Russia: SAP obtained pass to work with government secrets

SAP NetWeaver became the first foreign ERP-system, certified by the Defense Ministry to work with secret government information. Admission to data labeled "Secret" will become, for SAP, a pass to a segment of power structures, and, similarly, a pass to a wide range of government customers.

SAP NetWeaver 2004 Application Server received certification from Russia's Defense Ministry for fulfilling the security requirements that were necessary to work with secret information. Alexander Federov, director of SAP CIS product development, explained to CNews that it took eight months for the product to be certified. Taking into account the complexity of the product, the Ministry of Defense held additional certification tests, and personally supervised the steps taken by the Certification Body to certify SAP.

Fedorov went on to explain that obtaining this certification is the first step for SAP entry to the military-industrial complex. According to Fedorov, by receiving this certification, SAP can now be seriously considered as a technological platform for the creation of the enterprise management systems.

The Ministry of Defense was, of course, the biggest, potential customer for SAP. With such a large infrastructure, which contains hundreds and thousands of enterprises, it is no surprise that the Ministry of Defense needs a unified management system for the maintenance of business activities to be built. After receiving this certification, the Ministry of Defense can now truly consider SAP as a potential ERP supplier.

SAP NetWeaver 2004 Application Server is now able to design automated systems up to the "1B" (security) level, and can process information containing government secrets. According to SAP, the company's next step will be to get certification from the Ministry of Defense for its other products.

Market experts, as a whole, have a positive opinion about the certification of SAP. According to Vladislav Kochetkova, a "Finam" analyst, fulfilling security requirements to process secret information indicates that national security is not threatened by the use of SAP; world leaders can now improve the quality of governance in Russian power structures to effectively meet objectives and reduce costs. "SAP's ability to work with undisclosed information gives them the opportunity to work with security agencies, and gives them access to a wide range of government bodies, each of which, in varying degrees, works with classified data," says Kochetkova in an interview with CNews.

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Russia to Enter Informational Society

At one of the latest State Council sessions Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said that in 2007 Russia was among global top three custom software development locations (after India and China) in terms of deals value. He also noted that the infrastructural progress observed now paves the way for a transition to informational society.

In his turn Minister of Communications Igor Shchegolev suggested introducing tax concessions for local providers of software development services. He emphasized that some measures had already been taken but appeared to be not as effective as desired. According to Mr.Shchegolev, tax remissions will help lots of companies, especially small firms, make a step to the forefront and find their place at the market. He also added that at present national ICT industry still depends on foreign suppliers.

Moreover, Russian President suggested discharging those officials who are computer illiterate, launching internet educational centers, compensating students’ internet expenses, and introducing electronic copies of school record books and registers.

Source: CitCity

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Eastern Europe Came to Stay

In 2007, Europe saw a considerable increase in their outsourcing activities. Of about $12 billion in mega deals awarded globally in 2007, over two third (68 percent) were closed in Europe. The demand for offshoring among Western European countries rose by 50 percent from 2004 to 2006, with Eastern Europe being a favorite destination. McKinsey estimates that offshoring operations in Eastern Europe could triple, to more than 130,000 jobs, from 2005 to the end of 2008. Dell, IBM and Morgan Stanley in recent times have outsourced their operations to Eastern Europe. At present, Eastern Europe’s outsourcing business is approximately $2 billion, which is still not a big fraction of about $386 billion global market. However, according to Gartner Dataquest, the growth in Eastern Europe would exceed growth in the rest of the market over the next four years; the outsourcing business is expected to expand by nearly 30 percent in Eastern Europe by 2010, as compared to 25 percent for the global market. Eastern Europe’s software industry grew by 12.53 percent in 2006, and is expected to grow at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.87 percent until 2008.

Many CEE countries have already come up as compelling alternatives to traditionally established destinations for offshore software outsourcing. Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic have shown bright prospects in the IT outsourcing market segment, newer destinations in CEE, including Romania and Bulgaria, are upcoming too.

It is forecast that 2008 will be the biggest year for the expansion of IT-service delivery and outsourcing capabilities beyond India. This has already helped to open new markets in regions like CEE, which can offer long-term benefits to its clients. According to A.T. Kearney’s Global Services Location Index study, CEE countries continue to be popular among European companies that are seeking alternative locations for their IT and business-process outsourcing services. And it’s no wonder as this region offers an educated, multilingual labor force, talented professionals who are trained in key technologies, reliable IT infrastructure, moderate to low cost of labor and access to the greater EU. Its secondary educational system and technology-oriented higher education has made it a strong contender for software development, R&D and engineering services.

Source: Global Services magazine

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Security Essential in IT Outsourcing

Many companies ignore the security problems associated with IT outsourcing until it is too late, it has been claimed.

According to the Information Security Forum (ISF), IT outsourcing and offshoring are attractive because of their potential to cut costs and increase speed to market.

Simone Seth, author of a new report published by the group, said the long term success of the outsourcing project can be damaged by a lack of security expertise or poorly identified information risk.

"Failure to involve information risk managers at the start of a project and through its lifecycle increases the enterprise's exposure to risk," she continued, adding that this could constitute data theft, information leakage or disputes that may arise from questions of ownership of intellectual property.

Earlier this week, the Irish Sunday Business Post reported comments made by the PFH Technology Group, which claimed businesses of all sizes are now choosing to outsource their IT operations and requiring different approaches from their service providers.

Source:ihotdesk

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EPAM Chairman and CEO Arkadiy Dobkin named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2008 award winner in New Jersey

Arkadiy Dobkin, EPAM Founder, Chairman and CEO, was named winner of the Entrepreneur Of The Year®2008 award in New Jersey, Information Technology Consulting category, organized by Ernst & Young, a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services.

According to Ernst & Young, the awards are given to entrepreneurs who demonstrate extraordinary success in the areas of innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. The awards nominees were evaluated by independent regional panels of judges who assessed contenders for each designated category by the following criteria: vision, leadership, achievement, and social responsibility reflected in the revenue growth, innovation, risk-taking, and personal commitment to the business and the community.

"Ernst & Young is pleased to honor outstanding business leaders such as Arkadiy Dobkin," said Keith Brownlie, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Program Director for New Jersey. "Winners of the Entrepreneur of The Year award build leading businesses and contribute a great deal to the communities around them. Their success helps our area grow stronger."

"I would like to thank EPAM co-founders, veterans, and all employees for their hard work and commitment to our common goal. This success can be attributed literally to everybody in the company, in North America and Europe, and I am happy and proud to be a part of this innovative and dedicated team," noted Arkadiy Dobkin, EPAM Chairman and CEO.

As a New Jersey award winner, Arkadiy Dobkin is now eligible for consideration for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year 2008 national program. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the overall national Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California on November 15, 2008. The awards are the culminating event of the Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Forum, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies.

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