Technology Reseller v37

NEWS : DISTRIBUTORS technologyreseller.co.uk 09 Channel partners are optimistic about the year ahead, with almost half (43%) of those surveyed by Nuvias Group expecting business growth of more than 10% in 2021. Almost two thirds (63%) expect growth of more than 5%. Much of this will be driven by cybersecurity, identified by 82% of respondents as the biggest opportunity in the Channel thanks to the mass shift to remote working and accelerated move to the cloud. The pressure on healthcare organisations to digitise processes in light of Covid-19 makes the healthcare sector an important vertical, cited as a key growth opportunity by 63% of respondents, followed by finance (36%), public sector (33%) and manufacturing (31%). In order to maximise opportunities in vertical sectors, partners highlighted the need to identify the right customers within each vertical sector (67%), to access specialist knowledge (55%) and to find a solution tailored to the sector in question (42%). When asked about the biggest challenges they face, 55% cited expanding their customer base. The next biggest was competitive bidding, cited by 18%. Distributors have a role to play in helping partners overcome these challenges, for example by providing quick and accurate quotes, cited as a valuable service by 80% of partners, and through tech assistance (35%). www.Nuvias.com The future’s looking bright for IT channel Rik Hubbard IT distribution off to a flying start in 2021 Market intelligence company CONTEXT is forecasting IT distribution in EMEA to grow by between 6% and 12% in the first three months of 2021. This follows a strong Q4 2020, when distribution sales in the region hit a record € 26.3 billion, representing year-on-year growth of 10.2%. With ongoing lockdowns continuing to drive demand in the homeworking and studying categories, CONTEXT is predicting growth of 25% in mobile computing in Q1 2021, 25% in monitors, 20% in computing components and 30% in computing accessories. Other fast growing areas include AV kit, up 30% year-on-year in Q1 2021 (estimated); smart home products, up 14%; and SaaS apps that meet the needs of remote workers in areas like office productivity, security and network management. CONTEXT Global MD Adam Simon said: “Everything we’re hearing is of continued strong demand in key technology areas supporting home working, such as mobile computing. In fact, our guidance would have been even higher if distributors were able to access all the stock they needed to meet demand. One of the biggest challenges for the industry this year will be the supply chain.” Product areas expected to do less well in Q1, partly for COVID-related reasons, are desktop PCs (-16%), LFDs (-5%) and other displays (-7%). www.contextworld.com Free asset management tool for Exertis Cloud customers Exertis Cloud is marking the launch of its new M365 software asset management tool, Smarter SaaS, by offering it free of charge to resellers that sign up for a cloud account before the end of March 2021. Offered in partnership with The Business Software Centre (TBSC), Smarter SaaS for Microsoft 365 is a cloud-based Software Asset Management solution that ensures users are on the right M365 subscription and, through an Exertis-branded dashboard, provides visibility of key factors for optimisation, including lapsed users, non- allocated applications, changing adoption rates and licensing compliance. Rik Hubbard, Cloud Services Director, Exertis Cloud, said: “We will be offering Smarter SaaS 365 to all partners who register for a cloud account and transition their existing business before the end of March – free of charge for the first 12 months of the relationship. Smarter SaaS 365 is a best-in-class business intelligence tool that enables cloud resellers to gain valuable insight into the way their customers are using the Microsoft licences and proactively help them to maximise their return on investment.” www.exertis.com/cloud-distributor/ Women in Tech Data Tech Data is inviting resellers, vendors and co-workers to nominate Tech Data employees who they think worthy of a Women in Tech Data Award, set up to recognise the contribution of female employees to Tech Data’s success. There are six categories – Manager of the Year, Role Model of the Year, Newcomer Award, Woman of the Year, Ally of the Year (open to colleagues of any gender who have supported female colleagues) and Unsung Hero. The winners will be announced in either April or May. www.techdata.com Arrow extends partner support with new programme Arrow Electronics has launched a new Arrow Authorised Partner Programme to help UK partners generate additional revenue from services, including assessment, pre-sales, deployment, project management, training and support. This programme gives access to 750 expert consultants through more than 25 Arrow Authorised Partner Programmes covering more than 70 vendors and technology segments. Mark McHale, Vice President Sales for Arrow’s enterprise computing solutions business, North-West EMEA, said: “The Arrow Authorised Partner Programme creates a broader pool of skills to support our resellers and their customers. Every product and solution sale is an opportunity for our customers to provide pre-sales, implementation or support services. If they aren’t offering these services to their customers, they might be missing out on additional margin, customer engagement and closer relationships.” fiveyearsout.com Mark McHale