1. 2011 newsletter
> Message from
the CEO
> GBM named
VIRTUALIZATION System Integrator
of the year
> GBM and Indra to
the way forward develop national
healthcare system
infrastructure
for Bahrain’s King
Hamad University
Hospital
> GBM and Tonbeller
team-up at MEFTEC
> IBM CENTENNIAL
> GBM develops first
educational cloud
computing platform
in Abu Dhabi for
Higher Colleges of
Technology
> GBM hardware
solutions power
Oman Cement
Company IT
augmentation
project
> Qtel joins forces
with GBM to offer
enhanced ICT
solutions
> GBM launches 1st
Cisco training centre
in Oman
our partners

2. Message from the CEO
Evolutionary Road
GBM, leadInG It
solUtIons ProvIder
founded in 1990, Gulf Business
The Oxford dictionary describes Machines (GBM) is the
leading It solutions provider
‘evolution’ as “the gradual development in the region fulfilling the It
requirements of local, regional
of something.” In the IT industry we and international organisations
in the GCC. a spin-off from
are constantly in a state of evolution, IBM, GBM is the sole distributor
for IBM - excluding selected
adapting quickly and consistently IBM products and services -
throughout the GCC, except
to changing technologies, changing for saudi arabia. GBM’s
momentum was further
business environments and changing enhanced in 1999, when
the team secured the Cisco
customer needs. In fact few other portfolio. today GBM holds the
highest level of recognition in
industries function in as much of a the region from Cisco, Gold
Partner status, in addition to
state of fluidity as the IT industry is the Cisco learning Partner
status. the company has offices
Cesare Cardone, Ceo, GBM
constantly challenged to. in the Uae (abu dhabi, dubai
and sharjah), Kuwait, oman,
Qatar, Pakistan and Bahrain.
as I look back at 2011, I boost efficiencies is driving also a result of the drive to and resources in maintaining
see clear evidence of Gulf tremendous changes in the efficiency, but less disruptive GBM’s competitive edge,
Business Machines’ resilience way our clients work. as than remote Infrastructure an approach that is clearly
and its ability to adapt to a businesses attempt to replace Management as a service, delivering results. In addition
fast-evolving environment. capital expenditures with server consolidation aims to to a number of new business
In fact, the developments of operational expenditures and make more efficient use of wins, it was gratifying to be
this year demonstrate that reduce costs in the process, available server resources. acknowledged as the region’s
we are not only able to adapt they’re increasingly looking best systems Integrator by
but we have been able to at asset-light alternatives to according to some estimates, reseller Middle east magazine
thrive by expanding our talent investing in hardware-heavy companies around the world at its Partner excellence
pool, staying ahead on new infrastructure. on average only use between awards. the recognition is just
technologies and generally 15 and 20 percent of their one of several our teams have
all of this has a very real server capacity, which is
setting the pace. and direct impact on us as earned from partners and
unsustainable in the current customers over the years.
Just last year, we launched a company as we evolve our economic environment.
the first ever network product and service offering in Unsurprisingly companies as we look forward to a
operations Centre (noC) in anticipation of these changes. around the world and here promising start to 2012 we will
the Middle east. In addition what does this mean to GBM? in the Middle east are taking strive to continue down this
to reinforcing our portfolio while we constantly reinforce to server consolidation as evolutionary road. after all
of value-added services for our belief that evolution part of efforts to evolve the combination of constant
our customers, the noC was remains very much a gradual a more sustainable and change, the ability to set
a clear indication of things process and that our industry cost-effective approach to the pace and the reward of
to come and our willingness will not dramatically change computing. In fact, 61 percent success is what drives us
and ability to invest in the overnight, we’re firmly focused of the respondents in a recent onward.
future. at the outset, the on our vision for the future Gartner Group research study
noC was a decisive step and we will continue to deliver said that they were conducting
towards GBM’s evolution as a the right solutions to our a server consolidation, while
leading, homegrown provider customers at the right time. 28 percent were planning to
of remote Infrastructure however, the main topic do so in the immediate future
Management as a service. on every CIo’s agenda which reflects the business
significantly, remote is nowadays server potential for such activity.
Infrastructure Management consolidation. In fact, GBM as we progress through
as a service is a sign of has completed over 160 server the current evolutionary
the times we live and work consolidation projects around cycle and take change in Cesare Cardone, Ceo
in. In a post-recessionary the region on IBM Intel and our collective stride, we will
environment the need to system p servers. this is continue to invest time, effort
2

3. Virtualization
VIRTUALIZATION
the way forward
By
substantially
lowering capital
expenditure,
Virtualization
can decrease
and at times
eliminate the
By Pappu R. Rao
Director of Technology purchase of new
Services, GBM hardware
organizations today face unique virtualization is an effective way to benefit is the ability to take a ‘snapshot’
challenges that stem from regional achieve server consolidation by allowing of a virtual machine which facilitates
expansion and globalization. multiple physical server workloads to application upgrades or even the
as a result, It professionals run on a single virtualized hardware application of operating system patches
find themselves catering to a platform. virtualization has the potential and rollback if desired results are not
geographically distributed workforce to unlock much of the underutilized achieved.
with scattered branch offices. capacity we see in datacenters today.
virtualization is an ideal fit for
distributed datacenters and mobile
introducing VirtuAlizAtion addressing today’s need for server
workers have to be managed and
virtualization addresses the problems consolidation. It also provides building
servers need to be deployed on the fly
of cost and complexity and at the same blocks for the next steps including
across multiple locations to manage
time provides the flexibility and speed desktop virtualization and cloud
dynamic business needs.
needed to deploy infrastructure to meet computing.
