Comms Dealer

As part of BT's mission to promote volunteering within the community, Martin Clarke, Head of BT Business Partner Sales, led a team of volunteers from BT who wasted no time in transforming the grounds of Woodlands School (which helps children with special needs) in Coleshill, Warwickshire.

Their work involved painting a shed as well as four benches, the construction of seven planters in the vegetable garden and the repair of others, the creation of new borders, a re-laid astra turf and making areas accessible for wheelchairs.

Clarke said: "Volunteering gives our people the opportunity to make a difference in the local community and build skills in a way that benefits them, the community and our business."

Iain Paterson, Head Teacher at Woodlands School, added: "It was not just the results attained by the BT team that impressed me, it was their coordination, leadership, commitment, passion and work ethic."

Former Griffin-er Dan Priestman has joined Eclipse Internet as Channel Sales Manager with a remit to drive the sales effort and educate the channel on new products and services around the growing Eclipse Cloud and Communicate portfolios.

Priestman joins Eclipse from Griffin where he was responsible for securing, managing and growing some of Griffin's largest channel partners.

He said: "I'm looking forward to meeting the Eclips partner base and supporting our partners as they are introduced to the wider Eclipse Cloud and Eclipse Communicate portfolios."

Henry West, Head of Sales at Eclipse, noted: "With Dan's wealth of experience and seven years working in the channel, his knowledge and expertise will be invaluable when bringing on board new products and services and working with our new and existing partners."

Brocade has announced the appointment of Ari Bose to the position of Chief Information Officer. Responsible for the strategic transformation of the global Brocade IT organisation, Bose will report to Gale England, vice president of Customer Advocacy and Operational Effectiveness.

With more than 30 years of experience in the high tech industry, Bose has held a number of CIO positions at networking and other tech companies. Most recently at Polycom, he served as senior vice president and CIO where he led the transformation of the global IT organisation.

He was also responsible for overseeing the company's internal global visual communications network.

Prior to that, Bose was senior vice president and CIO at UTStarcom, and he has held senior IT positions at companies such as 3Com, Bay Networks and Apple.

In his new position, Bose will leverage Brocade's portfolio of data centre networking solutions and partner solutions to create an IT function that can drive the company forward and become a showcase for the industry.

Specifically, Bose is tasked with standardising the company's internal IT systems to support cross-functional collaboration and manage information security and risk.

One major initiative is to continue expanding the company's network-centric virtualisation strategy in which Brocade currently operates at more than 70 per cent virtual workloads.

"It is fair to say that the networking market is changing at an exponential pace, driven largely by user demands and fiscal pressures," said Bose. "Brocade has almost 20 years of experience in driving data centre innovation, and I am thrilled at the prospect of continuing this heritage. I am excited about how the data centre of the future can drive business transformation. I hope that by seeing how we are embracing fabrics and a highly virtualized architecture, other businesses will understand how Brocade can empower change within their own environments."

Virtual1 and Voicenet Solutions have formed a strategic partnership under which Voicenet becomes an Elite Partner of Virtual1's Partner Accreditation Programme.

The Elite status offers a high level of sales and industry training as well as enhanced product levels and strategic support across the business. As part of the agreement Virtual1 will peer with Voicenet guaranteeing the end-to-end quality of service.

Charles Aylwin, Director Channel & Public Sector at Voicenet, commented: "Partnering with Virtual1 at the Elite level extends our core offering and reflects the commitment of both organisations to provide partners with flexible solutions supported by a customer-centric service ethos."

Tom O'Hagan, Managing Director at Virtual1, said: "Our Accreditation Programme has been successful throughout the last 12 months enabling our partners to maximise the value they receive from us. It was an initiative designed with our partners' needs at the forefront. Voicenet brings a synergy with its approach to business, offering customer solutions of the highest order."

Video solutions company Imago Group is making its cloud-based video conferencing service, VaaS-t, available in a simplified range of fixed-price monthly subscription packages for resellers to offer to customers.

A flat monthly subscription rate means that the user can deploy the service as often as needed without incurring any additional costs.

The hosted service delivers telepresence-quality video conferencing to devices including desktop or laptop PCs, tablets, iPhones and android mobiles. It is accessible through a web-link and based on video collaboration technology from Vidyo.

Resellers can offer the the new subscription packages to customers of all sizes with a range of video conferencing needs.

