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EQUIIS Technologies Switzerland AG, a leader in secure mobile communications for the enterprise, is delighted to announce its strategic partnership with Just In Time Group (JIT), a wholly owned Sri Lankan flagship ICT systems and solutions company. JIT is a leading ICT Systems and Solutions Integrator and has been a strategic front-runner championing the concept of ‘Integrated Solutions’ in Sri Lanka’s ICT sector.

EQUIIS announce new partnership with Just In Time Group (PRNewsfoto/EQUIIS)

(Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/653728/EQUIIS_Just_in_Time_Group.jpg )

Financial Software Systems (FSS), a global leader in payments technology and transaction processing, announced a strategic partnership with Just In Time Group (JIT), a systems integrator with over two decades of experience, to expand its market footprint in Sri Lanka. As part of the partnership, JIT would provide regional banking know-how, system integration skills, post-sales support and overall project coordination for successful implementation of FSS products. This would enable banks and payment service providers to rapidly bring innovative payment solutions to the market.

Sri Lanka, a fast-developing economy in the Asian region, is poised for rapid growth in digital payments. With strong economic growth, broadening Internet and smart phone usage, and a growing digitally savvy population, banks are rapidly embracing digitalisation to capitalise on the demand momentum. Financial institutions, across the board, are modernising their payments infrastructure to improve revenue outcomes, leverage efficiency, and maintain the highest standards of security and service for customers.

FSS offers an integrated portfolio of digital payments solutions that can be deployed in-house, hosted on FSSNeT (FSS private data centre) or on a public cloud. As part of its go-to-market strategy, FSS and JIT would bring a range of innovative products to customers in Sri Lanka.  This includes Issuance – (Card Management, Instant Electronic PIN, Toggle – a card control mobile application), Acquiring (Internet Payment Gateway), Digital Security (3D Secure and Token Vault) Smart Back-Office (ATM Monitoring and Reconciliation) Digital Banking (Mobile Banking, QR Codes) to the Sri Lankan market.

Commenting on the partnership, President Software Products Suresh Rajagopalan stated; “We are excited to be working with JIT, as it provides us a stronger footing in the market. Financial institutions and payment service providers on the digital transformation path are increasingly investing in building lean, agile infrastructure to improve response time to the market and deliver differentiated offerings. FSS’ end-to-end expertise in digital payments combined with JIT’s integration experience and round-the-clock, on-demand support will deliver compelling value for financial institutions and their customers.”

Speaking on the partnership, JIT Head of Sales Piumika Ranasinghe stated, “JIT is glad to partner with FSS, the leading Payment Systems Company in India. Combined with JIT’s reach, the partnership would bring best of breed products and services to the market. FSS Digital Banking solutions are a perfect fit for banks who want to transition to New Age Banking. JIT’s expertise in Project Management and post-sales support would further enhance this partnership.”

Recently, FSS and JIT organised Payment Focus@Sri Lanka, an event focused on the future of digital payments and products and platforms banks could deploy to capitalise on unfolding opportunities in the Sri Lanka payments domain.  The attendees included 10 of the leading Banks in Sri Lanka as well as speakers from LankaPay and FSS.

FSS has spearheaded the growth of retail and wholesale payments globally through a rich portfolio of payments products and services. The rapidly growing FSS customer base includes 100 leading banks as well as some of the world’s largest processors and retailers. In India, FSS customer portfolio comprises 35 plus leading public and private sector banks.

JIT is a veteran in the local ICT arena, with a history spanning 21 years as a leading ICT Systems and Solutions Integrator in the country. JIT was also recently listed in the APAC CIO Outlook magazine’s Top 25 Govt. and Public-Sector Technology Providers 2017. JIT was the only Sri Lankan company featured and recognised in the magazine’s annual listing of the Top 25 Government and Public-Sector Technology Providers for 2017.

Newly set up Blockchain Technology Lanka Ltd., a subsidiary of Just In Time Holdings Ltd., recently held a forum on ‘Blockchain for Enterprises’ in association with NEM Malaysia, a fully functioning blockchain built for enterprise use.

