Softline International

Softline International

Type	Private
Industry	IT Consulting Cloud computing Software distribution Computer software
Founded	Moscow, Russia (1993)
Founder	Igor Borovikov
Headquarters	Moscow
Revenue	>900 mil. $ in 2014 FY
Number of employees	>1900 (2012)
Website	Softline Russia Softline Group in English

Softline is a leading global IT (information technology) service and solution provider operating in different markets all around the world including Russia and CIS, Latin America, India and Asia. The company is headquartered in Moscow and operates in 28 countries, and in 81 offices worldwide.

Softline History

History and Company Development

Softline Company was founded in 1993 by Igor Borovikov in Russia. Ten people worked at Company and they were involved in provision of scientific software. In 1995 Softline obtained its first status and have become therefore an authorized partner of Microsoft. The following years were marked by the staff expansion, by increase of trade turnover and launch of new projects. So, in 1999 Softline starts launching its monthly catalogue of Software called Softline-direct; in 2001 Softline opens its Training center Softline (edu.softline.ru) and consulting orientation. In 2004 a co-project is launched by Softline and Microsoft – Solution Center Microsoft.

In 2007-2009 went for the Company under the badge of expansion of regional offices chain in Russia, and also development of Softline business in the countries of near abroad and far abroad: offices are opened in Georgia, Mongolia, Belarus, Turkey, Venezuela, Vietnam.

Starting from the end of 2008, Softline has been an official partner of Microsoft Company within the promotion program for start-ups Bizpark within which the opportunity is granted to startups-beginners to obtain the set of Microsoft development tools. In 2009 a product of Softline in-house development – corporate portal DeskWork (www.deskwork.ru) comes to the market of information technologies of Russia and CIS. In the middle of that year Softcloud is organized (cloud.softline.ru) – the cloud subdivision of Company that develops its own partnership network by the program White Label. In 2010 the Company enters the markets of Romania, and Argentina, continuing at the same time to expand regional offices on the Russia territory.

2010 was the year of formation of Service and Solutions Department within Softline (services.softline.ru). The main goal of the Department is to provide a full range of service in all IT-directions: technical support, outsourcing, consulting, services of information security, building of virtual IT-environments, CAD-systems and others. At that time the subdivision Softline Cloud Services (cloud.softline.ru) is actively developed, which mean goal is to promote “cloud model” of Software and to provide qualitative SaaS-servers for the corporate market. At the present time, in the catalogue Solftine Cloud Services, cloud services are provided from the world vendors: Microsoft, Google, Symantec, Trend Micro and others.

Nowadays 1500 employees work at Company. Softline Company has regional offices in 81 cities of 28 world countries.

Owners and management

Company’s Chairman of Board of Directors is Igor Borovikov. He was number 3 in the "Ranking of top leaders in IT" in 2015 by Kommersant.^[1]

Education projects of Softline

• Training Center Softline trains, certifies and runs tests of IT-specialists in the field of Software, it has the governmental accreditation and license for the education activity. The Training Center Catalogue has more than 1000 courses in different fields. Training is performed by more than 60 certified teachers, there are options of full-time and distant learning.

Web-projects

• Soft@Mail.Ru – one of the oldest resources dedicated to information technologies in the Russian Internet. This is a joint project of Softline Company and the largest Internet-Portal Mail.ru. Popular sections: Catalogue of free programs, information-discussion section Soft-Club and Community of system administrators.
• Educational mathematic site Exponenta.ru is the resource for those who use mathematic packages in the educational and scientific activities.
• Softcloud.ru – is the first Russian portal that provides its clients a choice of SaaS-solutions and to developers – a cycle of SaaS promotion and sales. The portal Softcloud.ru is built using program platforms of the leading world producers of “cloud” solutions.
• Internet-store of gift certificates daripodarki.ru works at the gifts market in the segment of gift certificates for corporate clients and private persons. The assortment of the store is over 600 gift certificates of various rates from more than 90 suppliers.
• Emegamall - is the SaaS system of multichannel sales in the Internet. The Widget of a valid Internet-store can work at a regular web-site, in the blog, in the forum, social network. Management of all stores of all one sales-assistant is performed from the central control panel. It makes it possible to develop a chain of stores just within several hours, and adding the widget to a regular web-site takes less than one minute. Payment is received by credit cards, using Qiwi terminals and popular systems of web money.

