Comms Dealer

Invosys has undergone a brand spruce-up following its acquisition of VoIP platform developer Telux HD. The new look reflects an enhanced product suite, new tech capabilities and broader customer offering which includes a hosted proposition.

Co-founder Peter Crooks said: "The company is different so we felt it was important to communicate these changes to our customers by updating our branding. The new graffiti-style branding set the tone and is a development of our existing logo."

Co-founder Rob Booth added: "Embracing change means taking risks, reinventing the status quo, having a vision and the courage to make it. We want to be bold and confident about how we challenge the channel to find a better way. The bold new branding perfectly reflects what we stand for."

Global server revenue declined 4.5% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2017, while shipments fell 4.2%, according to analyst Gartner.

"The first quarter of 2017 showed declines on a global level with a slight variation in results by region," said Jeffrey Hewitt, an analyst at Gartner. "Asia/Pacific bucked the trend and posted growth while all other regions fell.

"Although purchases in the hyper-scale data centre segment have been increasing, the enterprise and SMB segments remain constrained as end users in these segments accommodate their increased application requirements through virtualisation and consider cloud alternatives."

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) continued to lead in the worldwide server market based on revenue. The company posted just over $3bn in revenue for a total share of 24.1% in the first quarter of 2017. Dell EMC maintained the number two position with 19% market share. Dell EMC was actually the only vendor in the top five to experience growth in the first quarter.

These two were followed by IBM, Cisco and Lenovo. In server shipments, Dell EMC secured the Number one position with 17.9% market. The company had a slight increase of 0.5% growth over the first quarter of 2016. Despite a decline of 16.7%, HPE secured the second spot with 16.8%. They were followed by Huawei, Lenovo and Inspur Electronics. Inspur experienced the highest growth in shipments - up 27.3%.

The wall of venture capital money being thrown at security means that users and channels will have to gamble on selecting a 'survivor' to work with, according to Ian Kilpatrick, EVP Cyber Security for Nuvias, who forecasts that a quarter of them will not be around in five years' time.

The scale of VC backing is so high that new firms are springing up and offering similar solutions, he says. And for the investors, it only takes one in ten of their investments to break through to scale for them to get a good return. The rest of the vendors will eventually be pushed out or absorbed, he believes.

Nimans is the first Unify distributor to offer the vendor's Circuit solution backed up by a 'try before you buy' offer.

Circuit offers video collaboration, conference facilities, chat, document share, telephone calls and also screen sharing functionality in a single application.

Marcus Yates, Unify Solution Sales Business Manager at Nimans, said: "With a free 100 user package to 'try before you buy', Circuit is an opportunity for resellers to drive their business in a new direction."

Cisco's five year projection for the global digital economy predicts an increase of over one billion Internet users, rising from 3.3 to 4.6 billion.

The networking giant also pointed out in its Visual Networking Index that 42% of the world's population will still not be using the Internet by 2021.

Trend spotters at Cisco say that the IoT will represent 50% of all connections by 2021, up from 5.6 to 13.7 billion.

Healthcare will be the fastest rowing industry in this space, growing 30% annually due to a rise in connected applications such as health monitors and medicine dispensers.

Meanwhile, three trillion Internet video minutes per month are forecast, with video representing 80% of all Internet traffic in 2021.

"As global digital transformation continues to impact billions of consumers and businesses, the network and security will be essential to support the future of the Internet," said Yvette Kanouff, SVP and GM of Service Provider Business, Cisco.

"Driving network innovation with service providers will be key for Cisco to support the needs of their customers who want reliable, secure, and high quality connected experiences."

Wavenet has bagged its second acquisition of the year, following up its purchase of Talk Internet in March with the snaring of Norfolk-based Swains.

Wavenet CEO Bill Dawson commented: "Our increased scale and resources will strengthen our supplier relationships, deliver a better customer experience and give Swains' customers access to Wavenet's broader and enhanced product sets, particularly in unified communications and IT services."

The acquisition follows a £30m investment in Wavenet by Beech Tree Private Equity.

Swains was established in 1998 and boasts over 2,000 SME, corporate and Government customers.

