Focus and consolidation will be key to the IT industry pulling through the economic downturn. This is the message that emerged at the opening sessions of the Gartner Symposium/ITXpo Africa 2002, which got under way in Sandton this morning.
Gartner Africa MD Rene Jacobs said in her opening address that 2002 was proving to be another tough economic year and businesses had to regroup to survive. "It will be very important to manage costs aggressively, make small but significant investments in future growth and focus on clients` strategic values to meet market needs," she said.
Echoing this sentiment were the guests in the opening panel discussion, Microsoft South Africa MD Gordon Frazer and HP South Africa country GM Henry Ferreira. Frazer said companies were no longer buying technology for the sake of having new technology, but were taking a closer look at total cost of ownership, business needs and return on investment before buying technology. Ferreira pointed out that while this was a more sensible approach, it meant the IT vendor needed to be more sensitive to customer needs.
Frazer and Ferreira said IT companies were increasingly having to focus on their core competencies or consolidate in order to survive. "Consolidation is becoming inevitable," said Ferreira. In HP`s case, the Compaq merger was proceeding smoothly with most of the integration complete.
Frazer said Microsoft was electing to build strong partnerships and renew its focus on core competencies.
Both panellists said they did not envisage a significant market upturn before next year, with the rand-dollar exchange rate posing additional challenges for local business.
The panellists emphasised the importance of investing in skills development in SA. Frazer said: "We believe it is essential to help ensure ongoing and sustainable development in SA. SA has enormous potential and, if we can bring everyone into the 'net`, this country will become a powerhouse. Unfortunately, problems such as the skills shortage cannot be solved overnight. Government and the IT industry are putting a great deal of resources into development, but as long as there are still challenges within the basic school structure, this will take time."
The symposium, which has attracted over 1 000 delegates, runs until Wednesday.
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