A year after spinning off, ALUE opens new APAC Hq

• Has been rebuilding its presence in the region
• Buoyed by new deals, claims on track to double APAC revenue in 5yrs

ALCATEL-Lucent Enterprise (ALUE) has been busy building up a new operating infrastructure since its split from parent company Alcatel-Lucent, and just opened its new Asia Pacific headquarters and innovation centre in Singapore.
 
According to ALUE vice president of Asia Pacific sales Matthieu Destot (pic above), the company has established 10 new legal entities across the region, in countries like the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, among others.
 
“We have had to develop new IT infrastructure, and provide IT platforms as well as new briefing centres and solution labs in all those locations,” he told a recent media briefing in Singapore.
 
Singapore, with its regional Hq and innovation centre, will form the hub from which ALUE hopes to reach customers in the region, Destot said.
 
“What we are showing here [at its Singapore facilities] is how we use technology to deliver business outcomes.
 
“The second key thing we are able to demonstrate here is our technical support centre, which is important for our customers which want to get the right services,” he added.
 
ALUE has been adding new customers from the region as well, including the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), the Defence Science Technology Agency, and Jurong Health from Singapore’s public sector, as well as Raffles Medical Group from the private sector.
 
The IDA has in fact awarded ALUE its biggest contract so far this year, according to Destot, whoever declined to disclose financial details.
 
“We are providing a network access control system solution for all 94 government agencies in Singapore,” he said, on the nature of the IDA contract.
 
SEA thrust
 
ALUE is on track to hitting its five-year target of doubling revenue in Asia Pacific, and ensuring that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) contribute 20%s of this, Destot claimed.
 
The company had earlier singled out the SME market in South-East Asia for particular growth.
 
“After making investments in people and resources in Asia Pacific, we are expecting good results and we have a 27% growth in bookings after three quarters [since the beginning of the year],” he said.
 
“We are focused on our three pillars – SMEs, verticals and the cloud – and this growth is being driven by Australia, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand,” he added.
 
Destot said that by the end of the year, ALUE will see 10% of its revenue coming from the SME market – compared with the 15% a year earlier.
 
“At the end of this year we will be at 10%, but I do think that … 20% in four years is really achievable,” he said.
 
“Even if we are growing the rest of the business, we will grow the SME market faster to ensure we hit that target,” he added.
 
One advantage ALUE has is that develops solutions specifically for SMEs, and does not just downsize an enterprise solution, according to Destot.
 
“We are one of the few players which develop products from scratch specifically for the SME market,” he said.
 
“The price-sensitivity of the SME market means we need to have a local presence in every country, to show we are at the right price point for them,” he added.
 
ALUE is also looking to grow its reach in Asia Pacific, focusing on specific markets.
 
“We were very successful in some key markets, and our next wave is to develop further in the four key markets of Australia, India, South Korea and Singapore,” Destot said.
 
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