With digital transformation a global concern, particularly with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s something that the UAE is expected to be focussing on now and in the future. That focus is set to continue for years, and the Salesforce ecosystem can both support and benefit from that. But what is the Salesforce ecosystem?
The Salesforce Economic Impact Model
The Salesforce ecosystem has Salesforce at its core, and surrounding our products and services are all the companies and products that complement ours. Whether it’s customers or partners, official or unofficial, there are many apps, consultants, and more that help make the Salesforce ecosystem a finely tuned engine.
It’s what International Data Corporation (IDC) calls the Salesforce Economic Impact Model, and their white paper, The Salesforce Economic Impact: 4.2 Million New Jobs, $1.2 Trillion of New Business Revenues from 2019 to 2024 demonstrates the huge and beneficial impact the Salesforce ecosystem has on the global economy.
Based on IDC’s CloudView survey of 5,740 enterprise users of cloud computing in 32 countries, the addendum The Salesforce Economy in the United Arab Emirates will certainly be of interest to our partners and customers interested in selling to the Middle East.
The economic benefits of cloud computing
The growth of cloud computing is obvious to see, with worldwide spending on public cloud computing expected to grow by 19% by the end of 2024, to $418 billion. In the Middle East, that growth is even more substantial:
- Cloud computing is set to grow 27% between 2018 and 2024 – to $778 million.
- Non-cloud software spending is set to decrease by 2% over the same period.
- Salesforce and its ecosystem are expected to enable 11,180 jobs to be created and add $2.6 billion in new business revenue over that period.
- Customers of cloud computing subscriptions also spend on supplementary products and services, so the Salesforce ecosystem in South Africa in 2019 was 4.5x as big as Salesforce and by 2024, will be more than 6.5x as big.
Harnessing the cloud for business growth
Cloud software is a benefit to businesses of all sizes, with outcomes that include boosting customer service/experience and allowing IT teams to focus more on innovation. The IDC addendum looks specifically at the benefits in the UAE, and as you can see, the future’s looking bright.
The Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) between 2018 and 2024 is forecasted to grow by 27%. As cloud software accounted for 18% of total software sales in 2019, it’s obvious how huge the potential is for further growth.
This is great news for Salesforce, and the wider Salesforce ecosystem as well. This huge growth is forecasted to create 11,180 direct jobs, as well as 18,700 indirect jobs (in supply and distribution serving our customers). New Salesforce customers also regularly need third-party products and services alongside their Salesforce subscription, meaning an increase in sales for our partners and complementary service providers.
IDC estimates that for every dollar Salesforce made selling in the Middle East in 2019, the ecosystem made $4.49. This is expected to increase to $4.93 in 2020 and $6.58 in 2024.
Digital transformation is key
In the current climate, economic uncertainty and consumer concerns mean that moving forward with digital innovation is key. Cloud computing grows at a much faster pace than general IT, so demand will only increase as businesses find new and innovative ways to work in the new normal.
Cloud software helps businesses stay agile, improve customer experiences, and innovate in terms of products and services. As we can see, the Salesforce economy in the Middle East benefits both the new end-user and the additional service/product providers linked to Salesforce.
