News

Sales and Customer Management

August 29, 2012 29 Aug'12
Citrix to add more product training to Elite Academy scheme

Citrix is in the process of making a series of tweaks to its Elite Partner Academy training scheme, including the addition of more technical training on its own products.
August 28, 2012 28 Aug'12
MicroScope's top stories, week ending 24 August 2012

Our weekly round-up of the most popular digital content here on MicroScope.co.uk.
August 23, 2012 23 Aug'12
HP plunges to $8.9bn loss

Hewlett-Packard has posted an enormous $8.9bn (£5.6bn) loss in the third quarter of its fiscal 2012.
August 06, 2012 06 Aug'12
Sony partners get notebook incentives

Sony is to offer partners the chance to win one of three office ‘makeover’ packages as part of an incentive to push sales of recently-refreshed VAIO notebook and ultrabook lines.

August 06, 2012 06 Aug'12
Channel cloud code gets ISO certifications

The Cloud Industry Forum (CIF) and its independent certification partner, APM Group, have launched a new version of its cloud code of practice (COP), incorporating ISO certifications for the first time.
July 30, 2012 30 Jul'12
Vodafone ousts Cable & Wireless management

Vodafone is to replace a swathe of top execs at Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CWW), with chief exec Gavin Darby and CFO Ian Gibson among those on the way out.
July 13, 2012 13 Jul'12
Phoenix on prowl for new sales teams as pipeline swells

Phoenix IT sales director John Hall has revealed the restructuring of the company is beginning to have a positive effect on its sales pipeline.
July 13, 2012 13 Jul'12
Siemens lavishes funding on potential UC VARs

Siemens Enterprise Communications (SEC) is offering a range of incentives to entice new partners into its unified communications channel programme.
July 12, 2012 12 Jul'12
Avnet picks up Mattelli assets to bolster services

Avnet Technology Solutions has picked up the assets of IT estate management specialist Mattelli Ltd to add muscle to the services it can offer resellers
July 11, 2012 11 Jul'12
Maverick extends Promethean cash-back offer

A deal to tempt schools to upgrade their interactive whiteboards from Promethean has been extended until the end of the year

July 09, 2012 09 Jul'12
Stark warning sounded for generalist resellers

Those resellers that have not developed a specialisation will face the combination of economic problems and competition will make life increasingly difficult
July 06, 2012 06 Jul'12
'Reseller' description losing value in the channel

Consultants and total solution providers are the labels that channel players prefer to use as they move away from using the well worn phrase 'reseller'
July 03, 2012 03 Jul'12
Embotics V-Commander VARs in services push

Virtualisation and automated cloud management specialist Embotics has rolled out a new programme to help its partner community build a services business around its flagship V-Commander product.
July 02, 2012 02 Jul'12
C2000 keeps focus on public sector

Computer 2000 continues its push on the public sector arming resellers with tendering skills as it targets the education market
July 02, 2012 02 Jul'12
Avnet makes cuts in the North

Avnet Technology Solutions is set to close its Leeds office as it consolidates its Northern operations and has announced that Paul Cook is stepping down from his general sales role.
June 29, 2012 29 Jun'12
TSG claims Sage CRM Developer first

TSG has become the first Sage partner to achieve the software vendor's CRM Developer Accreditation.
June 29, 2012 29 Jun'12
Trustmarque uncovers Scottish NHS bonanza

Trustmarque has scored a lucrative £20m contract to provide software and services to the Scottish health service under a new NHS National Services Scotland (NHS NSS) framework.
June 27, 2012 27 Jun'12
Welcome to the new look MicroScope

Welcome to the new look MicroScope. All the news, analysis and opinions updating you on the latest channel developments are here on a freshly redesigned web site.
June 26, 2012 26 Jun'12
CIOs lack the board room muscle to direct IT strategy

CIOs are failing to have the boardroom impact because IT is still siloed in a business denying them an overall strategic role in the business
June 26, 2012 26 Jun'12
Resellers to give Daisy partner programme the once-over

Daisy Group partners have been invited to kick the tyres of the firm's indirect partner programme at its 'Evolve' relaunch event to be held this week in the Midlands.
June 26, 2012 26 Jun'12
Avnet freshens up Microsoft partner programme

Avnet Technology Solutions has launched a Microsoft initiative designed to enhance partner expertise around critical elements of its solution set, including SharePoint, SQL and Systems Centre.
June 20, 2012 20 Jun'12
ACEs winners - the full list

The full list of those that have won awards for channel excellence in the reseller, distributor and technology categories
June 19, 2012 19 Jun'12
MicroScope ACEs winners revealed

The full list of the MicroScope Awards for Channel Excellence has been revealed in the June digital magazine.
June 15, 2012 15 Jun'12
Midmarket bosses open to partnerships

IBM midmarket survey shows more willingness from midmarket CEOs to form partnerships with third-parties to gain a commercial advantage
June 15, 2012 15 Jun'12
ANS among first to nab elite Cisco NetApp FlexPod badge

Networking and cloud integrator ANS has become one of the first Cisco and NetApp partners in the UK, alongside DiData and Logicalis, to be named to the vendors' joint FlexPod Premium Partner Framework.
June 15, 2012 15 Jun'12
VAD concept effectively meaningless, says VAD

