World Monitor Mag, Digitalisation WM_June 2019 web | Page 30

EXPERT OPINION
Digital transformation
in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan is in the process of digital transformation. World Monitor Maga-
zine talked to eugene Teremov, SAP Kazakhstan Managing Director, about
the role of big international IT companies in it and discussed other important
topics.
Could you tell about SAP globally and
the main directions of the company in
Kazakhstan? What activities does the
company carry out within the framework
of the Digital Kazakhstan programme?
Eugene Teremov,
Managing Director,
SAP Kazakhstan
I think it is no secret that SAP is the
world leader in the enterprise application
software market, helping companies
of all sizes and in all industries run at
their best. The company's solutions and
services are used by more than 413,000
customers in 180 countries around the
world. In Russia and the CIS, SAP has
been working for more than 25 years,
purposely integrated into the economy,
creating an ecosystem, and supporting
innovation in the countries of presence.
We believe that the speed of the
emergence of new technologies is one of
the main challenges for modern business.
The place of Kazakhstan and the leading
companies of the republic in the global
digital economy will depend on how
quickly and organically they penetrate
into the economy of the country and
into individual enterprises. Thus, SAP is
actively helping to transform itself to
customers of Kazakhstan, supporting
the state’s course towards digitalisation.
Our clients include more than 100
companies in the country, and over the
last year, 26 customers launched digital
transformation projects.
We are also actively developing our
partner channel, investing in local market
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players and developers who work with
SAP technologies.
How does SAP contribute to the
development of the domestic IT
industry as an international company?
Of course, we are tracking the state’s
transition to a digital economy and
support it.
According to the state programme
‘Digital Kazakhstan’, there are two
directions for the development of the
country's digital economy. The first is
the transformation of the real sector,
the technological ‘re-equipment’ of
companies from various industries, and
the development of infrastructure. Here
we act as a global partner who is ready
to provide its expertise and advanced
solutions to companies of any size.
The second direction is the creation
of conditions for the development
of innovations, and, as a result, the
training of qualified specialists. After
all, today the speed of development
and consumption of new technologies
requires from young professionals
not only technical knowledge and
programming fundamentals, but also
an understanding of the business needs
of companies from various industries.
To solve this problem, SAP created the
University Alliance, which works with
more than 3,000 universities around the
world. Through this programme we carry