Comms Dealer

Business investment in ICT has hit a new record high, jumping to £34.4bn last year - up by a quarter (24%) since the height of the recession in 2009 (when businesses' IT capital spending was just £27.6bn), according to BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions.

The company says that private sector IT investment has now 'far exceeded' its pre-crisis peak of £30.9bn in 2008.

According to BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions, this growth is being driven by investment in software which has jumped by 6% in the last year alone from £25.8bn in 2013 to £27.5bn in 2014. In the first quarter of this year, businesses spent £6.9bn on software.

Software now accounts for 80% of businesses' IT capital expenditure, up from 74% ten years ago.

Tristan Watkins UK Country Manager for BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions, said: "Investment in software is surging ahead because while most hardware has become relatively cheap and increasingly standardised, developments in software are advancing all the time.

"Whether that's industry or application specific software such as accounting or design packages, supply chain management programmes or sophisticated security software, businesses know that the right software will help them to be more efficient or provide better customer service than their competitors."

BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions says that as investment in IT continues to rise, it expects to see further growth in businesses' use of 'managed services', with small and medium sized IT suppliers taking advantage of leasing to enable them to offer managed services to wider range of businesses.

The managed service model allows businesses to keep IT costs under strict control by outsourcing much of their IT requirements for a transparent all-inclusive monthly fee.

The same supplier provides configuration, network, security, training and maintenance services, along with the hardware and software and warranties. The fixed monthly payment can be better for cash flow compared to paying for equipment and support needs individually up front.

However, unlike cloud-based solutions, which offer some of the same advantages, there is no need for the buyer's IT facility to be managed off-site. This is particularly important for businesses handling sensitive information and data.

Watkins added: "With businesses increasing their capital investment they want to keep their IT budget under strict control, but without the worries about data security that could come with switching to the cloud. Combining a monthly fee with an on-site service would offer the best of both worlds, helping businesses to keep any in-house IT function lean, and acquire expertise that they do not have themselves, without running up unexpected and unbudgeted costs.

"Unfortunately too few small to mid-sized IT suppliers have been able to provide this sort of service, because it means funding costs like hardware, software, installation and consultancy upfront. Only the largest suppliers - typically working with the biggest organisations - are able to do that.

"Leasing can help smaller IT suppliers to put these packages together, wrapped into a single fee. The leasing provider can fund all of the initial costs, which only leaves future costs such as ongoing maintenance to be funded by the supplier.

"For IT vendors, being able to provide a managed service helps them to build valuable, long-lasting customer relationships. They prove their expertise by providing on-going support, making them a valued partner not just a one-off supplier. The predictability of the monthly payments is also an attraction.

"Vendors are increasingly asking us about the financing packages that we can provide to make all this possible."

A former army Staff Sergeant is firing up a new career with Warrington-based reseller Avandda.

Steve Goddard spent 22 years in the army, deployed to areas such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Cyprus and Northern Ireland, most recently flying Unmanned Air Systems (UAS).

"It's the end of my military career which I have enjoyed and I am now transitioning into civilian life," he said. "For my resettlement I am going in to the telecommunications sector. I've done military telecommunications such as satellite comms and Wide Area Data Networks, so this is a natural fit now."

Goddard (pictured left) was part of a group of resellers who took part in in-depth training courses at Nimans' Manchester headquarters to boost his Samsung technical knowledge. A three-day OfficeServ Foundation course was followed by a two-day programme about Samsung's sophisticated SVMI voice messaging solution.

"I've just started a job as a Project Co-ordinator with Avandda, which I'm grateful for," Goddard continued. "It's been a bit of a learning curve as I'm only just starting off and I need to get some hands-on experience. But I'm a lot more knowledgeable now. The course has been a massive stepping stone."

The two courses were some of the first technical training events to be held in the north, as opposed to Harlow in the south, explained Nimans' Head of Systems Sales, John Mckindland who emphasised that 'plenty more will follow'.

He explained how the entry-level OfficeServ course forms the foundation of all engineer training. Hardware, end points, configuration and programming feature in the comprehensive content. SVMI voice messaging placed particular importance on how to deter toll fraud, as well as focusing on menus, modes and installation techniques.

Nimans' resellers are gearing up for a new NEC sales promotion that culminates in a motor sport race day in Holland.

The overall winner will witness one of the high performance cars displaying their own company logo as part of the NEC 2015 Blancpain Series - complemented by five star accommodation and hospitality at the Zandvoort Beach Circuit.

The long weekend in October features a canal boat trip, nightlife experience and behind-the-scenes racing including a grid and pitch walk - culminating in the Blancpain Championship race.

The centre-piece will be a Bentley GT3 complete with the winner's company logo, says John McKindland, Nimans' Head of Systems Sales.

"This four-day trip features a rare insight into the world of motor sport combined with the finest hospitality in the cosmopolitan city of Amsterdam. It will be an unforgettable experience for all those involved."

Qualification has already begun for the target-driven incentive which runs until September 15th.

