Categorising communication services as a utility is to greatly understate and dumb down the business critical nature of connectivity products and services, says Entanet's Head of Marketing Darren Farnden.
"Connectivity is increasingly perceived as a utility but it's assumptive and complacent to see it that way," he stated.
"Organisations looking to transform themselves into super-efficient, responsive and digitally dependent operations need to keep that at the front and centre of their thinking."
He also emphasised the role of reliable and available fast connectivity as a key driver of digital transformation.
"Every business's digital transformation is driven by the nuts and bolts of communication, which includes every form of connectivity imaginable, such as business grade broadband, fixed and wireless Ethernet, IP VPNs, hosted voice, virtualisation and a myriad of cloud-based services," added Farnden.
"But comms often fails to be recognised as the linchpin of digital transformation. With the move towards hybrid infrastructures and growing use of cloud services, what connects a customer's digital strategy to the real world is one of the most important decisions they need to get right first time."
Farnden also believes that the customer experience is at the heart of digital transformation. "We live in an age where the customer expects to be able to access anything, at any time, from anywhere," he stated.
"If their chosen provider is unable to fulfil all of these obligations they'll simply move on to someone else who can.
"This is where the channel still has a golden opportunity to add value and ensure that a customer's digital transformation solution is fit for purpose."