In February last year, F5 announced the appointment of Bart Salaets as the new Field Chief Technology Officer for in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA).
The brand new a role that has been created to enhance the company’s market positioning by engaging with C-suite customers, partners, analysts, and journalists, according to F5.
With more than two decades of industry experience, Salaets will work alongside EMEA’s solution architect team. Salaets has been with F5 since 2011 and previously served as Head of EMEA Solutions Architects and lead solutions architect for F5’s service provider team.
He has also held consulting and technical leadership roles at Alcatel-Lucent, Redback Networks, and Juniper Networks.
In a conversation with edge/ he talks about the company’s expansion plans in the region.
Can you share insights into your professional journey and what drew you to F5?
My journey began approximately 13 years ago when I joined as a solution architect specialising in telco solutions. With a rich background in telecommunications, having previously worked with Juniper, Ericsson, Alcatel Lucent, and Nokia, I brought extensive expertise in telco networks, particularly in routing, switching, and layer two to layer three networking.
F5’s unique proposition in layer four to layer seven security, ADC load balancing, and the burgeoning landscape of 5G technology intrigued me. A former acquaintance from my early days connected me with F5, recognising the potential synergy between my telco experience and F5’s technological advancements. This opportunity resonated with me, offering a platform to explore innovative use cases within the telco industry, particularly in the realm of 5G technology.
F5 has significantly transformed from a hardware-centric vendor to a software-driven company. Can you elaborate on this evolution?
F5’s evolution epitomises the dynamic shift in the tech landscape. Over the years, we’ve transitioned from predominantly offering hardware solutions to embracing software-centric models. More than 50 per cent of our business revolves around software solutions, a testament to our adaptability and foresight in responding to market demands. Our product strategy has diversified, encompassing NGINX for modern applications and the F5 Distributed Cloud Platform.
The paradigm shift towards cloud-native architectures and microservices catalysed this strategic pivot. Interestingly, the pace of software adoption varies across regions, with the US and UK leading the charge. As organisations gravitate towards public cloud services, the inclination towards software-based solutions intensifies, permeating both on-premise and cloud environments.
How has technology adoption unfolded within this region, and what emerging trends are discernible?
Theregion has charted a unique trajectory in technology adoption, characterised by nuanced dynamics. While the pace of software and cloud adoption initially lagged behind other regions, the landscape is undergoing a transformative shift.
The advent of hyper scalars has accelerated this transformation, ushering in a new era of technological innovation. Notably, conversations with customers now mirror global trends, with automation and API security emerging as focal points. This convergence underscores the region’s burgeoning appetite for agile, secure application deployment.
Could you elucidate on how F5 integrates AI into its product development, and how it informs your strategic vision?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) serves as a cornerstone of our product development ethos, imbuing our solutions with cutting-edge capabilities. AI finds pervasive application across our security products, facilitating DDoS mitigation, anti-bot protection, and API security. Our recent unveiling of the AI Data Fabric exemplifies our commitment to leveraging AI-driven insights for enhanced performance and security. Through generative AI interfaces, customers can personalise security dashboards and automate policy adjustments, aligning seamlessly with real-time exigencies. This strategic integration underscores our unwavering commitment to harnessing AI to fortify our offerings and enhance customer experience.
What are the key strategic imperatives for F5 in this region, and how do they diverge from broader strategic frameworks?
Our strategic imperatives are inextricably aligned with global trends in cloud adoption and application deployment. We envisage a progressive trajectory from traditional private data centers to multi-cloud and distributed cloud environments. Automation emerges as a linchpin, catalysing faster, more secure application delivery.
While the region’s pace of adoption may exhibit nuances vis-à-vis broader strategic frameworks, the underlying imperatives remain congruent. Embracing these imperatives heralds a paradigm shift in operational efficacy and underscores our commitment to fostering technological innovation.
Reflecting on technology adoption within this region, what salient trends underscore its distinct trajectory?
A nuanced interplay of factors underscores technology adoption within this region, with automation emerging as a salient trend. While the impetus for automation predates recent trends, its ascendancy reflects a concerted effort to streamline operations and fortify security postures. Notably, senior leadership’s advocacy for automation signals a transformative shift in organizational ethos, catalysing a renewed focus on innovation and operational efficiency. This momentum underscores the region’s burgeoning appetite for technological innovation.
