The two tech giants’ customers will now have the opportunity to experience RISE with SAP on Azure in Qatar under the deepening SAP and Microsoft partnership.
At the recent event RISE with SAP on the Road with Microsoft held at the Mandarin Oriental, Doha, Qatar last February 21, SAP and Microsoft showcased how they help accelerate customers’ cloud journey along with digital and cultural transformation in the country. The C-level thought leadership platform launched the two multinationals’ latest joint co-innovation partnership in Qatar- the addition of RISE with SAP on Microsoft’s hyper-scale cloud data center region.
“At Microsoft, we constantly strive to provide the best cloud experience for our customers, the Microsoft cloud data center region will be the first cloud data center to provide Rise with SAP on Azure in Qatar, unlocking new business opportunities and innovation,” said Lana Khalaf, General Manager at Microsoft Qatar. “Bringing RISE with SAP on Azure to Qatar supports our efforts to increase opportunities for our customers to innovate on their own terms and achieve their business goals.”
SAP-Microsoft Partnership in the Cloud
The event delved into SAP and Microsoft capabilities to help customers contribute to the vision of Qatar 2030 leveraging the RISE offering on SAP Azure by highlighting industry best practices and enterprise-proven cloud journey, among others. The joint initiative expands the opportunities for SAP customers to drive a cloud-first economy in Qatar, the GCC, and the MENA region, harnessing Microsoft’s Azure multi-cloud capabilities, and enterprise-grade cloud to allow them to develop solutions using multiple clouds and digital frameworks.
“RISE with SAP enables the rapid adoption of advanced technologies and is tailored for each enterprise’s specific needs and circumstances. The aim is to go beyond a technical migration to the cloud, and instead enable private and public sector entities to truly transform their operations, realizing a faster time-to-market for new capabilities and applications,” commented Alaa Jaber, Managing Director, Qatar, and Fast Growth Markets at SAP. “Microsoft has deep expertise running SAP solutions on Azure, in addition to a strong, ongoing partnership with SAP, and together we are proud to be accelerating the transformation of Qatari businesses into intelligent, future-proof enterprises.”
Featured during the event are government organization and enterprises in Qatar that have embarked on business transformation journeys to become intelligent, sustainable enterprises by running SAP solutions on Microsoft Cloud.
The Civil Service and Government Development Bureau of Qatar has been a long-standing partner of SAP, which enabled the transformation of Mawared: the Qatar Government’s HR system. Farha Muhanna Al-Kuwari, Human Resources Information Systems Centre Director, stated that the Bureau’s collaboration with SAP and Microsoft supports its cloud adoption journey aligned with Qatar’s digital transformation agenda and National Vision 2030.
“We are proud of this partnership and our joint efforts for continuous improvements. Considering the mission-critical services that the Mawared platform provides to government entities, the impact of disruption or outage can be severe in terms of business operations, data loss, and reputational harm. By deploying Microsoft Azure Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Solution (BCDR), we are now able to avoid disruptions, protect Mawared’s applications and data, and keep Mawared platform running and recoverable in case of unforeseen disasters or unplanned outages.”
Qatar Primary Materials Company (QPMC), Gulf Warehousing Company (GWC), and Al Meera Consumer Goods also detailed their cloud transformation stories with RISE with SAP on Azure to drive operational efficiencies and innovation leveraging cloud computing. Hamdan Merchant, Senior Director Innovation & IT & BPI at GWC, stressed:
“The cloud offers the ideal option to support the strategic goals of the GWC. Using RISE with SAP on Azure for our deployment, we get instant access to the latest patches, innovations, and updates from SAP.”
The SAP and Microsoft partnership in Qatar has also been witnessed during the 2022 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup wherein GWC was selected as the logistics provider. Deploying RISE with SAP on Azure, GWC strengthened its IT landscape to deliver agility, speed, and resilience during one of the world’s most awaited sporting events. Aside from the FIFA opportunity, GWC also had to embrace transformation to support the company’s long-term ambition.
“The cloud was the best option to support the strategic goals of the company,” noted Merchant. “Using RISE with SAP for our Azure deployment, we get instant access to the latest patches, innovations, and updates from SAP.”
