| | SEPTEMBER 201519CIOReviewAkana offers flexible deployment options to best meet the needs of our customer's business--be it in the cloud, on-premise, or hybridAkanaEnhancing Enterprise Value with Secure APIsThe exponential growth of smartphones, tablets, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices have made Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) an integral part of the development and delivery process of software applications. Apart from being a pivotal part of the Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), APIs today are key business drivers in terms of digital outreach and revenue generation, regardless of verticals. In conjunction with these advantages, APIs facilitate easy third party integration which enhances business prospects and provides insightful analytics. However, for API managers, security still remains a key challenge while extending their service across multiple channels. "We help businesses accelerate their digital transformation securely across different platforms. By enabling enterprises to connect and integrate applications, we constantly provide intelligent insights into their operations by sharing data as APIs," says Paul Gigg, President and CEO of Akana.The Los Angeles, CA-based company specializes in providing API management services along with proprietary API security solutions in a suite which includes SOA governance, cloud integration, and microservices. Akana is known to provide one of the industry's fastest and most scalable solutions for platform-independent SOA governance and API management, enabling large customers to connect and control applications from multiple vendors and partners. "Akana offers flexible deployment options to best meet the needs of our customer's business--be it in the cloud, on-premise, or hybrid," adds Gigg. One such customizable product of the company is its Akana API Gateway which allows organizations to swiftly and economically develop, secure, manage, and monitor their APIs in today's always-connected world. Leveraging this solution, companies can prevent unauthorized users from accessing valuable data, and protect their APIs from external threats and hacks through in-flight encryption. Subsequently, Envision is Akana's business analytics and reporting offering which delivers real-time insightful information and optimizes the delivery and value of APIs. Utilizing this available data, companies can maximize revenue by re-aligning their business and digital strategy in accordance to the current trends. Other than providing market proven solutions, services as such the Akana Community Manager lets clients engage with app developers who build using Akana's APIs. The sophisticated developer community helps Akana's clients attract, communicate, and manage support from independent developers. "It provides an extensive set of social capabilities that enable an organization to launch a developer community for stakeholders both inside and outside the enterprise," explains Gigg. This helps in creating a healthy network of collaborators who provide new channels for the client's business by sharing data and functionality. Akana ensures its firm footing in the API landscape with this unique Community Manager and an impressive clientele which features brands like Daimler, Coca-Cola, and eBay.One such client is an Australian government agency Healthdirect Australia which prepares the National Health Services Directory (NHSD), a comprehensive directory of services, doctors, pharmacies, hospitals, and emergency departments. The client's widgets were exposing their diverse back-end data sources as they could not manage and secure their REST API. "After implementing Akana API Gateway, the organization now provisions its web and mobile clients securely and monitors API traffic economically at the same time," narrates Gigg.Moving ahead, Akana intends to remain a key player in the API landscape balancing the demands of enterprises regarding customized development of applications via collaborations, keeping security as the top priority. "We will continue to provide powerful analytics and intelligent insights that empower digital businesses with agility and adaptability," concludes Gigg. Paul Gigg20 MOST PROMISINGAPI SOLUTION PROVIDERS 2015
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