ENTERPRISE NEWS
Cisco challenges IT talent shortage
Hospitality
highly-skilled workforce.
EUROPE
As Thierry Drilhon, Cisco VP Worldwide
partners expand
CISCO’s Partner Summit was a chance for the Channels, European markets points out, voice is
SWITZERLAND
TURKEY
vendor to confirm its commitment to address definitely the most sought-after skill, although
the global IT skills shortage through a number of there is a very high demand for any kind of IT IDeaS Revenue Optimization, US-based specialist
initiatives. specialization, in the fields of engineering and sales. provider of hospitality revenue management
Indeed, after the success of Cisco eighteen This doesn’t come as a surprise, if, as the and optimisation solutions has appointed new
month-old Networking Academy, which boasts company claims, 42% of students are not enrolling partners Protel in Turkey, and RM Solutions in
2.5m students worldwide and registered a very in IT. According to Cisco’s figures, at a European Switzerland. They will be responsible for providing
high response across Europe, it also connected the level, France seems to be particularly needy, given integration and ongoing service that will assist in
partner talent portal to Cisco website, enabling that it reported a 40% IT talent shortage over the the deployment of IDeaS solutions.
partners to look for suitable candidates while last year. IDeaS’ goal is to work hand-in-hand with
allowing graduates to become more visible to This is why the company has set up a Partner clients to identify strategically important, complex
potential employers. Talent Network, due to launch in Q2 ’08, a web business problems and then develop unique
According to Celia Harper-Guerra, Cisco platform using social networking and interactive revenue management and optimization strategies.
director of Worldwide Partner Talent, attracting video to foster better communication between Less than 10% of Europe’s hotels use revenue
and retaining IT talent is one of the biggest issues employer and candidate. management systems, it tells IT Europa.
that companies across the globe have to come to The new platform will replace Cisco’s existing “Our distribution and integration partners
terms with. Partner Talent Portal, providing targeted candidate are essential to IDeaS business worldwide,”
“As I meet and talk with partners around the matching, interactive talent maps and personal commented Fabian Specht, Director of IDeaS in
world, they consistently tell me, regardless of the branding capabilities, along with career-exploration the EMEA region.
location, that their top growth issue is attracting, tools available to students and graduates Existing IDeaS partners include: Athena
developing and retaining talent,” she declares. worldwide. Solutions (Italy), Sunsoft (Greece and Cyprus) and
A view shared by Keith Goodwin, Cisco VP The company has also launched recruitment KL Consulting (BeNeLux). The partner model is
Worldwide Channels: “When I ask to our partners service solutions as well as the professional career based on software-as-a-service, so resellers also
across the globe what we can do to help their accelerator, a partner-development programme benefit from maintenance and other fees.
business grow, I always receive the same answer: which provides critical on-the-job training. The new partners are quite experienced
talent.” “We work closely with recruitment agencies,” in the marketplace: Protel was established in
With a shortage of around 700.000 IT Drilhon explains. 1989 and has been providing IT solutions to all
professionals, Europe is no better place to recruit
www.cisco.com segments of the hospitality industry including
hotels and restaurants. Its global objective of
RIm invests in R&D in Germany
raising the standards of the Turkish tourism
sector to international levels entails working with ENFO and Tekes have struck a new cooperation
its customers to persuade them to implement deal to develop better technology solutions for
GERmANY
development for the BlackBerry wireless solution long-term technology solutions that embrace Tekes. Under the five-year agreement Finnish
and represent an investment of $45m (€28.9m) in the principle of “better management for more service provider Enfo will provide Tekes, the Finnish
the first year. customers”; provide its customers with 24x7 after Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation an
“RIM’s decision underlines the quality of sales support; and last but not least invest in innovation and development centre, all its basic IT
universities and scientific institutes in this region. people as well as in technology. technology requirements.
The area is an innovation powerhouse with a global Almost 300 hotels with more than 65,000 Enfo is an IT service company operating in
reputation and we are delighted RIM has selected rooms are currently using Fidelio solutions for Finland, Sweden and Russia. The 700-strong firm
Bochum as the home of its new R&D facility,” says serving the Turkish hospitality market. In addition provides outsourcing, infrastructure solutions,
North Rhine-Westphalia’s Minister of Economics, to a wide array of Micros-Fidelio solutions, PROTEL integration and communication solutions. The
Christa Thoben (right in picture). Thorsten Heins provides complementary technology solutions company also offers information migration
(left), Senior Vice President Handheld Business at such as automatic minibar systems, high- services. Tekes is a Finnish financer of industrial,
Research In Motion says “Consistent with RIM’s speed Internet solutions and communication university and research institute R&D projects. The
RESEARCH In Motion (RIM), manufacturer of the global strategy, we will be working in close co- and messaging tools that aim to enhance the agency company has 360 members of staff and
BlackBerry solution, is opening a Research and operation with the surrounding Universities and operational efficiency of hotels. Harri Eskola says that Tekes has one of the most
Development facility in Bochum, in the North Institutes in the North Rhine-Westphalia region.” RM Solutions. is a fast-growing hotel exciting cutting edge IT environments in Finland.
Rhine-Westphalia region of Germany.
www.rim.com consultancy firm based in Switzerland. RM He says: “Our modern IT facilities offer Enfo both a
Consistent with RIM’s global strategy, the challenge and an opportunity.”
OUR ANALYSIS
Solutions specialises in yield management systems
facility will be working in close co-operation with and processes, pricing, electronic distribution, Commenting on the deal Tekes’ Chief
surrounding Universities and Institutes. The facility We chose to highlight this because of all the business intelligence, e-marketing and strategic Information Officer, Harri Eskola (right), tells IT
will open this summer with 140 new employees, other news about business investment in R&D in sales support. Europa: “We are delegating the responsibility of
with plans for future growth of up to 500 people. emerging regions. There are still very good reasons
www.ideas.com www.protel.com.tr our basic technology requirements to Enfo while
It will focus on hardware and software to invest where skills and education are strong.
www.rmsolutions.ch we focus on innovation and development.”
4 02 mAY 2008
It0808 - 4-7_enterprise_news.ind4 4 2008-04-30 12:22
NETHERLANDS
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