Google Cloud Investing In The Middle East
Tarek Khalil, Country Manager Google Cloud MENA, discusses the importance of this region to Google Cloud globally and highlights some of its key achievements.
What are the benefits of cloud services to businesses?
We’re seeing a big shift to public cloud services by organizations of all sizes across MENA. And that’s because it makes good business sense. Using the cloud frees up people, money and time to let people focus on what’s important—the business.
Let’s start with the cost benefits. Cloud is arguably the most costefficient method to use, maintain and upgrade IT infrastructure. Services are deployed on a pay-peruse basis which means businesses pay for exactly what they need. And there’s no hardware or upfront costs. For startups and smaller firms who lack the financial clout of their larger competitors, this can be really advantageous.
Another benefit is that operationally, using the cloud is much easier than running a data center. Many companies wrongly believe having their own data center will give them greater control over their IT. The reality is that they are expensive to run and resource intensive. In contrast, the cloud is designed and operated by experts to be resilient and available, and to prevent disruption. The cloud massively reduces the amount of time a business needs to spend on IT management.
There are environmental benefits associated with the cloud too. Few people appreciate the amount of power needed to operate a data center—there’s the constant power supply for the servers as well as a cooling system to avoid overheating. The data centers run by hyperscalers are highly optimized for energy efficiency. So the cloud offers a way for businesses to reduce their overall energy consumption, waste, and carbon emissions.
Organizations that have embraced the cloud value the cultural impact it has on collaboration and
innovation. On a day-to-day basis, many cloud-based tools encourage team working and file sharing, enabling dispersed teams to work together. Cloud is also the enabler of disruptive technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and the Internet-of-Things. Developers, data scientists, and machine learning experts are innovating with these exciting new technologies to help businesses automate processes, take smarter decisions, and make intelligent predictions.
What’s new with Google Cloud in the Middle East and what are your plans for 2021?
I am very excited and optimistic about 2021—there is a lot happening! Cloud adoption is booming. This has been driven by the collective economic goal of the region to become more digital, the roll out of multiple e-Government initiatives and the increased use of online services during the pandemic. The shift to digital business is rapidly accelerating, and emerging technologies like Blockchain and Machine Learning are being embraced.
At Google, we’re expanding our cloud platform in MENA. This will enable customers and partners to run their workloads locally and with even lower latency. For example, In Saudi Arabia, we announced last December a new Google Cloud region in the Middle East, by teaming up with Saudi Aramco Development Company, one of Aramco’s affiliates. A year before, we signed an agreement with the Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA) to establish a Google Cloud region in the Middle East from Doha, Qatar. We’re seeing a lot of interest from MEA organizations, including Bespin Global, one of Asia’s leading cloud managed service providers that is expanding into the area. Such partnerships will bring the best of cloud technologies to support and foster the environment for Digital Transformation of companies of all sizes.
In addition to the infrastructure investments we are making, you will also notice other initiatives supporting our ecosystem, such as the Google for Startups Accelerator Middle East and the #IAmRemarkable DEI program for women and underrepresented communities.
The Google for Startups Accelerator Middle East is part of our “Grow Stronger with Google” program to accelerate the MENA region’s economic recovery. Through the startups initiative, we’re cultivating the problem-solving skills revealed by local startups during the pandemic. We’ve teamed-up 10 startups with Google and industry experts for mentorship, and they’re now embarking on a three-month digital accelerator program. I’m looking forward to seeing the innovative products that are developed. And the #IAmRemarkable program is a Google initiative empowering women and other underrepresented groups to celebrate their achievement in the workplace and beyond.
In today’s new economic reality, what are your recommendations for companies?
Last year, organizations had to react at speed to the pandemic. They had to find new ways to deliver services to their customers and enable their employees to work remotely. For companies that had been reluctant to embrace digital transformation, the crisis was a reality check. They found themselves woefully unprepared. In contrast, digitally mature companies responded most successfully and are recovering faster.
Moving forward, there won’t be a return to “normal”. The pandemic has permanently changed the way we live and work. However, widescale digital adoption will remain. To stay competitive, organizations need to double down on digital transformation and ensure it is part of the corporate strategy.
Savvy companies will keep experimenting with digital solutions to help them get a competitive edge. For example, it is crucial that businesses keep optimizing the customer experience and keep pace with their fast-changing behaviors. They can do this by using advanced tools like Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and data analytics to gain real-time insights from their customer data.
The pandemic has taught us that some organizations weren’t able to handle major, unforeseen disruption. Businesses need to prepare for the unexpected. Cloud services are a valuable tool in business continuity plans. For example, cloud services can help in enabling dependable disaster recovery, secure remote work, and Artificial Intelligencepowered contact center responses.
“The shift to digital business is rapidly accelerating, and emerging technologies like Blockchain and Machine Learning are being embraced. ”