The right partnerships lay a foundation for digital success

(Oct. 2024) All companies will eventually end up in the cloud, says Mehmet Ali Akarca.

As the CEO of KoçSistem, a leading IT provider based in Türkiye, he should know.

In a Transform Talks interview with Huawei Editor-in-Chief Gavin Allen, Akarca says cloud provides greater flexibility at a lower cost.

“Scalability as well,” he says, which is important for industries such as retail. In other sectors, such as manufacturing, the cloud provides reliability. “If you stop production on the factory floor, obviously, it's very costly.” 

KoçSistem  has operated for 79 years, serving the finance, industry, government, retail, insurance, automotive, and manufacturing sectors.

Yet he views KoçSistem as having a mission, not just to foster digitalization, but to enable companies in Türkiye to become more competitive. 

“For digital transformation to happen, and to have an effect, you need to convince people that it’s really good. It starts from the CEO level and goes to all the way down to the workers. Everyone should believe that, by going digital, you will have more opportunity than if you don’t.”

Akarca says digitalization is key for Türkiye because of its export-based economy. “We need to enable our factories, and our companies, to be as digital as any those in any other country.”

Fortunately, KoçSistem ’s partnership with Huawei is helping the company advance toward that goal.