Digitalization is a great challenge

Digitalization is a great challenge

Cloud story is not everything or nothing, and there are no rules that can apply to all businesses, said in the interview for ICTbusiness.biz Mario Vojvoda member of the Board of Combis, one of the biggest Croatian system integrators owned by Hrvatski Telekom.

One of the main topics on Combis Conference, at October 13th and 14th in Umag Croatia, will be digitalization. According to Vojvoda other topics will be Cloud, Big Data, IoT and security solutions in detail.

What solutions do customers want for from IT companies?

From our solutions, most requested are Cloud, Big Data, and security solutions, as well as services from the maintenance portfolio that are related to business transformation.

Companies are more focused on digitalization of their business processes, and the most common challenges they face on that path are large amounts of documents, maintenance of a significant number of printing devices, planning, and reports, as well as other complex processes that require a lot of time and effort. Moreover, there are demands for energy consumption management in the production process, for innovative sales channels, and tracking of sales opportunities. Digitalization is a great challenge, but it is also an excellent opportunity for companies

Cloud - public or private?

Cloud story is not everything or nothing, and there are no rules that can apply to all businesses. For companies, hybrid cloud is an ideal solution - a possibility of combining their own infrastructure and services with those in Cloud, in a way to make Cloud a kind of data center extension. And then, they can move other services to Cloud, one service at a time, depending on their business profitability.

Moreover, all available researches confirm that companies are prone to Hybrid Cloud architecture, i.e. combining services in Cloud with their own infrastructure. It is important to mention the importance of long-term Cloud strategy, because, without it, Cloud does not make sense. Creating a strategy is a demanding job, but COMBIS experts can help customers with the strategy and solution selection, as well as with transition to Cloud services. This is a standard part of our Cloud offer.

What is Husky and why use it?

I would say that Big Data analytics is a buzzword that often resonates, but many do not know a lot about it or the ways it can help them in their business by creating new business opportunities. And there is a large amount of those opportunities. Husky is COMBIS’s Big Data platform, an advanced solution for data that offers many possibilities such as heat maps, dashboards, and reports on a daily or a monthly basis. Husky provides insight into behavior patterns of potential customers or users and creates potential for competitive business in a number of economic sectors.

It can be applied in numerous industries, from telecommunication, retail, tourism, production, finance, traffic, public transport, government and many other different sectors. I would like to emphasize that this solution is extremely modular and can be tailored to the specific requirements of all mentioned industries. At the same time, it ensures compatibility with EU legislation for consumer rights and privacy protection, which is a big advantage in comparison to other Big Data options. The first Husky platform was implemented in Hrvatski Telekom, and on this year’s COMBIS Conference you will have the opportunity to see its application in financial industry.

IoT - the past, the present, and the future?

Time for IoT technology is yet to come because it offers numerous possibilities such as product and services quality tracking, an increase of effectiveness and lowering costs. Of course, along with all benefits, it brings to life quality.

If we talk about COMBIS and IoT, I would emphasize iFlight, which originated from our Neostartup program, and which is related to fatigue control of pilots and aircrew. At the same time, iFlight is an example of top technology and innovation in the aviation industry. We have also developed SmartMetering solution, a tool for digital transformation in the field of energy efficiency in manufacturing, a kind of business intelligence system for energy source management in manufacturing. We are very interested in IoT, so we work a lot on new vertical solutions that can help in resolving specific problems in different industries.