The Imperial group has signed a five year contract with Vodacom for network and hosting services. With a stable and scalable network critical to Imperial’s growth, Vodacom will operate as a strategic partner – vital in the delivery of data networks to the group’s divisions and operating companies.

“The hosting services that Imperial receives from Vodacom Business allow the group to secure essential business systems with the required uptime service levels for the group of 365/24/7,” says chief integration officer, Cobus Rossouw. “This partnership also allows for the expansion of current network services to include Vodacom’s Voice over IP (VOIP) offering, as well as application and business processes services required to enhance the competitiveness of our clients,” he expands.

“Vodacom Business was selected as the partner of choice due to our operational flexibility in accommodating current Imperial network partners,” explains Vodacom Business managing executive large enterprise, Deon Liebenberg. “Our creation of an Imperial core network within a dedicated cage also allowed us to be in complete control of the hosting core,” Liebenberg continues.

“With a global footprint and expertise from Vodafone Global Enterprise and Vodacom Business is well placed to deliver a seamless total communications solution. The combined local presence, extensive network and comprehensive suite of communications solutions mean that we can help multinationals manage their operations  more effectively and make the most of opportunities across the continent,” says Liebenberg.

The expansion into Africa is another key strategic area for the partnership and Imperial is keen to leverage on the existing Vodacom Business infrastructure. “There is much opportunity to develop further strategic solutions with Vodacom,” states Rossouw, “and the potential of mobile commerce for brand owners in African markets is substantial.” Liebenberg concurs – “with Africa the mobile phone industry’s fastest-growing region, there is a massive opportunity that we need to drive forward.”

“We are very excited about the prospects to work closely with Vodacom to make industry-specific solutions available to our client base, adding further value to areas like retail transaction switching, business systems hosting and even business process outsourcing,” Rossouw adds.

Access to the Vodafone Global Enterprise and Vodacom Business executives was key to the decision making process. “Interactions at an executive level allowed the partnership to closely align around objectives and capabilities – something that had not been experienced with other network vendors,” concludes Rossouw.