The three levels are: VaaS-t 8, which enables the subscriber to invite up to eight individuals into a video conference from both inside and outside their organisation, regardless of their location. VaaS-t 16, to increase the number up to a maximum of 16 people and VaaS-t 25, which is the maximum number currently supported through the subscription service.

Ian Vickerage, Managing Director at Imago Group, said: "Technology users want to know how much they are paying and don't want to experience the unwelcome added-costs scenario associated with cheap flights, or using a mobile abroad. By offering VaaS-t on subscription, resellers can reassure customers that they have the security of a retained service at a fixed price with no hidden extras, no risk of hardware failure, no requirement for in-house IT expertise and unlimited usage."

Outsourcery has unveiled a new UC2013 solution for partners aimed at their SMB customer base.

The company is introducing its latest cloud platform to offer secure Unified Lync and Cloud Mail, Outsourcery's email solution, based on Microsoft Exchange, which will provide partners with the latest unified communications solution at a low cost, claims the firm.

Offering UC2013 via a quick-to-deploy cloud platform is the logical next step to helping partners cater specifically to SMB customers, which have a need for secure cloud-based solutions, but which often don't have a large budget for IT.

A recent white paper from the Cloud Industry Forum (CIF) found that 71 per cent of UK businesses with 20-200 employees use at least one cloud service and 79 per cent include consideration for cloud services within their wider IT strategy.

"It is important to us to make sure that our offerings are accessible and affordable to smaller and medium-sized businesses, as well as large enterprises," said Piers Linney, Co-CEO of Outsourcery.

"With the cloud, this flexibility is entirely possible and we have tapped into this to create a solution that is reachable for the smallest of businesses.

"With an increasing number of SMBs adopting cloud services for this increased flexibility and reliability, we want to be sure that our partners are adequately prepared for the demand so they can benefit from this opportunity, and UC2013 marks an important step for us and them in this journey."

Node4 has become a sales partner for UNIVERGE 3C in the UK, extending its strategic partnership with NEC.

Node4 is also now a key Service Partner, providing support for broader deployments of UNIVERGE 3C by other resellers.

UNIVERGE 3C is a software-based unified communications and collaboration package that can be delivered to any device - smartphone, tablet, PC, Mac or on a deskphone - as a self-sufficient standalone VoIP solution.

UNIVERGE 3C delivers a suite of functionality that can be used anywhere, anytime, and enables total control over how, when and where users choose to be reached.

UNIVERGE 3C can support the needs of SMEs and large enterprises, supporting anything from 40-50 users to over 10,000.

Node4's new role as key service partner for UNIVERGE 3C is the latest stage of the long-term relationship between Node4 and NEC.

Jim Eagers, Marketing Manager at NEC, commented: "UNIVERGE 3C is a proven solution that can deliver significant value to businesses of all sizes as 'Generation C' employees increasingly demand technology that helps them to work flexibly, how they want and where they want.

"To support our sales push in the UK we needed a strong, well-established partner, well attuned to delivering a product like UNIVERGE 3C. We have had a successful relationship with Node4, and its blend of experience and expertise means it is perfectly placed to support the broad roll out of UNIVERGE 3C in the UK."

Richard Buxton, Voice Services Manager at Node4, added: "NEC continues to be a key technology partner for Node4, and in combination with our voice, communications and networking expertise we fully expect UNIVERGE 3C to be a successful product."

Ingram Micro is to mark the launch of a new partnership with Purple WiFi by showcasing its Cisco collaboration solution at Cisco's London Partner Forum on Wednesday 16th October.

Purple WiFi is a cloud based secure WiFi hotspot system authenticated through social media, bringing enhanced social reach, analytics and reporting to a range of customers within the retail, leisure and hospitality industries.

Purple WiFi offers varying levels of service providing solutions for small independents to large, multi-site businesses.

The solution works with any hardware, plus native integrations with Cisco and Cisco Meraki wireless products.

Head of Category for Data Centre, Infrastructure and Networking at Ingram Micro, Daniel Maynard, commented: "We're pleased to be showcasing Purple WiFi's Enterprise Guest WiFi which fully integrates with Cisco WLAN and Cisco Meraki to bring our customers high margin opportunities in retail, hospitality, leisure, healthcare and education."

Gavin Wheeldon, Purple WiFi CEO added: "We believe Purple WiFi is a truly innovative product and this partnership enables us to bring our expansion plans into focus by presenting the solution to Ingram Micro's broad customer base."

