Forrester Blogs › Category: Middle East

IT Service Management, ITIL, And Enabling Tools In The Middle East

Posted by Stephen Mann on the Infrastructure & Operations Professionals Blog on March 12, 2012

Stephen Mann

Last week I had the pleasure of attending ManageEngine’s first user conference and training event in the Middle East (Dubai to be specific); with event attendees not only from the UAE, but also Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Russia.

The one-day user conference element of the two-day event, offered me both fresh insight into how IT service management, ITIL, and enabling tools are being adopted in the Middle East, and first-hand experience of ManageEngine’s customers within the region.

This quick blog is intended to capture my views, thoughts, and opinions for the benefit of all.

The current state of IT service management in the Middle East?

My previous experiences of IT service management and ITIL in particular in the Middle East had been somewhat limited; but as with most things I had drawn my own opinions and conclusions based on the exposure (the proverbial joining of dots). So before last week I believed:

  • ITIL was talked about but with “implementations” driven from the higher echelons, or even outside, of the IT organization; adoption was slow and susceptible to resistance. It was a “good thing to do” rather than a business-focused means to an end.
  • That while customers (end users) are important the focus was still very much on the IT – the creation of IT rather than the consumption of IT services.
  • Middle Eastern companies value “prestige” and as such were most likely to buy Big 4 solutions for IT service management.
Read more

Categories:

Cisco Networkers 2010 Bahrain

Posted by Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D. on the CIOs Blog on April 2, 2010

  • 295 Recommendations
Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D.

I just returned from Cisco Networkers 2010 in Bahrain, and wanted to put a few thoughts to paper (or the electronic equivalent).  First of all, thank you Cisco.  What a fantastic event for all involved!

The event was held at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC), and boasted attendance of over 3,000 delegates from Bahrain and more than 60 other countries.   Not only was the event an opportunity for technical training for the attendees but it was also an opportunity for local Cisco partners to present their products and solutions.  Both are consistent with Cisco’s emerging markets strategy of country transformation – to create an environment conducive to expanding opportunity in emerging markets rather than merely exploiting existing opportunity.  Cisco works with governments and other non-governmental organizations in certain emerging markets to help develop the ICT infrastructure and local technical skills in order to build the market, and further enable economic development of the country.  Holding Networkers 2010 in Bahrain demonstrated Cisco’s commitment to their country transformation strategy.

Read more

Categories:

Market Opportunity, or Not: Bharti wants in but Zain wants out

Posted by Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D. on the CIOs Blog on April 2, 2010

  • 252 Recommendations
Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D.

My colleague, Mike Cansfield, just posted a blog on the new “scramble for Africa” among telecommunications companies. Bharti Airtel, an Indian company, just finalized a deal to take over most of the African assets of Zain, a Kuwaiti company.  As Mike mentions, Bharti has been dogged in its efforts to enter the African market with two previous attempts to forge a deal with South Africa’s MTN Group. 

Bharti sees significant opportunity on the continent where just 36% of the population owns a mobile phone – yet many more use mobile phone services through resellers who offer use of a phone by the minute in the local markets.  Originally part of the informal sector, MTN has actually launched a program to legitimize the sale of on-demand phone services through its Y’ello Zone Payphone initiative.   MTN originally pledged to install 7,500 community pay phones across the countries in underserved areas.  To date, over 11,000 have been installed.  As part of the program, MTN offers entrepreneurs an opportunity to operate these Payphone kiosks, and provides the skills training to run a successful phone shop.  The program contributes to job creation, especially among women and youth, with more than 3,800 retailers already benefitting.   But, I digress . . .   

Read more

Categories:

Frequent Computing Customers Need Local Providers: Where are the "Cloud Team" and "Cloud Alliance" Partner Programs?

Posted by Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D. on the CIOs Blog on March 26, 2010

Jennifer Belissent, Ph.D.

flightmap.PNGHello from Dubai!  I arrived a few days ago for customer visits across the region including UAE, Qatar and Bahrain.  Although I’ve traveled extensively, this is my first trip to the Middle East. 

As a frequent flyer (both in terms of travel and airline loyalty), I looked first to my preferred airlines when I booked my flights to the region.  Neither of them (yes, I fly two airlines regularly which suggests that I’m not all that loyal) provided service to my destinations.  So, I looked for a partner airline – one that is part of my preferred airlines’ networks.  I went with Emirates which not only serves the Gulf States I was planning to visit, but enabled me to stay within network and collect my frequent flier miles. Why do I mention this?  Well, I have been thinking about that model of a “Star Alliance” or a “Skyteam,” and how it could apply to service providers of other kinds. 

Read more

Categories:

Syndicate content