A question of wAsted cApAcity the dynamic needs of today’s business. the business cAse for
the legacy model of “one application, Gartner estimates that enterprises VirtuAlizAtion
one server” has led to servers can achieve cost savings of as much Increasingly, businesses are turning
‘sprawling’ and consuming available as twenty to fifty percent on hardware to virtualization as a means of cutting
data centre space, power and cooling. and other overheads including software unnecessary costs and maximizing the
however, at a global level, servers licensing, while enjoying increased return on investment. this is possible as
have an average utilization of five flexibility along with speed, and virtualization lowers capital expenditure
to fifteen percent, resulting in poor improved quality of service. It must be and optimizes operating expenses by
return on investment. organizations noted that virtualization can actually reducing power, cooling, data centre
have made significant investments reduce software licensing costs which and administrative costs.
in It infrastructure, as every new are predominantly CPU-based, thereby
requirement was translated into a virtualization also helps lower risk
reducing the overall total cost of
new server purchase, hence adding to business by minimizing system
ownership.
associated costs and complexity, downtime and associated business
which in turn impacted effective the technical advantages of interruption, improves end-customer
manageability. virtualization are many: it allows for satisfaction levels through improved
increased resource flexibility and system performance and improves
the continued trend of investing in improved utilization since the resources business agility by quickly deploying
more processing power at lower price for a virtual machine can be scaled up servers in response to market needs.
points has made a shift in how we or down or even scheduled based on
view It infrastructure costs. while In short, it makes perfect business
workload requirements. virtualization
hardware costs may have gone down, sense.
also allows servers to be available on-
associated costs including software demand, providing flexibility in keeping
licensing, data center space, power them dormant and activating them
and management overheads have based on dynamic requirements. this to find out more about gbM’s
actually risen. with the current focus translates into significant savings in Virtualization offering, please contact
of CIos to do more with less, the hardware resources and licensing costs.
total cost of ownership needs to be your client Manager to arrange an
addressed. In addition, virtualization offers assessment of your current server
portability and recovery since a virtual
server consolidation, which environment and provide you a with a
machine can be copied from one
essentially is reducing the server server to another and even replicated roadmap.
count, is the obvious solution. from one location to another. another
The Leading Provider of IT Business Solutions in the GCC 3

4. Virtualization
GBM and with over 160 completed projects server virtualization projects require
[GBM] has
vIrtUalIzatIon in the last 4 years, gulf business various factors to be taken into successfully
Machines (gbM) is today a regional consideration including: identifying
leader in the Virtualization space, servers that need to be virtualized, delivered numerous
assessing current performance
using a combination of skills and
and utilization metrics, selection of projects for enterprise
cutting-edge technologies to deliver virtualization software or platform
results to its customers. deployment strategy, selecting
customers across the
GBM today has satisfied customers management and monitoring software, Gulf and is continuously
across all industry verticals including considering storage and network
Banking, retail, Government, hospitality virtualization and identifying the disaster scaling itself higher
and travel & transport. In fact, the recovery strategy. It must be noted that
Banking and retail sectors have virtualization projects can start small to meet customers’
been the forerunners in adopting and scale up in a phased manner based
on business requirements.
expectations
virtualization constituting 60% of these
delivered projects. while executing complex virtualization
at any given time, GBM is implementing projects, one may encounter many
about 20 virtualization projects across pitfalls. GBM with its expertise gained GBM also offers its customers a
the region. this leadership position from several such projects over the seamless roadmap from virtualization
is the result of our long and varied years can provide the required insight to cloud computing. GBM’s Cloud
experience in server consolidation, to successfully transform existing service offerings are being evolved
addressing all aspects including server environments into state-of-the- and now include Cloud Infrastructure
design, implementation and support for art virtualized It infrastructure. GBM Management comprising of PowervM,
virtualization projects. GBM boasts a today partners with all the major server vM Control and systems director. the
large technical resource pool of certified consolidation and virtualization vendors most important advantage of GBM’s
specialists in key areas of virtualization including IBM, vMware, Citrix and red cloud strategy is the ability to integrate
technologies distributed across the hat to deliver the optimum solution IBM and non-IBM cloud solutions
region. specific to customer requirements based from partners using an IBM cloud
on best of breed technology. integration framework.
