This month, Etisalat hosted two events that aimed to shed light on how the company can enable organisations, both public and private, to bring their processes and services into the digital age.
On 9th June, experts from Etisalat, along with 200 IT professionals from across the private sector, gathered to discuss emerging trends in the industry as well as improved services from Etisalat. As the UAE is home to one of the most diversified private sectors in the world, Etisalat takes meeting the needs of each industry seriously.
Ragy Magdy, Vice President, Enterprise Private, Etisalat, kicked off the event. “We are taking a ‘triple S’ approach,” Magdy explained. “We are improving structure, rolling out new systems and introducing new solutions.” He went on to say how Etisalat is evolving with the changing digital landscape, and the company has adopted the approach to meet their customers’ changing needs.
Muhammad Rehan Sami, Director, Solution Architecture, Etisalat, then took the stage to discuss the company’s managed services offerings. Managed services are unquestionably the way of the future, said Sami, as companies need to reduce operating expenses and increase operational efficiency. “Etisalat’s new managed service offerings include enhanced SLA, more control to the customer, and new and enhanced portals,” he said. “This is certainly leading the managed services trend in the region.”
Rudolf Sarah, Vice President, Cloud Digital Services, Etisalat, then addressed the crowd to discuss how customers can get more for their money by leveraging cloud technology. “Cloud is powering digital,” he said, “and reshaping IT across industries.”
When addressing new technologies, security is always a priority. Kamran Ahsan, Senior Director of Digital Security Solutions, Etisalat, took the stage to outline the security solutions that the company has on offer as well as the state of security in the nation and worldwide. “Etisalat provides hybrid DDoS Mitigation services, vulnerability management services, mail security services and security device monitoring, 24×7,” he explained.
Saif AlSalman, Senior Director Enterprise Global Services, Etisalat, then outlined the company’s global strategy, global value proposition, as well as a number of success stories from Etisalat customers. Emirates Airline is one of many satisfied Etisalat customers, AlSalman said. “We implemented solutions at 308 sites for Emirates, including 120 airports in 70 countries.”
Óscar Gómez, Sr. Vice President, Business Marketing, Etisalat, then addressed the room of customers to discuss another disruptive technology – mobility. Enterprise mobility in particular, he said, is changing the face of the workforce. “Our enterprise mobility solutions can enable the business transition from mobile connectivity to mobile workspace,” he said.
Another technology changing private businesses is mobile payment. These days, retailers can be left behind if they are not able to accept credit card payments on the go. Ksenia Held, Manager, Solutions Marketing Digital Payments, gave the crowd an overview of how Etisalat’s mCashier mobile payment technology is freeing small to medium business owners from the need to either rely solely on cash, or to invest in expensive payment solutions. “mCashier provides the ability to perform debit and credit transactions using a portable mobile device,” she said of the new technology.
The day wrapped up with a presentation by Jose Sanchez, Sr. Vice President, Solutions Architecture, Service Delivery & Project Management, Etisalat, who outlined exactly what Etisalat’s customers want to hear – the details of Etisalat’s new service model. “We have heard our customer feedback, and we are changing the way we provide service and address issues,” said Sanchez.
June 10th brought another engaging event by Etisalat, this time to address the needs of government agencies. Ali AlRashed, Director, Dubai Government Sales, Etisalat, began the day’s event, by introducing both the agenda and the keynote speaker, Abdulla Ebrahim Al Ahmed, Senior Vice President, Government Sales, Etisalat. Al Ahmed outlined the company’s comprehensive plan for economic, social and human resources development.
Ethem Eldem, Senior Director, M2M & Internet of Things, Etisalat, then took the stage to unravel the latest movement in the industry – the Internet of Things. “We should question what service models can be established by having real-time data from our products and remotely communicating with them,” said Eldem.
Following Eldem’s presentation, Mohammed Shael Al Saadi, Chief Executive Officer, Department of Economic Development (DED), Government of Dubai, provided insights on current in terms of having a ‘Connected Dubai’, outlining various IoT and Smart City projects that the Emirate has.
After a brief break, Ahsan took the stage for the second day in a row to discuss security in government services. “Etisalat’s goal,” he said, “is to protect its customers against the full spectrum of modern DDoS attacks by combining the power of on premise and cloud-based mitigation.”
Both cloud and mobile payment solutions were discussed, with the mCashier technology again at the centre of attention. After a brief break, Mohannad Hijazi, Director, Business Marketing – Managed Services, Etisalat, addressed the crowd to discuss how Etisalat’s improved managed services offerings can enable government entities to focus on their core operations.
Both events, for public and private operations, were a clear success. Not only did Etisalat unveil new and improved services and offerings, but also showed that their customer relationships are of the utmost importance.
