Digital Transformation and IoT Will Drive Investment in IT Operations Management Tools Through 2020

The growth of digital business and the Internet of Things (IoT) is expected to drive large investment in IT operations management (ITOM) through 2020, according to Gartner, Inc. A primary driver for organizations moving to ITOM open-source software (OSS) is lower cost of ownership.

 "While acceptance of OSS ITOM is increasing, traditional closed-source ITOM software still has the biggest budget allocation today. Moreover, complexity and governance issues that face users of OSS ITOM tools cannot be ignored. In fact, these issues open up opportunities for ITOM vendors. Even vendors that are late to market with ITOM functionality can compete in this area," said Laurie Wurster, research director at Gartner.

 Gartner believes many enterprises will turn to managed ITOM or ITOM as a service (ITOMaaS) enabled by open-source technologies and provided by a third party. With OSS, vendors can provide more cost-effective and readily available ITOM functions in a scaled manner through the cloud.

Through 2020, public cloud and managed services are expected to be leveraged more often for ITOM tools, which will drive growth of the subscription business model for both cloud and on-premises ITOM. However, on-premises deployments will still be the most common delivery method. This imposes multiple challenges to incumbent ITOM vendors. First, those vendors that do not offer a cloud delivery model will face continuous cannibalization from ITOM vendors that can deliver ITOM through both cloud and on-premises.

 Second, platform vendors, such as Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services (AWS), are providing some native ITOM functionalities on their public clouds. Customers that are running workloads solely on these platforms may prefer these native features. There are also "hybrid" requirements for ITOM tools that can seamlessly manage both cloud and on-premises environments.

 Future of Cloud Services and OSS for ITOM

 "Customer demand has driven traditional software vendors to transform and adapt to the changing technology and competitive landscapes. Competitive pressure from cloud (SaaS offerings) and commercial OSS (offerings with a free license plus paid support) is forcing ITOM providers to move toward subscription-based business models for both cloud and on-premises deployments," said Matthew Cheung, research director at Gartner. "This shift will eliminate revenue growth spikes as the large upfront investment seen in traditional models is spread out over time in a repeatable revenue stream."

The influx of new, smaller ITOM vendors focused on one or two major tool categories will continue to cause disruption for large traditional suite vendors. Given this situation, traditional vendors will need to react by changing how their products fit together. More importantly, traditional vendors need to change how their solutions are sold as customers exert significant pressure to shift to offering cloud-based services.

Schneider Electric Appoints Meenu Singhal as Head of Industry Business in India

Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management and automation, announced the appointment of Meenu Singhal as the Vice President of its Industry business. In his new role, Meenu will be responsible for accelerating Schneider Electric’s growth of the business with a focus on automation of industries and will drive the push for Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) platform across businesses for building greater efficiencies.

Meenu’s joining comes at an exciting time in industrial automation, with the IIoT offering unprecedented possibilities of building efficiencies across an entire system of an industrial operation. Schneider Electric is at the forefront of this technology wave with its cutting-edge solutions and Innovation at Every Level— which is being delivered through EcoStruxure™, an IoT-enabled, open and interoperable system architecture and platform for plants and machines.

Speaking on the appointment, Anil Chaudhry, Managing Director and Country President, Schneider Electric India, said, “Meenu joins us at a time when businesses are looking at leveraging the Make in India campaign to develop India as a hub of global manufacturing-Meenu’s immense experience will facilitate and front end delivery from our businesses to this critical requirement in the market.”

Meenu Singhal brings with him a rich experience of over 26 years in the field of automation. Following his graduation as an Electrical Engineer he took a post graduate degree in in Marketing Management from IMT, Ghaziabad

Sharing his views on joining the Industry business at Schneider Electric, Meenu said, “I am excited to take over as a leader of Industry and Automation at a time when businesses are looking at leveraging technology to automate and drive serious efficiencies in business. Schneider Electric is uniquely positioned as a global leader in automation industry and our focus as a team is to ensure business continuity and value creation through innovative offerings. I look forward to bringing in my experience on board at Schneider Electric to take the business forward.”