Real World Experiences
sector: Construction Government Banking and Finance
Area: Project Infrastructure Disaster Recovery Testing and Staging Infrastructure
Profile: Construction Company in GCC Government Department in GCC Retail Bank in GCC
tHe CHaLLenGe tHe CHaLLenGe tHe CHaLLenGe
a project office catering to 150 users Provide a reliable and flexible disaster the in-house development team
was required to be setup in difficult recovery environment for 75 servers was faced with the problem of
environmental conditions. the office and facilitate the performance of non- licensing costs of software for testing
included expensive Cad workstations disruptive testing. and staging infrastructure since
for architectural drawings. since the software licensing costs are typically
project office was remote, additional
administration and breakdown support
tHe soLutIon tied to the processing power of the
underlying hardware.
personnel were needed on-site. GBM deployed IBM storage with
remote mirroring between sites.
tHe soLutIon
tHe soLutIon a vMware vsphere platform was
deployed on six servers to host the vMware vsphere platform was
two vMware view servers were seventy-five virtual machines at the deployed to virtualize the physical
installed to deploy the desktop production site with an identical setup server infrastructure. vMware Cloud
infrastructure (consolidation ratio at the disaster recovery site. vMware director was also used to take care of
of 75:1) and rugged thin-clients for site recovery Manager (srM) was also the dynamic requirements and make
project office users. deployed to integrate with storage and available desired servers on–the-fly.
automate server recovery.
tHe BeneFIts tHe BeneFIts
Quick deployment of desktop
tHe BeneFIts Instead of sixty servers, only eight
infrastructure. shared server the government department servers were required to provide
processing power ensured the design benefitted from easier management the bank with robust windows/
team got better performance vis- of replication at a more granular linux infrastructure. this resulted in
à-vis individual workstations. the and flexible vM-level. simple, quick immediate cost saving of 60% on the
company also saw a significant saving and reliable recovery because of projected capital expenditure.
in operation and support costs due automation in dr failover/ failback
significant savings were achieved on
to remote management of desktop procedures.
the application software licensing
infrastructure by its central It team.
and ongoing operating and support
cost. the solution also provided a
self-service, policy-driven access
control to deploy the servers for
testing.
4

5. GBM in the media
GBM and Indra to Develop National Healthcare System
GBM and CIsCo orGanIse Infrastructure for Bahrain’s King Hamad University Hospital
worKshoPs to showCase
vertICal It solUtIons
GBM and Cisco recently ran a very successful series
of regional workshops to discuss the latest regional
and global trends in vertical IT solutions. The first was
held in Manama on May 23rd, with the second taking
place in Doha, Qatar on July 12th.
froM left: BBM CoUntry General ManaGer aBdUlla IshaQ, Indra health
seCtor dIreCtor Jose CUBelos PasCUal, and BBM sales and MarKetInG
ManaGer ashesh MUKhoPadhyay
GBM and Indra, a world leader in enterprise backup software from IBM
healthcare solutions, announced tivoli storage Manager. the network
an agreement to jointly develop It infrastructure will also contain
infrastructure for the King hamad switching and security solutions from
University hospital in Bahrain. Cisco, bandwidth management devices
Bahrain Business Machines (BBM), from Bluecoat, load balancers from f5
GBM’s Bahrain division, and Indra networks and a network time server
will collaborate to develop the from symmetricom.
infrastructure, which will form the basis
“we are proud to have been selected
for the new national healthcare system
the CIsCo Partner sales forCe worKshoP, BahraIn by Indra to work on this prestigious
being established at the hospital.
project,” said abdulla Ishaq, Country
this project will provide the hospital General Manager for GBM. “at GBM,
with a unified system for inpatients, we are committed to working closely
outpatients and emergency-related with our partners to provide cutting-
titled “the Cisco Partner sales force”, the workshops set out to address information. the project will also edge solutions. with our knowledgeable
the business and Information technology requirements of different include a laboratory Information engineers, who have proven to be a big
industry sectors. the event also provided attendees with the training system (lIs), including anatomical draw to customers, we are confident
needed to deliver customised solutions based on customer and industry pathology, Intensive Care unit that we will provide world class
needs, with a special focus on financial services, Manufacturing and and anesthesia dietetics, medical expertise and counsel before, during
retail. imaging, radiology Information and after the implementation of a
system (rIs) and Picture archiving project.”
Computer system (PaCs), electronic
he added, “It is evident that the Bahraini
drug prescriptions, electronic health
government and its entities are serious
records, administrative, clinical support
about enhancing their It efficiencies,
services and statistics. as part of the
while adopting the latest in technology.
project, GBM will be providing and
this is reflected in our decision
implementing the latest IBM and Cisco
to deploy a range of best-in-class
infrastructure.
solutions that will boost efficiencies,
“this is a pioneering project and when maintain network resilience and ensure
it is complete, it will be a showpiece for full scalability.”
healthcare informatics and an example
of how the right It infrastructure can
make a significant difference to patient
care and operating efficiencies,” said
Jose Cubelos, health sector director
for Indra.