Purple WiFi's solution links with social media platforms to capture visitor data and has already proved essential in shopping centres and leisure clubs.

 www.purplewifi.net

Managing Director Stuart Baikie is resolute about taking Cheltenham-based Total to the next level of its development. Here, with real conviction, he sets out the company's strategic growth aspirations.

Although Total's recent 15th birthday celebrations may be neatly filed in memory there is no looking back for Baikie as he prepares the company for its most intense period of transformation. Convinced that hosted solutions and managed services are now the talk of the town, and with his mind set on taking Total from £11.5 million turnover to £25 million by 2015, Baikie has given the firm's aspirations a strategic blessing and he is already putting policy into action. "We have made significant steps into the cloud and hosted arena and are strengthening our existing propositions in these areas as well as complementary IT related products and services," he said. "We are looking at potential acquisitions this financial year. These will put us on the way to hitting our revenue target."

Growth opportunities primarily exist within hosted propositions and cloud services, noted Baikie, but it would be folly to sideline the mobile staple therefore his plan includes the expansion of Total's successful mobile Focus Partner channel. "I wouldn't underestimate the mobile market, both now and in the future," added Baikie. "This is one area where revenues are not diminishing and more comms companies are starting to recognise the importance of including mobile in their product portfolio. Furthermore, customers are finally starting to ask for such solutions. That's why our partner channel is such an integral part of our own strategy."

Total's programme has proved to be a remarkable success and Baikie puts this down to his ongoing quest for operational improvement and development. "Over the past year we have continued to look at ways we can improve our channel offering, from service and support through to technology," he explained. "From a partner perspective, we all want to better service our customers from the sales cycle through to ongoing support and retention. We believe that much of what we are doing is stand-out and can genuinely help partners gain a competitive edge by giving them control of their mobile base and allowing them to dictate their own SLAs."

The launch of YourView+ (a mobile provisioning portal) in April this year is a particularly notable development in Total's programme. Until its roll out partners initiated actions via the Helpdesk. For example, new connections, requests for tariff or SIM changes or even just to check the bolt-ons associated with a number. "Partners now have a resource at their fingertips that offers an unprecedented level of access to the O2 network," explained Baikie. "They now have the control needed to be able to dictate their own SLAs to their own mobile bases and better serve their customers. From our side, this change of ownership means our partner team is able to spend more time assisting with other areas of service, such as bid support or retention and incentives. It has also given us the capacity to concentrate on growing our channel safe in the knowledge that we can do so without compromising the service levels our partners receive. The difference YourView+ has made both to our partners and internally is outstanding. In the six months since launch we have seen a massive 65 per cent reduction in Helpdesk tickets."

Total's partner recruitment strategy to date has concentrated on a small number of carefully selected partners, providing the necessary infrastructure and resource to work closely with and support them. "This has worked well and enabled the programme to succeed and deliver some fantastic results for all concerned," commented Baikie. "Following our internal changes we are now ready for the next phase of channel growth. But again, our current partner recruitment drive and strategy firmly adheres to those same principles. We are looking for a finite number of new partners who share our ethos, and by working in true partnership, we can help all parties reach their respective goals."

Although their individual core businesses vary, potential partners in the main come to Total specifically for mobile. However, new products and services are also being introduced. "We have recently had a couple of partners approaching us to help them with their fixed bases and I expect to see this diversification increasing in the future," noted Baikie. "Our channel has seen first hand the way we do things, the tools, technology and infrastructure we have in place to support them, so I believe others will follow suit. We also have strong and well established relationships within our own supply channel and this undoubtedly benefits our partners too, outside of the main mobile offering."

If the strategies espoused by Baikie haven't yet grabbed your Total attention, a new doors-open Ryder Cup 2014 incentive scheme certainly will. "We wanted to launch an incentive that would reward all of our partners, so I like to think this is a different way of doing things as many incentives just reward a select few top performers," Baikie commented. "My view is that if you are meeting your agreed targets you should be sharing in that success. We are also opening up this opportunity to any new partners who come aboard by the start of the new year, and hope that all of our channel will be able to join us at the Ryder Cup. We have a superb weekend lined up with accommodation and two days of full hospitality with a great vantage point adjacent to the 18th green. This is a great opportunity to spend time and network with other partners at what has to be one of the best sporting events in the UK."

Loyalty and partnership runs through Total's core and to prove the point more than half of the firm's 42 employees have been with the company for over five years. "We have a culture that encourages people to be successful and make a real difference in contributing to the company," added Baikie. "Team members are empowered to make decisions and put forward their own ideas for all aspects of the business. This has a significant effect on our staff retention rates‚ which of course benefits our customers and partners too.