NEM Blockchain is a platform that allows any business application to enjoy fundamental blockchain benefits along with additional enterprise features to manage identity, assets, notarisation, cryptocurrency, ownership records etc. NEM Malaysia is a fully owned subsidiary of NEM.io Foundation Ltd.

At the forum Xarcade and NEM Business Development co-founder and CEO Otto Bon Nostitz and NEM Technical Trainer Anthony Law shared new insights to blockchain.

They said that the blockchain is a shared digital ledger. It contains a constantly updated list of transactions. It is maintained by a public peer-to-peer network. Members of the network verify every new transaction made using consensus technology. This creates a unique and permanent audit trail of transactions made, and ensures no single point of failure, and no way to doctor the transactions recorded. Blockchain increases trust, as an immutable record is reliable and trustworthy, as a record cannot be tampered. It limits risk, as transparent records prevent tampering, fraud or cybercrime. Furthermore it is a distributed ledger without a central point of failure. It reduces cost, as an autonomous system without middlemen reduces overhead. It saves time, as transactions are quicker without middlemen. It also increases security since each transaction is securely encrypted.

NEM is more than just a cryptocurrency or a new altcoin. It is an entirely new platform built on the revolutionary blockchain technology, re-imagining from scratch the ideal blockchain. NEM does not only allow for standard peer-to-peer value transfer transactions, but instead does much more: store data, make transactions, prove identity, timestamp documents and create arbitrary digital assets. Advantages of NEM includes 100% new code: fast, secure, robust and enterprise-ready.

Using secure cryptography, NEM can be used for a wider variety of applications across many industries, including the financial industry, government, logistics and the medical industry. The NEM platform is a highly available system that any business, government, or individual can make use to shorten the design lifecycle and help reduce their cost of operations.

NEM.io Foundation’s sole purchase is to education and promote the use of the NEM Blockchain technology platform, on an international scale to all industries and institutions.

NEM origins
Planning for the NEM project started in January 2014 and was launched in March 2015. What is unique is that the NEM platform is built by professional developers in a spirit of open source and open access, and it is a 100% new code from scratch.

NEM Blockchain’s out of the box features allow multi-sig for account security, create assets that act as tradable tokens representing items of value, namespaces to differentiate companies within the blockchain, and messages to be sent together transaction (as labels).

NEM Model network (public and private chain) has easy to use universal APIs, nodes are cheap to implement, enables fast and cheap transactions and provides open-sourced wallets for IOS, Android and Desktop.

NEM Blockchain technology has the potential to change the way every industry manages its information and data. The Foundation details the opportunities in every industry to effectively store transaction, customer and supplier data in a transparency immutable ledger. NEM Blockchain for Governments enables State organisations across the globe to explore the use of blockchain technology to improve operations. The ability to record transactions on distributed ledgers offers new approaches to governments to improve transparency, prevent fraud, and establish trust. The Foundation is working with Governments to further the spread the use of NEM Blockchain Technology.

NEM is also working with academia as educational institutions can utilise the blockchain to store data around assessments, degrees and transcripts, as well as a verification of knowledge transfer between parties. The Foundation helps institutions to adopt NEM technology so they can enjoy the benefits of Blockchain technology.

NEM Venture Fund is worth $5 million, and is aimed at incubating and nurturing young start-ups to develop enterprise blockchain solutions on the NEM blockchain platform.

Blockchain Technologies Lanka breaks new ground
In partnership with NEM, Blockchain Technologies Lanka (BTL) will offer education, consultancy, applications, solutions and security for enterprises.

BTL was set up to adapt, expand and promote the benefits of blockchain technology to make Sri Lanka a blockchain hub.

BTL Director Gobinath Nadarajan said Blockchain provides “trust” by being a decentralised public ledger.

Hailing from Malaysia, Nadarajan is a crypto and blockchain expert and has 18 years of immense experience in the information technology and communication technology fields. He worked at both Ericsson and Huawei in the respective headquarters and held a number of interesting roles, including being responsible for $1 billion in sales for the South-east Asian region.

For the last 2 years, Nadarajan has been focusing on a full-time basis in the new technology areas called crypto and blockchain. He speaks in numerous countries educating in this new field. Nadarajan holds an engineering degree from the UK, an MBA from Australia, and is a Chartered Engineer with IET UK.