the CIsCo Partner sales forCe worKshoP, Qatar
Indra has implemented such systems Indra is a global company of
around the world, which cater to technology, innovation and
workshops were conducted by GBM’s Cisco Certified systems Instructors around 5600 hospitals, about 100,000
(CCsIs). Both were well attended by sales managers and executives talent, leading in high value-
professionals using the system and added solutions and services
of Cisco Channel Partners, with a series of useful and informative around 500,000 appointments every day.
discussions taking place. GBM and Cisco hope to repeat this success again for the transport and traffic;
with more workshops in the future. he added: “due to the significance of energy and industry; public
this project, we needed to select our Administration and healthcare;
partners with care, ensuring they have finance; insurance; security
the right competencies and this led to and defence; and telecom and
2003 2008
our decision to work with GBM. with its Media sectors. Indra operates
track record with various government in over 100 countries and has
agencies in Bahrain, expertise in 30,000 employees worldwide
supporting mission critical projects and who share their knowledge of
source: www.indracompany.com
strong credentials in offering end-to- different sectors and countries
end infrastructure, GBM is the ideal to find innovative solutions to
partner.” the challenges that clients face.
GBM became GBM became
Cisco Gold Partner Cisco learning Partner GBM will be responsible for deploying a Indra is the european company
wide variety of hardware and software that most invests in r&d in
solutions to support the project. IBM its sector.
products to be deployed include IBM
Blade servers, IBM system storage
storwize 7000 storage systems and
The Leading Provider of IT Business Solutions in the GCC 5

6. GBM in the media
MInIstry of JUstICe, IslaMIC affaIrs & waQf sIGn aGreeMent
wIth BahraIn BUsIness MaChInes
GBM and the Ministry of Justice, according to Ministry of Justice, Islamic ‘IBM system storage ds5020’. this
Islamic affairs and waqf in Bahrain affairs and waqf spokesperson “BBM’s system will provide the Ministry with
announced on June 28th that they strong credentials in offering disaster infrastructure simplification using ABouT omAn CemenT
had signed an agreement to develop recovery solutions reinforced their next-generation 8GBPs fC Interface,
a customised disaster recovery selection for this project. with their up to 67.2 tB of fiber channel physical
Infrastructure and revamp their vast experience in providing mission storage capacity and powerful system
production site, using the latest critical projects, we are positive that management, data management and since 1983, oman Cement
IBM Platforms. the project will be we have chosen the right vendor for data protection features. Company (oCC) has symbolized
undertaken and implemented by the implementation of this project. our oman’s drive for self-reliance
“we are proud to be associated with in core industries. the company
Bahrain Business Machines (BBM), decision to work with BBM was also
Bahrain’s Ministry of Justice, Islamic has given new strength to
GBM’s Bahrain division. the project based on its track record with various
affairs and waqf offering them state- the construction industry,
award was based on a thorough government ministries in Bahrain.
of-the-art solutions from IBM to consolidated the nation’s efforts
technical evaluation by Ministry of we are confident that we will benefit
enable data protection and disaster for infrastructure development
Justice, Islamic affairs and waqf from continued access to best-in-class
recovery at a lower cost. It is evident and created resources to achieve
between Major It vendors. technical support and expertise even
that the Bahraini government and its self-sufficiency.
after the completion of this project.”
the purpose of building a disaster entities are serious about enhancing
recovery Infrastructure is to keep other IBM Products that will be used their It efficiencies while adopting with a manufacturing facility
the Ministry’s critical applications up include, ‘IBM Blade servers’ which run the latest in technology,” said abdulla operating on world class
and running in case of planned and applications quickly and efficiently, Ishaq, Country General Manager, Iso 9001 certified quality
unplanned outage or natural disasters. enabling the Ministry to have better BBM. “at BBM, we are committed management system and Iso
In any of these disruptive events, all roI (return on Investment) and to working closely with our partners 14001 for environment, oCC
applications and data at the Production high-availability midplane to ensure to provide cutting edge and fully products meet global standards
site will be hosted and running at the maximum uptime and investment scalable solutions to our customers. in performance and quality
disaster recovery site. to enable a protection for future technologies. with our knowledgeable engineers, and reflect oCC’s enduring
flexible and robust switchover of sites, who had proven to be a big draw to commitment to customer
also, in a continuing effort to provide satisfaction and a stronger
BBM will also replace the Ministry’s customers, we are confident that we
storage solutions that are designed foundation for tomorrow.
production system, including their will provide world class expertise and
to provide low total cost of ownership,
storage infrastructure, with IBM counsel before, during and after the
high performance and robust
enterprise storage and storage implementation of a project.”
functionality, BBM will also deploy the
replications systems.
GBM Launches Training
Centre in Oman
GBM announced on June 14th the GBM has been a Cisco learning to fit a wide variety of their needs,”
launch of oman’s first Cisco training Partner (ClP) since 2008. with a said olivier Mouries, Country General
Centre. the world-class training strong presence in the Uae, Bahrain, Manager, GBM oman. “GBM is
centre, part of GBM’s learning Kuwait, oman, Qatar and Pakistan. committed to supporting local
services, is located at GBM’s Qurum GBM learning services is one of talent in oman and providing
premises in Muscat. the region’s leading It training them with the skills needed to
provider and offering over 1,000 excel in today’s ever-growing
GBM’s fully-fledged centre will offer a
comprehensive training programmes It industry.”
broad range of Cisco training services
across the Middle east and north
to job seekers and It professionals
africa (Mena) region, training over
in the private and public sectors.