Telcos must turn big data into smart data to manage customer churn and loyalty according to industry watcher Ovum.

Utilising big data analytics to personalise the customer experience will be crucial for telcos to manage customer churn and improve loyalty, says the firm.

It takes on average at least 3.5 years for telcos to break even on SAC (subscriber acquisition cost), however the average customer lifetime for telcos is currently only two years, claims Ovum.

To offset this, telcos must look to monetise their big data analytics investments and launch initiatives that will deliver value to their customers, reduce churn propensity and reduce the overall telco SAC.

As a part of its 'Using Big Data Analytics To Manage Customer Churn and Loyalty KPIs' report, Ovum explores the key KPIs that telcos must use to improve customer loyalty, and highlights practical uses of big data analytics across the business.

Ovum analyst, Chantel Cary, commented: "Churn rates among telcos have reached staggering heights and are climbing. Across all regions, telcos are seeing customers churn at rates as disparate as 1.5% to nearly 6% per quarter.

"Telcos recognise the importance of customer retention and understand that big data analytics will help to differentiate the customer experience; many, however, have hesitated to launch big data analytics initiatives that will drive personalised offers and encourage the cross-sell of products that will lead to greater loyalty.

"This was confirmed further in our survey results which showed that while more than 70% of telcos that have invested in big data have planned to apply big data analytics across the business, less than 20% of these telcos have been able to fully deploy analytics to support customer-focused initiatives.

"Poor management of customer-centric KPIs such as Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), Subscriber Acquisition Cost (SAC) and customer satisfaction scores have resulted in a vicious cycle of customer churn for telcos.

"When leveraged properly, however, big data analytics can be used monitor customer sentiment, anticipate their activities and provide actionable insights to trigger proactive measures. It supports a wide range of business initiatives, and can be used to improve churn and loyalty metrics, as well as ARPU and customer satisfaction."

Vodafone UK has launched its broadband and home phone services to millions of customers across the UK.

Available at speeds up to 76 Mbps, Vodafone's nationwide fibre optic, business-grade network reaches exchanges which pass around 22 million premises across the UK.

This launch builds on the success of Vodafone's fixed broadband services across 12 countries in Europe where it is one of the largest providers with more than 11 million subscribers.

Jeroen Hoencamp, CEO of Vodafone UK, said: "We have had great feedback on our broadband service from the customers involved in our regional launch. 

"We are pleased that they are finding the speeds as fast as they hoped for, while the Vodafone Connect companion app gives them control over their devices."

Mark Windle, Head of Marketing at OpenCloud, observed: "Vodafone's move into the broadband market shows how traditional telecoms operators are seeking out opportunities to horizontally integrate access networks - fixed and wireless. In the broader sense it is mobile, fixed-line and Wi-Fi all coming together to offer complete and cost-effective connectivity packages.

"In doing this, Vodafone will be able to keep their customers connected via their network for much more of the time.

"BT's acquisition of EE will help achieve a similar goal, but if all providers are heading that way then differentiation will need to be found in service innovation. After all, the services are really what the subscribers want - access is somewhat of a commodity these days."

When Oak joint CEO Phillip Reynolds and his son David sit down to plan business development projects they certainly do it in style.

This year the duo have bought a limited edition orange Dodge RAM 1500 with a 5.7 V8 Hemi engine under the bonnet to travel the famous Route 66 Highway, driving from Toronto down to Chicago, then across America to LA.

Reynolds told Comms Dealer: "David runs Oak SI, our technical development team in Canada .We do a 'Father and Son’ bucket list trip each year and combine that with development planning for the year ahead.

"We did Mount Snowdon two years ago, Iceland and the Northern Lights last year, this year Route 66, next year is the Himalayas and a three week trek to Tibet perhaps, then Alaska, and perhaps a John O'Groats to Lands End cycle ride. Life is short!\"

On the back of the Government’s plans to connect 95% of the UK to superfast fibre broadband by the end of 2017, Gamma has announced a combined SIP over Fibre to the Cabinet (FTTC) offer for selected Channel Partners.

Under the deal, they will get 12 months free rental on FTTC when combined with a minimum of eight SIP channels over a 36 month contract.

Gamma says the promotion is also designed to further accelerate the wholesale migration of ISDN to SIP following BT’s recent announcement about its intention to migrate all customers on to the IP network by 2025.

Gamma was one of the first mainstream providers to commit to SIP as an alternative to ISDN and now with its imminent demise announced, it’s a decision many of its partners should welcome

Stephen Ashley-Brian, Convergence Product Manager at Gamma, commented: "With FTTC broadband offering more concurrent calls and better call quality, we see the sub-30 channel market as key with over a million channels waiting to be converted to SIP.

"FTTC will continue to open up this market and speed the transition as forecasts already indicate that over 1.5 million SIP channels have already been deployed, providing proof of the impact of SIP as a far more cost-effective alternative to ISDN.\"

Steve Fenner, Head of Product Development at Gamma Channel Partner Peach, added: "Being able to act as our customers’ single point of contact for both data and IP voice makes us easy to do business with, from sales and provisioning, through to in-life changes and support.

