Administrate, the fast-growing software-as-a-service for training companies and training departments, has opened a Middle East and North Africa (Mena) office in Beirut, Lebanon.

Based in the highly-rated Beirut Digital District, Administrate is the first Scottish startup to open a regional office in Lebanon.

As the company’s Mena headquarters, Beirut is the second international office opened by Administrate this year, following the US in April, and is in response to high growth and increased client activity in the region. Administrate’s industry-leading software is used across Mena by companies such as PwC and Morgan International. As part of this regional expansion, an Arabic site was launched this year.

Administrate has appointed Bob Sabra as vice president of operations for Mena. Sabra was formerly head of Digital Business at Morgan International, a multinational training company (and Administrate customer) with operations in more than 30 locations around the world.

John Peebles, CEO of Administrate, said: “Our first customer was headquartered in Beirut and Mena is one of our fastest-growing markets so we’re delighted to finally have a presence in the region. Like Bozeman in the US and Edinburgh here in Scotland, Beirut is a multicultural, beautiful city that boasts a vibrant local talent pool and shares our values.”

Sabra said: “I’ve been working with Administrate for more than four years and I’m very excited to join the team as I’ve always believed in the direction the company was taking and the transformational impact of its software.”

• Organisations use Administrate to define, manage, report on and sustain employee education through education and training. The average firm spends more than $1,800 per employee per year but faces problems when trying to accurately track this spend and measure engagement. After implementing Administrate, customers realise huge time savings, can better drive strategic training initiatives and increase overall student or employee engagement.

• The Mena expansion comes on the eve of LITE 2016, which the company is hailing as the biggest Education Technology event in the UK, and includes speakers and attendees from around the world. Held each year in September, the event provides an opportunity for learning and inspiration from an eclectic lineup of speakers as well as a host of networking opportunities. This year’s edition features a wide array of speakers ranging from John Romero, the co-creator of DOOM, to Graeme Obree, a record breaking cyclist.

• In January 2016, Administrate was selected as one of the UK’s most promising startups for Tech City UK’s Upscale accelerator programme.

• While the overall global market for training services is estimated at almost $300 billion according to TrainingIndustry.com, Learning Management Systems (LMS) and eLearning are the fastest-growing market segments and fit squarely with Administrate’s product offering. - TradeArabia News Service