digital.com EDITOR IN CHIEF Raman Narayan narayan@smartsmb.net Mob: 971-55-7802403 SALES DIRECTOR Ankit Shukla ankit@smartsmb.net Tel: 971-4-8825706, Mob: 971-552572807 EDITOR Diksha Vohra editor@smartsmb.net Tel: 971-4-8825706, Mob: 971-506395616 MARKETING & EVENTS MANAGER Smitha Jithesh smitha@smartsmb.net Tel: 971-4-8825706 CIRCULATION MANAGER Bhawana Bhatia bhawana@smartsmb.net Tel: 971-4-8825706 TELE MARKETING MANAGER Jennefer Mendoza jennefer@smartsmb.net Tel: 971-4-8825706 FINANCE Akhilesh Pandey akhilesh@bmimea.com Tel: 971-52-6640884 DESIGN Sunil Kumar design@smartsmb.net Tel: 971-4-8825706

Scaling up ambitions

usinesses must have ambitions to grow beyond current boundaries and if that means creating a global recall and reach, that is the pinnacle. The staying power to sustain presence at the top will be a test of the company’s determination and dynamism. Which brings me to the story of the rise of Zomato as a global brand, a story we are featuring in this issue. Zomato is indeed the first name that springs to our minds, when we think of ordering food online and that speaks volumes of the brand’s success. It is easier for Brands born in the digital ecosystem to achieve expansion quickly in markets of their choice in comparison to brick and mortar based business models. Having said that, there is always a brick and mortar component to any Business, eventually, even in the form of local partnerships. Vice-versa, the legacy Businesses are fast acquiring a digital avatar that helps them broaden their reach to more consumers. In the final analysis, it is about the quest for establishing a broader reach, catering to customer preferences, whether via brick and mortar or via digital channels. Businesses can grow up faster now than before and a non-name start-up can easily rise to being a global name in a much shorter time frame. This is an advantage that must not be squandered. Start-ups born with a strong vision and the will to deliver strong value positions to stakeholders, partners and customers will always get there to the top. On a final note, Smart SMB Summit travels to Oman and will be organized at Sundus Rotana on the 20th of March. If you are a mid-market decision maker based out of Oman, we hope to see you at the Summit where ‘Redefining Digital and Business Transformation’ will hold centre stage as the theme of focus.

R. Narayan Editor in Chief Smart SMB Management Chairman S. N. Tiwari

CEO

sn.tiwari@smartsmb.net

Saumyadeep Halder Saumyadeep@bmimea.com

Publisher Raman Narayan

Managing Director Ankit Shukla

narayan@bmimea.com

ankit@bmimea.com

Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to validate the accuracy of all information included in the magazine, the publishers wouldn’t be liable for any errors therein Copyright@2018 Business Media International LLC. All rights reserved.

CONTENTS Cover STORY

Talkpoint

THE MAKING OF ZOMATO AS A GLOBAL BRAND

AT THE CROSSROADS OF CHANGE

MILESTONES ON THE TRANSFORMATION JOURNEY

ENHANCING THE SMB FOCUS

CAREEM: DRIVING THE REGION TOWARDS A BETTER FUTURE

14 Feature ENABLING SMART COMMUNICATIONS

RIGHT TIME TO INVEST IN DUBAI PROPERTIES?

26 FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH

Column

HR TRANSITION: FROM THE TRADITIONAL TO THE DIGITAL DOMAIN

BE THE CONTACT TO BE A CONTACT

NEWS

TECHWATCH

MARKET MIRROR

NEWS

NETWORK INTERNATIONAL’S NEW ONLINE PAYMENT GATEWAY TO SUPPORT E-COMMERCE IN MEA multilingual, multi-currency, and white label branding capabilities, for clients across the Middle East and Africa. “Delivering a state-of-the-art acceptance platform to the payment ecosystem is key to our role of supporting accelerated ecommerce growth in the region,” said Paul Clarke, Group Head of Product & Innovation, Network International. “Network International’s N-Genius online payment gateway fulfils the needs of our clients with a featurerich, multi-tenant customisable platform that offers omni-channel acceptance across multiple geographies and segments.”

etwork International, a leading payment solutions provider in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), aims to boost e-commerce acceptance in the region with the launch of a new, multi-million dollar online payment gateway. The gateway is part of Network International’s N-Genius payment platform and has commenced rollout to UAE-based ecommerce merchants from February 2019.

Network International has adopted best in class technology by building an online payment gateway that delivers advanced performance, security, and scalability. The new gateway will offer merchants and consumers a seamless and secure payment experience across both online and in-store channels, and allow for rapid delivery of new payment methods and features without business disruption. The gateway is fully customisable to suit the requirements of businesses of all sizes and industry, while keeping pace with the region’s evolving ecommerce sector and changing payment trends.

Network International is the UAE’s largest acquirer and, as part of its commitment to enable commerce and enhance customer convenience, has championed innovation in digital payments. The company’s new payment gateway has been developed in the UAE following global best practice standards that respond to regional requirements such as

“As e-commerce grows in leaps and bounds, our secure payment gateway will provide online merchants the opportunity to tap into a market that is expected to see ecommerce sales in the MEA region grow to reach USD 80 billion in 2022,” said Samer Soliman, Managing Director - Middle East, Network International.

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

SHERAA SIGNS MOU WITH ENDEAVOR TO STRENGTHEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE UAE

eeping with their commitment to support entrepreneurs and build key networks across the region, the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa) and Endeavor, a global non-profit pioneering in the high-impact entrepreneurship movement, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), to ensure alignment and closer collaboration of both parties. The MoU was signed by Najla Al-Midfa, CEO of Sheraa, and Badr Jafar, Chairman of Endeavor UAE and CEO of Crescent Enterprises, in a bid to establish collaborative mechanisms, enabling both Sheraa and Endeavor, to support high growth scalable startups at different stages of their journey. Najla Al-Midfa, CEO of Sheraa, said, “Sheraa and Endeavor have a shared mission to support entrepreneurs as they grow their

NEWS

global impact. This partnership enables us to work together to cultivate a pool of high-impact startups that contribute to innovation and job creation, and would eventually gain access to Endeavor’s prestigious network. As our partnership continues to evolve, we look forward to seeing this collaboration lead to a thriving, accessible entrepreneurship ecosystem and increased job creation across the region.” Badr Jafar, CEO of Crescent Enterprises and Chairman of Endeavor UAE said, “Scale-ups can significantly contribute to the economies within which they operate, but their needs for support are different from other SMEs given the unique challenges they face. Sheraa has been committed to supporting early-stage startups and we are proud to be partnering with them to build on their work and continue to support entrepreneurs as they rapidly grow their businesses to the next level. By giving entrepreneurs access to an unparalleled global network of mentors, Endeavor supports entrepreneurs to transform communities, create quality jobs and inspire future generations of founders.” In addition, under the agreement, Sheraa, represented by Najla Al Midfa has joined Endeavor UAE’s Board of Directors to better align their collaboration.

GENERAL INTERNATIOAL SELECTS EPICOR ERP IN THE CLOUD

eneral International Group, a provider of specialised engineering services to the UAE & Africa market, has selected Epicor ERP in the Cloud and will deploy the system on the Azure platform to help optimise operations and introduce new operational efficiencies. The move to Epicor ERP will serve General International’s current business growth cycle by consolidating data collection and eliminating replication. The company will be able to automate several processes that were labour-intensive under its legacy platform, and improve the speed, accuracy, and flexibility of reporting. The cloud-based ERP solution from Epicor will open the door to newfound efficiencies in business continuity, cybersecurity and risk management, as well as carry the benefit of 24/7 support and disaster recovery. The cloud model is also expected to deliver up-to-the-minute upgrades, faster time to value, and significantly lower capital and human resource investments. “The Epicor ERP cloud solution stood out clearly for us as having strikingly granular flexibility and impressive scalability,” said Sameh Awad, Director at General International Group. “Often with these platforms you have to make compromises on functionality, however, Epicor ERP was a great fit because it caters to such a wide range of use cases. Additionally, ease of implementation and ease of use were critical factors, so our dayto-day operations did not suffer a hit from delays and learning curves. ” Epicor partner, Cork Information Technology implemented the digital transformation vision.

General International will roll out Epicor ERP to around 15 users initially, increasing to 20 by the end of 2019. Financials, procurement, logistics, project management, and quotations will all be deployed, in the cloud, to the company’s UAE operations. “Middle East organisations like General International are increasingly turning to cloud as the starting point for their digital transformation programmes,” said Hesham El Komy, regional vice president, Middle East, Africa & India (MEAI) at Epicor Software. “This is because the benefits of the architecture are compelling―reduced costs, flexibility, agility, and security. Epicor ERP can grow with your business, morphing to your ambition and circumstances, and becoming a spur and facilitator of growth.” SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

NEWS

DUBAI FREE ZONES COUNCIL TO DEVELOP GEO-ECONOMIC MAP OF DUBAI

he 11th meeting of the Dubai Free Zones Council (DFZ Council), headed by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman of the DFZ Council, announced plans to develop a comprehensive geo-economic map of Dubai in line with the Fifty-Year

Charter that aims to position Dubai as a leading destination for investment and business set-up. His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said: “In January 2019, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President

and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, issued the Fifty-Year Charter that aims to enhance the quality of life, strengthen Dubai’s community, and build a better future for the generations to come. In line with Article 2 of the charter, the DFZ Council has begun working on a comprehensive geo-economic map of Dubai that will assign economic objectives to each geographical area to advance the economic diversification of the emirate. The map will also support the other eight articles of the charter, especially Article 1 that focuses on the Dubai Silk Road.” The DFZ Council is mapping the economic landscape of the city with the support of the Department of Economic Development, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dubai Development Authority, Jebel Ali Free Zone, the Dubai International Financial Centre, Dubai Customs, Dubai Municipality, the World Free Zones Organization, and the Ministry of Economy.

