2014 Looks Promising for IT in the MENA Region

Regional Enterprises Seek to Improve Operations & Optimize Costs

Big data, data centers and cloud computing are the new buzzwords! In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, the concepts are gaining impressive momentum in the increasingly corporate-fuelled environment, as enterprises seek to improve operations and optimize costs in a recovering economy. This year, we can expect important developments to unravel globally, including technologically advanced data centers, hybrid cloud strategies and big data management mechanisms that can be potentially applied within MENA.

Data centers physically store computer systems and associated components that process a company’s data. These facilities protect information and maintain business continuity in the event of a system break down. They exist in four tiers with progressively complex features. IT experts predict that software-defined data centers will emerge in a big way and security will still remain a core focus.

Scalability and low costs have made cloud computing immensely popular. Where the private and public clouds have made good progress in markets with revenues in the billions, the hybrid cloud strategy is slowly getting a lot of attention. A few things to highlight here are:

• Although there is an increased adoption of cloud technology, enterprises will still try to balance investments in cloud with existing technology investments so as to be well-rounded in their approach
• The numerous opportunities that cloud technology offers will allow businesses to use it for innovative purposes and not solely for process management

Big data, common in research institutions, governments and large retailers is the umbrella term for large, intricate data that cannot be managed by traditional database systems. Such data can be structured, semi-structured or unstructured and its constant evolution makes big data management and analytics more taxing. Global technology giants predict some interesting developments for big data this year:

• As businesses become more data-driven, they will focus more on enhancing security, privacy and governance of their big data processes
• Smart applications will help businesses manoeuvre around the established big data infrastructure with more ease
• External data sources now also extend to social media, mobile devices and machine sensors and enterprises must equip themselves to handle large real-time volumes of such data.

The region’s IT landscape has a promising future ahead as new technologies form, develop and evolve. It remains to be seen how IT managers in the region will face up to the challenge.