Provider of hybrid cloud services Pulsant has enlisted Simon Hendy as Channel Manager, who brings almost 20 years experience across the UK, US, Europe and the Middle East.

He joins following a five year stint at Microsoft where he was Partner Account Manager, responsible for transitioning traditional partners to the cloud.

Adam Eaton, Pulsant Sales Director, said: "As Pulsant continues to evolve our established partner programme must change too, keeping in line with industry trends and demands from the channel. We look forward to Simon leveraging his experience to drive further adoption of the programme and help us deliver strategic advice and solutions to our partners."

The release of 3CX Phone System V15.5 marks a slicker and more secure way to deliver UC according to the vendor, introducing a new web client, improved click to call and  deskphone and smartphone control, enabling users to manage their inbound calls, transfer calls and elevate a call to a conference call with a single click.

The new web client is optimised for open standards browsers such as Chrome and Firefox.
 
V15.5 also advances 3CX's Deploy Anywhere strategy, and can be deployed on MiniPC appliances of brands such as Intel, Zotac, Shuttle and Gigabyte.

Nick Galea, CEO 3CX, said: "3CX 15.5 can be deployed on premise, in the cloud or even on an appliance, leaving partners and customers in full control of the installation."

The revamp of EMIT's strategic approach has delivered clarity, focus, confidence and growth, says Managing Director Eamon Moore who reveals the thinking behind his expansion plans.

In April this year Dublin-based IT services firm EMIT (Eamon Moore IT) acquired the managed services business and customer base of local rival Softech, boosting its customer base to over 3,500 end users across enterprise, SMB and public sector organisations. The deal is expected to add a further two million euros in revenue over the next three years and is the latest step forward in Moore's well planned growth strategy. "EMIT has ambitious business development goals and will drive growth, both organically and through more acquisitions," he confirmed.

Moore established EMIT in 2003 following a solid grounding in the outsourced IT space. His IT career began earlier than most. It started after an introduction to his teacher's brother who ran CSK Software, one of Dermot Desmond's companies. Moore was just 15 at the time and spent his summers and school breaks working in CSK's IT department to learn the trade. During this period he completed a degree in Computer Applications. "In 1999 I was then lucky enough to work under another of Ireland's leading entrepreneurs, Denis O'Brien," commented Moore. "The Head of IT in CSK Software was appointed to launch Esat Clear, O'Brien's first venture into the residential Internet market. I was brought in to help set up the technical support department along with my CSK colleague."

In 2002 Moore took a call from Finbarr Crowley, Managing Partner of legal firm Crowley Millar Solicitors (who now sits on the EMIT board as Non-Executive Chairman) requesting consultancy services on IT projects. "I was still working part-time in Esat but we agreed I would provide these services two days a week," recalled Moore. "The EMIT seed was sown. A few months later after receiving more interest in my outsourced IT model I resigned from Esat. My week was full and I was officially in business."

The outsourced IT model was a big draw for SMEs. And after a number of years operating this model as a sole trader Moore set up his limited company in 2008 and opened his first office in Park House on the North Circular Road in Dublin. "I hired my first employees to build up a small team and we won a number of outsourced contracts," said Moore. "Businesses also required support and advice outside of our outsourced time so we built an IT support helpdesk service that would support our clients remotely."

This period of development coincided with the market uncertainty of the economic downturn but Moore said EMIT had a 'good recession' as its model and outsourced offering helped many businesses to benefit from a viable IT solution despite not being able to invest in internal resources. Having shown a resilient business model founded on solid experience Moore then decided to further his prospects by completing a diploma in Cloud Strategy at the Irish Management Institute in Dublin in 2012. "This transformed my thinking around business and the value of focus," he explained. "Our strategy lecturer closed the course by saying, 'with business strategy, it is just as important to be clear about what you won't do as it is about what you will do'. That line has stayed with."

Armed with knowledge and experience and following six months of research and planning Moore revamped his strategy in 2014. "After 10 years of providing consultancy and IT outsourcing services the EMIT board made a decision to move away from this business model which had become too broad and resource intensive," he said.

