Fall in love with a problem
The larger the problem and the challenge, the more rewarding it will be for bright people to follow you and the more you are likely to attract talent to work, invest, and solve the problem. It is arguably far more exciting when you are trying to build a rocket ship and attempting to go to the moon compared to building ‘Just another fast car’.
Defining the problem, being obsessed with all its aspects, details, economics, impact, and scale is what technology fundamentally solves in the first place. “Execution is key that makes a company succeed. Get into the ‘arena’ toil, tinker, pivot and recapitulate to perfection; This is the only way to succeed and build a long-lasting business,” says Wael Fakharany, CEO of Omnix International. Wael has been a strong follower of the abovementioned concepts, working closely alongside his leadership team, to fundamentally improve performance of the company and put it on a path to sustainable growth.
“Key to sustainable growth is ensuring that we develop the full potential of our people and this is at the heart of everything we do” says Wael. He aims to see Omnix become a global player in digital solutions and innovation not only in the MENA region but across the world.
Story of a Technocrat
Wael is an Electronics engineer who graduated in 1989 from Ain Shams University. He has an enthusiastic approach for technology and its value, knowing the immersive impact that it can create for everyone in the world. Wael joined IBM in Egypt for seven years and progressed towards broader roles and positions in Oracle, Sun Microsystems until he became a General Manager for the Middle East region at the age of 33 years.
After that, Wael joined Google that was just starting its development in the MENA region. At Google, he was the first senior employee from the Middle East. “I learnt so much from Google about the scale of technology, how to launch ideas from concept to fully fledged working products,” shares Wael. He learned the value of moving fast, launching fast and acting fast. Wael also developed a stronger appreciation for the value of cash flow and having a strong balance sheet and how you can raise money, evaluate companies and work on very big ideas at a billion-user scale.
Wael learned to appreciate, adopt, live, and embrace fundamental economic, technological, social, and cultural change. He fell in love with the promise of the Middle East and North Africa’s (MENA) region and he wholeheartedly believes it deserves to develop its own homegrown technology giants and world class companies that have strong impact and are not limited by any physical boundaries.
Being a digital optimist, Wael aims to accelerate digital transformation. He is an energetic and lifelong learner. “Companies such as Omnix have a pivotal role to play in the MENA region helping business and industries to scale up their technological operations by adopting to technology to improve efficiency, increase productivity and drive innovation” Say’s Wael. He is motivated by what technology can do for organizations, governments, individuals, and nations and how it can be a powerful tool.
Industry Dynamics
Most companies spend the majority of their IT budgets on maintaining IT systems rather than business innovation. In fact, tight IT budgets and the impact of COVID-19 are driving businesses to look for agile, proven IT solutions without high upfront costs to fulfil new technology requirements. Technology solution providers must become the ongoing IT caretakers and assume traditional IT maintenance responsibilities such as upgrades and integration so that client IT departments can focus more time on innovation. According to Wael, tedious software evaluations and drawn-out implementations are an expensive and unsustainable practice. To compete in today’s dynamic business environment, providers must focus on harnessing new revenue streams from packaged, repeatable solutions. Growth for progressive enterprises will increasingly come from selling configurable solutions that address an endto- end ‘Integrated Solutions’ journey.
“We will also need to continuously customize their solutions to meet shifting needs and keep pace with business change with ‘Integrated Services’ and an OPEX model,” says Wael.
Making a Difference
Expressing his views on the essentials of being a successful business leader, Wael states, “You use all of what has been given to you as a human being and solve problems through your Head (Logical, Analytical and Data driven) then your Heart (Emotional aspects of a decision) and then your Gut (Intuition shaped through experiences and knowledge) which are always important given the changing world we are all living in. True leaders never leave a stone unturned and are always full of clarity in communication and energy in working with everyone. They are contagious and electric, and you always want to work with them because they bring the best in you.”
In a similar fashion, Wael advises young entrepreneurs by telling them to become obsessed with their teams and their customers. To make sure that they are in high spirits because both of them are equally important in your business journey. “Drop your ego aside and be humble,” Wael suggests. He also tells them to be very clear in what they desire and not to be afraid of failures. “You are the luckiest person alive to have all of this power, so use it and be grateful,” he adds.
Wael has been embarking on a vision of Omnix 2.0, where he envisions the company to become an ethical digital adviser to its clients. He understands the potential of technology, but he also understands the realities on the ground of the business and the region. “We work in an amazing industry with unprecedented opportunity for everyone and a powerful force in digital transformation for the region,” explains Wael. Omnix’s team is a group of high value consultants that are on a mission to be the best trusted technology partner to deliver measurable results throughout its client’s digital platforms.
As far as his goals and ambitions go, Wael is looking forward to work closely with region’s IT community to deliver a smooth journey to digitization and transformation towards a digital-first Middle East, where Omnix leads in providing services in the enterprise and SMEs space to its customers and leading by setting an example.
Wael will be working towards taking Omnix International to become a multi-billion-dollar organization that has a regional and global impact. Wael also wishes to export Omnix’s products and services all over the world and contribute in a way where it becomes a world-class global player emerging from the Middle East and having measurable and tangible global impact.