Nadarajan said education and awareness is the key to increase knowledge on blockchain and fintech solutions and adoptability, and hence BTL will offer in-house training, blockchain and fintech certification programs, and knowledge sharing. BTL plans to hold a Blockchain Global conference in Colombo in June as well.

As part of its consultancy and advisory services, BTL will offer support for organisations, regulators and governments that are interested in developing blockchain solutions. This will be via carrying out due diligence, developing framework for organisations to follow, developing white paper, guidelines, identifying key solutions, support in negotiations, and providing ongoing advisory and support.

The advantage of BTL is that it provides an “end-to-end” blockchain solutions to any organisation though global and in-house experts. BTL solutions includes platforms, smart contract development, loyalty programs, government solutions, databases, banking and fintech solutions, remittance services, development of tokens and notarising contracts.

Since security is a key aspect of blockchain and fintech, BTL will offer expertise on anti-pushing, smart contract audit and review, monitoring and support token sales, treat modelling, business logic flaw testing, vulnerability management and bug fixing, classification and reporting, infrastructure assessment and unusual tests.

• Unveils Snapshotz Online the world’s first holistic self-assessment and benchmarking tool for contact centres

Just In Time Group (JIT) recently announced its partnership with Customer Services Audit with their Snapshotz Online tool, which is a web based assessment and benchmarking tool used by over 2,000 companies, in over 30 countries worldwide.

It is a multifaceted time and cost saving tool available for the first time to the customer service industry. Customer Services Audit is the developer of the Snapshotz program, and a company with over 20 years of intensive experience in the customer service arena.

Snapshotz can be used by; managers of contact or call centres/service centres/business centres, team leaders, quality control, marketing and product managers, business process improvement managers, senior management, governing bodies, HR managers, management consultants, entrepreneurs, recruitment consultants and students.

Customer Services Audit Managing Director Deepak Selvaratnam said: “I foresee that Sri Lanka is hungry to enhance their customer service to cater to the growing market needs, as customer engagement requirements today have changed, and tools such as Snapshotz Online together with solid support, is what is required to meet these needs and challenges.”

JIT Head of Sales Piumika Ranasinghe said: “It is the service provided that differentiates one organisation from another in any market, where products and pricing stand on par. This tool with its proven track record has given us the confidence that it will assist our customers in achieving this differentiation with their service. At JIT, we have an experienced team of industry professionals who comprehend the value of leveraging customer service as a strategic tool and who treat customers as Partners for the Future.”

The assessment covers 700+ scientific measurement points, divided over 8 main sections and 29 sub sections. These include corporate objectives, business processes, customer relationship management, health and safety and staff wellbeing, contact centre structure, operational metrics, training, internal communications, recruitment, career development and remuneration. The full assessment will take 3-7 hours to complete and preparatory time based on availability of information and resource. However, for organisations that perhaps time or resource is limited, a customised assessment can be done – with the highest priority and taking less time to complete. Furthermore, purchasing and providing of the support to complete the assessment, is available online or on-site through certified partners.

Snapshotz online also gives you the flexibility to complete the assessment over a period of eight weeks, once you register to start the online assessment. The benchmarking report enables managers to compare current performance against their competitors and other business segments, boards and governing organisations in both the private and public sector to understand current service delivery status and make informed investment decisions.

Offered in conjunction with tailored consultancy and training it can be a powerful tool for commercial and public sector organisations to: Fast forward their customer experience journey; Roadmap and benchmark their customer service delivery program against global best practice; Engage their team; Increase management productivity and knowledge and Drive revenue and reduce costs.

Snapshotz Online tools’ design is especially to assess, baseline and continuously measure overall performance of customer service. The aim being – to help organisations realise their commercial objectives by offering unparalleled customer service.

JIT is looking forward to working with Customer Service Audit’s Snapshotz Online team, helping our customers and similarly our stakeholders at large achieve their goals through offering even higher levels of customer service experience.