Development of Software

DeskWork — is the corporate portal of in-house Softline Development, this is a comfortable means of interaction between employees and the means of team work organization at any Company. By 2011 more than 450 Companies and state organizations started using DeskWork in their work.

Venture investment

Corporate investment fund Softline Venture Partners makes venture investments in independent developers of software on the territory of Russia, CIS and other countries where Softline is present.

As part of the work of Softline Venture Partners, 11 projects were invested in: Tekmi, Mirapolis, ActiveCloud, Daripodarki, Magazinga, EZLogin, Client24, Copiny, Smart Start, Apps4All and «Контекстный брокер».^[2]

Indices of activities. Statuses of Company

• Softline has been honored with the Office 365 Partner of the Year award at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in 2014.
• Softline was included in the top five IT-companies of Russia in the sphere of information security, according to the rating C NewsSecurity (agency CNews Analytics, 2010)^[3]
• Number 14 in the ranking of “Largest Companies of the Russian IT-market” (magazine “Dengi”, Publishing House “Kommersant”, 2010).
• Number 14 in the ranking of “List of the largest Russian Companies in the field of information and communication technologies according to the results of 2009” (“Rating Agency Expert”, 2010).
• Number 4 in the ranking “Indices of IT-consulting activity in 2009” (magazine “Finans”, 2010).
• Chairman of board of Directors of Softline Company, Igor Borovikov, was included in the top 25 most successful and effective heads of business within the fifth project “Best leaders of Russian IT-Companies” organized by editorship CRN/ RE (2010).
• Softine became a provider of SaaS solutions in 2009 according to the version IDC (Russia Public IT Cloud Services Market 2010–2014 Forecast and 2009 Analysis).
• Number 16 in the ranking of “Largest IT-Companies of Russia” (agency CNews Analytics, 2009).
• Number 1 in Ranking of IT-Companies in Russia in 2008 in the segment of deliveries (information-business channel @ASTERA, 2008).
• Softline was the leader in segment of Software deliveries at the IT-market in Russia in 2008.^[4]

Softline clients

Leading Russian and foreign Companies work with Softline, among which there are leading enterprises of large business: Public Corporation “Gazprom”, Public Corporation “Lukoil”, Public Corporation “GMK Norilskiy Nikel”, Public Corporation “Pivovarennaya Kompania “Baltika”, Coca-Cola, Samsung Electronics, Nestlé, British American Tobacco Plc, Toshiba and over fifty thousand of other companies from the segment of large-, medium- and small-scale business.

Social activities

Activity of Softline position is reflected also in the public work of Company that is oriented toward overall formation of favourable conditions to develop IT-sector in Russia.

Chairman of Board of Directors at Softline Company, Igor Borovikov, is the member of Presidium of OPORA RUSSIA, and heads the committee of OPORA RUSSIA in information technologies. OPORA RUSSIA is an All-Russian public organization of small and medium enterprise. The main goal of the activity is to participate in formation of favorable political, economic, legal and other conditions to develop enterprise activity in the Russian Federation. Divisions of OPORA RUSSIA work in 80 regions of the Russian Federation.

The goal of the committee in IT is establishment of the dialogue between entrepreneurs and representatives of business, scientific spheres, civil community, federal and regional bodies of the government for assistance in formation of favorable social-economic conditions of IT sector development in Russia.

Softline has entered into cooperation with the Skolkovo Foundation. This agreement was announced at a meeting of the Friends Club of the Information Technology Cluster. Within the framework of cooperation, Softline is going to participate in research in the field of strategic computing and software, and in monetization of development results. Top priority will be assigned to the creation of new development and testing tools, innovative information security technologies and cloud computing.^[5]

References