A Fine State

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GCC governments are in the midst of ensuring they are at the forefront of digital transformation, which is increasingly becoming a priority for most organisations. Government initiatives such as Saudi Vision 2030 and the UAE Vision 2021, are possible only with increased investments in IT and if technology is made the fundamental point of its success.

Channel partners have a massive opportunity in this setting to help implement IT solutions that will enable and meet the digital transformation goals. However, partners must identify their strengths and develop strategies to differentiate their offerings to become a partner of choice with a government organisation.

Savitha Bhaskar, COO, Condo Protego, says, “In a crowded field of generalist systems integrators and resellers in the Middle East, the top channel partners need to show government organisations that they have both the technology expertise and the experience driving success with public sector enterprises.”

Sanjay Ahuja, vice president, MEA, AGC Networks, says systems integrators will need to devise tailor-made solutions to tackle the needs of this sector. The technology demands of government establishments are ongoing and often vary in scope and size, and their requirements are stringent.

“They are also trend setters for digital transformation, for example, UAE government’s Smart Dubai Government initiative. This challenges suppliers and systems integrators to offer niche and customised solutions to address their needs,” he says. “They must offer value-added services rather than concentrating on selling products. Playing the role of a ‘solutions provider’ rather than a ‘products distributor, is what will set a systems integrator apart from the rest of his competition.”

But how can a reseller really get down to achieving this?