"We had amassed over 20 industry partnerships which was unmanageable. We also looked at key technology solutions and realigned EMIT to deliver the four pillars of Infrastructure, Cloud, Security and Business Productivity solutions. These are supported by a number of professional services including managed services, helpdesk, support, project management, training and consultancy. We made the bold decision to significantly reduce our partnerships, with Dell and Microsoft appointed at tier one level."

Moore's business pillars showcase the core technology solutions that he now delivers. The move has resulted in EMIT's most successful period with record growth in turnover and staff headcount (currently 16) as well as a number of industry accolades, the most notable being 2016 Microsoft Global Partner of the Year for SMB Cloud Solutions. "I spend a number of weeks each year with the Microsoft senior leadership team in Redmond," said Moore. "Close relationships with vendors are as vital as having constant engagements with customers about their business and technology challenges. It isn't just about going the extra mile for a customer, it's about being alongside them on the journey.

"This has led to further investments in our Business Intelligence practice. We want to bring BI to companies of all shapes and sizes to help them understand the true value of data. We will also focus more on technology-based solutions, enhance our security range and increase our software development capabilities. We intend to become a much larger organisation supported by investment and more strategic acquisitions."•

Full support in the supply of converged communications and IT services, a pioneering new buy-and-build business model and well planned route to exit offered - that's how mobile dealers can benefit from joining the Intec Business Network, according to Chairman Simon Howitt.

There is nothing secret about Howitt's formula for Intec Business Network's future success nor the rationale that underpins his strategy and proposition. Some get carried away with a great idea only to see it falter no matter how well thought out. But Howitt's big ambition is more a reflection of sound strategy than aspiration and optimism, drawing on knowledge gained from hard earned experience. And his plan to introduce to the mobile channel a pioneering new business model could not be more timely.

The importance of striking an equilibrium between bold visions and real world market opportunities was a lesson learnt by Howitt during his time at Outsourcery, a lesson he is putting to good use now with Intec. "I always want to be ahead of the pack and ride the wave of opportunity, but not so far ahead that you get battered when the wave breaks," he stated. "Outsourcery was far too forward and there were too many doubters. We had a great idea, great positioning and great people, but we were too pioneering. The big lesson learnt - no matter how great the idea, don't be too far ahead."

It is with this knowledge and acute sense of optimum timing that Howitt is introducing Intec Business Network to the mobile channel with great confidence having already piqued the interest of private equity players who form part of the business plan's end game. The objective is to bring a network of mobile dealers together who recognise the need to broaden their portfolios but do not have the resources to achieve their ambitions to become one-stop-shop comms and IT providers. Intec delivers these capabilities through its technology team that operates under the SparkHub banner. Companies using this service alone are called Affiliate partners and by committing over and above less beneficial third party relationships they receive a bigger share of the revenues.

But Intec's primary goal is to drive a buy and build strategy and bring strong customer relationships under its wing rather than simply acquiring customer bases with cross sell potential. This way Intec can help dealers engage with customers loyal to them and provide consultancy services. Mobile dealers who become technology services providers will naturally sell a wider set of solutions which means they could double the valuation of their business. Because of this upside the seller gains extra advantages beyond those of a standard disposal.

"We are clear with all partners that our plan is to build the network and within a three to five year period we will sell," commented Howitt. "At this point we envisage selling to PE and have discussed our plan with a small number of PE companies that are monitoring our progress. The upside of a PE deal is that 'owned' partners will benefit from enhanced values and PE will be attracted by the potential to scale. Partners who have helped to grow the business can continue if they wish."

Howitt aims to have six engaged and active partners by the end of the year, three of them owned by Intec. "Next year we want to reach 15 rising to 25 by the end of 2019," he added. "Within six months of pioneering the concept with Hale Communications we took the proposition to over 25 customers and 15 have already engaged while others are in progress. We appeal to dealers who understand that their customers want more than mobile but they don't have the capabilities to meet this demand. Our proposition enables such dealers to offer a solutions sell that pulls through products naturally. Dealers also need to understand that customers don't expect everything for free and will pay for services if they see value."