VoxWeb Brings New Visual Designs and Innovative Features on its App

VoxWeb, the social networking app developed around “speaking-pics” or voice-augmented photos, today unveiled new designs and features on its Android and IOS Apps. The most significant of the new features – introduced after heavy user demand – is the “Embed Voxie” option which allows users to embed a voice-augmented photo to their blogs and other websites/webpages.  In addition to this, users can now store the newly created voice-augmented pic to their device without the compulsion of sharing or sending. Users can also create a private Voxie collection by leveraging this feature.

Also, in a major policy shift, VoxWeb disabled the likes and comments count on other users’ content (content creator will continue to have the like and comment counts along with the like list) to remove the ‘performance anxieity’ friction and thus encouraging users to post frequent updates without worrying about the number of likes they get on the post publicly. 

Other new features introduced in the VoxWeb app include doodle drawings and sticker pasting options on pics, pin post to the top of profile page, and two simple and effective privacy settings options. These features will provide users with an elevated photo sharing and social media experience while using the platform.

Speaking about the new app versions the Company said, “These new features in VoxWeb social media platform adds another dimension to a user’s social media experience. We are continuously working to provide our users a unique and rich experience while revolutionizing the digital image-sharing and social media space. VoxWeb is excited to present these refreshing visual designs and new features to internet users.”

The latest features and designs available are:

1.     Embed voxie option: Now users can embed a voice-augmented photo to their blogs or websites

2.     Private voxie collection: Users can transform their album or other photos to voice-augmented photos and  save them on the device, without the need to  post or send those photos. This creates a private rich collection of voice-augmented photos

3.     Doodle: Users can also add stickers and draw doodles on the “speaking-pic” or a voxie created

4.     Pin-to-top: There is an option to pin a social media post at the top of their social media page

5.     Innovative approach to privacy settings: With a combination of merely 2 options, users can effectively enable the desired level of privacy and everything remains in sync with the fundamental nature of a “follower-following” network

6.     “Following” list: VoxWeb has disabled the option to see a user’s “Following” list to encourage following within the network

7.     Changes to update  likes and comments on the app: The platform will not display the number of likes and comments anymore (though comments to any post will always remain visible). This ensures that sure users don’t have any ‘performance anxiety’ while creating a post that is a big friction on various one-to-many communication platforms.

Conference on Integrative Ayurveda and Allopathy to Begin in Kochi, India on August 6

India’s biggest conference on integrative Ayurveda and modern medicine, with 60 experts and 1,000 delegates from around the world participating, is set to begin at Kochi’s Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences on August 6, 2017. The two-day event, titled Amrita Samyogam 2017, is being held in collaboration with Amrita University’s School of Ayurveda. It will be inaugurated by the Union Minister of State for AYUSH, Shripad Yasso Naik.

The Conference will bring together allopathic doctors, Ayurveda practitioners and modern scientists on a common platform. It will identify strategies for integrating Ayurveda with Allopathy in the management of cancer, auto-immune diseases like arthritis, diabetes, neuro-degenerative diseases, and mental health. The event will demonstrate how integrative medicine can be made a reality through examples of clinical integration, basic science studies, and application of new technologies.

Said Prof. Shantikumar Nair, Director, Centre for Nanosciences & Molecular Medicine, Amrita University: “Integrating India’s ancient tradition of Ayurveda with evidence-based modern medicine has the potential to revolutionize world healthcare. Integrative medicine is becoming a popular specialty among physicians in Western countries because of the myriad ways in which it can benefit patients. It focuses on healing the person in entirety rather than merely treating the symptoms by investigating the root cause of illness. It is much more patient-centric and can positively impact chronic and lifestyle diseases for which modern medicine has no answer. Western medicine and Indian ancient healing sciences can be a win-win combination to effectively tackle the enormous healthcare challenges facing humanity.”

The Conference will focus on evidence-based practice guidelines for cross-referrals and combination therapy, understanding the biological mechanisms underlying integrative care, and integration of modern technological tools in Ayurvedic diagnostics, treatment procedures and drug delivery.

