About Al Ahli Group

Al Ahli Group is a UAE-based diversified holding company with a strong presence across industries such as retail, manufacturing, construction, entertainment, FMV, IT, and fitness. With such a broad portfolio, the Group relies heavily on its technology arm to ensure that each business unit has the right infrastructure and IT support to thrive. This technology division not only serves internal entities but also extends its expertise to external organizations whenever required.

Challenges Before Partnering

As Al Ahli Group grew, so did the complexity of its IT operations. The organization was managing a multi-cloud environment, and while AWS was selected as the preferred global cloud provider, the journey was not without hurdles. Initially, the internal IT team managed AWS accounts, taking responsibility for Level 1 and Level 2 support. However, this model soon revealed its limitations. Training requirements, knowledge transfer, and the need for deeper technical expertise created bottlenecks, and as the Group’s AWS infrastructure expanded, it became clear that a more scalable and reliable approach was necessary.

Why Zero&One

When Al Ahli Group decided to move to a managed services model, AWS recommended a shortlist of Tier-1 partners in the region. Among these, Zero&One stood out. The decision was driven by multiple factors: the proven technical expertise demonstrated through a successful proof of concept, strong recommendations from peers and technology leaders within the UAE market, and a reputation for meeting service-level agreements with precision and consistency.

From the outset, Zero&One positioned itself not just as a service provider but as an extension of the Group’s IT team. The relationship was built on trust, expertise, and the assurance that operations would be handled with the same dedication as an internal department.

Solution: AWS Managed Services with Datadog at the Core

Zero&One implemented a comprehensive AWS Managed Services framework tailored to Al Ahli Group’s unique requirements. At the heart of this solution was Datadog, which became the central observability platform for the Group’s IT operations.

By integrating Datadog, Zero&One enabled real-time monitoring, proactive incident response, and in-depth performance insights across Al Ahli Group’s infrastructure. This gave decision-makers complete visibility into their systems and the ability to address challenges before they escalated. Moreover, detailed reports—delivered daily, weekly, and monthly—ensured that management always had the transparency and clarity needed to make informed decisions.

Impact & Results

The partnership transformed the way Al Ahli Group operates in the cloud. With Zero&One managing their AWS infrastructure, the Group no longer needed to dedicate resources to building a specialized AWS operations team internally. The adoption of Datadog further accelerated decision-making by providing real-time insights that allowed IT leadership to respond with speed and confidence. Operations became more seamless, with regular updates and SLA-driven processes that mirrored the reliability of an in-house team.

The results were tangible: operational costs were reduced by 30%, infrastructure performance improved, and the Group gained a faster, more reliable foundation for its diverse business needs.

Voices from the Partnership

“Zero&One helped us modernize on AWS, reducing operational costs by 30% while ensuring a faster, more reliable infrastructure for our business.”

– Mustafa Saeed, IT Infrastructure and Support Director, Al Ahli Group

“With Datadog at the core of our AWS Managed Services offering, we empower customers like Al Ahli Group to operate with full visibility, respond faster, and scale with confidence. Our role is to act as an extension of their IT team, so they can focus on innovation while we take care of the complexity.”

– Ali Chahbour, CTO, Zero&One