3,000 It professionals annually.
the training sessions will be led by
Certified Cisco systems Instructors
(CCsIs) and will deliver Cisco
authorised and approved content, First world-
including technology, product-
specific and certification-preparation class Cisco
courses. In addition, courses on Cisco
technologies will be offered using the Training Centre
market’s latest hardware and remote
labs. in Oman
“Cisco is very proud to collaborate
with GBM in this initiative which we
“the launch of the our training centre
hope will encourage local omani
in oman marks a milestone for GBM
talent to realise their full potential
and shows GBM’s commitment to
to be tomorrow’s leaders of the local
invest in developing the It talent in
and regional It industry. the Cisco
oman. as part of GBM’s learning
training Centre is the first of its kind
services offerings, this initiative
in oman and we are confident that
reinforces our efforts to help froM left: CIsCo General ManaGer - oMan Iyad al ChaMMat; GBM oMan
it will bring great value to the local
omanisation by providing cutting
community,” said Iyad al Chammat, CoUntry General ManaGer - olIvIer MoUrIes; sales ManaGer, GBM learnInG
edge Cisco training solutions to
Cisco General Manager in oman. servICes (GUlf reGIon) - Pawan arora, and GBM learnInG servICes
oman’s It workforce and job seekers
sPeCIalIst, GBM oMan - IndranIl GoswaMI
6

7. GBM hardware will offer oman Cement Company
a highly scalable and resilient
“our upgraded It infrastructure will
allow us to run our business in a more
forward to further enhancing our It
infrastructure”, he continued.
architecture with a proven reputation
solUtIons for exceptional business resiliency.
effective manner, ensuring reliability,
efficiency and complete scalability
Power systems provide servers and
software that are the foundation
the Company will also have the choice of our systems,” added saleh sultan
Power oMan of running IBM aIX or linux-based al-rashdi, Manager It, oman Cement.
for enterprise infrastructure that
can help businesses, such as oman
software, offering greater flexibility “the combination of GBM’s expertise
CeMent in the future. the chosen hardware and IBM’s hardware and software
Cement Company, manage rapid
change, reduce business risk, and
will provide servers, storage and solutions has contributed to the
CoMPany It an integrated operating system for tremendous success of this project. as
meet higher service levels – all in
the most cost-effective manner. In
production and disaster recovery (dr). we complete this first phase we look
aUGMentatIon “the oman Cement Company is a
addition, oman Cement also selected
the IBM tivoli storage Manager for
ProJeCt strategic component of our country’s
drive for self reliance. as a result For a project
this project to be the backup solution
to allow for flawless continuity of
it is important that our supporting services.
GBM recently completed the
implementation of hardware solutions
infrastructure is in a position to of such critical “we are positive that this project
to augment the It infrastructure at
the oman Cement Company. GBM has
maximize efficiencies and minimize
downtime and our decision to invest in importance, we will go a long way in helping the
oman Cement Company overcome
installed state-of-the-art IBM Power™
systems servers that will support
boosting our It infrastructure reflects
that,” said Jamal shamis al-hooti, were well aware challenges in demanding business
environments. the infrastructure will
the deployment of the Company’s
Ceo, oman Cement Company. “for
a project of such critical importance, that selecting also act as a tool to boost productivity
and operational efficiency,” said
enterprise resource Planning (erP)
solution.
we were well aware that selecting the
right solution would ensure success.
the right solution olivier Mouries, Country General
Manager, GBM oman. “with our pool
the new infrastructure uses IBM
Power™ systems 550 servers running
our decision to work with Gulf
Business Machines was based on its
would ensure of knowledgeable engineers, GBM is
always committed to provide best-in-
the IBM i operating system (formerly
known as i5/os®). the combination
extensive track record and its ability to
provide top-of-the-line solutions.”
success. class solutions and technologies to
its customers and partners.”
Qtel JoIns forCes wIth
GBM to offer enhanCed
ICt solUtIons
new aGreeMent wIll ProvIde advanCed
servICes that wIll Create the rIGht
envIronMent to develoP BUsIness for
Both Qtel & GBM CUstoMers - helPInG to
sUPPort a KnowledGe Based eConoMy
Qtel today signed a major partnership as well as testing, commissioning,
agreement with Gulf Business maintenance, support and warranty for
Machine (GBM); establishing a clients.
froM left to rIGht: enG. KhalId aBdUlla al MansoUrI, eXeCUtIve dIreCtor, Qtel
long-term strategic relationship. eng. Khalid abdulla al Mansouri, BUsIness solUtIons and Mr. Bader al-Mana, ChaIrMan of GBM Qatar, sIGn the
PartnershIP aGreeMent at Qtel.