"Reward and recognition are important so we launched a share option scheme in 2008 with allocations made annually across the business. We do all we can to create a nice working environment, from a recent full office refurbishment to providing a kitchen bearing fruit. And we have fun too. To see the way the company has grown into a mature and successful business and how it continues to do so, with exciting developments on the horizon, is a fantastic achievement both personally and for all concerned."

Peter Tebbutt, incoming Country Sales Director for UK&I at Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, has wasted no time in driving forward with an invigorated strategy that includes seamless teamwork, the development of key target markets and the selective onboarding of new partners while continuing to invest in existing channels.

To say that Tebbutt relishes a challenge would be to greatly understate his bias towards setting ambitious personal objectives and realising his targets, which include three triathlons this year, plus helping to raise £12,000 for Marie Curie Cancer Research by organising and taking part in a two-day 170 mile charity cycle ride. "On a personal level it's about the strong relations and support I have with the teams around me," he commented. "Driving a team culture and having open and honest relations is what gives me a buzz."

Known within Alcatel-Lucent as someone who embraces challenges and does not baulk at opportunities, Tebbutt became the obvious choice for an EMEA role two years ago before taking up a global position last year. "Alcatel-Lucent rewards people who are willing to challenge themselves," he stated. "My previous experience as Global Strategic Business Development Director for Network Infrastructure has allowed me to see many examples globally of what works and what doesn't. I believe we can do more to drive our solutions with our partners and provide profitable growth for all. Already this year we have experienced success in the two key growth markets for data centre switching and converged networks, and we will build on these advances in 2014."

Contract wins of significance include data projects for Kingston University and the infrastructure for North Bristol NHS Trust's new £430 million hospital. "Customer references and case studies such as these drive our business," stated Tebbutt. "The end user wants to see and learn from the experiences of other organisations. We are winning market share in the UK and Ireland, and this is proved not only by our customer references but also in the reports of industry analysts such as Gartner and Infonetics."

According to Tebbutt, businesses and partners need to fully understand what they are buying or investing into in terms of real business value. "Brand in today's market can mislead customers from buying best in class solutions," he explained. "We have some great technology as do some of our competitors, but no one should buy anything just because it's been their tradition or because they assume they won't be fired for doing so. We aim to change this status quo with a competitive portfolio of solutions and more references in the UK&I than ever. We are working to build on our success by addressing the transformation in technology and business models."

Tebbutt is sharply focused on driving business through the channel as well as helping direct partners move to the cloud, UC and data. However, prioritising channel development and support for existing and new channels is not a volume discussion, rather an exercise based on quality and not at the expense of undermining existing partners. "We will of course be supporting our existing partners as we develop new channels," added Tebbutt. "We have a dedicated headcount to enable channel development and Alcatel-Lucent has invested 100,000 euro in a new Maidenhead-based demonstration facility for partners. We're seeing a distinct correlation between customer success and opportunity by showing the UC user experience."

One of the biggest challenges will be supporting channels and driving business as organisations migrate to a mobile enterprise model, noted Tebbutt. "We have to be flexible and offer our partners and customers solutions that enable them to meet and address this transformation, focusing on the user experience and making cloud services personal," he said.

Driving success in SMB is another key goal and Tebbutt has been busy visiting partners to talk about Alcatel-Lucent's new SMB cloud proposition which, he claims, offers an opportunity over and above just being a white label reseller. "Most importantly our proposition will give partners the opportunity to make more margin, revenue and differentiate in the market, versus the vanilla hosted services being deployed today," he said.

Tebbutt's clear view extends to a vision of UC that goes beyond the desktop to address the full mobile enterprise. "We have strong references including health, government, education, transport and hospitality and will invest in partners who want to drive profitable business forward," he added. "We will leverage our value proposition for Unified Communications and unified access and make sure our customers are fully aware of our strong position; and we will increase our direct touch activity into the key verticals we have identified to drive incremental business."

The word 'we' features heavily in Tebbutt's conversation, a trait that epitomises the high value he places on people working together as one unit towards a common goal. "The culture that I nurture is based on teamwork, open and honest communications and clear rules of engagement with our channels," he said. "We want to sell our full portfolio and solution set to end users via our channel. Communication is key and rewarding success is a priority. Everyone is accountable for their part of the business and we support each other, focusing on the methods that work and repeating successes." •