Etisalat Information Services launches ‘aggregator of aggregators’ app

tisalat Information Services, a subsidiary of Etisalat Services Holding, announced the next generation application of the aggregator’s model through its enhanced Connect.ae mobile app, taking its hyper-local search engine to the next level by bringing together businesses and consumers in the UAE through exclusive deals and special discounts. The launch of the UAE’s first aggregator app is part of Etisalat’s key activities to mark the UAE Innovation Month. Rashid Al Naqbi, General Manager, Etisalat Information Services, said: “Etisalat Information Services is continuously investing across its multi-channel to enable digital transformation. The launch of the connect.ae app supported by innovative technology will give customers and businesses a unique and seamless experience of the wide array of services, discounts, and deals. “Connect.ae has collaborated with the world’s leading aggregators such as Booking.com for hotels bookings; ride-hailing app Careem; food delivery app Zomato; SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

and Shopinc.com for grocery shopping, among others. Customers can easily book a cab, make hotel or restaurant reservations, and get exclusive discounts with the enhanced app. With its innovative features and services, this digital platform is seen to further boost customer loyalty as well as promote brand exposure.” Connect.ae was first launched in March 2015.

NEWS

Dubai to host FIRST Global Robotics Challenge

is Excellency Mohammed Al Gergawi, UAE Minister of Cabinet Affairs and the Future, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Managing Director of Dubai Future Foundation, announced that Dubai will host the FIRST Global Robotics Challenge in October 2019. It marks the first time that FIRST Global will be held in the UAE and the Arab world. The announcement was made on the main stage of the seventh World Government Summit (WGS) in Dubai, with the attendance of US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, Founder of First Global Dean Kamen, and artist and activist will.i.am. Al Gergawi stressed that the UAE is one of the most advanced

provides a framework for young people to develop their capabilities in science, mathematics, technology and innovation through a competition to develop robots. It has been structured to enable them to acquire the tools, skills and expertise to design robots, shape their individual futures and contribute to the global efforts trying to solve some of the biggest challenges and most pressing issues in vital sectors, such as water and energy.

OMAN DATA PARK ADDS FORTINET’S SECURE SD-WAN TO ITS PORTFOLIO

Dean Kamen, Founder of FIRST Global, added: “Hosting the FIRST Global challenge in Dubai reaffirms the importance of this event in the design of robots, the further development of technology skills for young people and further reinforces Dubai’s interest in this futuristic sector. “

ortinet, a global leader in broad, integrated, and automated cybersecurity solutions, announced that Oman Data Park (ODP) has expanded its managed security services offering by adding the Fortinet Secure SD-WAN solution to its portfolio. This announcement strengthens a long-standing seven years partnership between Oman Data Park and Fortinet. countries in the adoption of robotics technology and is already using it in many sectors that touch people’s lives. He added that WGS adds value to the UAE’s efforts to support scientific innovation, utilize advanced technologies, support creative minds, and prepare today’s generation to overcome future global challenges. The FIRST Global Robotics Challenge SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

With more than 2,000 students (aged 14 to 18) from 193 countries from around the world, the third edition of FIRST Global challenge will be held in Dubai. Previous editions witnessed the participation of hundreds of student teams, who worked to create robots that help in finding solutions for the challenge of access to clean water in Washington DC in 2017, and the challenge of sustainable energy saving techniques in Mexico City 2018.

Founded in 2012, Oman Data Park is the Sultanate’s premier Managed Services Provider offering both local and international organisations with Infrastructure, AI, Cloud, Public cloud, and Managed security services. “Oman Data Park enjoys a strategic partnership with Fortinet where they provide us with security solutions for our managed network security services business. Our aim is to provide the best security services

NEWS

and maximum return on investment for our customers who place their trust on us to manage their nextgeneration security requirements. By adding Fortinet’s powerful and secure SD-WAN to our services, we are not only strengthening our relationship with Fortinet and enhancing our portfolio, but also allowing our customers to benefit from the unique combination of security, flexibility, single-paneof-glass management and cost savings with minimal to no additional investment,” said Maitham Al Lawati, General Manager - Risk & Compliance at Oman Data Park. Fortinet’s Secure SD-WAN solution enables the efficient, automated, SLA-based utilisation of their WAN resources for Internet and cloud-based service access. ODP’s customers have benefitted from these capabilities to replace their separate WAN routers, WAN optimisation products, and security devices with a single solution that is secure, application-aware and offers automatic WAN path control and multi-broadband support. It greatly improves application performance while reducing WAN operating expenses and management complexity. Fortinet’s SD-WAN has also helped ODP customers to secure their applications hosted on ODP cloud, including email and web applications security and Advanced Threat Protection (ATP). “Oman Data Park is one of Fortinet’s first MSSP partners in the region and we are pleased to see our relationship growing stronger through our shared goals – that of providing customers with critical next-generation security solutions,” said Alain Penel, Regional Vice President – Middle East, Fortinet. “Secure SD-WAN is a native component of the Fortinet Security Fabric and the FortiGate Next-Generation Firewall, and ODP’s customers will benefit from having such tools for undergoing digital transformation without the security risks inherent to other solutions that don’t take a security-first approach”

KODAK ALARIS AND NEWGEN SOFTWARE ANNOUNCE GLOBAL STRATEGIC ALLIANCE

odak Alaris and Newgen Software Technologies Limited have announced a new global strategic alliance that will provide their customers and channel partners with access to best-inclass solutions to help organizations drive digital business. Under the agreement, Newgen and Kodak Alaris will expand, connect and grow their network by jointly recruiting partners with similar profiles to help sell their solutions. Kodak Alaris scanners are now included on the Newgen certified document scanner list. The alliance is expected to generate new business opportunities for channel partners that work with Alaris and Newgen across geographies, vertical markets, and applications. It positions Alaris and Newgen as partners of choice for customers around the world looking to leverage the power of their information, reduce cost, save time and optimize business processes. Through its comprehensive scanner portfolio, scalable capture software solutions and expert managed and professional services, Kodak Alaris enables organizations to automate business processes and take complexity out of information capture. Newgen’s solutions extract

greater value from enterprise data systems integrating with content repositories across multiple sites to eliminate redundant processes. Newgen leverages new-age technologies such as cloud, robotic process automation (RPA) with business process management (BPM), digital sensing, enterprise mobility and process analytics to help organizations reinvent their workplaces. “We’re excited to collaborate with Newgen Software,” said Vanilda Grando, Global Sales Development Director for Alaris, a Kodak Alaris business. “Partners play a key role in delivering value to our customers. Together, we will help organizations make sense of their data, achieve compliance and create transparency and efficiency throughout their operations.” Alaris has won more Buyers Lab Awards than any other scanner manufacturer, including four Scanner Line of the Year awards. Newgen, on the other hand, has received strong industry recognition from leading analyst firms such as Gartner and Forrester for its robust BPM, ECM (enterprise content management), and CCM (customer communication management) products. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

TALK POINT

At the crossroads of change Rajesh GK, Chief Executive Officer, Sharaf Exchange discusses the transforming landscape for the Exchange house Businesses in the region and how Sharaf Exchange is steadily consolidating with a strategic omnichannel approach â&#x20AC;&#x201D; By R. Narayan

Is the outlook for the Exchange Houses very competitive in the UAE? How is the industry changing? The market is competitive and there are 100 plus companies in the UAE alone, with a large majority of them being based out of Dubai. The changes are in the new regulations that have come into place. The Central Bank has come down with new regulations, primarily to protect the interests of the consumer. There have been instances in the past where Exchange houses have either folded up or have failed to make the customer remittances on time, or cases of mismanagement and fraud. The Central Bank has taken some steps to strengthen the policies, the framework, the governance etc and that is beginning to impact the Business. The implementation has started from the 1st of January and so we expect this to be a year of more changes.

RAJESH GK CEO, Sharaf Exchange

What have been your initiatives to cater to customer conveniences in transacting through multiple nontraditional interfaces?

There have been changes in the model of remittances, the types of remittances, consumer behavior etc. There are many factors underlying any change and that is also impacting. Traditionally, the business has been more brick and mortar based but consumers are doing more online or off-branch transaction methods. They are gaining more confidence doing transactions, personal or business through a kiosk, a mobile app or online interfaces. That behavior will also start impacting change in the Exchange industry.