this partnership will allow both executive director, Business solutions,
companies to offer greater value to Qtel, said: “Qtel continues to forge
their business customers while opening partnership with Qtel will enhance our momentous campaign of switching
ahead in offering a range of technology
up opportunities for expansion into position in Qatar, since it’s a key market customers to a high-speed fibre
solutions to its business clients, and
new markets. Under the terms of the for us, and as a regional leader within network. Qtel field teams have already
with this new partnership we are able
agreement, Qtel and GBM will jointly the ICt industry. Qtel is a dynamic laid out over 1,200 kilometres of fibre
to present a more comprehensive ICt
pursue and provide advanced ICt business that continues to grow at pace cable throughout doha.
offering. Partnering with GBM allows us
solutions to their clients. access to a raft of specialist expertise with Qatar and we are certain that this small businesses in particular are set
and the worldwide resources of IBM, partnership will be a success.” to benefit from the Qtel fibre network,
the new partnership will leverage
Qtel’s ever-expanding network and its adding to the unparalleled range of It as the company that helped build the through a range of specialists solutions
long-term relationships; and GBM’s solutions for our customers.” ICt network infrastructure within Qatar, that leverage the enhanced speed and
reputation as one of the largest It the initial focus for Qtel and GBM Qtel has worked with a huge range of capacity of Qtel fibre.
solution providers in the region. will be within healthcare, education, leading companies, with significant the agreement with GBM is another
energy, hospitality and small to support provided for pioneers in the key step in evolving strategy for Qtel
through the partnership, Qtel and
Medium enterprise business sectors. fields of energy, aviation, government Business solutions, which aims to
GBM will engage in activities including
and retail. fuel the ongoing growth of Qatar’s key
technical site surveys, designing Mr. Bader al-Mana, Chairman of GBM
full solutions, defining the needed Qatar, said: “we are extremely excited Contributing to this growth, Qtel business sectors.
resources and works, supplying about this new venture for GBM in recently reached a major milestone
materials and services for installation the region. we are positive that our with the commencement of its
The Leading Provider of IT Business Solutions in the GCC 7

8. GBM in the media
GBM and CIsCo showCase
“the Power of the
CIsCo CollaBoratIon GUlf BUsIness MaChInes
PortfolIo” foreCasts sIGnIfICant BUsIness
Growth for 2011
GBM and Cisco organised an speakers at the event included doug GBM announced that it foresees a from increasing its customer base
event in dubai on March 7th, 2011 fleming, Business video specialist significant growth in business in 2011. to partnering with the It industry’s
to discuss ways and means to - dMs, Cisco; osama I. al-dosary, these forecasts were announced at global names such as Cisco,
accelerate innovation, growth, Consulting system engineer, Cisco; a series of internal 2011 ‘kick-off’ salesforce.com and red hat while
and business improvement and wael abdulal, Collaboration meetings held in all GBM locations. continuing to be the sole distributors
opportunities through enhanced sales lead Uae, Cisco. for IBM, excluding selected IBM
the meetings, which were led by
collaboration. products and services, throughout the
the event, which targeted It Cesare Cardone, Ceo, GBM and
GCC, except for saudi arabia.
held under the theme of “discover managers and executives in the Country General Managers, form
the Power of the Cisco Collaboration fields of education, manufacturing, part of GBM’s annual review and In 2010, GBM also announced its
Portfolio”, the latest developments retails, real estate, government and are essential for its planning and acquisition of Performance systems,
in digital Media systems, voice and financial services, was attended by strategising as well as providing an the launch of the first network
Unified Communications, video, over 70 people including a number in-depth analysis of the company’s operations Centre in the Middle east
Cable and Content delivery, and of GBM and Cisco customers and performance in the last year and and continued to partner with various
Physical security and Building employees. business growth predictions for 2011. governments across the region on a
systems were showcased during range of e-Government projects.
over the past 21 years, GBM has
the event.
consistently grown from strength to
strength in all its operating markets
well as the capability to manage
GBM and tonBeller GBM and tonbeller aG, a
specialist in the development complex compliance and
teaM-UP at MefteC and implementation of
company-wide risk and
banking projects, making them
an excellent bridge between
compliance solutions, jointly our clients and tonbeller,”
participated at Meftec, the Paul hamilton, Global alliance
world’s premier financial director of tonbeller aG, said.
technology event for emerging “our Compliance solutions
markets. support the organisations
the event provided a platform in streamlining processes,
for both companies to showcase lowering operating expenses,
the best-in-breed compliance and - most important of all - in
solutions for customers in the complying with the national
Gulf region. the event took place laws and regulations quickly.
from May 30th to May 31st at leveraging from our long-term
adneC in abu dhabi, Uae. experience including successful
projects in the GCC, we are
GBM partnered with tonbeller to
looking forward to teaming
assist customers in dealing with
up with GBM with its broad
the alarming developments of
knowledge to help customers
fraudulent activities such as anti
improve their compliance
Money laundering (aMl) and
processes faster and achieve
Counter terrorism financing
their business goals,” added
(Ctf) and to comply with the
The selection respective regulations. during
torsten Mayer, Managing
director of tonbeller aG.
