- SAS announces addition of native support for more major public cloud platforms
- Introduces Data Literacy Essentials course to help users make sense of data
- Recognises efforts of ecosystem partners around the world
Dubai, United Arab Emirates – : SAS has successfully concluded the SAS Global Forum 2021, the world’s premier conference for AI and analytics professionals. Held virtually this year, the event featured more than 150 sessions that highlighted and discussed the challenges faced by industries and the proposed solutions to overcome them. The event also witnessed the launch of the Innovation Hub, hosted more than 250 experts, and a Hackathon where end-user organisations showcased solutions developed using SAS technology.
Several key cloud-related announcements were made during the event, including the news that SAS is adding cloud-native support for Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud, with Red Hat OpenShift coming later this year. SAS announced its first partnership with a public cloud provider, Microsoft Azure, last year and the tie-up has already been a huge success, with 34 per cent annual growth in the business in Q1 2021.
SAS also announced this week that it is launching free data literacy resources to help people navigate a world full of data. The Data Literacy Essentials course teaches strategies for seeing the usefulness in data, interrogating it, discovering meaning, making decisions and communicating. The course also focuses on the ethical challenges of working with data, helping participants develop the confidence and skills to question the stories they are told and use data more responsibly.
“SAS Global Forum 2021 was a fantastic opportunity to network and share insights”, said Alaa Youssef, Managing Director, SAS Middle East and Africa. “A greater appreciation of the potential of data and analytics is the primary take-away. It is important to keep our partners across all sectors informed about the latest technologies in order to realise the great potential of data and analytics. Additionally, the Data Literary Essentials course we introduced during the event is an important step in helping individuals and organisations effectively analyse data, and access insights. Organisations’ imminent need for smarter, innovative operation systems that support their business cycle with advanced capabilities in timely fashion has been realized in recent times. We extend our appreciation to the companies and individuals that contributed their expertise and time to make this event a great success.”
Keen to recognise the efforts of its partners over the last year, SAS announced its 2021 Awards winners. Accenture, Munvo, and Microsoft were named Global Partner of the Year, Excellence in Innovation, and Partner Kaleidoscope Award winners, while Ernst & Young, KPMG, Vert, and Accenture were named EMEA Regional Partners of the Year.