Brick and Mortar is still the mainstay of the Business. Non traditional channels- Mobile app, online or kiosk based or even third party hosted, which is in turn delivered to a customer, are all in the pipeline. This is pretty much the standard roadmap for almost all Exchange houses, which have a large physical retail branch footprint. The fact is that in each of these models, there seems to be no direct replication of the consumer behavior seen with the traditional brick and mortar model.

So the two major drivers of change, new Central Bank Regulations and changing consumer behavior, happen to coincide this year and we can expect an accelerated pace of change for the industry.

Consumer expectations in terms of comfort, convenience, transaction velocity, risk appetite, brand recognition are all different in each channel and each of the channels have their own unique winning or losing models. If a feature for

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

TALK POINT

instance works out well in the brick and mortar model, there is no surety that it will work well with the mobile app. That interplay of understanding the consumer behavior across each channel needs to be mastered. Creating the channel is the easy part but understanding the consumer behavior is key.

differentiation in terms of some being more retail focused, some having a larger focus on the corporate Business, and some focused only on Bulk deals. In sum, there is a very a limited variety in the Business. There is a change now in the nature of the Business and that is predominantly because of Technology.

We have an omni-channel approach but we would like to be more successful than we have been in past.

There used to be a preponderance of aggregators in this Business but now more Exchanges are running their own bilateral bussiness based on direct relationships and thereby improving their profitability. When you have an aggregator model, the profitability is lesser and divided in the value chain between multiple players. When you run a bilateral model, the value chain is consolidated between one or two players and there is a higher profit percentage. More Exchange houses are now trying to bring this change and Technology is enabling them with easier integration for direct relationship management. Blockchain is likely to have a lager impact in future as well.

Is the Brick and Mortar Business where the majority of the Business comes from? Brick and mortar business is still around 85% of our overall Business. The percentage of off-branch Business has grown year on year and that Business has a higher growth rate than the Brick and mortar Business. The competition in the off-branch Business is even higher. It is a lot easier to launch an commerce website or a mobile app than to set up a physical branch. The players are also quite diverse in the off-branch space unlike the brick and mortar domain where you can clearly differentiate between Banks and Exchange houses. In the off-Branch space, the boundaries get a little blurred - there are telecom operators, Banks, government entities, wallet providers, payment gateways, e-commerce service providers etc. So the landscape is much more competitive. Is the Exchange Business an increasing focus for Banks? Exchange Business is a vey small sub-part of the Banking ecosystem. It is a niche product and is based on high volume transactions and low cost. The margins are lower. So a Bank with a full set of services could diversify into the Exchange House but do they find it lucrative or whether they can deliver at the right price points is also an outcome of the Bank’s cost structure, the Bank’s Business model etc. Having said that, a Bank can provide the Exchange House services but an Exchange House cannot provide the Banking services like credit, lending etc. What is the rough split percentage between your corporate and retail businesses in terms of revenues? We have B2B and B2C models. 40% of our Bussiness is corporate based and about 60% is in retail. The roadmap on the off branch route is consumer oriented largely as corporate requirements are more bespoke based. The timelines are different between the two. Is there differentiation in the Business models of different Exchange Houses? If you look at the majority of Exchange houses, there is a similarity in their Business models. There may be limited

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TRADITIONALLY, THE BUSINESS HAS BEEN MORE BRICK AND MORTAR BASED BUT CONSUMERS ARE DOING MORE ONLINE OR OFF-BRANCH TRANSACTION METHODS. THEY ARE GAINING MORE CONFIDENCE DOING TRANSACTIONS, PERSONAL OR BUSINESS THROUGH A KIOSK, A MOBILE APP OR ONLINE INTERFACES.”

Are you considering Blockchain implementations? For a Blockchain implementation roadmap, it is important to understand your partner ecosystem, and have relevant use cases. Technology needs to be embedded deeply in the Business model. Without a valid Business ecosystem or a relevant ecosystem, it wouldn’t make sense. We are exploring the options but are yet to find a relevant use case for our Business. Today we are an UAE based Business. We are a mid-sized Exchange Business House with thirty plus branches but we have an aggressive roadmap to emerge in the top five. We are also keen to explore expansion outside the UAE as well but that is a question of finding the right synergies or opportunities. At the moment, we want to consolidate the home base and the UAE is still a very lucrative market. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

COVER STORY

THE MAKING OF ZOMATO AS A GLOBAL BRAND

hen anyone thinks about ordering food or dining out, Zomato mostly springs to their mind. Smart SMB explores the journey of the brand, the challenges it faced and the strategies it used to carve a niche for itself in the global market. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; By Diksha Vohra

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

COVER STORY

omato, is an app or to be precise, an experience, that has changed the market of dinning. But to most people’s surprise, the brand has had a rather unusual story of growth. While most companies start with thinkers getting together, brainstorming sessions, researching and then coming up with their venture idea, Zomato started in the small corner of an office by chance. Wonder how? Read on…

The start It was around two in the noon when Mr Deepinder Goyal had turned around his chair to see his hungry colleagues probing among the variant menus to choose their meal. His affable plan was to put all of them in one place so that the access becomes easy. In a short span many other departments demanded access to the folder, and that was the first Zomato moment.

The Gap Later to become the founder, Deepinder soon realised that just like his colleagues, other people would also be looking out for a single channel for restaurant menus and dining options. So he began designing a web-page and began uploading menus there. Soon, the word spread and eventually lead to the establishment of Zomato, the onestop-shop for everyone’s dining need.

MOIZA SAEED Vice President, Global Growth, Zomato

The Concept Zomato started off primarily as a menu-checking website which allowed users to compare options around them, along with their prices. Even to our surprise, initially Zomato was not about food-delivery. Once the website became popular and with the increase in its reach, Zomato’s loyalists began suggesting the need for more options and that’s how the brand started integrating different services into their website, developed an app and today from food-delivery to getting great deals on food, Zomato is all-things-foody. Zomato has been working on its 4 metric approach AAAQ, A – assortment, A – affordability, A – accessibility, Q – quality. In the sphere of unending competition, the brand leaders feel when all four of the above metrics improve, and the consumers look ahead to food ordering than cooking, the unuttered growth of restaurant industry shall initiate.

The Challenges In Delhi, which is where the brand was born, the general

culture is of remembering dining outlets with their signature offerings. For instance ITC Maurya is known for its Dal Bukhara and family naan. So if someone thinks of Dal Bukhara, they’re immediately referred to the hotel. And this trend was followed by many other big restaurants who would lure their customers with one signature dish and then offer them more varieties making them loyal. The real challenge, however, was being faced by the small and medium sized upcoming restaurants who did not have the budgets to invest in PR or advertising, nor did they have an existing loyal clientele. Zomato helped fill this gap for the micro-businesses. By allowing restaurants to upload their menus free-ofcost, the brand allowed them to showcase their offerings to a huge consumer base and thus drive visitors to their restaurant. The issue of ‘being discovered’ was now resolved and slowly, from small to big, every restaurant began registering itself on Zomato. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

COVER STORY

This, however, gave rise to the next challenge, which was whether these restaurants being listed were actually good. And this is when Zomato introduced the reviewing and rating system allowing diners to post a review of their experience at a restaurant, thereby helping others to make a choice and to avoid making mistakes they have made. Zomato, in fact, has a dedicated team today who monitors such reviews, makes sure there are no fake ones and if a restaurant has consistently performed poorly, they unlist them too. Zomato, as a brand, pays a lot of attention to feedback and quality control. While making sure they add new services, they also ensure that their operations team monitors every movement right from the grass-root levels. There are many restaurants that have launched their own food ordering apps, which may be considered as a demand shifter. The advantage, for Zomato, is its marketplace model,which can always keep it ahead in the race. The restaurants may need to sit back and evaluate the cost that they have been incurring on maintenance of such apps or websites, whereas Zomato can do the same for them without any increased overhead.

The Expansion After establishing itself in India, Deepinder wanted to take the brand overseas and thus began Zomato’s expansion into the East and the West. Setting up a business, however, in different countries amidst such dynamically changing markets was difficult. But at the same time, the brand ethos were never compromised upon. Till date, every office of Zomato feels the same. High on energy is the sole mantra. Today roughly, Zomato is present in 24 countries with around 20 million active accounts.

The Innovations Despite gaining massive popularity, Zomato never stopped in creating and re-creating its offerings to better suit their customers’ needs, and that is what has given them an edge over all SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

their competitors. With the increasing growth of Zomato and its pride in touching a figure of approximately 2 Billion USD, it still has a focus on the micro businesses as well to have an edge in the market. Soon after their launch, Zomato introduced their fooddelivery option which made dining at home quite popular. In-fact, Zomato was one of the first brands which dissuaded the myth that ordering food was much more expensive than cooking at home. Moiza Saeed, the VicePresident of Global Growth, says, “The main competition of Zomato is not other food-delivery apps. It is, in-fact, the people who choose to dine home. The goal is to make restaurant food a comfortable option for diners globally without creating a hole in their pocket.” To make their services easily accessible, they launched their app with a unique interface allowing millions of users to place orders, choose dining outlets and do much more on-the-go. The latest in their innovation kitty is the Zomato Gold service which provides every Zomato Gold member the option to get a free meal with every meal they order. This makes dining even more economical, thereby increasing their market share, allows restaurants to discover more customers and experiment with different offerings and makes the brand even more popular.