of GBM gives the event, both partners also
In addition to services and
our clients in the addressed the best approach
consulting, tonbeller has
in the prevention of financial
Gulf region a very crimes and risk assessment. deployed more than 700
reliable partner “the selection of GBM gives our
installations of their anti Money
laundering and Compliance
clients in the Gulf region a very
solutions worldwide. along
reliable partner that brings a
with GBM’s local and regional
lot of regional aMl compliance
experience and knowledge as
subject matter expertise, as
well as their subject matter
8

9. The partnership
GBM develops first between GBM
and HCT for the
educational cloud computing deployment of cloud
platform in Abu Dhabi for computing solutions
will leverage these
Higher Colleges of Technology benefits for building
the UAE’s human
GBM and the higher Colleges of will act as a learning, research
capital and cutting-
technology (hCt) announced that they and development tool for students. edge, future IT skills
have signed a partnership agreement also, as part of the effort to build
for the development of an educational the Uae’s human capital and local
and knowledge
cloud computing platform, using cloud computing capabilities, GBM
the latest and leading enterprise will involve hCt’s students in the
technologies. Undertaken by GBM’s development process of the project computing services and education for
abu dhabi division, the project to ensure optimum exposure to the its students.”
partnership was signed by h.e. sheikh cutting-edge technology. In addition to involving students in
nahayan Mabarak al nahayan, Minister the development of the educational
“when a higher education institution
of higher education and scientific cloud computing platform, hCt will
partners with leading It companies,
research and Chancellor, hCt and host guest lecturers from GBM on a
the benefits are endless and this
ali Bin hamoodah, Chairman Bin regular basis. during the lectures,
is an indication of the growing
hamoodah trading on behalf of GBM, GBM spokespeople will showcase
importance of providing the
h.e. sheIKh nahayan MaBaraK and it will be the first of its kind to be their experience and success stories in
latest It technology for research,
al nahayan, MInIster of hIGher deployed in an educational institute in enterprise information technology and
edUCatIon and sCIentIfIC researCh educational and training purposes.
abu dhabi. provide students with industry insights.
and ChanCellor, hCt, PresentInG the partnership between GBM and
an aPPreCIatIon award to Cesare In addition to the benefits that cloud hCt for the deployment of cloud
Cardone, Ceo, GBM In reCoGnItIon for “we are very proud to be part of
sPonsorInG 2011 aBU dhaBI IndUstry computing will offer hCt, the project computing solutions will leverage this prestigious partnership with
awards for aCadeMIC eXCellenCe. these benefits for building the Uae’s the hCt. In addition, we recognise
human capital and cutting-edge, the importance of training a new
future It skills and knowledge,” dr. generation of It professionals in the
tayeb Kamali, vice Chancellor, hCt very latest technologies and we hope
said. this project will achieve that goal,”
experts, both companies he added: “hCt is a Uae leader in said Cesare Cardone, Ceo, GBM. “this
will ensure that customers adopting the latest educational and project reflects our commitment to the
are provided with the best training technologies throughout United arab emirates, its people and
solutions to fight and combat its campuses, where faculty and our partners in the country to provide
financial crimes and ensure staff work closely with students cutting edge solutions to meet their
optimum productivity and cost to deliver innovative curriculum needs from an It and educational
the “turning data into Information” perspective.”
efficiency while complying vision has been with tonBeller in technologically sophisticated
with legal requirements and since its founding in 1971. we help environments. hence, this
local rules and regulations. our clients successfully manage collaboration will also allow
their businesses by providing the hCt to optimise its overall cloud
“GBM is very pleased to tools and the know-how to mine
data from any source for guidance
partner with tonbeller in making decisions. that puts us
and participate at Meftec, up against an ongoing challenge: GUlf BUsIness MaChInes naMed
one of the world’s leading to fully integrate innovative “systeM InteGrator of the year”
technologies with our solutions.
financial technology events. and it ensures that our customers
together we can provide will profit from their investments GBM received the system Integrator Cisco Partner summit and Best ICt
next generation compliance for a long time to come. (sI) of the year award at the solutions Provider at the Bahrain
solutions that are more competitive advantage reseller Middle east (rMe) Partner eGovernment excellence award in
effective, innovative and excellence awards. 2010 and Cisco enterprise Partner
• We thoroughly design all
quick to deploy to our GCC components of our full range of the year (Gulf & Pakistan) at the
the prestigious award was presented
customers while enabling of services Cisco Partner summit in 2009.
to Cesare Cardone, Ceo, GBM, at the
them to securely comply with • The fact that TONBELLER
solutions can be used on award ceremony which was held at
ever demanding regional and all standard It platforms is the westin dubai Mina seyahi Beach
international regulations,” generally considered to be our resort & Marina on June 12th. this
said Mohamed daoud, GBM unique selling point was part of a series of awards for
Banking & finance solutions the advantage for our customer excellence and appreciation given to
& services Practice leader - organisations that have contributed
• Cost benefits due to using
across GCC. existing infrastructures to the development of It market in
• Portability of existing the region over the years.
