Cisco transforms from networking giant to collaboration leader
According to Zureiki, Cisco’s long-standing commitment to innovation in the collaboration space has been a core component of their strategy for over a decade.
"Every year, we try to innovate in the collaboration space. Collaboration has always been the core of Cisco's strategic direction in the market, and we are investing heavily," he said.
He highlighted the company's major investment over the past four years on acquisitions and technology development, particularly focusing on their Webex platform to ensure a seamless end-user experience.
Cisco launched a $1bn fund dedicated to AI-focused startups, led by the Cisco Investments venture investment arm, at its annual Cisco Live event last month.
That investment pales in comparison to the money competitors are spending to usurp Cisco in its core industry, but Zureiki isn’t too worried about this and is quick to switch focus on the company’s AI gains.
"AI plays a crucial role in reimagining the workspace," he noted.
He explained that AI is embedded across various touchpoints within Cisco's collaboration technology, enhancing user experience whether in a remote or hybrid work environment.
"Our goal is to create a consistent and inclusive experience for the end-user across different locations and workspaces," he added.
Pivot to IoT
Conwell Less, product sales specialist and Zureiki’s man on the ground in SA, expanded on Cisco's shift towards IoT, noting that their products now include IoT sensors to enhance various aspects of business operations.
"We are really building bridges between our technology and the ecosystem out there," he explains.
Less mentioned how IoT sensors in Cisco products empower businesses by providing valuable data for workspace management, employee well-being, and IT efficiency.
"A lot of computing is moving to the edge of the network, and we have been building out this space for the last decade," Zureiki interjected, explaining that Cisco's strength lies in integrating security with their networking solutions to protect remote workers and their data.
"We integrate our security stack into our networking to secure the user while using the collaboration platform," he stated.
Seamless experience
Cisco chiefly operates at an enterprise level, engaging with CIOs, but Zureiki says that the importance of a seamless end-user experience is a consistent theme in the company’s strategy.
"From one application (Webex), you do everything: connect, message, share a file, and more," he says, shedding light on the focus on integrating various business tools into one unified platform.
Our app integrates with over a thousand ecosystem partners to streamline workflowLooking ahead, Cisco remains committed to expanding its AI capabilities along with platform and IoT integration."The main ship is cruising towards cloud; this is our direction, and we keep investing," said Zureiki.
Despite the challenges posed by data sovereignty regulations, Cisco is prepared to meet customer needs with flexible solutions, whether on-premises or in the cloud, and maintain its leadership position in enterprise ICT.
