IBM has rolled out several bundles, made up of its
hardware, software, services, and financing programs, specifically
packaged to address the problems small to mid-sized businesses
face.
The offerings have at their core IBM's series of Express server
software, including versions of WebSphere Application Server
Express, WebSphere Portal Express, and DB2 Express.
IBM also announced a new certification program that all products
must meet, to show users and business partners that the bundled
solutions are not watered-down versions of existing offering for
enterprises.
To carry the Express name all products and services have to go
through a process where they meet certain minimum benchmarks for
performance, ease of use, simple installation, and overall ease of
ownership.
"This is not a one-size-fits-all strategy or approach we are
taking. We have designed these solutions working backwards by
starting with what the users want from them, and making sure they
are designed and priced appropriately for shops that do not have a
lot of money or IT resources to throw at integrated solutions,"
said Marc Lautenbach, general manager of IBM's global small and
medium division.
Lautenbach and other IBM executives cited the results of a
Nielsen ReelResearch survey sponsored by IBM. The good news from
the survey was that more than half the SMBs surveyed think
information technology will be the most important factor in helping
them achieve their business goals over the next 12 months. The bad
news is that most surveyed said the majority of solutions available
now are merely scaled-down solutions that have been around for
enterprises.
"This, in part is why these solutions are being delivered with
lots of autonomic capabilities for self-managing and self-healing.
[SMB] users want the software to fix itself, they don't want or
need IT to have to come in to save the situation. We have also
designed these products to deal with integration issues, which IT
shops both large and small are spending a good portion of their
budgets on these days," said Joann Duguid, vice president at IBM's
SMB systems group.
WebSphere Commerce Express aims to help midsized companies
create and better manage their e-commerce sites. The bundle is
powered by the company's Intel-based e-Server xSeries servers and
comes with WebSphere Portal Express, making it easier for a
company's employees to access important data as well as content
management tools.
Another WebSphere product is WebSphere MQ Express, which
connects a number of different applications allowing users to share
data across their infrastructure.
A third offering, called IBM eServer Integrated Platform Express
for Employee Workplace, is aimed at companies with between 100 and
250 employees and offers express configurations that can be
sculpted by IBM's business partners to accommodate a number of
different vertical markets including retail, distribution, and
healthcare. The bundle is made up of IBM's xSeries 255, Linux,
andWebSphere Portal Express.
The entry price is $35,000 for 20 users.
IBM's personal computing division unwrapped a program that makes
it easier for SMBs to buy, install, and manage the company's
ThinkPad notebooks and ThinkCentre desktops. Certain models within
these lines will be offered to SMBs with the pricing and
configuration advantages that are now available to large enterprise
accounts.
IBM's global financing division also kicked in with an offering
designed to make it easier for midsized companies to acquire and
expand On Demand Express solutions. Under a single contract users
can buy business applications, hardware, services, and
maintenance.
IBM Global Services unveiled its Global Services Express
Portfolio, which will offer a range of infrastructure support and
managed services for midsized businesses. The portfolio also
includes hosting and fixed priced implementation services with a
number of ISV partners including JD Edwards and SAP.
One example is the IBM Wholesale Distribution Solution for SAP,
which is a fixed priced solutionwhich enables midsized companies to
take part of their users supply chains or to better manage their
own more efficiently.
IBM officials said they intended to spend around $200m in demand
generation to create awareness of its Express solutions and those
of its business partners.
Ed Scannell writes for InfoWorld