 Last week, Mr. Maroun Chammas, President of Berytech, hosted a lunch debate in honor of Mr. Joe Faddoul, founder and partner of BML Istisharat, one of the earliest and leading IT companies in Lebanon, in the presence of Berytech ICT entrepreneurs as well as the Presidents of PCA and ALSI respectively Messrs. Gabriel Deek and Joe Abi Aad.
The debate hinged around software opportunities in the region, challenges Lebanese ICT companies face as well as opportunities they can take advantage of.
Faddoul started his company in 1975 at the very beginning of the war that rocked Lebanon for 15 years. Despite the adverse environment, BML Istisharat was able to establish international partnerships with Bull in France and later on with IBM, and provide software banking solutions to high profile companies such as Citibank. 
The key to our success, Faddoul declared, was to always anticipate the market rather than wait for customers to ask for solutions. “We did not have a roadmap, he said. We sometimes played strictly by the book while at other times we relied on the “Lebanese way”, which is to get contracts through connections in the Diaspora.”
“Despite the overriding political and economic climate over Lebanon in the past two years, we experienced a dynamic growth, thanks largely to our access to a regional portfolio. Going forward, we might continue our market expansion either through product spread or geographical outreach.”
On human resources challenges, BML Istisharat is finding difficulties identifying qualified implementers who would have in-depth knowledge of both the market and the product.
Upon the conclusion of the session, Joe Faddoul declared: “This session with Berytech entrepreneurs has been a breath of fresh air for the future of the ICT industry in Lebanon.”
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