Howitt does not want to build a large network of partners, he aims to create a more intimate and hands-on relationship. "We are not looking to buy bases," added Howitt. "We want access to strong customer relationships and the dynamic between the dealer and their customer base is important. A differentiator for those we own is that their identity remains in place and we drive centralised back office synergies."

Building channel relationships that stand the test of time is one of Howitt's long held specialities. His career began in advertising and while working on a number of technology and mobile accounts he was introduced to Yes Telecom. "I joined the company as Sales & Marketing Director and continued for three years following its sale to Vodafone," explained Howitt. "Yes Telecom was acknowledged as a model channel business and its reputation is still an industry talking point. I then joined the team that backed an MBO of Genesis from DSG and was one of four founding shareholders of Outsourcery which launched as a Cloud Services Provider.

"Soon after its IPO in 2013 Finance Director David Burke and myself left. I remained close to David and also Ray Bell who was CTO at Yes Telecom. We collaborated on projects at Outsourcery. The three of us discussed the industry and where it was heading. It was a conversation that gave rise to the Intec concept."

Early last year the trio developed a plan to show how Intec could grow and quietly launched the concept in the summer. "We are now ready to extend our reach to partners who want to remain in their business and drive growth but also have an exit plan that benefits them by taking some value off the table now," added Howitt. "By offering more of a 'club' and collaborative feel they can join something that retains their identity but at the same time they are part of something bigger."

According to Bell, Intec's approach is based on a three stage methodology. "Firstly, investing time to understand our clients business, how they operate, their history and their plans for the future," he explained. "Secondly, we include in our scope all business processes and technology solutions from telecoms services to business applications and physical IT infrastructure. Thirdly, we set out a future technology vision and support the process of change with a plan that is achievable, has something in it for everyone and is business case led. By following this process we are able to help our clients to make best use of technology and improve the way they work."

But the frustration is that too many dealers have their head in the sand, are wedded to products, not solutions, and engage in price wars that devalue the industry. According to Howitt they need to wake up and smell the coffee. "When Yes Telecom was at the forefront of BlackBerry's surge of 'email on the move' we saw some dealers turn their backs and say 'this will never catch on'. In 2010 and 2011 when Outsourcery shared its vision many dealers and conventional providers thought we had just arrived from another planet. Now everyone is rushing into the cloud and providers who scoffed at cloud services are now building their proposition on them. What was seen as futuristic is now standard. It's no longer about convergence of telecoms, it's about the convergence and integration of all business collaboration and communication needs. It's about the convergence of mobile, voice and IT."

Analysis cited by Howitt suggests that just 20 per cent of a customer's technology spend goes into telecoms, meaning that many mobile dealers are leaving money on the table for more rounded rivals to pick up and potentially swipe the mobile spend from under their nose. The opportunity and risk is plain to see and Intec's intention is to help partners capitalise on the opportunities and de-risk not only from the competition but also from the challenge of recruiting specialist resources into their business and onto the payroll. For wise dealers there is a strong incentive to join the Intec Business Network and tap into its technology specialist team. "This function is run by Ray and is what the partner takes to their customers," said Howitt. "We will be developing regional centres for SparkHub to make sure we are close to partners throughout the UK."

Once Intec has engaged with a partner the fist job is to get them thinking about the concept of solutions versus products and to understand where the real value lies. The majority of partners open up quickly, enabling Intec to identify their obstructing issues. "They come to understand that customers need to see value," explained Howitt. "If dealers can show how technology and their skills can improve business processes companies will pay. Customers want help and advice to ensure they make the right technology decisions. So dealers must not fall into the mobile trap and crash the price assuming that customers will not pay for services that are valuable to them.

"The biggest opportunity is getting SMEs to understand that they can benefit from technology they thought only affordable by larger enterprise and corporate organisations. We can show them the value that technology brings to their business. We energise dealers to generate growth from their base, we motivate them to continue growing and share in greater future value. We have been in mobile, we have been in cloud services, we understand the channel, and we have a great blend of skills and capabilities."•