Zoho Corporation global technology company announced its 50 per cent growth in Nigeria in 2022
Regional Director, Middle East Africa, (MEA) Zoho Corporation, Ali Shabdar said at the sideline of Zoholics Nigeria in Lagos that the growth was due to high adoption of cloud technology in the country.
Zoholics is the annual user conference of Zoho. Shabdar said that Zoho’s growth was a direct result of Nigerian businesses embracing cloud technology, especially unified platforms, to digitally transform and build resilience to adapt to challenging market conditions.
According to him, such growth creates an economic impact on the nation’s economy as well as job creation.
The regional director said that, as such, it has partnered with StartupSouth to work towards the development of startups in the South and South East regions.
He said that the partnership was to empower startups with basic digital tools and unified platforms to help businesses scale, rather than give them free money.
Shabdar said that Zoho Contracts would help businesses improve compliance with the National Data Protection Law (NDPL).
He said that NDPL, which came into law in June, mandated all businesses to ensure that their contracts include provisions for data security and breach notifications, among others.
According to him, in cases of non-compliance, businesses risk the loss of consumer trust and potential legal action, apart from a potential fine of up to N10 million, or two percent of their annual gross revenue.
He said with Zoho Contracts, businesses could create contract templates with new revised clauses for NDPA compliance.
‘’ Through the partnership, Zoho will be providing its contract management solution, Zoho Contracts, free for three months to help businesses improve compliance with the Nigeria Data Protection Law.
‘’Zoho’s unified technology stack, built from the ground up, allows us to meet the transformation needs of businesses with robust solutions that deliver consistently seamless user experiences at unbeatable value,” Shabdar said.
The Regional Director said that Zoho’s growth in Nigeria was primarily driven by the adoption of Zoho One, the operating system for business, and Zoho Workplace, a unified enterprise collaboration platform.
He said that Zoho also grew its partner network by 22 percent and more than doubled its employee base in 2022 in Nigeria to reinforce its local presence and better serve customers.
Country Head, Zoho Nigeria, Mr. Kehinde Ogundare, said that Nigeria was number five in the Middle East in the growth of Zoho and had witnessed 87 percent growth in five years.
Ogundare said that the transnational local strategy of being locally rooted while staying globally connected was also key to Zoho’s growth in Nigeria.
He said that Zoho was able to serve customers directly with locally hired teams in Lagos.
According to him, Zoho is also one of the few vendors in Nigeria that continues to provide their offerings in Naira, thereby protecting businesses from the fluctuating dollar rates.
Ogundare said that the step ensured that enterprise technology remained accessible to businesses of all sizes.
‘’Our partnership with #StartupSouth and the special offer on Zoho Contracts are further steps that underscore our commitment to serve the business community in the region,” he said.
Ogundare said that as part of its partnership with StartupSouth, new customers would be eligible for Zoho Wallet credits worth ₦ 470,000.
He said the wallet credit could be used to purchase or upgrade any of Zoho’s 55+ products, including Zoho One, the operating system for business, over a period of 360 days.
According to him, startups will also receive training to help them leverage Zoho’s products for their growth in a way that they can easily scale.
The Convener, StartupSouth, Uche Aniche, said that one of #StartupSouth’s goals was to provide startups associated with it easy access to comprehensive technology solutions.
Aniche said that technology solutions that offered great value were easy to use and had the capability to grow with businesses as they scaled.
‘’ With this partnership with Zoho, we are looking forward to helping budding businesses by removing access barriers to enterprise technology.
“Through the Zoho for Startups program, StartupSouth tends to onboard as many startups as possible and be a part of their entrepreneurial journey right from the start.
‘’ Keeping in mind Zoho’s vision and mission of’serving the underserved’, we carefully choose whom we collaborate with.
Global Head, Zoho for Startups, Kuppulakshmi Krishnamoorthy, said that Nigeria is one of the hotbeds in Africa for entrepreneurs to thrive and innovate.
