A winner of the India-Africa Champion in Biz Award 2015, iSON will also add 2000 more jobs through its ultra-modern customer care and skills development centre in Ibadan, Nigeria
Africa’s IT services company, iSON Technologies, a fully-owned subsidiary of iSON Group founded by Indian-origin entrepreneur Ramesh Awtaney, along with its co-investor Dhabi One Investment Services LLC, has announced that it has acquired UAE-based Global Technology Services (GTS) to emerge as a leading IT outsourcing company in the UAE and the GCC.
GTS is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Dubai Government’s entity, Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), which specializes in oil & gas with over 30 active subsidiaries and international joint ventures, and operations in the Middle East, Asia, Europe and Africa. ISON Technologies is a leading pan-African partner for major companies such as AVAYA, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, Juniper and Riverbed, and offers end-to-end IT services including systems integration, application management, cloud, analytics and managed services.
The GTS acquisition enables iSON Technologies to expand its services and client portfolio in the UAE and the GCC. The deal will allow GTS to leverage iSON Group’s vast footprint across 29 countries in the African, India and ASEAN regions besides the Middle East, as well as access to newer sectors such as telecommunications, aviation, media and entertainment. The acquisition also reduces ENOC’s capital expenditure on IT infrastructure significantly and provides a more consistent operational expenditure with access to the latest technology upgrades. With this acquisition, iSON Technologies will be able to provide significant operational and cost efficiencies along with a better service to ENOC and iSON’s other partners in the UAE and GCC.
Mr. Ramesh Awtaney, Founder and Chairman, iSON Group, who is accredited with introducing the concept of revenue-share IT outsourcing in Indian telecom industry through the path-breaking IBM-Bharti Airtel deal, said, “The GTS acquisition gives us an unparalleled and distinctive edge in existing and new geographies, and builds on the exceptional customer trust that iSON has earned through our experience of working with Fortune 50 IT companies especially in Africa and APAC. It reinforces our commitment to assemble best-in-class IT and technology services and solutions across all stages of the outsourcing lifecycle.”
ENOC’s Executive Director for Shared Services, Mr. Sina Khoory, added, “iSON’s core business is IT Services including mobile, in the Middle East and Africa, and this therefore is a solid, value enhancing match for GTS. With GTS’s third party business and the services provided to ENOC Group, ISON strengthens its capabilities to expand their service and client portfolio in the UAE and GCC. ENOC and its operating business units will continue as a core customer of GTS, based on the existing Service Level Agreement between ENOC and GTS, so there will be no immediate changes to our IT Services.”
Explaining the rationale of divesting in GTS, ENOC’s Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Petri Pentti, said “Under ENOC, GTS has operated effectively as an autonomous management and technology consulting organization offering value added IT services to a variety of customers in several industries and geographies. The organization is also a Platinum Partner of Oracle. ENOC’s expansion strategy in oil and gas i.e. upstream, midstream and downstream, projects good growth potential amongst local and international businesses. As a result of this growth, we concluded that IT Services as a support business is best developed by industry experts like iSON Technologies who can further leverage the specific key areas and competencies that GTS has developed over the years.”
Welcoming the move, Oracle ECEMEA’s Vice President, Business Applications, Mr Arun Khehar, said, “Since inception over 15 years ago, GTS has been one of the premium Partners for Oracle, delivering over 100 Oracle Application projects within and beyond MENA region. With their domain knowledge in various industries such as oil and gas, utilities, real estate and public sector, they are unique in their commitment and investment in Oracle’s industry solution approach.”
GTS, the Infrastructure management and technology consulting organization, offers value-added IT services to a variety of customers in UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, using customized solutions to meet their specific requirements through its two business segments: IT Infrastructure Management and consulting/ systems implementation services focusing on complex applications and process automation.
The GTS acquisition marks yet another milestone for iSON Group, which has seen trailblazing growth this year. Earlier this month, under its BPO business, iSON Group opened an ultra-modern customer care and skills development centre adding about 2000 more jobs in Ibadan, Nigeria. iSON had also won the India-Africa Champion in Biz Award 2015 in the “Distinguished Achievement in IT & ITES” category from ASSOCHAM this October.
About ISON Group
iSON Group provides leading Consulting and Systems Integration Services, Managed Services, and Outsourcing Services. iSON BPO offers IT enabled outsourcing services including Call Center and Back Office services across verticals namely: Communications Service Providers, BFSI, Government, Retail and Aviation Sectors. iSON Technologies is a pan-African system integrator, managed service provider and strategic outsourcing player providing end-to-end IT services and solutions across the continent. iSON Innovation and Investments (I3) focuses on driving consumer internet businesses in Africa by enabling and inspiring ambitious entrepreneurs through provision of capital and other strategic inputs for building businesses across Africa. For more information, please visit: http://www.isongrp.com/.
About ENOC
Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), a wholly-owned entity of the Dubai Government, is a leading force in the economic diversification and sustainable development of the UAE. ENOC’s vision is to be a leading integrated oil and gas group that is highly profitable and socially responsible towards its employees, the communities it serves in and the environment. With over 30 active subsidiaries and international joint ventures, the Group’s business portfolio includes refining, oil trade, terminating & storage, bunkering, liquefied petroleum gas, aviation fuel marketing, lubricants blending & marketing, informational technology, with core operations in the Middle East, Asia, Europe and Africa.