With the markets suddenly awash with people, is it easier or actually more difficult to hire true talent in recessionary times?  

The Chinese character for crisis is the same as the one for chaos – and includes two elements – one meaning ‘danger’ and the other ‘opportunity’. For the savvy organisation, the current economic downturn has created a unique opportunity to attract high level key personnel, the likes of which would not otherwise have been available in a more buoyant market.

Craig Coverman believes now is definitely a good time for organisations to ask themselves if they can really offer candidates compelling reasons to join them

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Qatar is on the verge of market entry by Vodafone, one of the world’s leading mobile players. Qtel, the incumbent monopoly, will face a formidable challenger in Vodafone. Aglobal presence and vast product and services innovation experience across developed and emerging markets are just some of the advantages Vodafone can leverage in its market entry strategy. Vodafone has the capacity to deliver targeted value propositions to the very diverse customer segments found in Qatar, from the labour force to the local large enterprises and branches of multinational firms.

Given the near saturated mobile market and the well-serviced fixed-line arena, Vodafone will likely target the incumbent’s existing customer base to capture market share. The challenge for Qtel is to retain the high value segments, thereby allowing the inevitable churn to be within the lower segments. The enterprise segment is one of the key contributors to revenue and profitability for Qtel’s domestic operations. In any customer retention effort by Qtel, these customers should rank at the very top of the priority list.

Should Qtel be worried about churn in the enterprise segment?

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The mobile industry is adopting green policies in line with global initiatives to focus on sustainable and renewable power sources and lessening climatic impact on the environment. Developing markets have been quick to trial and adopt these new initiatives – both from a corporate social responsibility perspective, as well as in order to reduce OPEX associated with maintaining off-grid base stations (BTS) in challenging environments. Green Giraffe’s Michèle Scanlon reports

Markets such as India and Nigeria are often cited as examples
of the high cost of power as related to the operation of diesel-powered generators. In 2008, Indian operators used an estimated two billion litres of diesel to power their networks. OPEX splits from operators indicate that on average a third of OPEX is directly attributable to power and fuel consumption whilst in rural areas this exceeds 50 per cent of OPEX. Similar issues face most operators in developing markets. Caribbean and South Pacific operator Digicel reports it spent US$11 million on diesel in 2008 to power its Haitian network, though a generator/ battery hybrid solution has already proven to show 35 per cent savings in diesel OPEX in trials in the country.

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For essentially all organisations, increasing global influence is a reality. Even organisations that seem to operate only locally are affected deeply by the global nature of communications and commerce. This fact is apparent in the corporate world. And in the public sector, new expectations are being placed on government and educational institutions, causing tremendous pressure to execute. The rate of change in a business or organisational environment might feel like a Darwinian struggle – meaning competition for survival, is fierce. The question is, will a business adapt quickly, efficiently and effectively enough to thrive within this relentless pace of change?

Alaa Alshimy is general manager for HP Procurve Middle East

It is commonly accepted today that the right IT can be crucial in making people and processes more effective. You must always be concerned about managing complexity effectively, about the burdens associated with regulatory compliance, about embracing the applications that best support your business processes and about minimising operational costs. Less commonly understood, however, is the importance of the right network infrastructure. Too often, even IT-savvy executives make the mistake of treating a network as simply a ‘pipe’ for moving data around. In an era of fast-paced global competition, this limited approach to networking can put you an enterprise at a disadvantage.

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The desire on the part of Middle East governments to continue to generate revenue from telecoms could finally bring real opportunities for MVNOs keen to do business in the region, says Roberto Frongia of Arthur D. Little Middle EastTwo years ago there was widespread interest in the possibility of MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) business models entering the Middle East. Interest tended to focus on the superficial benefits that an MVNO can deliver: greater customer focus, more flexible customer care models, more effective distribution, environmental benefits and, of course, lower prices.

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