Just In Time Group (JIT), a veteran in the local ICT arena with a history spanning 21 years as a leading ICT Systems and Solutions Integrator to the country. JIT listing in the latest edition of the APAC CIO Outlook magazine’s Top 25 Govt. and Public Sector Technology Providers 2017 and as the only Sri Lankan company featured and recognised in the magazine’s annual listing of the Top 25 Government and Public Sector Technology Providers 2017. JIT, a wholly Sri Lankan company, And their key strengths are focused on; systems integration, Software Solutions, Network and Infrastructure, Hardware, Mobility, Outsourcing IT Professionals, Professional Services, information security services, Maintenance and Support Services, etc.

Cyber security takes on many fronts and forms, and a seldom discussed topic is the aspect of Industrial Cyber Security, which rarely presents adequate data to objectively evaluate risks. Global research shows that nearly one out of every three industrial manufacturing sites is now connected to the public internet, and 75% of these sites have legacy operating systems that provide archaic security systems. Nearly half these sites have no virus protection making them easy prey for cyber infiltrations.

Speaking to the Daily FT, Senior Director ICS of Bayshore Networks, Vincent Turmel, says that industrial cyber-attacks are common place in both developed and emerging economies, but very little data is available on what really happens as victims are not talking due to the bad publicity and impact on corporate image. With new cyber security events taking place every week, awareness and education is growing rapidly he avers, adding that being prepared for any outcome is critical.

“Governments in general are becoming more sensitive about safeguarding critical infrastructure systems, and that’s wide ranging because it includes water, transportation and power generation, which is vital for economies. In the west, they also list critical industries which are essential and it’s not limited to military and basic utilities and thereby enforce protection measures. We live in a world where if you don’t know about it then it’s probably ok not to do it, but as long as you know about a possible threat then you need to do something about it, otherwise you are guilty of negligence and you need to plan for it,” states Turmel.

Speaking further, Turmel adds that particularly with legacy systems it is difficult to place a finger on or measure the exact extent of a threat and the resultant impact in the event of a cyber attack on industrial systems. That also makes it difficult at times to ascertain the level of preparation required. One of the common misconceptions that industries have is that ‘they are not connected’ and therefore we have little or no risk of cyber threats. Also, the question ‘who would want to attack us, as we only manufacture a harmless product’, and focus attention merely on safeguarding computers, data and software systems. This was true ten years ago, Turmel states, adding that many companies have been surprised to find a number of connections do exist to IT systems from the floor. Some companies employ third-party contractors to manage these systems that can pose a security risk.

Whilst Sri Lanka largely employs manual systems at present, there is a visible shift taking place towards modern digital systems which are always connected. “In the industrial world, when you put in a piece of equipment you expect it to last at least 20 years. But 20 years ago, the internet was still in its infancy, so what will happen 20 years from now? The machines we put in today will run and they will be connected with billions of rupees in investments. You need to do all you can to keep these systems and machinery running safe without disruption. The disruption risk is really far bigger than the cost of replacing anything. As we automate we need to ensure we do it right. In Sri Lanka, you have a better chance of being there as you are now putting in place and investing in new systems. In the more developed world they are upgrading systems, so it’s a different challenge, but something that must be considered for both consumer and industrial safety,” he says.

Turmel was in Sri Lanka to meet with select customers in Colombo to apprise them on the latest trends and developments in the sphere of Industrial Cyber Security. Bayshore Networks Inc is a strategic partner of Just In Time Group (JIT), a veteran in the local ICT arena with a history spanning 21 years as a leading ICT Systems and Solutions Integrator to the country. JIT was recently listed in the latest edition of the APAC CIO Outlook magazine’s Top 25 Govt. and Public Sector Technology Providers 2017 and as the only Sri Lankan company to be featured and recognised in the magazine’s annual listing of the Top 25 Government and Public Sector Technology Providers 2017.

JIT’s key strengths are focused on; systems integration, Software Solutions, Network and Infrastructure, Hardware, Mobility, Outsourcing IT Professionals, Professional Services, information security services, Maintenance and Support Services etc. Bayshore Networks is a leading provider of cyber protection for industrial infrastructure based in the US. Having focused on North American markets at the outset, the company now has expanded its reach to the Middle East and Asia working hand-in-hand with local partners.

