Hybrid-cloud models offer a way through data concerns and government regulations for regional enterprises, according to Infor.
The ERP vendor has found many regional customers do have concerns over data stored remotely – and new regulations make it essentially impossible for public sector organisations to use full cloud services, Monzer Tohme, Regional Manager for the Middle East at Infor, told Lynchpin Media’s Editorial Consultant, Eliot Beer.
“For the public sector, data has to be local – none of them have the option for data to be outside the country, even in other GCC or Middle East countries. And if we look at the private sector, enterprises are very concerned about data integrity and security,” said Tohme.
He explained the way forward was to look at a hybrid model: “The application itself, plus the infrastructure – mainly the operating system and database – will all be hosted remotely, in a US or Europe-based datacentre. But the customer data will be hosted in a local server, within the premises or elsewhere in the country. That may give them more confidence around data security.
“The hybrid model will fit the regulations that have been set by the different governments in the Middle East,” he added, saying any remaining concerns about risks to data being transferred to and from the application were “more about a cultural or mental concern, rather than reality”.
Tohme said Infor had found many regional customers started with a cloud solution for a small part of their business, before moving to a wider implementation: “Once they go through that process, and they’re happy and confident, then they look at a full end-to-end cloud option.”
