Ali Amer, former vice-president and general manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Motorola Networks, has been appointed MD for global service provider sales in the Middle East and Africa at Cisco.
According to Cisco, Amer will be responsible for driving sales strategy in the region, as well as streamlining the sales and channel strategy, business development and customer support divisions.
Amer, who describes himself as an accomplished senior executive who can help telecom service providers to maximise profit, innovate and enter new markets, holds a qualification from the London business school and is said to have over 20 years of experience in the industry.
Earlier this year, the company, through its Cisco Visual Networking Index, predicted mobile data traffic from 2016 to 2021 in Middle East and Africa will experience a compound annual growth rate of 65%, indicating the next phase of business will be defined by an explosion in data demand.
This will allow for much expansion that the company is looking to tap into through Amer's appointment.
"He will work closely with the region's mobile operators to develop their digital transformation roadmaps as they evolve their business and revenue models to meet the growing demand for data services and financial and commercial services," Cisco says.
Commenting on his core focus, Amer says the region is ripe for development. "With its significant growth potential, a rapidly expanding population, and increasing smartphone penetration, the telecommunications market in the region is at an important junction.
"Cisco's technology capabilities and strong partnerships will play a pivotal role in enabling SPs to become truly intelligent network operators that are able unlock opportunities, enhance business agility, and drive service innovation and customer-experience enhancement. I am excited to take on this expanded role at such a time."
Speaking on the appointment, Peter Karlstromer, senior vice-president for global service provider sales, Cisco EMEAR, said he is proud to welcome Amer to the team.
"Amer is regarded as a leader known for his close working relationships and deep understanding of the telecoms industry landscape. His expertise and ability to build high-performance teams will undoubtedly accelerate our momentum."
Cisco has further predicted that by 2021, the Middle East and Africa will have 2.4 billion networked devices (up from 1.7 billion in 2016), while 75% of all networked devices will be mobile-connected in 2021.
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