Industrial Cyber Security requires more awareness and attention, and there is a lot of work to be done in that sphere as it lags far behind interest on general cyber security aspects. Turmel also explains that given today’s trends software and technologies that are considered high-end, which are often used by governments and security agencies, could end-up in the hands of teenagers six months down the line – as advanced software is fast becoming mainstream providing access to anyone.

The risk therefore becomes exponential with time. Whilst the level of threat maybe relatively less for countries like Sri Lanka in its present state, it will become a problem to everyone, and despite costs related to ensuring adequate security it is a question of safety and priorities.

“We are looking at systems with high values. Consider the cranes that operate around the harbour, what would happen if they are rendered inoperable for a day. Even a day’s loss is significant to the overall economy. Look at critical assets. For instance, an airport is full of such different and critical systems. With Industrial Cyber Security we are connected to physical systems; we are not looking at data on hard drives and computers. These extend to even household devices now with buzzwords such as IOT, IIOT and Industry 4.0. The whole world is connecting, and it is doing so to become more efficient, but it does also bring about increased risks as these physical systems are also becoming connected. We are dealing with the pumps and valves and anything that moves which could go wrong and hurt people, a company and industry and even an entire country or economy,” explains Turmel.

Jit Warnakulasuriya Chairman of JIT Group and Shunli Wang CEO of Huawei

Just In Time Group (JIT), a wholly Sri Lankan owned flagship ICT systems and solutions Company, announced and signed it’s partnership with Huawei, a leading ICT provider across Enterprise and Carrier Business Segments in Sri Lanka as a strategic partner at the recently concluded Infotel 2017 CXO event.

Infotel is Sri Lanka’s premier national ICT exposition and conference, organised and hosted by the Federation of Information Technology Industry Sri Lanka (FITIS). Inaugurated in 1992, FITIS and INFOTEL celebrating their 25th anniversary this year as the biggest and most prestigious ICT exhibition in Sri Lanka and the whole of South Asia.

JIT and Huawei’s strategic partnership is committed to enabling the future of building a better connected Sri Lanka and thus demonstrating confidence in the Sri Lankan market. The synergy of this partnership will provide many benefits to the business landscape of Sri Lanka, and is committed to support and deliver towards the vision set by the Ministry of Telecommunication and Digital Infrastructure of a digitally empowered nation.

JIT is proud of its progression and along with our strategic principals, we are committed to creating a brighter future for Sri Lanka – paving the way for further success”,We are very optimistic and foresees much synergy and contribution towards the Government’s vision and are elated at this strategic union with a reputed technology giant like Huawei shared Jit Warnkulasuriya, Chairman Just In Time Group. Through this union, we envision implementing new solutions and techniques for digitally transforming the functionality of Govt. and Public sector’

Shunli Wang CEO of Huawei Sri Lanka said, “We are indeed delighted to partner with JIT offering the very best innovative solutions in making Sri Lanka a digitally empowered nation. Huawei enterprise provides a broad range of innovative ICT infrastructure products and solutions for vertical industry and enterprise customers worldwide and we are keen to provide our enterprise solutions to Sri Lanka”.

Huawei has been committed to fully leveraging the power of cloud computing, Software-Defined Networking (SDN), Big Data, and the Internet of Things (IoT) to build an open, flexible, resilient, and secure platform, and foster a collaborative and win-win ecosystem in which all players can thrive and prosper. Currently, a total of 197 of Fortune Globe 500, including 45 of the top 100, have chosen Huawei as their partner in digital transformation.

This two decade success with our longstanding customers, strategic principals and committed employees have been the catalyst for JIT’s success and bringing many landmark projects with cutting edge technology to the country and making Sri Lanka’s mark in the global ICT map.

JIT’s key strengths are focused on; systems integration, Software Solutions, Network and Infrastructure, Hardware, Mobility, Outsourcing IT Professionals, Professional Services, information security services, Maintenance and Support Services etc.

JIT and Huawei collectively, fully support the vision of the Sri Lankan Government, for a holistic and empowered Digital Sri Lanka.