THE MAIN “ COMPETITION OF ZOMATO IS NOT OTHER FOOD-DELIVERY APPS. IT IS, IN-FACT, THE PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE TO DINE HOME. THE GOAL IS TO MAKE RESTAURANT FOOD A COMFORTABLE OPTION FOR DINERS GLOBALLY WITHOUT CREATING A HOLE IN THEIR POCKET.

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Zomato is a firm believer of “1% done”, leaving a wide scope for betterment.

The Verdict Undeniably the customers have shown huge faith in the products being launched by Zomato; further even sellers also have a cakewalk registration process. Zomato continues to enlist new restaurants on its portal, such that you name it and Zomato has it. And we believe it is their theory of “1% done” which is increasing their reach each and every minute. Recent research reveals that numerous restaurants get registered on Zomato every day, which is sufficient proof to understand the swift growth of Zomato worldwide.

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TALK POINT

What has been the company’s view on digital transformation? What have been the initiatives on this front?

Milestones on the Transformation Journey The Precision Group with two manufacturing Businesses is moving ahead on the journey to transform its processes with an ongoing a implementation. Jayakumar Mohanachandran, Head of IT, Precision Plastic Group, elaborates on some of the milestones along the journey. — By R. Narayan

Tell us in brief about the manufacturing operations of the group companies of Precision? Precision is a 35 year old company and is owned by Al Tayer, ARMS and DULSCO. We have two types of Manufacturing Businesses, Precision Dies & Tools Manufacturing Co. (L.L.C.) and Precision Plastic Products CO. The former is an Engineering to order division where we manufacture dyes, moulds, engineering tools etc. The other division is into manufacturing of plastic packaging products for major customers including major Diary manufacturers. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

The manufacturing industry is relatively slower in adopting newer technologies and transformation. In our case, because we have many global customers, we have had no choice but to go in for digital transformation initiatives. We had to because we needed to stay competitive and needed those real time insights for the shop floor for instance or for building visibility into the supply chain etc. This will help us make real time decisions, undertake fast and accurate actions etc. We started three years back in terms of looking at our processes and systems; our systems weren’t integrated and there was therefore no real time visibility. We were running on a legacy system for two decades. We thought we will either go in for an upgrade or go for one of the tier one products. We finalized with Oracle Fusion, a cloud solution as the best option to meet our requirements. KPMG was our consultant who helped us in comparing the technical competencies of the different options. Cost was also a decisive factor. Wipro was the implementation partner. It was a huge jump for the organization that had been using a legacy product for past 20-25 years, an organization, where the average employee’s association with the company was over 15 years, to move to a cloud solution. This required a high mindset shift as we were moving away from a scenario of solutions that operated in silos, where the manual inputs were quite high to a scenario where there was more integration. How was the project envisioned, organized and coordinated? At the start of the project, we finalized the governance structure and ensured all stakeholders understood the importance of the investment we were about to embark and that each one was able to drive this further down the line. This was one of the key communications within the organizations to ensure everyone in their areas of focus were able to drive this transformation. This included all the department heads, project sponsor the head of Precision as well as the Change Management Lead. We formed the core team and then we had the change management team, the steering committee, the different department heads, who were nominated for variouss profiles and finally, we had the process champions for each of the departments. When did the first phase go live? What were the modules of the first phase implementation? We started the project by August 2017. By September, we had all consultants onboard. By May 6th of 2018, we went live with 18 modules of the cloud offering with a Big Bang

TALK POINT

approach. We went live with core modules of the offering we have subscribed from Oracle. The implementation was in two phases. Phase one implementation include Order Management, HR, Finance, Supply Chain, Procurement and Manufacturing. We waited for six months for these to stabilize and then we added the edge modules that are a part of the transformation journey. These included Maintenance, Planning and budgeting, BICS (Business Intelligence Cloud service), Production Scheduling, Supply Chain Planning Central etc which donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have an impact directly on day to day operations. We are going live with these modules soon starting with the Maintenance module, culminating with the implementation of the BICS module in the next couple of months. How have the benefits been for different departments? In the next 3-4 months, we will move into a cloud environment completely from a legacy infrastructure. Why this would be a significant change, is also underlined by the fact that earlier when there was some task to be done, whether by Leadership, Management or others, they had to come to office to do that. Now, not only for the leadership, for almost the entire workforce, they can work from anywhere. Everyone has their own dashboards and they are getting used to these functionalities as of now. Most of the key employees or the process champions and even employees down the line can generate their own reports because the new system is capable of delivering to those drill down level details, based on OTBI (Oracle Transactional Business Intelligence). It is a great feature. Another outstanding feature is HR with all functions integrated including time and attendance and right now every employee has their own self-help HR mobile App where they can check their leave balance, download pay-slips, request any require documents online etc. The footfall now towards the HR department is minimal because all information can now be accessed online. We will have touchscreen based kiosks installed on the shopfloors for them to login and access their HR information in case they do not have data on their phones and take print out if required. The supply chain has gone paperless in most areas. There were many manual operations earlier and most of them have become automated now. Everything is streamlined and centralized. Similarly the procurement department has gone completely paperless, is completely automated and does not have to print out anything. The order is directly generated, going to customers or vendors as the case maybe. Mostly there is a significant turnaround in all departments. Maintenance didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have an system until now and now as the Maintenance module goes live, the department will have all visibility into all aspects including orders, preventive maintenance, breakdown etc and they can measure their KPIs through the system.

JAYAKUMAR MOHANACHANDRAN

IT Head, Precision Group

Have you identified some key benefits for the organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s functioning? Phase 1 went live 9 months ago and phase 2 is going live now. We are analyzing the benefits from the system. We identified several key benefits such as that the time to market has improved, the cost savings are there, the productivity has increased, the customer experience has been enhanced, integrated information is available and security has seen an overall improvement as well. Overall, there is enhanced mobiility and agility. What do you look to achieve with the next phase? Phase three would be about incorporating some of emerging technologies such as IoT and RPA and looking at different use cases. This could be like for instance getting the shop floor automated and integrated with the system, with minimal manual interventions. In a manufacturing environment, everything needs to be done in real time and there are many emerging technologies that enable this for best outcomes. The project would be about enabling the intelligent or smart factory where the factory talks directly to the system and there is real time visibility across the shop floor and the supply chain. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

TALK POINT

Enhancing the SMB focus Please discuss the focus on IP security solutions business and the growth for D-Link? Have you expanded the product portfolio? We have expanded our IP surveillance security solutions with the introduction of the F5 series which offers better features, flexibility and scalability. The new series includes new IP cameras, Network Video Recorders and a Server with built-in VMS. The aim of the new series of IP surveillance is to offer the customers with the latest technology at a very competitive pricing, and keeping in line with our end-to-end solutions focus, which is our forte. How many camera models do you offer- discuss some of the key segments of focus? We carry a wide variety of IP camera models to cater SoHo, corporate to enterprise segments. We are grateful to the competition, who helped us to rejuvenate our complete product portfolio with ample number of new offerings to strengthen our product range - starting from mini/regular dome, mini/regular bullet, fisheye, PTZ, ANPR/ LPR models with industry standard, providing smart analytical features to support today’s surveillance demands and endcustomer needs. Discuss your expansion of the Nuclias portfolio of solutions? Nuclias is D-Link’s cloud-based network management solution that enables service providers and business owners to easily and remotely configure and monitor their network infrastructures. We have recently launched new switch series SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

Sakkeer Hussain, Sales & Marketing Director D-Link MEA discusses how the networking vendor has enhanced its focus on IP security solutions with new launches and is making inroads into key verticals

and access points that work with Nuclias. The DBS-2000 Series Cloud Switches are D-Link’s first switch family to work with Nuclias. Managed through the Nuclias Cloud, the DBS2000 switches feature centralized management and reporting, as well as zero-touch deployment and over-theair firmware upgrade. A wide selection of port configurations and PoE/ non-PoE model options provide user flexibility.

various networking demands. With the product segments offering end-toend solutions comprising switching, structured cabling, unified wireless, IP telephony solutions - backed by the new IP surveillance range, we are confident to increase our market reach and expand into new SMB verticals.

Elaborate on how you have expanded mid-market/SMB focus with new solutions?

Oman has always been a positive market for us. We have been witnessing a gradual increase in market share year-over-year. Our expectations are high for year 2019/2020, considering we have an edge over the competition by offering end-to-end solutions to the Oman market and GCC countries. As you can see, the power retail industry is booming in Oman and with the increase in shelf space in the super retail segment, it shall help open new doors for D-Link product segments.

Our core focus is to provide solutions for educational campuses, hotels/ resorts, staff accommodations, education, healthcare facilities and government institutions where IP surveillance is a primary need today. D-Link’s expertise and proven records on network switching and structured cabling solutions has expanded our reach in different verticals to support

Discuss briefly the focus on surrounding GCC countries on terms of your focus, especially Oman?

