Eng. Fahad Alhamed, Founder and Chairman, Saudi Cloud Computing Association. He is also the Founder of many cloud-based initiatives. A respected name in the Cloud-based landscape of the Middle East and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia delivered the keynote address on Cloud Computing in Saudi Arabia Fueling Transformation.
He talked about mapping the rapidly changing enterprise cloud landscape in the region at the back of a new digital-first approach. Discussing the change in IT spends across businesses in the Middle East, he talked about what it means for cloud implementation. He continues to opine on enabling businesses to accelerate their digital transformation using cloud-based applications. Read all about it here.
Eng. Fahad Alhamed began the keynote address by explaining why enterprises move to the cloud. Calling 2020, the year of the cloud, he stated that security and agility are the prime reasons businesses move to the cloud. “As the world went indoors, enterprises moved to the cloud. Some of the reputed companies that have moved their operations to the cloud include Google Cloud, Saudi Aramco, STC Mobile and AliBabaCloud,” he says.
Eng. Alhamed explained the primary drivers of the cloud. They are Broadband Footprint, e-Government Initiatives, investments by Telecom Companies, Cloud-first Policies and G-Cloud Policies, which offer cloud services for government entities for smarter and agile functioning.
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Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, as Eng. Alhamed pointed out, focuses on the digital transformation of government functioning. This can be achieved by developing government services that can function from the cloud. “It can boost the digitisation of internal government operations, increase the spread and usage of e-gov services and CX rates. It could also reduce the cost of government services,” he added.
A cloud-first approach helps increase service quality, reduce total cost of ownership, improve cybersecurity robustness, and improve interoperability with other entities.
Eng. Alhamed explained that confidentiality, integrity, and availability could help increase enterprises’ security and trust and even the government in the cloud.
According to him, specific rules must be followed to maintain the integrity of the cloud. Regulations about where data is classified, how data is shared, how much freedom of information is given and respecting open data should be observed.
Furthermore, Eng. Alhamed stated that Saudi Arabia’s adoption of cloud computing has helped enrich CX, increased government institutions’ efficiency, and increased productivity. Cloud adoption has also helped CSPs in KSA reduce electricity tariffs by 40 per cent.
The Cloud Computing Association, headed by Eng. Alhamed supports studies and research in the cloud-computing field. “Build specialised HR to attract the right talent. Increase cognitive and cultural awareness, and increase Arabic content in the field,” he noted.
Towards the end, Eng. Alhamed explained that encouraging a cloud-first policy, establishing a cloud-computing regulation framework, and observing cloud security protocols and compliance can help smoothen enterprises’ cloud-first digital transformation.
The conference was supported by Platinum Partner Nutanix. Strategic Partner Lenovo, Intel, and Enterprise Technology Partner Confluent, Media Partners Enterprise Talk and IT Security Wire.
Written By Soumyadeep Roy, Khushbu Raval
Edited By Chandni U