Amrita Samyogam 2017 is expected to trigger important collaborations across the world in the field of integrative medicine, especially academic collaborations and funding opportunities. An International Journal of Integrative Health will be launched at the event and a Society for Integrative Health will be established to promote the development of Integrative Medicine in India.

Eminent medical experts attending the Conference include: Dr. Jeffrey White, Director of National Cancer Institute, USA; Dr. Daniel Furst, Rheumatologist at University of California; Dr. Nereo Bresolin, Neurologist, University of Milan; Dr. Christian Kessler, Internal Medicine Specialist, Charite Medical University, Germany; Dr. Valdis Pirags, Diabetologist, University of Latvia; Dr. Maryam Matar, Genetics Specialist, UAE; Dr. Ravi Mehrotra, Director, National Institute for Cancer Prevention and Research, Noida, Dr. B.N. Gangadhar, Director, NIMHANS, Bengaluru; Dr. Rama Jayasundar, Professor, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi,Dr. Ketaki Bapat, Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, and many others.

Bollywood Actress Neha Sharma Inaugurates New Branch of the Advanced Beauty & Cosmetic Clinic in RR Nagar, Bangalore

ABC Clinic, the fastest growing cosmetic clinic chain and a premium destination for advanced beauty and cosmetic treatments for both men and women, today launched its new outlet in Rajarajeshwari Nagar, Bangalore, inaugurated by Bollywood Actress Neha Sharma.

Committed to providing an aesthetic makeover, the opening of the new outlet marks the launch of the 14^th outlet in the country, and is in line with ABC Clinic’s overall target of unveiling 25 clinics in the next 15-18 months with further expansion plans in India and Middle East, making it one of the fastest growing cosmetic clinic chains in the country.

Spread across 2000 sq.ft., the new clinic offers an entire gamut of advanced services in hair, skin and cosmetic treatments using latest technologies and innovations, under the three service brands- Advanced Grohair, Maya Skin and Minus Cosmetic and within the expertise of trained surgeons and the state-of-the-art infrastructure.

Looking radiant and beautiful as always, Actress Neha Sharma inaugurated the new clinic and also present at the event was Thirumal Raj, Founder & CEO, Advance Beauty & Cosmetic Clinic.

Advance Beauty & Cosmetic Clinic is located at (Bangalore Address)

RR Nagar - #149, 9^th Main Road, BEML, 3^rd stage, RR Nagar, Bengaluru 560098.

HSR Layout – 2607, 2^nd floor 27^th main, Sector 1HSR Layout Bangalore Landmark – Opposite to NIFT

Indira Nagar – 3R Plaza, 2^nd floor, No4, 100 feet road, HAL 2^nd Stage Indira Nagar – Opposite Airtel office

Jaya Nagar – Krishna Buildin, 664, 11^th C Main, Ground Floor, 5^th Block Jaya nagar

SIS India IPO Opens from July 31 to Aug 2, Price Band Fixed at Rs 815

The Security and Intelligence Services (India) Limited (SIS) is estimated to raise  Rs 778 crore through its initial public offer or IPO.

The company's IPO will open for subscription on July 31, 2017 and close on August 2, 2017. The price band for the IPO is set at Rs 805 to Rs 815 and the market lot is of 18 shares and in multiples of 18 thereafter.

The initial offer would comprise fresh issue of Rs 362.25 crore and an offer for sale of Rs 415 crore.

The net proceeds from fresh issue will be utilized for repayment and pre-payment of a portion of certain outstanding indebtedness, funding working capital requirements and for general corporate purposes.

Axis Capital, ICICI Securities , IIFL Holdings and Kotak Mahindra Capital Company are the global coordinators and book running lead managers.

SBI Capital Markets, Yes Securities (India) and IDBI Capital Markets & Securities are the book-running lead managers.