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ENABLING SMART COMMUNICATIONS UNIFY COMMUNICATIONS, THE ATOS BRAND FOR COMMUNICATION AND COLLABORATION SOLUTIONS, IS STEERING THE FUTURE OF COMMUNICATIONS IN THE CONNECTED WORKPLACE — By Diksha Vohra

INTRODUCTION: Ever got stuck in a situation when digital communication services came to your rescue? Well, all enterprises depend on efficient communications and collaborations within the workforce to serve their customers. From Hospitals, hotels, restaurants, call centers to schools and government offices, every sector depends heavily on communications infrastructure. In simpler terms, they make our lives easier. Unify, the Atos brand for communication and collaboration solutions is a market leader that is spearheading the revolution of communication engagement all over the world. The company, headquartered in Munich, Germany is present in over 100 countries including the Middle East. Unify provides software-based enterprise unified communications including voice, Web collaboration, video conferencing and contact center, networking product and services. The brand, under the legacy of its famed parent company Siemens group, was first established in 2008 but traces back its heritage to the parent company’s establishment in 1847. Originally called Siemens Enterprise Communications, it was rebranded as Unify in October 2013. STRATEGY FOR EXPANSION IN THE REGION: As segment leaders all around the globe, Unify is now looking to gain momentum in the Middle East and North African regions. According to Paul Cunningham, the Chief Marketing Officer at Unify, “ Everyone recognizes that this region is characterized by fantastic potential for growth”. And rightly so! Considered to be the youngest region in the world in terms of population and growth, the Middle East is a very dynamic market with a young and well-educated population. Across the region, there are countries that are economic powerhouses and Unify seeks to take advantage of the potential in these markets, playing the SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

role of facilitating digital transformation through providing advanced tools for improved communications. “We will be equipping the local team as well as partners, telecom businesses, systems integrators, resellers with skills and opportunities needed to tap into these market opportunities,”says Paul. Simon Skellon, the Chief Sales Officer for Unify globally, believes that the company now has the right people, right team, right partners, right capabilities and more importantly, the right solution sets needed to achieve greater momentum in the region. Unify will essentially be taking to market the broad breath of its portfolio to meet the needs of the region’s customers. These range from on-premise voice and UC solutions to virtualized voice and communication solutions to solutions with full cloud capabilities etc. Simon adds, “The Middle East and Africa, specifically, Dubai is very critical for us as we see great demand for our solutions. We believe that we have the perfect partners needed to take our solutions to the market” PECTATIONS FROM THE REGION AN FUTURE PROSPECTS: The senior management behind Unify is extremely positive about their forthcoming projects and the people working on them. Unify is confident and takes pride in their regional partners as well. Seeking to approach the market from a different perspective, Unify wants to be the vendor whose solutions not only adddres the present needs but also the future needs of the organisations. According to Paul, going forward, customer adaptability is going to be a huge determinant since the user interface is the most important factor for customers and people have loved the solutions on offer by Unify so far.

FEATURE

SPECIFIC PRODUCTS AND SERVICES FOR THE REGION: The Unify portfolio takes inspiration from the workplace of the future. The company is working towards developing the tools and platforms that enable tomorrow’s workers and organizations to not only survive but truly thrive.

PAUL CUNNINGHAM Chief Marketing Officer, Unify

THE UNIFY PORTFOLIO TAKES INSPIRATION FROM THE WORKPLACE OF THE FUTURE. THE COMPANY IS WORKING TOWARDS

DEVELOPING THE TOOLS AND PLATFORMS

THAT ENABLE TOMORROW’S WORKERS AND

ORGANIZATIONS TO NOT ONLY SURVIVE BUT TRULY THRIVE.

The future is all about bringing in latest innovations in terms of migrating client communications infrastructure flexibly and cost-effectively, overlaying and integrating next-generation team collaboration on any existing infrastructure, reducing the cost and simplifying the operation of their communications infrastructure, while improving user adoption and satisfaction and lastly, creating a more agile, collaborative and productive workforce. Unify aims to achieve this in tandem with perfecting other new gen technology such as Internet of Things ( IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, ChatBots etc and achieving Business communication solution delivery that is secure and updated today and will be, in the future as well.

Paul Cunningham talks about the gaps their company looks forward to filling as well as the products on offer. He goes on to explain how Unify started from a baseline of very strong voice communications experts and the main area of focus has been to deliver very high quality, very high security and scalable voice communications. They have started building layers of additional functionality on top of voice communications in areas like contact center, public health care, emergency services, infrastructure, and urban development as well as added further value to voice offerings with software applications and collaboration with businesses. When asked about the medium to small enterprises,Paul lays emphasis on how the SMB market is very important for unify. They sell in excess of 30,000 units of products with services into the Small & Medium Business every year. And since the Middle Eastern region has a very dynamic SMB market, Unify sees great possibilities of adding great value to their needs for comunications via multiple channels. While the SMB segment is seeing the fastest pace of growth in the industry, these companies have a huge growing need for effective communications and collaboration that can keep them ahead. Paul talks about the importance of team collaboration- “Teams, locally or distributed are required to engage with each other using video, chat, messaging as well as voice communications which enables them to work more closely, create more value together and this increases customer interaction”. Apart from the traditional suite of solutions,the focus would be on going to the vertical market sectors with specific solutions meeting the diverse needs of the public sector, healthcare center, emergency services, critical responses, education, hospitality, financial as well as professional services. Paul believes that Unify is indeed ideally poised to meet the needs of companies of different sizes with the state of the art communication & collaboration tools it has on offer. He concludes,“ Technology is creating an even platform for everyone so that they can take benefit from it. We have solutions for a company with a size as small as 10 customers to companies with 10000 customers. Collaboration is making a huge positive change in enhancing work producitivity an it is truly up to the customers as to how to benefit from these changes.” SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

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EO Clubs Network has long been known for its excellent operations and networking group. Very few people, however, know about the man behind this venture who is legend in himself. In conversation with Tariq Al Nizami, Smart SMB unveils the story of the CEO Clubs Network and the founder himself. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; By Diksha Vohra

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

FEATURE

he human connection is key to personal and career success, and probably the high spirited college boy sitting in on the last bench had day-dreamt this phrase. Tariq Al Nizami, may haven’t forecasted the turn that his amateur venture may take after a steady international growth. But, to much of his surprise, Dubai, a city that welcomes people and new concepts with open arms, back in the days had embraced the success story of the CEO Clubs Network with a grand inaugural ceremony. “The inspiration for the name CEO Clubs Network goess back to my college days in the United States,” says Tariq. While being an active student, he also loved networking with people. When in 2001 he decided to take the CEO Clubs Network across the oceans, he had observed a very steady growth in the world of networking. He strongly believed in the power of connecting with right people to help businesses grow. Someone’s offering can be someone’s need and that’s precisely what the CEO Clubs Network tapped on and became the brand it is today. Like every success has a background story, even Tariq does. It was Tariq’s fondness for the Dubai market that gave way to the CEO Clubs Network . His Real Estate business had brought him to crisscross within the UAE but as the cards had destined, Dubai got its one of the most famous and trusted business networking clubs, which also became the only private club to have received patronage from the Royal family. The CEO Clubs Network has earned respect from its members as the services that had saved the spirit, remain till date. The club consists of members from various industries working in coordination to achieve success. To manage all the activities well, the CEO Clubs Network consists of an advisory board and a diplomat board, with members from 35-different nationalities. What’s worth noting is that the Diplomat club consists of various international delegates representing various countries worldwide, which helps in opening more doors for international

collaboration, thereby making the club much more authentic and influen-tial. Like any business, the pathway made for the CEO Clubs Network wasn’t plain. There were struggles and constant brainstorming sessions for betterment. The biggest challenge the CEO Clubs Network faced was the cultural change in comparison to that of the United States. Also, the rather busy schedules were challenges to cope up with. But Tariq believes that his go-getter attitude is what helped him find a solution to all of these. Though with the growing competition, the CEO Clubs Network did reform its patterns and methodology, the ideology to be the most trusted club in UAE remains the same. On the personal front, while most people think Tariq is all about the CEO Clubs Network, only a handful are aware of his other activities. His relentless efforts in trying to build a strong network of dedicated business owners across the globe were recognised and this gave him the opportunity to represent the UAE in United Nations Summit for Human

THE VARIOUS BUSINESSES I AM ASSOCITED WITH HELP ME UNDERSTAND THE NEED OF THE MARKET AND WHEN I UNDERSTAND THAT, I SHARE IT WITH MY MEMBERS SO THAT THEY CAN FILL THE GAPS AND CREATE NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR THEMSELVES.

