Muggie van Staden, CEO of Obsidian Systems.
Obsidian Systems has achieved Red Hat Specialized Partner status for Server/Cloud OS, becoming the only partner in Africa to hold this specialisation to date.
The designation reflects advanced technical expertise around Red Hat Enterprise Linux, supported by formal Red Hat training and certification together with validated services capability. It follows a deliberate investment by Obsidian to keep its team’s knowledge aligned with the way enterprise infrastructure is changing.
Server operating systems still provide the foundation for critical business workloads, although the environments around them have become far more complex. Organisations expect consistent performance and control as applications move between their own infrastructure and cloud environments. New AI workloads are placing further demands on the operating foundation, while security and automation are changing how systems are deployed and managed.
For Obsidian, those shifts meant experience had to be backed by current, tested skills.
“Our relationship with Red Hat goes back many years, and we know that history alone does not prepare a team for what customers need now,” says Muggie van Staden, CEO of Obsidian Systems. “The infrastructure our customers run today looks very different from the environment of even a few years ago. We made a conscious decision to invest in the training and certifications that would keep our people close to the technology and ready to solve the problems customers are bringing to us.”
The Server/Cloud OS specialisation applies to Red Hat Enterprise Linux and forms part of the Red Hat Specialized Partner Program. The programme recognises partners that have developed deeper capability in defined areas of the Red Hat portfolio.
For customers, the value lies in access to locally based expertise that has been tested against current Red Hat requirements. Obsidian can help organisations understand their existing operating environments, decide how Red Hat Enterprise Linux should fit into a changing infrastructure estate and support the platform throughout its life cycle.
The recognition complements Obsidian’s Mission Critical Automation specialisation, achieved earlier in 2026. Together, the two areas connect the operating system foundation with the automation required to manage enterprise environments consistently.
“We see certification as evidence that our people have put in the work. It should be visible in the quality of the advice customers receive and in how well their systems are implemented and supported. Being the only Red Hat partner in Africa with this specialisation is something we are proud of. The real test is how customers experience that capability,” adds Van Staden.
Obsidian has worked with Red Hat technologies for more than two decades and continues to develop its services across enterprise Linux and hybrid infrastructure, supported by automation and managed operations.
The new specialisation places the company at the forefront of Red Hat skills development in Africa and reinforces its ability to support organisations as their infrastructure requirements continue to change.