source: www.tonbeller.com
tonBeller solutions
• Integration of and access to data GBM has previously been recognised
in all current databases and file and awarded for their achievements
systems and innovative initiatives, solutions
• No proprietary data stocks and
so no redundancy
and offerings. the awards include
• Openly available for other Public sector Partner of the year
applications and services Partner of the year at
the Cisco Partner summit in 2011,
Cisco enterprise Partner of the
year (emerging east, Uae) at the
The Leading Provider of IT Business Solutions in the GCC 9

10. IBM Centennial
How does an organisation deal with the inherent tensions among its
constituents? 1962
A company’s constituents all have choices—the employee of where to work, the
IBM and American Airlines
investor of where to put a dollar. Communities allow companies to operate within
launched the world’s first
their borders; customers choose which company wins their business.
computer-driven airline reservation
system, SABRE - which paved the
1911 way for online banking technology.
IBM was formed as the Computing
Tabulating and Recording Company, In our history, there are many other examples5 where tensions—among the
or C-T-R, specializing in punch cards, interests of investors, employees, society and clients—were resolved through
commercial scales and clocks. innovation and by responsibly confronting, not shying away from, new realities.
Which of these constituents has primacy? It’s a false choice. Generating 1969
shareholder value may be the baseline responsibility of a public corporation, but
we have learned that, by itself, it does not build a lasting enterprise, much less a IBM technology guided the Apollo
great one. mission to the moon – the company
has played a part in the U.S. space
program since the 1950s.
1924
With global ambitions, the company
renamed itself International How does a company confront relentless commoditisation?
Business Machines – today,
The technology field is cruel to those who fail to make the leap from era to era,
it operates in 170 countries.
but tech companies are hardly alone. The hand of commoditisation spares few.
The question becomes, as leaders, what to do about that.
Perhaps you’ll agree with us that this is not merely about balance and
compromising among divergent interests. Rather, it’s about making the hard 1969
choice to live at their intersection—using the inherent tension to drive innovation. IBM labs developed the magnetic
As the recent downturn reminds us, the tensions get harder the tougher times get. strips on credit cards – still
Shareholder expectations for higher returns don’t diminish when the economy ubiquitous on ID cards, drivers’
stutters. In these moments, the temptation is strongest to cut investments licenses and ATM bank cards.
1936
IBM worked with the U.S. Our lesson learned: You have to keep going to the future.
government to start Social Security Partly, it’s about creating new spaces to move into investing in good times and
– the largest accounting project of bad. This requires a kind of institutional patience; upside benefits rarely come this
its time. quarter, or even next year. Sometimes, they never come.
But it’s not just about what you create. It’s also about what you choose to leave
behind. Every institution, by its nature, favours the ideas, products and services
that made it successful. Leadership often requires shedding emotional attachment
to that heritage.
in skills and R&D. But Tom Watson Sr. actually increased investments during
the Great Depression. In this most recent down cycle, we protected R&D and
continued to make strategic acquisitions. But this also meant that we had to drive 1971
IBM created the floppy disk,
which made storage powerful and
1956 affordable – and the PC revolution
RAMAC (Random Access Method possible.
of Accounting and Control), the
first magnetic hard disk drive,
created the data storage industry.
Consider the IBM Personal Computer. This wasn’t just a breakthrough invention
and successful IBM business. It was a product that spawned a whole new sector
of our industry. But several years ago, it became clear that the PC was not central
higher levels of productivity in other parts of the business—our global supply chain to our future, or the future of computing. So we got out a move that scratched
and functional processes. Doing so required—and led to—major innovations in how almost $11 billion in annual revenues from our books. This was just one of several
we operate the company, resulting in $6 billion productivity savings over the past similar moves over the past 10 years. All part of the perpetual motion of building
five years. higher-value businesses.
1961 1973
The Selectric Typewriter was Supermarkets started scanning
an instant design sensation, UPC bar codes, invented by IBM.
delighting typists for 25 years. Today, they track everything from
clothing to dairy cows.
Other times, tension is caused by a seismic shift in the world around you. By Moving to the future can also include reinventing what you have, as we repeatedly
the middle of the last decade our pension obligations were almost as large as have done with our mainframe business. Despite repeated pronouncements of its
our revenues. We had to address this or risk severely impairing IBM’s long-term imminent demise, we’ve increased installed mainframe capacity 1,000% over the
competitiveness. Yet we also knew that helping our people build secure futures is past 13 years.
itself a competitive advantage. So the real work began—to replace the traditional The largest lesson we have learned is about value creation itself. Every leader has
pension plans with entirely new kinds of programmes and options. Certainly some to determine how “the new” is born. We have realised that innovation itself is ever
employees did not welcome the change. But many did, and several aspects of the evolving. Over a century, we have added fundamental research to development.
new programme are viewed as leading innovations. We have collaborated with universities and governments. We embraced open
source. We selectively acquired companies. And most recently, we have generated
10