Gulf firms need overhaul of enterprise infrastructure

dubai — Nearly half of Gulf enterprises describe their current ICT infrastructure as “out of date”, according to Microsoft’s Digital Transformation and readiness survey, which continues to show increased activity in the region surrounding the digitisation of businesses.

“Technologies such as cloud computing and the Internet of Things have reached maturity now,” said Necip Ozyucel, cloud and enterprise business solutions lead at Microsoft Gulf. “Regional organisations are starting to look at these solutions in a new light as they seek ways to update their digital mix. The right infrastructure is crucial to operational efficiency, no matter the stripe or scale of a business.”

The research, recently carried out by Microsoft asked respondents from almost 1,000 GCCbased organisations a series of questions about their awareness of, and attitude to, digital transformation. The findings revealed that nearly half (49.5 per cent) of enterprises said their IT infrastructure was out of date and needs an immediate overhaul.

Some 84 per cent said they

49.5% of GCC firms surveyed say their IT infrastructure was out of date

were, to varying extents, aware that digital transformation was a means to lower costs and increase revenues. Just under half of these (32 per cent, or approximately a third of those surveyed) said they would invest more than 5 per cent of their revenue in finding ways to enhance their business through digital means.

Some 83 per cent of enterprises responded that they were familiar with the term “digital transformation” to varying degrees, and 79 per cent ranked it as a top priority for the coming year, with 86 per cent indicating that they had a formal plan in place for the digital overhaul of operations.

“When you explore digital transformation, you explore the possibilities to engage customers, empower employees, optimise operations and reinvent products and services,” said Ozyucel.

— business@khaleejtimes.com