Zoho ICT firm opens a branch in South Africa. Zoho ICT, a multinational technology company is headquartered in Chennai, India.
Zoho ICT firm opens a branch in South Africa with the same goal of developing internet-based business tools in South Africa.
The Zoho firm in Cape Town, South Africa, is the company’s flagship in Africa, according to a recent revelation made during the company’s annual user conference, Zoholics.
The firm which made its footprints in South Africa in 2019 when it organized its first Zoholics conference, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
The Zoho office in Cape Town has a lot in store for South Africans with a well-equipped training facility office that can accommodate up to 40 students per course. Zoho offers an upskilling program in collaboration with the University of Cape Town Developer Society. This program provides students with the opportunity to obtain certifications in Zoho Apps such as Zoho CRM, customer relationship management software, and Zoho Creator, a low-code development platform.
“Zoho strongly believes in its growth being closely tied with the growth and development of the broader community that it serves; a strategy that we refer to as ‘transnational localism’. As part of this vision, we’re focused on contributing to the creation of self-sufficient economic clusters across the world,” says Hyther Nizam, Zoho president for the Middle East and Africa (MEA).
“Our new Cape Town office adds to this effort and will help us effectively scale our ongoing initiatives in South Africa, such as local hiring and upskilling, and also being closer to our customers. We build from experience and having already conducted successful skill-building programs in other countries like India and UAE, we’re looking forward to growing these initiatives in South Africa, especially because there is tremendous youth potential here” he said.
In an email chat with IT Web, Ali Shabdar, Zoho’s regional director for MEA, discussed the company’s growth, focus, and strategy.
“Currently, our Cape Town office can accommodate around 30 employees and has a training facility for up to 40 people. As we grow, we may expand to other parts of the country.
“We see a tremendous demand from the SME sector, where businesses don’t have the baggage of legacy systems, are quick to adopt new technologies, and understand the importance of digital transformation.”
“We chose Cape Town as the first office in the country as it is becoming a tech hub. We hope to expand to other cities such as Johannesburg and Durban in the future, depending on the growth in these areas,” said Andrew Bourne, regional manager for Africa at Zoho.
According to Shabdar, the company is seeing demand from upmarket customers who recognize the need for cloud solutions that can provide them with a competitive advantage as well as the ability and flexibility to capitalize on market trends quickly.
As part of this pledge, Zoho plans to hire more indigenous talent, incorporate local culture into its business strategy, build alliances, support regional economic development projects, and invest in local businesses.
According to reports, the company’s revenue increased by more than 50% in 2020.
“Currently, we are focused on South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, and Egypt. However, we are working on expanding to the rest of Africa by hiring locally and expanding our partner network, among other initiatives,” Shabdar says.
“We expect substantial growth across the continent as we see tremendous opportunities for digital transformation.
