Ahmed El Saadi, Vice President, Middle East Africa, Türkiye, Romania and CIS at Splunk, took the time to discuss the company’s previous year and plans for the future in this exclusive interview.
- What opportunities do you foresee for 2026, and how do you plan to leverage them?
In 2026, we see tremendous opportunities as organisations increasingly rely on real-time data for decision-making. The rise of AI-driven analytics, cloud adoption, and enhanced cybersecurity needs opens doors across industries and regions. We plan to leverage these trends by expanding our analytics and security solutions, integrating advanced AI capabilities, and providing customers with tools to make smarter, faster decisions. By doing so, we help businesses innovate, respond proactively to challenges, and unlock new growth potential while strengthening their digital foundations.
- What major challenges did you encounter this year, and how did you address them?
This year, businesses faced complex challenges including sophisticated cyber threats, fragmented multi-cloud environments, and surging volumes of data. We focused on helping organisations – whether ‘Splunk’ or ‘Cisco’ customer – navigate these hurdles by enhancing our AI-powered observability and security tools, improving cloud-native integrations, and providing actionable insights in real time to reduce the burden on already-busy cybersecurity professionals. Alongside Cisco, our support has enabled customers to maintain operational continuity, protect sensitive data, and confidently drive digital initiatives, even as the technology landscape became more complex and threats more advanced.
- Can you elaborate on your strategic partnerships this year and plans for next year?
Splunk’s ongoing integration into the Cisco ecosphere, as a Cisco company, has driven numerous benefits to our customers, bringing together the worlds of AI, networking, security, and observability to deliver an entirely better proposition to our customers.
Thinking specifically of the Splunk side of the business, we’ve strengthened a number of key partnerships to expand cloud and cybersecurity capabilities across the Gulf region. A major milestone has been the availability of the Splunk Cloud Platform on Google Cloud in Saudi Arabia, announced by Cisco and showcased at Black Hat MEA 2025, supporting Vision 2030 by accelerating cloud adoption and strengthening cybersecurity. In parallel, the general availability of Splunk Cloud on AWS in the UAE enables organisations across the Gulf to access the full power of the Splunk Enterprise Platform as a scalable SaaS solution, delivering real-time visibility for security, IT, and DevOps teams, reducing latency, and supporting business continuity. Moving forward, we will continue to cultivate partnerships both regionally and globally, enabling organisations to leverage their data more effectively, enhance operational security, and drive innovation across industries.
- What will be your primary focus areas and strategic priorities for 2026?
In 2026, we are focusing on the combined strengths of Cisco and Splunk to deliver AI-driven, full-stack capabilities across on-premises, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments, enabling clearer visibility, faster incident response, and stronger security outcomes. This approach supports earlier threat detection, reduced operational risk, and improved resilience across increasingly complex IT environments. Through unified data and analytics, security, IT, and DevOps teams gain real-time insight into their operations, helping minimise downtime and support business continuity. Advanced solutions such as Splunk Enterprise Security (ES) and IT Service Intelligence (ITSI) further strengthen threat detection, security response, and the monitoring of critical business services, enabling more informed, data-driven decision-making. Importantly, these capabilities are designed to support diverse markets, including the Middle East, by addressing regional digital transformation priorities and multi-cloud strategies, helping organisations improve operational efficiency and digital resilience.
- Are there plans to explore new markets or introduce new products/applications in 2026?
Cisco and Splunk are committed to driving continuous innovation and deeper integration to deliver comprehensive, AI-powered solutions that meet the evolving needs of customers worldwide. While specific details about product launches in 2026 have not been disclosed, the focus remains on enhancing unified observability and security across diverse environments— including on-premises, hybrid, and multi-cloud setups. This includes leveraging Cisco’s extensive network visibility with Splunk’s advanced analytics to provide real-time insights, faster problem resolution, and improved digital resilience. This also emphasises expanding capabilities and investments to support customers globally, including strategic markets like the Middle East, ensuring they benefit from cutting-edge technologies that unify data insights and AI-driven intelligence for better business outcomes.
- How is your company approaching sustainability, digital transformation, or AI adoption in preparation for 2026?
As we look toward 2026, Splunk is committed to helping organisations integrate sustainability, digital transformation, and AI into their operations. Our platform enables smarter, data-driven decisions that reduce environmental impact, optimise processes, and enhance efficiency. At the same time, AI and machine learning capabilities allow businesses to gain real-time insights and act decisively. By combining these approaches, we help organisations build resilient, sustainable, and intelligent digital ecosystems that drive innovation while supporting long-term growth and responsible technology adoption.
Image Credit: Splunk