South Africa to Target Bangaloreans with Tailor-Made Holiday Packages

South African Tourism concluded the 7th edition of its annual travel trade training sessions in Bangalore today. Aimed at equipping travel agents with the best tips to sell the destination, ‘Learn South Africa’ (Learn SA) is a 17-city training programme which covered urban metros and tier II & III markets.

The sessions were structured to ensure that travelers enjoy many new, exciting, tailor-made itinerary options as a direct result. “Learn SA helps ensure that Indian travel agents know how to choose the best quality hotels for their customer’s budget and needs. It also teaches them how to choose the best in-destination partners to escort the traveler while on holiday. It also gives them updates about new things to see and do in South Africa and basics like visa and logistical know-how to ensure that travelers are catered to efficiently,” said Hanneli Slabber, Country Manager India, South African Tourism.

"TAAI's endeavor through training programs is to educate travel agents so that it is easy for the staff of travel companies to effectively sell the product. With South African Tourism this is the second time that we have undertaken this training. We are happy that the trade is getting exclusive marketing tips from the SAT team and stakeholders from SA who have come to India," declared Bettaiah Lokesh, Hon. Secretary General, TAAI.

The preference for holidays in South Africa has been on a rise amongst Indian travelers over the past few years and is expected to continue in 2017. “2016 was a milestone year for us at South African Tourism in India and we are determined to set new benchmarks for the industry as well as ourselves by making 2017 bigger and better. Our internal target is to welcome more than 100,000 Indian visitors in 2017 and we couldn’t be more thrilled to work towards and achieve this target,” added Hanneli Slabber.

Indian leisure visitor numbers to South Africa surged 21.7% during 2016 to close at an arrivals figure of 95,377 and 8^th position among South Africa’s international source markets. This is vis-à-vis 78,385 arrivals in 2015. 2016 also saw the overall spends from India (only in-country on-tour spends excluding flights and attractions, hotels booked in advance) crossed an astounding 1.2 billion ZAR by the year end. All these statistics indicate that Indian travelers are already showing excitement about destination South Africa.

Bangalore has been one of the most rapidly growing source markets driving tourist traffic to South Africa. South Africa is keen to keep attracting Bangalore’s travel enthusiasts and potential is brimming. The city boasts of 7700 millionaires, 8 billionaires and holds a total wealth of $320 billion according to the 2017

New World Wealth Report. South Africa is the perfect destination for the well-travelled Bangalorean with its variety of distinctive attractions, unforgettable experiences, world-class facilities and excellent infrastructure. It attracts both luxury as well as budget travelers. One of Learn SA 2017’s focus areas was to train travel agents about new destinations such Oudtshoorn, Knysna, Plettenberg Bay, Port Elizabeth and the Drakensberg region beyond the immensely popular Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg & surrounds and Kruger National Park. These are picturesque areas where travelers can pack in a lot of action into shorter time-spans.

The demand for experiential travel from the Bangalore market has been steadily increasing i.e. there is a shift from ‘seeing’ to ‘experiencing’. South Africa is a perfect destination for such an audience as it has a wide range of activities to offer in close proximity. It is here that travelers can enjoy an action-packed itinerary without having to look too far. There are a range of experiences for every category of traveller to indulge in.

Learn SA 2017 had numerous participating South African product suppliers resulting in more choices for the end consumer / traveler. These included inbound tour operators and destination management companies like Africa Incoming, Trav Care, Tourvest Destination Management, Centurion Travel and Tours and Southern Africa 360; hotel chains such as Tsogo Sun, Extraordinary and Sun International and African air carrier RwandAir which is introducing exciting fares and deals to India.

Over 70 international airlines now fly into South Africa. Efforts are on to increase seat capacity on relevant flight routes ex-Bangalore. Presently, Bangalore is connected to South African cities by Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines and Etihad Airways which fly via their respective hubs and domestic India connections. Travelers have a variety of airlines, connections and consequently, multiple fare options to choose from. The Rand (ZAR)-Rupee exchange rate has been relatively favorable for the India market. Since the South Africa product quote comes in ZAR and not US dollars, Indian travelers are able to buy more experiences and activities for less money thus, making South Africa a value-for-money destination.