Rights and Anti- Corruption. Also as a member of WAPS, he has been involved in various activities relating to women empowerment and has implemented many of the acquired ideologies in his business club. Along with that, he is also heading several brands like the ADAM Global, Happy Home, Hollywood Studios & UN Global Compact. Elaborating on his involvement in many other businesses aside the UN initiatives and the CEO Clubs Network, he said: “These various businesses help me understand the need of the market and when I understand that, I share it with my members so that they can fill the gaps and create new opportunities for themselves.” Tariq is also the recipient of many awards. Two of the ones very close to his heart include the Dubai Quality award for his efforts in building the CEO Clubs Network, and his recognition as the 1st Asian to achieve US Gold Award for Minority Business. One of his most inspiring affirmations that have kept his desire alive is his formula of attaining success. He firmly believes that success is formulated by two people who decide to work in coordina-tion with each other. He said its a fact we all know but probably our brain forgets to refresh that,“Contacts bring contracts”. He also ensures that the CEO Clubs Network and his involvement with the UN go together, to justify his vision of connecting the globe with domestic threads.He thanks his father for giving him the most important tips of building success. “My father used to say that trust and relationship are two things which have to be crystal clear. Once broken, they cannot be fixed no matter how hard you try.” Thanks to Tariq’s resilience, the CEO Clubs Network has over 24-chapters worldwide and over 16,000 members. He owes the success of the club to one point: “…money comes and goes but as long as connections remain, business remains. So don’t run behind money, run behind business and don’t confuse the two.”

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

TALK POINT

Careem: THE DRIVE INTO THE FUTURE

rom being an on-demand-taxi service to now venturing into other activities like food-delivery, Careem has lately witnessed a lot of movement. Smart SMB discusses the brand’s future moves with Mr Bassel Al Nahlaoui, Managing Director of Careem Gulf. — By Diksha Vohra

Careem was amongst the first providers of on-demand-taxi service. How did the idea come about? It all started in 2012, when two men, Magnus Olsson and Mudassir Sheikha, decided to leave their jobs working as management consultants at McKinsey to start something that mattered. They had a burning desire to create a service which connected with people and that’s when Careem was born. Today, Careem is brand that strives to inspire everyone it interacts with and a brand that exists to drive our region towards something better. At a time when the region was still adapting to the technological advancements around, Careem was born. Did that pose any major challenge? Speaking statistically, the average age of people in the UAE is 25 which means that people are fairly young, and willing

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

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to adapt and change fast. Considering the smartphone penetration if 40% upwards, our market is thus also more connected. On the other hand, our total annual consumption is about $1.8 trillion. But only two percent of that happens online, compared to 15-20 percent in more developed markets. So instead of a challenge, here we had an opportunity to convince others who didn’t purchase services online to do so for their own comfort, which they did. What sets you apart from the rest in the market? Our OS outlines a common structure and set of principles that define how we work and how all the moving parts of our organisation come together. From the way we talk to each other, to how we allocate resources, to our processes (or not), to how we hire, and what we prioritise. It’s the essence of what we want to establish as the Careem way. We strive to keep everything con-sistent and clear for better collaborations. This way, we make way for a healthier business fo-cused on inputs and where the organization is getting the appropriate focus it needs to be running at its full potential. You’re also launching a couple of new initiatives like Careem Now which is like tapping into another industry. Are you looking at cross industry expansions now? Our boldest initiative is to become the Internet-commerceenabling platform for the region. In the process of building Careem, we have built a lot of the infrastructure required to build and run a regional consumer internet business at scale. We are moving into ‘platformization’ for our infrastructure now and the plan is to open it up to the ecosystem to build on top of our infrastructure and build regional consumer Internet businesses much faster and cheaper. Which one of your strategies do you give credit to for your exceptional success? Careem puts customer support at the top of their focus and invests in a multi-channel approach with an emphasis on serving local dialects. With an investment in contact centers in all the core operating markets - Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the UAE, a customer has the option to speak to someone during their ride to quickly resolve any issues. Care agents work across all channels to support customer queries over the phone, on email and posted to Careem social platforms. An average of 80% of all inquiries are handled within 20 seconds or when needed escalated to the relevant teams within Careem to provide a solution. For priority customers, this increases to 90% of inquiries within just ten seconds. Customer Care goes beyond having a dedicated department for us, it’s part of our DNA and culture. In the near future, what are a few things that we can expect to see from Careem? Unfortunately, our region has always imported innovation, which in a way has been undermining our capabilities. It is

BASSEL AL NAHLAOUI Managing Director, Careem Gulf

high time we build it locally and hopefully export it to the rest of the world. We are going into 3 major areas. The first is Food delivery. We have acquired a food delivery business last year (round menu) with the aim of learning more about the industry. We have recently launched our new service, Careem Now, in Dubai and in other cities in the near future. The second area of focus is Mass transportation. We have also recently launched Careem bus in Cairo. Our survey re-vealed that 40 percent of the Cairo population not being adequately served by public transport. One bus could mean 13 less cars on the road, 13 parking spots freed up, and 13th’s worth of CO2 emissions reduced. And that’s just one bus. When you will start looking at many you can estimate the impact. FInally, the P2P feature gives customers the ability to easily and instantaneously transfer Careem prepaid credit through their wallet on the app to other Careem customers, in-cluding, for example, family members and friends that may need credit for a Careem ride. Transferred prepaidcredit can only be used to pay for Careem rides and cannot be redeemed for cash. We are also about to start providing digital-payment solutions that can address the vast number of unbanked people in our region, enabling them to participate in e-commerce and have greater access to the services that can benefit them. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

TALK POINT

Infocomm has an extensive range of solutions in connectivity, security, digital signage, parking, IP Telephony, telco, PMS etc. Discuss very briefly how you see growth in specific areas of focus? Infocomm Group has a very strong focus in complete ICT comprising of solutions right from network connectivity, network security, digital signage, Smart parking, IP Telephony, telco level solutions, PMS & hospitality solutions. Infocomm currently has some good orders in hand & extensive sales pipeline for ICT projects. Our business is customer centric & not product centric. Our company consistently focus on our customer as the focal point of decision making, service delivery and product creation. We try to stand out as an attraction to our customers & generate higher value for them, so they keep coming back and talking about us. Customers are our lifeline. We strongly believe that the total sum of our client experience during their interaction with us determines how fast we grow. The perception they form of our business at every touch point becomes their reference point of Infocomm’s brand identity in this highly competitive market. Our team commits to making the company shine through our customers. Most companies tend to focus on performance or topline to bottom-line conversion without much attention on other business elements. This narrow Focus on bottom-line performance alone takes on a cost cutting approach that minimizes customer value and employee satisfaction. This eventually diminishes value and has long term impact on growth of one’s business. Instead, we focus on value creation in the entire ecosystem & definitely see a 10-15% growth in this challenging year 2019 As an exhibitor at COMEX, elaborate what new solutions are being showcased? Infocomm will be displaying its wide range of ICT solutions right from its Mobile messaging solutions to its complete suite of ICT solutions for SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

ASIEF MOHAMMED Senior Pre-Sales Consultant, Infocomm

Kokila Alagh, Founder and Akshata Namjoshi, Senior Associate at Karm Legal Consultants discuss legality and enforceability of smart contracts in UAE and application of E-Commerce law to the smart contracts.

FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH Asief Mohammed, Senior Pre-Sales Consultant at Infocomm discusses the company’s expanding horizons — By R. Narayan

TALK POINT

Enterprise & Hospitality. Infocomm’ will be showcasing Aruba’s newly launched Network & Core switches along with Aruba’s Wireless controller & next generation Access Points. Also, we shall be displaying AlcatelLucent’s Technology Solutions -for which Infocomm is an Accredited Business Partner in Sultanate of Oman. Alcatel Enterprise solutions are well suited right from SMB to Enterprises with its strong product line-up in the Hotels & Hospitality range. Beyond this Infocomm will also be displaying the latest state-of-the-art solutions well suited for Smart Buildings, Large Enterprises, Ministries & Government office, contracting companies & for the Operator ICT solutions at large. We expect a huge turn around at our Comex booth with an active participation from people in the ICT industry & this has made us decide to participate in a much larger fashion as compared to year 2018 considering some serious business opportunities we had in last year. Discuss the outlook for mid-market adoption of latest IT products & solutions in Oman - is there a buzz around digital transformation that is perhaps encouraging more IT spend? The outlook for mid-market adoption of latest IT products & solutions in Oman is currently on an upsurge as with the initiatives of e-Oman, the technological adoption in government sector has increased rapidly over the past few years. In private sector too, businesses are gearing towards technology shift. ICT systems & transformed digital solutions modules are becoming the norm across Oman. Although the rate of adoption is relatively lower than other developed nations, businesses in Oman are slowly awakening to the realization that to sustain growth and remain competitive, companies must tackle the reality of digital world. Digital transformation is the profound transformation of business and organizational activities, processes, competencies and models to fully leverage the changes and opportunities of a mix of digital technologies and their accelerating impact across society in a strategic and prioritized SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

way, with present and future shifts in mind. Digital transformation is not just about disruption or technology. While digital transformation is predominantly used in a business context, it also impacts other organizations such as governments, public sector agencies and organizations which are involved in tackling societal challenges such as pollution and aging populations by leveraging one or more of these existing and emerging technologies. In the scope of this digital transformation overview, we mainly look at the business dimension. The mentioned development of new competencies revolves around the

with some good achievements for year 2018 & were able to make some remarkable achievements by bagging few prestigious projects for integrated ICT solutions for Enterprises, Hospitality & ISP clients. Beyond this in year 2018 Infocomm was able to get some good Repeat business from our existing Clients due to our Realistic & Scalable Marketing Strategies. Developing new customers, retaining existing ones and expanding our territory to generate un-exploited potential was our key focus. We build up as many leads as possible so we could convert as many to sales. Many

“

We had a profitable Business Model with some good achievements for year 2018 & were able to make some remarkable achievements by bagging few prestigious projects for integrated ICT solutions for Enterprises, Hospitality & ISP clients.” capacities to be more agile, peopleoriented, innovative, customer centric, streamlined, efficient and able to induce/leverage opportunities to change the status quo and tap into new information- and service-driven revenues. Digital transformation efforts and strategies are often more urgent and present in markets with a high degree of commoditization. All these influencing factors has given an increased impetus to IT spending in Oman in line with the Vision 2040.

start -ups focus on building their brand as opposed to generating leads and concluding sales. The key is to review your approach continuously and got the sales rolling in. We have created a system dashboard, that measures progress and performance daily. It shows us where our growth is coming from, where our leakage could be and equip us on how to deal with what’s on our dashboard. These are viewed against our vision and performance goals.

