São Paulo — The Stefanini Group, a global tech consultancy firm based in Brazil, is preparing to establish a physical presence in the Middle East through partnerships with local companies. In an email interview with ANBA, Stefanini Group founder and Global CEO Marco Stefanini highlighted the transformation and technology investments underway in Gulf countries as key attractions.
According to the CEO, the Middle East has always been a target market for the company, but it first needed to consolidate its international operations before expanding into the region. Stefanini Group has clients in more than 100 countries and its own physical facilities in 23 countries. The company has 35,000 employees.
“Saudi Arabia has undertaken major reforms to its business environment in recent years, which we also see as a positive. Another favorable factor is that the Middle East, particularly Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, has been making significant investments in technology, with the view that technology represents the future,” Stefanini told ANBA.
“There is also an aspect we consider very important: these are markets with a long-term outlook, including when it comes to business and family, which aligns with our own perspective. These four key factors led us to decide to move forward in the Middle East now,” the CEO said.
The company is considering two options for its operations in the region: a joint venture with a local partner or working with a company based there.
“In certain highly complex projects, local companies may not have the capacity to handle all stages on their own, and we can work together to make these projects possible,” Stefanini said.
Saudi Arabia is the company’s priority market for now, followed by the UAE. The plan is to serve the entire Gulf region, and the company will assess opportunities across Middle Eastern markets. Earlier this month, the company’s CEO attended the AIM Congress in Dubai, uae, a global investment-focused event. He took part in a panel at the event as the company holds talks with potential partners in the region.
Stefanini Group operates through seven business units: Financial Tech, Manufacturing, Marketing, Cyber, Operations, Technology, and Data & Analytics. In a statement to the market this month, the company said some of the opportunities it sees in entering the Middle East are in Stefanini Manufacturing, where it can help companies automate processes, adopt artificial intelligence and improve operational efficiency; Stefanini Financial Tech, through digital modernization and AI adoption projects for financial institutions; Data & Analytics, with a focus on expanding the use of AI in companies, from information governance to data infrastructure; and Stefanini Marketing, which uses technology to support companies’ relationships with consumers.
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Translated by Guilherme Miranda
