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BUSINESS
GEORGIA TODAY
MARCH 31 - APRIL 3, 2017
Microsoft Georgia Presents Cloud Technology Strategy BY NINO GUGUNISHVILI
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t a meeting with media representatives held on March 23 in Rooms Hotel Tbilisi, Microsoft Georgia introduced Microsoft’s new strategy, the Microsoft Cloud digital platform, and the advantages it offers customers, business organizations and the business sphere in general, worldwide. Microsoft Cloud is considered as the heart of Microsoft’s strategy and growth, as well as a tool for a business transformation, giving organizations operating in various spheres the chance to develop assets and values. Cloud technology transforms businesses worldwide, as its implementation and usage is growing considerably. It is said that using Microsoft Cloud changes the work style of the individual, the place and the way in which people run their businesses. Cloud technology enables modern IT companies to play an important role in creating and implementing business strategies. “Digitalization may bring a lot of benefits to society in general, while forging environment protection sustainability, ensuring the creation of new employment opportunities and raising the safety level of our lives,” said Nikoloz Doborjginidze, General Director, Microsoft Georgia. “Microsoft’s mission and vision is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more, while elaborating on the fourth industrial revolution we’re facing today,
mixing cybernetics, physical and digital spheres- a change we see as extremely rapid, with internet playing a vital role”. To illustrate the paradigm that has changed entirely the modern world, Doborjginidze gave the example of the Fortune 500 member companies, “Where they needed at least 20 years to become worth a million dollars, today, digital start-ups need only two to four years to achieve that, meaning the structure of business has drastically changed as well. In retrospect, where oil companies were among the world’s richest in 2006, ten years later, technology companies have become the key players at the top of the list, marking the start of the technological era,” Doborjginidze said, moving on to describe cloud technology: “Cloud is
a space where all the devices and data centers are connected to each other. Our vision sees mobility and ability to access and be linked to information from anywhere- with more personal computers and an intelligent Cloud technology.” He named Satya Nadella, current Microsoft CEO, as the initiator of the company’s move towards the cloud technology. Microsoft is investing massively in artificial intelligence development, having hired 5000 developers to work on it. Cloud is not a “one size fits all” or “everything or nothing” offer. The Microsoft Georgia representatives believe that technologies can assist us to solve a variety of problems, including Microsoft Azure - an integrated Cloud service which offers global, reliable and safe
hybrid Cloud for businesses of today and of the future. “80% of the Fortune 500 companies are using Microsoft Cloud, as it’s regarded as the best solution for large size companies and smaller startups,” Doborjginidze said. In Georgia, according to Microsoft Georgia representatives, almost 85 companies are using Microsoft Cloud already. The meeting closed with a presentation from financier, Eprem Urumashvili on block chain technologies and the recent private property and business registration project successfully initiated together with the National Agency of Public Registry. “Block Chain is a unique, safe registering system and while registering your business or property within the country
using this technology, the transactions will be listed on a block chain platform, available for you to use everywhere in the world, not just in Georgia,” Urumashvili said, adding that implementing smart contracts are considered the next step for block chain technology in Georgia Highlighted several times during the discussion was that, compared to previous years, Georgia has made considerable progress in technology development, and although the problem of qualified personnel still exists, the change is visible due to a number of state and private initiatives. Additionally, a pilot project for computer programming learning is said to have started in twelve schools in Tbilisi. “We are very actively involved with the Georgian Innovations and Technology Agency, and we’re closely collaborating with them, assisting start-ups with our Cloud technologies, and also offering coaching. In other words, we’re actively supporting start-ups at every stage, from initial idea to helping them export the product they created,” said Ketevan Tatoshvili, Account Executive at Microsoft Georgia. The vast possibilities of Microsoft Cloud usage for information backup was emphasized during the discussion, which then centered on the potential cyber threats Georgia might be facing and preventative measures. Microsoft Georgia says it is cooperating with the Georgian Data Exchange Agency, assisting the Georgian government to be able to address possible cyber threats in a timely manner. Tatoshvili mentioned that the government security program will be expanded in future, with Microsoft’s larger participation in it ensured.
FINCA Bank Celebrates Global Money Week with Children
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lobal Money Week is celebrated in 130 countries around the world every year at the end of March. Global Money Week’s purpose is to inform children and young people about what money is, about the importance of saving, how to become an entrepreneur, and how to develop business skills. This year’s Global Money Week’s message is Learn, Save, Earn. FINCA Bank as an international financial institution is actively involved in the Global Money Week celebration for the third year now. Special brochures and posters were printed and distributed to thousands of children in all the regions
of Georgia. Guided tours around FINCA Bank’s service centers were organized for children, for them to know how the bank works and how financial operations are done. Almost 1,000 children participated in the tours. “It’s important to constantly inform children about the nature of money, so that they know the importance of saving, and to help them learn to save from a very early age. For this, we created an interactive book last year. This year we adapted the book for children with visual impairment. An Audio Book on financial education has been sent to all regions of Georgia,” Mariam Esebua, Head of Mar-
keting Department at FINCA Bank said. A public lecture on the importance of money saving was held for the students of the Youth Palace in Tbilisi, where FINCA Bank employees introduced the history of money, how financial institutions function and talked about the significance of saving. Prizes were given to the winners of an entertaining quiz that was organized during the lecture. FINCA Bank continues different activities to raise awareness in financial education. Fifty FINCA Bank employees are volunteers in the USAID and G-PriEd project, and for the second year already they are organizing lessons on business skills in different schools throughout Georgia.