2019 Technology Innovator Awards

22 Corporate Vision 2019 Technology Innovator Awards , Geospatial Media & Communications Technology Media Company of the Year 2019 & Tech Innovation Impact Award in Communications & Networking 2019 Apr19467 Seeking to offer a truly innovative service, Geospatial Media &Communications is an internationally recognized organization that is committed to serving the stakeholders of the geospatial community. We caught upwith AnnuNegi to find out more about the firmand the solutions it has to offer. Founded in 1997, Geospatial Media and Communications works towards realizing its vision of ‘making a difference through geospatial knowledge in the world economy and society’. Annu explores how the firm has grown and flourished since its inception. “Initially, when our founders saw that there was an evident shortage of reliable and quality maps on the environment in India, they wanted to address the issue. They saw the need for connecting communities, educating the stakeholders and sensitizing policymakers on having reliable maps. As a result, when Geospatial Media & Communications was created, we started by working closely with local communities in India. We began by championing this through our magazine, conferences and policy roundtables.” “As we started interacting across borders with users from neighbouring countries in South Asia, we realized the challenge was much broader and existed everywhere. There were no reliable maps available for the research communities, mapping professionals and the general public. The policies were so rigid that they did not encourage the development of broader ecosystem. And again, this was the same case everywhere; in the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa, and even in the developed parts of the world. That is how our activities become global, and soon professional and user communities from other industries who were using maps started to believe in our cause. With time we gained a reputation as a thought leader in our industry.” This reputation has since then grown, and the firm today is an internationally recognized media & communications, knowledge & networking and policy advocacy platform that produces world-class conferences, runs popular media channels and brings out research reports. “We try to maintain a global-to-local balance, given the huge difference in technology levels across geographies, and drive the community both in terms of today and tomorrow, which is a success factor that keeps us relevant in an ever-changing world,” she adds. “Over the years, through our efforts, we have reached around 100,000 professionals globally and worked with about more than 50 national governments and their agencies in increasing the relevance of digital maps, satellite imagery, navigation and positioning, and other related technologies that is known as geospatial technologies. Our continuous endeavours to connect communities also saw us playing a crucial role in the founding of industry associations like the World Geospatial Industry Council and Association of Geospatial Industries in India. We were also at the forefront of setting up the Private Sector Network at the United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM).” Being part of a technology industry means one needs to always be in a transformation mode. Innovation is at the core of Geospatial Media and it has seen many changes and developments over the past two decades. Despite these changes, the firm has, since its inception, remained highly focused on its core mission, which Annu outlines in detail. “As the world moves towards a digital revolution, we realize that innovations in geospatial technology will be at the heart of this automation. This is a message that resonates in our conferences and media platforms as well as research reports.” “We try to maintain a global-to-local balance, given the big difference in technology levels across geographies, and drive the community both in terms of today and tomorrow.”