OPTUS BUSINESS UNVEILS AN INTEGRATED ICT STRUCTURE TO SHAKE UP THE MARKET

Networking, managed services, mobility, applications and cloud under one roof

• Optus Business integrates Alphawest’s strengths to become an ICT powerhouse for Australian businesses and government.
• Establishment of six Centres of Excellence in: business application services, cloud, collaboration, contact centres, bring-your-own-device (BYOD) and machine-to-machine (M2M).
• Launch of new business applications services for Optus Business customers as NCS joins with Optus Business in Australia.
   

Optus Business today announced a new structure, that combines its strengths in telecommunications and IT services with the integration of Alphawest, and leverages the deep expertise and experience in application development and consulting of Singtel subsidiary NCS.

The integration of its IT services arm Alphawest into Optus Business creates a single ICT organisation that is designed to serve the end-to-end needs of the Australian business and government market. In the new structure, Optus Business will align with NCS in Australia with a specific focus on delivering business application services for its customers.

John Paitaridis, Managing Director, Optus Business said “The integration of Optus Business and Alphawest, and the alignment of NCS in Australia, brings together the strength of our telecommunications and ICT capabilities under one roof.

“When combined with the leadership and scale of SingTel Group Enterprise, our customers can leverage leading regional solutions, managed services and the Group’s global network reach for a more seamless ICT experience across the Asia Pacific region.

“We now serve the needs of more than 3,000 business and government customers across the country, from medium-sized businesses such as Suretek, right through to some of the largest enterprises such as Toll and government organisations including the Australian Tax Office. Together, as Optus Business, we are bringing all of our expertise, capabilities and solutions to the table in order to meet our customers’ unique needs,” Mr Paitaridis added.

An integrated ICT provider – providing a one stop shop

An integrated Optus Business will offer customers a ‘one stop’ ICT experience: from fixed and mobile connectivity, right through to a comprehensive suite of network-centric ICT solutions and managed services.

With Alphawest now forming part of Optus Business, customers will benefit from the strength of Alphawest’s heritage in working with leading technology partners to design, deploy and manage ICT solutions. The appointment of Ian Smith, former Chief Executive Officer of Alphawest, to the role of Vice President – ICT Solutions of Optus Business, will ensure that Alphawest’s expertise and strong track record in managed services will be maintained.

Under the new structure, Optus Business will also have a stronger focus in meeting the needs of medium-sized businesses – one of the fastest growing segments in the market – by extending its existing capability in serving large multinationals with complex and sophisticated integration requirements through to the mid-market.

“It is clear that our customers on both ends of the scale want a more integrated solution. They want a partner that can bridge the divide between the networks that enable the connectivity and the seamless ICT experience and applications which take advantage of the networks.

“Our strategic partnerships with some of the industry’s leading technology companies, such as Microsoft and Cisco, enable us to deliver high quality end-to-end solutions as well as the technology choice and flexibility that our customers want,” Mr Paitaridis explained.

Developing leadership through Centres of Excellence

As part of the new organisation, Optus Business announced a Centres of Excellence program which unites Optus and Alphawest’s respective capabilities, and signals a commitment to invest and innovate in the key solution areas of:

• Business Application Services: Focused on helping organisations navigate the world of big data and software-as-a-service to create bespoke applications to meet their customer or business objectives.
• Cloud and Data Centres: Focused on leveraging Optus’ expertise in cloud both locally and through our extensive regional capabilities.
• Collaboration: Focused on the delivery of innovative solutions via business video, enterprise content management and digital collaboration suites.
• Contact Centres: Focused on contact centre solutions that provide sophisticated inbound service management options.
• BYOD: Focused on helping business and government organisations managed the new demands of BYOD on business networks and services.
• M2M: Focused on creating greater functionality and control for customers to manage their M2M services in applications including vehicle telematics, m-health, smart metering, security, asset tracking and m-commerce.

The Optus Centres of Excellence bring together dedicated specialists and experts to consult, design, build, deploy and manage solutions in these areas. Optus Business will deepen its expertise, forge new partnerships and invest in new products in these key solution areas.

Expansion into business application services

Through the newly established Centre of Excellence for Business Application Services, Optus Business will offer NCS cloud and mobility solutions direct to Optus Business customers. Through this new alignment, Optus Business will offer an expanded set of solutions and capabilities for its Australian customers including cloud aggregation solutions, microstrategy mobile analytics platform, mobile application development platform and network supply chain solutions.

“With NCS Australia now joining Optus Business, we can strengthen our focus in delivering ICT applications and services in three key areas – cloud brokerage and aggregation, mobile business intelligence and mobile application development. These new capabilities complement our existing suite of cloud and mobility solutions to help customers maximise their cloud investment and further mobilise their workforce,” Mr Paitaridis concluded.

Media contacts
Joshua Drayton / Derek Lau
Optus Corporate Affairs
(02) 8082 7850
media@optus.com.au