Which are the leading verticals of focus for the company?

We were also able to hire and train a solid team including Omanis & Expats with different skills set. The year 2018 allowed us to Gain an Authority in ICT Industry as we jumped up the ladder to its pinnacle by becoming HPE-Aruba’s Platinum partner from our previous Gold partnership. Also, Infocomm was strongly qualified & achieved Alcatel Lucent’s Accredited Business Partnerships. With such high levels of partnerships coupled with our teams certifications & engineering with solution design capabilities we were able to Reach a Significant Number of Sales in year 2018

Infocomm will be looking forward to a stronger focus on key verticals in year 2019. These include Internet Service Provider segment, Education, Finance, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Oil and Gas, Public Safety, Transportation, Retail, Smart City and Smart Grid. Elaborate on some key milestones for the company during the course of the past year? We had a Profitable Business Model

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FEATURE

RIGHT TIME TO INVEST IN

DUBAI PROPERTIES? With the recent fall in property prices, we explore whether it is a good time to invest in Dubai. — By Diksha Vohra

he Chinese saying “May you live in interesting times” seems to have been correctly fitted for the Real Estate industry in the UAE, in many more ways than imagined by the forecasters. Not too many intellects would disagree, the changing statistics of Real Estate industry in the UAE, and falling prices is a matter of concern. While most of the investors have also understood this phase as a boon period of investment but remain silent on the growth of the real estate industry. The industry seems to step out of black in near days. The UAE’s residential sector has seen its real estate face challenges. By the end of last year too, the industry hadn’t recovered much. The statistics has seen a fall in recent times; on an average the apartments being sold have decreased by 5%, whereas Villas dwindled by 3%. The total figure shrank by 16% in case of apartments and 13% for villas.

— By Diksha Vohra SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

But as mentioned earlier the change of quarter also managed to see an increase in affordability of buying properties by a recommendable digit of 22%. Some other researchers have even claimed an increase of 41% in monetary exchange related to completed units, which is favourable in com-parison to that of 2017. The last quarter of 2018 was not favourable for projects like Dubai Sports City, International City and Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC) that observed a fall in prices by 9%. Further the story of diminution was continued by Downtown Dubai and The Greens with an observation of downfall by 7% and 8% respectively. The only brand that was successful in keeping its knees straight in the tough hour was Dubai Marina, with a minor drift of 1%. Discovery Gardens was one that had witnessed the major reduction by 25% and Dubailand which has an unmatched stature in the country wit-nessed a drop of 5%. The industry seemed to be getting out of the black clouds with silver linings in the form of new laws, initiatives and projects announced. The wider view from this point looks promising for coming months of 2019. As the law of flow speaks, it shall move on and the market has attracted more number of investors and tenants in comparison to previous years. Further we are expecting better stats from first quarter in context of first time buyers. The change is an indication of better life-style; the fall in rent rates may attract bigger homes for tenants.

FEATURE

ADRIANA USVAT

ZAIN KHAN

Founder FLC Group

Founder ZGC Properties, Dubai

On the other hand the fall in prices have also discouraged investors looking ahead for short term profits. We had a chance to get in touch with Adriana Usvat, founder of FLC Group, mainly engaged in marketing activities, but have a strong interest in property investment. Adriana, being an active investor has chosen Bali over the UAE; she has plans to halt her decision for investing in the the UAE market seeing the continuous fall in prices. Though like all other market players, she too has a strong conviction in the market and its elevation in coming months. Adriana has her interest in hospitality industry and Bali market has successfully convinced her to invest. It is high time the UAE should take a step to attract investors back in the market.

order for developers to keep the ticket prices of residential property at what can be described as afford-able to the average person, the actual size of the finished unit will also have to be reduced.”

While developers have been facing a rough phase, we entered in a conversation with Zain Khan, founder of ZGC properties in Dubai who feels that the location based properties have been able to save their interest in the time of crisis. He expects to see another two years in the similar situation with a fall of around 10%, but feels positive for 2021.

The government is well aware of the market flows and thus has shown a ray of flexible payment plans for off-plan projects. Also some interesting news for post-possession payment plans may show better trust in the investors. Thus, market stats become more interesting, with a variance in demand and supply figures. And as all the churning initiates, the end users enjoy the fortune to buy better properties in their desired investment. In the coming months we are expecting the market developers to come up with creative ideas to market tenants, and compel them to think about investing in properties. We have already witnessed Dubai Sports City and Al Furjan to come up with similar plans. Our recent resources have confirmed a positive effect of Expo 2020. And with every inch nearing, the real estate market seems to be breathing positive air.

Zain feels a pride in sharing the best reasons to invest in The UAE. In the first place the option of 100% ownership has been a matter of attraction. Further, the UAE is a tax free trading hub between the East and the West. And the most important is its ranking in the world’s top five destina-tions that attracts high numbers of tourists every year. He strongly feels that the investors should take care of the certainty of the property according to its location. Also the understanding of the Capital Appreciation in context of investment is important. He recommends a good background check of the developer, by taking care of all the needed due diligence and legal compliance.

While our research made us hover around apartments and villas, we couldn’t have ignored the crisis being faced by landlords. It is sure that the continuous addition of new stock, with an unsure demand pattern has been a pressure factor on the landlords. The stress is high to either retain the existing tenants or attract new at competitive prices. The ways involved in retaining has become stricter in last few years with multiple cheques, rent-free periods and in some cases agency fees being covered. We are expecting Expo 2021 to increase the number of short term visitors, but the outcome depends on how the landlords respond to the demand. Nevertheless we are expecting the market to stabilize by then.

Though we adhere to all the facts that market players have addressed but Mario Volpi, Chief Sales Officer of Kensington Properties, have a different perspective. He says “whilst we are currently experiencing a somewhat challenging property market, where prices are naturally soft but in

We are sure that the market shall crawl for a while but will learn to run sooner. We suggest the investors to keep their spirits high, as the UAE has always been a charmer. The new buyers should plan their investments soon as it is always good to catch the fancy. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

COLUMN

HR Transition: From the Traditional to the Digital Domain Mansoor Sarwar, Technical Director at Sage Middle East writes about the vast scope for digitalisation of HR As competition gets tougher and complexities in workplaces continue to surge, successful businesses will need to seamlessly integrate technology and talent to transform existing ways of working. Significantly, this digital transformation within a business must span all departments and areas of operation, including Human Resources (HR). People are the most valuable asset of any business and play a vital role in supporting their success. With the help of technology, businesses can establish an environment that optimises HR operations, goals and productivity. Talent and technology inevitably go hand in hand. Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s uncertain economy poses formidable challenges for HR. Without leveraging insights derived from data analytics, it has become increasingly difficult for employers to target and recruit qualified human capital. In addition, competitive workforces today also continually seek upskilling, training, mentorship and opportunities to grow. How do HR specialists track talent and employee satisfaction? As technology continues to transform the recruitment landscape as we once knew it, deploying and using innovative tools and solutions such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), as well as analytics and mobility via Human Capital Management (HCM) suites can optimise the entire process. While thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s some fear around technology, it is time that HR departments turn the abundance of tools available into services that can enable them to do their jobsbetter. According to the 2018 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends report, the SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

While the HCM suite offers solutions that streamline the core HR functions, it can also help organisations attract, develop, engage, retain and manage their employees. By creating a digital workplace, companies enable employees to not only be digital natives but also increase the efficiency of their operations. Automation is especially useful in eliminating repetitive, lowvalue tasks, freeing up employee capacity to focus on more value-added work.

MANSOOR SARWAR Technical Director, Sage ME implementation of automation, robotics and AI have witnessed an upward trajectory. Approximately half of the surveyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s respondents claimed that their organisations are involved in automation projects with 24 per cent using AI and robotics to perform routine tasks, 16 per cent doing so to augment human skills and 7 per cent leveraging these advanced technologies to restructure their work. The survey data also revealed that 46 per cent of the respondents were considering using AI to automate their recruiting processes. Talent acquisition specialists can leverage technology to learn more about their employees and engage with them more effectively. It will aid them in creating a more contented and focused workforce. To ensure that organisations are onboarding the right candidate, hiring processes need to be made more automated and data-driven. Through harnessing AI solutions, recruiters can conduct text-based interviews and automated scheduling and use intelligence tools more strategically in their hiring process.

