Intelligent Tech Channels Issue 12 | Page 7

ISSUE 12 EDITOR’S COMMENT www.intelligenttechchannels.com PUBLICATION Intelligent briefings for Middle East and Africa channel partners Rubrik is onboarding channel partners ready to disrupt markets with SDN and hyper- converged datacentres Mohammed Al Tamimi, Middle East Regional Director, Rubrik End of passwords, arrival of intelligent access Regional datacentres heading for revamp Six survival strategies for Chief Digital Officers MARWAN ELNAKAT, DIRECTOR OSSAMA ELDEEB, SR MANAGER VALERIE LOGAN, DIRECTOR GEMALTO VMWARE GARTNER EDITOR’S NOTE T he theme of cloud and datacentres dominates this issue of Intelligent Tech Channels. The rapidly increasing interest and focus on digital transformation as an enabler for new revenue streams, and the understanding that pure play cloud solutions can offer significant reductions in total cost of IT ownership, is throwing a new array of digital solutions vendors into the limelight. One such vendor is Rubrik, a cloud- based, backup and recovery solution vendor. We drill down into how Rubrik is going to market with its channel partner, specifically value-added distributor Exclusive Networks. Modernising datacentre infrastructure is one of the top investment priorities for Middle East organisations, along with cloud and information security, all three of which are the foundations of digital transformation and new digital business models in the mobile cloud and IoT eras. Middle East CIOs are clamouring for modernised datacentres to drive IT and business transformation. Globally, CIOs want modern datacentres to reduce IT infrastructure costs (39%), improve IT service levels (32%) and respond to new business requirements (28%). Datacentre vendors need to realise that as the pace of technological change quickens, end-user organisations do not want to be locked into expensive and out- of-date hardware solutions. Increasingly, Middle East CIOs are choosing software- defined solutions that can meet their SLA requirements and scale up. We deep dive into what solutions providers have to say about the role that channel partners can play and their datacentre solutions. Channel financing is one of the most critical parts of any supply chain mechanism. Across the region, there are a few distinct trends that drive the dynamics of channel credit and channel financing. The first is the tendency by vendors to overstock their distributors with products. The second is the relatively passive role played by vendors in the overall dynamics of channel financing in the regional resell markets. Resellers point out that the role of vendors is more in oversupplying distributors with their products while extending lines of credit to their distributors. In order to clear excess stocks at their end, distributors arrange extended lines of credit for their resellers to sell-out excess inventory accumulated at their sell- through points of the supply chain. The lack of proactive vendor initiatives in regional channel financing by itself creates a drawback from financial and banking institutions to support financing and credit lines for regional channel players, including value added resellers, resellers and system integrators. Another setback in the process is the lack of transparent audited and compliant books from regional channel players. We consolidate what key vendors and channel partners have to say on this challenging issue. Gentle reading! Managing Partner Richard Judd [email protected] Managing Partner Stuart Lynch [email protected] Editor, ITC Arun Shankar [email protected] Editor, ICIO Middle East Mark Bowen [email protected] Editor, ICIO Africa Emily Freer [email protected] Editor, ICIO Europe Alix Pressley [email protected] Business Development Manager Jubin Honarvar [email protected] [phone] Head of Design and Production Pippa Sanderson [email protected] Marketing & Content Development Manager Nick Onyett [email protected] Lynchpin Media 2017 © Intelligent Tech Channels is a Lynchpin Media publication for IT professionals with an interest in the Middle East. If you wish to apply for regular free copies then please email [email protected] Lynchpin Media is a boutique publisher registered in the United Kingdom. Company number 8096230 5 Burnside Court Leominster Enterprise Park Herefordshire, HR6 0LX Arun Shankar 7