"Combined with their commercial flexibility, Gamma helps us retain differentiation in the market, attract new customers and win more deals. We look forward to taking advantage of this great incentive and our continued success as a Gamma partner.\"

With end customers themselves becoming more aware of the end of ISDN, Gamma says the opportunity to address these needs combined with the overall enthusiasm for faster internet speeds make the SIP/FTTC combination the ideal choice.

As for the SME opportunity within the channel, Gamma believes that this 12 month free FTTC promotion will provide the added commercial incentive to help their customers justify the transition now rather than wait much longer.

Like so many things today, immediate capital purchases are declining in favour of monthly paid goods and services. Whether it's your home, your gas bill, your new car or your telephony solution, consumers and businesses are moving inexorably towards a credit-turnover model, writes Clive Jefferys, Managing Director of telco recruiter, JMA Network.

For most dealers the days of selling tin and getting a lump-sum pay out from a leasing company have become a thing of the past.

We may dress it all up as 'making our clients sticky' or 'building forward revenues' but the plain fact is that to stay competitive, nearly everything has to be quoted as an ongoing monthly charge.  

This has put plenty of strain on dealer cashflow in recent times and now it seems that the rise of hosted telephony will complete this income flow transformation.

The even bigger issue is what this means for the sales people we all rely upon.

Good capital sales people are motivated by four figure commission cheques, but where are they going to come from in future? It's all very well selling a five year contract, but if sales commission becomes £100 per month instead of £2,000 next month, is this truly motivating?  

While many argue that this is an opportunity to build a long term revenue/commission stream, most people instinctively mistrust long-term employer promises.

Rightly so, given the way that sales pay schemes tend to adjust, usually downwards, retrospectively, year on year!

Another factor is how deeply technical the telecoms sale has become.

Compared to selling calls, lines and PBX, the complexities of VoIP, SIP, cloud etc take years to grasp. Add in several years of recession and you can start to see why telecoms has failed to attract the next wave of sales recruits it needs to keep moving forward.

What's the solution to this looming Sales Skills Gap? We all need to start training salespeople again, growing them within the business to create loyalty and expertise. Key to this is paying them better, to protect them from temptation elsewhere.

High performing resellers were in the swing on a VIP visit to the British Golf Open, courtesy of a Nimans and Unify sales incentive.

As an official Unify distributor, Nimans teed up the opportunity to savour top class hospitality at the 144th Open Championship in St Andrews as the world’s top players converged to compete for one of the sport’s biggest prizes.

Resellers who smashed their sales targets were treated to a full day of VIP hospitality in The Champions Club plus two nights’ accommodation in Edinburgh with local transport to and from the event provided as well as dining and drinks.
"The Champions Club offered some of the finest sporting hospitality I’ve ever experienced, enabling guests the opportunity to soak up the atmosphere in the vibrant Hospitality Village next to the 16th hole,\" explained Paul Burn, Head of Category Sales at Nimans.

"They were able to follow the action by walking the course or watch on a giant outdoor screen. High profile occasions of this nature represent a very compelling way of recognising and rewarding those resellers who go the extra mile and significantly exceed their sales targets. We’ve had lot of positive feedback from those that attended. It was a day to remember.\"

Eight places were up for grabs based on high sales performance and official accreditation, said Tony Smith, Unify’s UK and Ireland Channel Sales Director.
"The opportunity to watch some of the world’s greatest golfers with some of the UK & Ireland’s greatest partners was a superb experience,\" he remarked. "Everyone involved thoroughly deserved their day at The Open based on their sales success. Here’s to next year!\"

SMB focused Cloud provider Intermedia has joined the Cloud Industry Forum to support UK IT resellers as they transition to Cloud-based services.
Richard Walters, General Manager for Intermedia EMEA, hopes to help resellers profit from the growing demand from SMBs for business Cloud applications.

There are some shining examples of resellers that are reaping Cloud rewards – but there are many that have yet to adopt it. Intermedia can support resellers who are uncertain as to how to take their first steps to the Cloud, as much as we can support those that are looking to transition their whole business to the Cloud.

"There's a significant opportunity, but moving successfully to the Cloud does call for fundamental changes to resellers' business models and it's important that Cloud providers like us can support their transition. The work of the Cloud Industry Forum is crucial to driving change in the industry. Working alongside its community of members we plan to drive Cloud enablement and identify new ways we can support the channel," he added.

Intermedia says its Cloud management platform is completely tailored to the IT channel for both VARs and MSPs. The platform includes Intermedia's Office in the Cloud suite of business Cloud applications, and encompasses over 20 tightly integrated IT services with products such as Hosted Exchange for business-grade email.

Alex Hilton, CEO of the Cloud Industry Forum, commented: "The channel has a critical role to play in the continued adoption of Cloud services. Intermedia stands as a good example of a Cloud provider that is fully committed to supporting the channel and we are therefore very pleased to welcome them to our roster of members.\"