Access to online learning portals created by the company for its people is another good start to empowering employees. Providing e-learning platforms, training programmes, and online courses are small steps in creating a digital workforce. To stay relevant today, it is imperative that organisations are agile, flexible and create collaborative and empowering work environments. Furthermore, to truly ensure successful digital transformation, companies need to facilitate cross-department collaboration and discussions to build synergies. The decisions made by HR essentially impact all departments and the overall business objectives. This is where the Chief Digital Officers (CDO) comes in. CDOs need to ensure that digital transformation takes place consistently across all departments to align business goals. An ideal digital workplace should aid employees, across departments, to work productively. Businesses need to ensure that computers, mobile devices, collaboration applications, artificial intelligence, and analytics are tools that ultimately help shape immersive workspaces and develop innovative employees.

TECH WATCH

Ruckus ICX 7850 Switch

Ruckus Networks, an ARRIS company, announced the availability of its new ICX 7850 switch, an edge-tocore solution for the next decade of enterprise networking. Ruckus’ stackable ICX 7850 delivers high-density aggregation for 10GbE, 25GbE, 40GbE, 50GbE, and 100GbE using existing customer investment in fiber cabling, making it suitable for large, secure enterprise edge networks in education, government and enterprise settings. The pay-asyou-grow design enables enterprisescale networks to keep pace with advances in wireless technologies – such as 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6), IoT and LTE – to accommodate continued multi-gigabit network growth. The ICX 7850, along with all switches in the Ruckus portfolio, support the latest security standards and encryption technologies. ICX switches have been deployed in the U.S. federal government for over two decades and comply with the most stringent security standards and federal certifications including FIPS, Common Criteria, CSfC, and JITC. The ICX 7850 also supports Media Access Control Security (MACsec), a Layer 2 security technology, based on symmetric cryptographic keys, to provide pointto-point security on Ethernet links between nodes.

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

HIGHLIGHTS: • The ICX 7850’s advanced stacking capabilities can scale up to 12 switches, which rivals the density of traditional chassisbased data center and enterprise switches. • The hitless stack failover, multichassis trunking, and in-service software upgrades eliminate downtime. • The available SmartZone network controller enables configuration, monitoring, and troubleshooting for the entire Ruckus ICX switch portfolio and wireless access point network. This highly scalable approach is easier to manage with reduced power and cooling requirements and a lower total cost of ownership. • The ICX 7850 provides investment protection and an upgrade path for customers with older fiber infrastructure by providing support for LRM optics with select family members.

Aruba 802.11ax enterprise access points The Aruba 510 series access points with 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6), combined with Aruba intelligent software innovations, are designed to deliver high performance connectivity for mobile and IoT devices in any environment. The 510 series is designed to simultaneously serve multiple clients and traffic types in dense environments, and boosts overall network performance by up to 4X versus 802.11ac APs. The 510 series support an integrated Bluetooth 5 and Zigbee radio, as well as a USB port for maximum flexibility, providing secure and reliable connectivity for IoT devices and for implementing location services. For example, the 802.15.4 Radio can be used for food safety sensors, door locking systems etc. The Bluetooth Radio could be used for wayfinding and geofencing, while the USB ports can be used to enable cellular interfaces. In addition to the benefits that 802.11ax delivers, the 510 series provide differentiated capabilities which include AI-powered Wi-Fi performance assurance, always-on connectivity, and WPA3 certified security. The AP supports direct DC power and Power over Ethernet (POE;

TECH WATCH

D-Link DCS-F5725

on port E0). When both power sources are available, DC power takes priority over POE. Green AP mode offers AIpowered energy savings of up to 70%. HIGHLIGHTS: • 802.11ax OFDMA and MU-MIMO efficiently and simultaneously service multiple clients to provide a good experience in high density environments. • Aruba’s ClientMatch feature intelligently groups Wi-Fi 6 clients onto the best AP’s to leverage 802.11ax multi-user capabilities. • Leverage your Wi-Fi infrastructure to support Zigbee and Bluetooth devices and applications.

D-link offers a wide range of dome, bullet, vandal and weather-proof IP cameras. Equipped to handle dust, rain, sleet and snow with an weatherproof housing and glarereducing sun shield, selected cameras are rugged enough to keep an eye on your toughest outdoor areas without the need for additional accessories.

Further, the D-ViewCam Standard Video Management Software (VMS), bundled with D-Link’s IP cameras, provides security video recording, live view and playback management for IP cameras and video servers.

When it comes to surveillance, the tiniest detail in areas like license plates, faces and currency can make all the difference. With D-Link cameras, you’ll capture them in vivid detail in high resolutions.

• Starlight illumination

Now, D-Link has expanded its IP security solution portfolio with the launch of the F5 series which offers better features, flexibility and scalability. The DCS-F5725 is a 5MP Day & Night Motorized Vari-Focal Bullet Camera.

• Up to 120 dB Optical WDR (Wide Dynamic Range)

Bullet cameras are a variation of the box camera built into a permanently sealed weatherproof enclosure. They can be used indoors or outdoors without the need for additional hardware (a wall mount is included).

• Support PoE power supply

HIGHLIGHTS: • Optics

• Day/night functionality • Smart IR, up to 50m (164 ft) IR distance

• 2D/3D DNR (Digital Noise Reduction) Compression • Ultra 265, H.265, H.264, MJPEG

Bullet cameras are often used because of their all-in-one design and attractive pricing. D-Link bullet cameras are available in HD resolution, offer day & night functionality and integrated infrared illumination. SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

MARKET MONITOR

Truck-as-a-Service set to take off The surge in service- and solution-based revenue streams following the rise in digital transformation, autonomous trucking, urban trucking, platformization, and dealership evolution is expected to propel the $11.2 billion Truck-asa-Service (TaaS) market toward $79.42 billion in 2025. Digital freight brokerage is likely to be the biggest market segment with revenue potential of $54.2 billion, while the telematics devices segment is anticipated to grow from 25.7 million units in 2018 to more than 73.1 million in 2025. With truck OEMs like the Traton Group, Daimler Trucks, and Volvo Trucksshowing clear intention to adopt connected, autonomous, digital, and smart services, TaaS is set to take off. “Lack of instant load and rate visibility, frequently delayed payments and operating cash crunches are creating a huge market for digital brokerage solutions, as in the very least they enable faster brokerage, instant electronic upload of proof of delivery as well as electronic payment terms,” said Silpa Paul, Industry Analyst, Mobility. “Meanwhile, Big Data and Internet of Things (IoT) are spawning opportunities for business

solutions based on data analysis, and autonomous driving technology is fostering services such as platooning, which are expected to deliver fuel savings of 4 percent to 11 percent per truck.” Frost & Sullivan’s recent analysis, Truck-as-a-Service Market, Forecast to 2025, covers the service segments of telematics, platooning, business analytics, retail digitalization, and digital freight brokerage. The geographic scope of the study covers North America, Europe, South America, China, India, and rest-of-the-world. “By 2025, online channels are likely to become the key differentiating sales tool for OEMs and dealers. Almost 70 percent of sales leads will come through digital channels rather than traditional channels, and an omni-channel strategy will help increase lead conversion by 40 percent to 50 percent,” noted Paul. “OEMs will also be looking to deliver new services, such as automated freight aggregation, as a value addition to their fleet customers.”

Middle East companies believe growth will be driven by positive digital experiences Despite understanding this pressing need to ensure positive digital experiences, the majority (63%) of respondents still face readiness issues as their networks are overwhelmed by the growing volume of applications and services. Consequently, 62% admitted their inability to monitor and measure the performance of enterprise apps as is actually experienced by users on their endpoint devices.

Riverbed, The Digital Performance Company, announced the results of key local research which reveals that 85% of respondents claimed end-user digital experience would play a ‘significant’ role in driving business growth for their companies. As a result, Middle East organizations looking to grow their business and raise customer and employee satisfaction in 2019, would be well advised to invest in technologies that enable them to monitor and improve the experiences users have when utilizing their enterprise applications.

SMART SMB | MARCH 2019

Another likely reason for this shortcoming is that despite dramatic changes in customer expectations of digital services, organizations continue to rely primarily on ageold established metrics when assessing the performance of their applications, with 49% of respondents highlighting their perception of availability and reliability as being the key metrics to consider. The advancement and automation of networking and connectivity technologies mean that today, ensuring such high-availability is achievable even with only modest effort by IT teams. The next set of application performance metrics organizations currently monitor most closely are: • 44% - Average response time • 31% - Throughput / Bandwidth

GUIDING INNOVATION FORWARD ARROW ECS is an information Technology distributor specializing in providing end-to-end IT infrastructure solutions including enterprise software, network security and wan optimization. Our goal is to facilitate new business models, and offer solutions, tools and resources for the dynamic transformation of your business.

For more information, please contact ARROW team on + 971 4 501 5814 | sales.ecs.ae@arrow.com | www.arrowecs.ae