Print.IT Reseller - issue 68

Channel partners who are able to provide value-added services will see strong margins when they focus on delivering business solutions and projects PRINT IT RESELLER.UK 43 PRINT PREDICTIONS continued... recognising the importance of a genuine work/life balance. Supporting flexible and home working comes hand-in-hand with this, so we’re also seeing a rise in requests for software and services that support the effective implementation of flexible working. We expect to see this demand growing throughout 2020. www.ebmltd.co.uk Gary Day, Group Sales Director, Annodata The technology channel is going through an exciting phase of its transformation, where opportunities for suppliers are multiplying. In 2020, we will see them developing broader propositions and offering a wider range of services, with flexible ‘consumption-based’ services and contracts. Channel partners who are able to provide value-added services will see strong margins when they focus on delivering business solutions and projects that require planning, implementation, integration, security, and compliance. Vendors will have to invest considerably in their programmes to prepare their partners for new opportunities and focus on any additional enablement resources, including tools and attractive offerings to help them differentiate themselves from the competition. Additionally, we may also see an increasing number of mergers and acquisitions as separate organisations join forces to improve and streamline their product and services. www.annodata.co.uk Alastair Adams, Director, Commercial Group As Atle Skjekkeland, President of the Digital Value Institute said recently: “EVERY organisation, EVERY executive, EVERY individual and EVERY object are now on a digital journey. Organisations need to decide whether they will be disrupted, manage the disruption, or want to lead the disruption.” We see this essential theme impacting all the markets we work in, and our response to it is the single most important factor in determining whether our businesses will continue to grow and prosper. From an information technology perspective, clients will increasingly want to adopt infrastructure as a service and software as a service, and therefore the focus will move away from the individual hardware and software components and be much more about the service or the experience. One of the benefits of this is that the ‘I’ of IT will become more important: information and data and how we use them effectively is key to improving productivity and enhancing the client’s experience. This theme is clearly impacting on print, because the way clients want to consume information directly affects the method and media we use to deliver it. Understanding why, and how, our Mark Bailey, Managing Director, EBM Managed Services n Brexit uncertainty: I’m sure this one’s at the top of everyone’s list. As things stand, we don’t know for certain the timeline or the manner in which the UK will leave the EU – and how this may affect SMEs. Planning for the unpredictable is a real challenge, but prioritising customer care will be key. n Importance of genuine relationships: Making sure that you provide a quality service and communicate well with your clients is key. When faced with an unpredictable political climate and potentially challenging business circumstances as a result, the key to retaining clients will not be an unsustainable race to the bottom: it will be establishing trusted, genuine relationships and weathering the storm together. n Market consolidation: The current trend for market consolidation is likely to continue, with private equity houses getting more involved in the industry. This will drive up the acquisition price of businesses, not necessarily reflecting the genuine value of the company and creating a potential ‘bubble’ of over- inflated business values. n Customer consolidation for simplicity and savings: Prioritising quality relationships over a race to the bottom doesn’t mean that price isn’t a factor in business. We’re seeing clients and prospects looking to consolidate suppliers and streamline their business processes and costs. This is simply common sense and is a trend we expect to continue into 2020 and beyond. n Focus on wellbeing and the rise of flexible working: Both within EBM and with our clients, we’re seeing a new focus on supporting staff as individuals and MarkBailey Gary Day Alastair Adams