Manama: Mahmood Rafique, Editor: With 45 per cent surge in business in Bahrain, Zoho is upbeat about further reinforcing its position in the Kingdom of Bahrain with major announcements in the pipeline.
“Bahrain is one of the key markets for Zoho and with help of partners we will strengthen Zoho’s position in the Kingdom,” Ali Shabdar, Regional Director for MEA, Zoho Corp told the media roundtable on the sidelines of the Zoho client event in Manama.
He did not give the details of the upcoming agreements or projects in Bahrain including the opening date of an independent office for Zoho in Manama.
Zoho, the global technology company with the most extensive product portfolio in the industry, had reported 45 per cent growth in Bahrain in 2021.
The company has increased its channel partner network by 54 per cent. The announcement was made during Zoholics Bahrain, the company’s annual user conference being held at The Intercontinental Bahrain.
“Zoho’s growth in the region is largely underpinned by local businesses realising the power of SaaS applications, as they reap benefits of digitising their operations. The breadth and depth of Zoho’s product portfolio, which includes over 50 business apps and our integrated suite Zoho One, enables businesses to digitise every aspect of their operations, without worrying about data silos or integration hassles,” Hyther Nizam, President MEA, Zoho Corp, in a statement said.
“Our vision for transnational localism has also helped us expand organically in the region, a strategy where our company growth is rooted in local business ecosystem development and community progress. Aside from increasing our on-ground presence with new offices and hiring local talent, our focus over the year has been on serving regional customer needs like local payment gateway integration, and enabling tech accessibility through partnerships with government bodies and local business networks,” he added.
In 2021, Zoho partnered with Dubai Culture to help make enterprise technology available to solopreneurs, and businesses of all sizes. As part of its growth strategy, Zoho is hiring locally, increasing its partner network and collaborating with local organizations to serve local businesses, while making its globally popular apps available and accessible to everyone. The company has also invested in upskilling initiatives, such as partnering with Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management to train their first-year BBA students in the ‘Role of technology in business management’.
“During the pandemic and its multiple waves, we have seen a surge in demand for customer experience platform, low-code platform and business intelligence offerings, as they became instrumental for any business to stay operational and react to the quickly changing market demands,” added Ali Shabdar.
“Zoho One—the Operating System for business, which unifies 45+ apps built on the same technology stack that contextually integrate with one another and are supported by a common data model—allows business owners to transcend departmental silos, unify processes, and further leverage cross-functional smart reporting and analytics by combining data across different departments. This is an attractive offering for any business. Availability of RTL Arabic language support in our major apps such as CRM, Books and Creator, and other attributes like ease of use and affordable pricing have helped increase the adoption of our solutions in the region,” he said.
In 2021, Zoho grew by 52 per cent in the Middle East and Africa region, which is the second highest growing region for the company. It grew its partner network by 55 per cent and tripled its workforce in the region. The company also established its presence in seven countries, and set up new offices in Saudi Arabia, Egypt and South Africa.
In 2022, Zoho plans to open offices in Kenya, Nigeria and three other countries, with Dubai serving as the regional headquarters. It also plans to continue hiring locally in other countries to serve its customers, as it expands its footprints across the region.