The concept of the value added distributor (VAD) has been branded effectively meaningless by one of the term's most vocal advocates, self-styled SuperVAD Exclusive Networks.
June 14, 2012 14 Jun'12
Computacenter to hire 700 services staff

Computacenter is to embark on a major recruitment drive, on-boarding over 700 new staff on the Services side - transferring others from customers and their historical suppliers - in the wake of a surprise upturn in its business.
June 08, 2012 08 Jun'12
Data breach victims likely to lose customers

Varonis Systems says a recent report highlights the fact that people are less likely to deal with an organisation where their data has been lost due to a breach, writes Linda Endersby.
June 08, 2012 08 Jun'12
Face-to-face communication still crucial for channel success

With improvements in technology and social media, communication in business has been transformed, writes Linda Endersby.
June 07, 2012 07 Jun'12
UK legal sector ripe for cyber-attack, warn experts

A leading lawyer and security expert has cautioned UK law firms that their failure to tackle online security is leaving clients increasingly vulnerable to hackers, writes Linda Endersby.
May 30, 2012 30 May'12
Social networks becoming communication medium of choice

Resellers assuming that a website is enough of a cyber-shop window to promote their services and products could find themselves lagging behind as social networks become the primary form of communication.
May 29, 2012 29 May'12
Economic conditions and skill shortages threaten MSPs

Tough economic conditions coupled with skills shortages threaten to hold back the market and development of managed service providers (MSPs). The warning that the financial climate is stunting more investment in managed services has been sounded in ...
May 29, 2012 29 May'12
Avnet adds social media to reseller services

Avnet has taken the wraps off a social media tool designed to help resellers keep their customers informed about the main developments in the vendor community.
May 28, 2012 28 May'12
Restructuring costs wipe out Phoenix profits

Full year pre-tax profit at IT services provider Phoenix IT Group has plunged 85% after the firm booked non-recurring costs of £14.9m relating to its ongoing re-organisation programme and £8.1m relating to the end of the ICM brand.
May 25, 2012 25 May'12
Five minute interview: Jason Dance, Exclusive Networks

MicroScope sits down with Jason Dance, Exclusive Networks UK sales director, for another hard-hitting Five Minute Interview. Tell us what you do for a livingAs sales director for Exclusive Networks UK, it's my job to make sure we hit, and where ...
May 24, 2012 24 May'12
HP slashes staff, restructures as profits plunge 31%

HP has announced plans to ditch 27,000 jobs, or 8% of its workforce, and will embark on a radical restructuring programme in a bid to cut costs of between $3bn to $3.5bn (£1.9bn to £2.2bn) over the next two years.
May 21, 2012 21 May'12
CIF to promote Code of Practice at World Forum

The Cloud Industry Forum (CIF) is to put the case forward for a Code of Practice at this year's Cloud Computing World Forum The Forum feels that providers need to be clear in their cloud offerings to build trust with customers, who in turn need to ...
May 21, 2012 21 May'12
Avnet rolls SolutionsPath out across Europe

Avnet Technology Solutions is expanding its Solutions Path vertical market scheme across Europe after a successful experience with the programme in the UK.
May 21, 2012 21 May'12
Six Degrees to beef up network with latest acquisition

A week after buying two cloud hosting firms, acquisitive managed services provider Six Degrees has splashed out on datacentre interconnection specialist Data hop to lay key foundation for its network growth plans.
May 18, 2012 18 May'12
More clarity needed around G-Cloud, urges VMware

Cloud services providers need to do a lot more to address concerns of lack of clarity and poor communication surrounding the government's G-Cloud initiative, if a new survey of public sector buyers by VMware is to be believed.
May 18, 2012 18 May'12
Resellers compete for pole position with Nimans

Niman and Mills are encouraging resellers to compete for glory in a nationwide challenge - on the go-karting track, writes Linda Endersby. As official Fusion Data installation distributors, they have teamed up to launch the Formula Fusion 2012. The ...
May 18, 2012 18 May'12
HP on verge of massive job cuts, say reports

Between 25,000 and 30,000 jobs could be on the line at HP, according to reports, as the IT giant preps deep cuts that expected to be made public in its earnings statement next week.
May 16, 2012 16 May'12
Midmarket channel deals high on Avaya agenda

Avaya's new UK and Ireland managing director Simon Culmer has revealed he is weighing up the merits of putting in place a new horizontal midmarket tier to sit across the firm's vertically-oriented sales structure, and will be leaning on channel ...
May 16, 2012 16 May'12
Datatec despairs of UK economy

Datatec, the South Africa-based group behind Westcon and logically, has reported a solid end to its fiscal 2012 which closed on 29 February, but once again has bemoaned a challenging economic environment in the UK, revealing that the bulk of its ...
May 15, 2012 15 May'12
Six Degrees throws down gauntlet to cloud rivals

Cloud services provider Six Degrees has set its sights onaggressive growth over the course of the year and said its ambition is to be"talked about in the same breath as the Rackspaces and Iomarts of this world by year end," according to ...
May 14, 2012 14 May'12
Daisy lifts wraps on underground Manchester hideout

Comms and networking provider Daisy Group has poured a million pound investment in its Manchester city centre datacentre, adding more energy efficient technology to the underground facility that it claims could save it up to £25,000 a year.
May 11, 2012 11 May'12
Regulatory pressures reveal poor risk management controls

A recent survey shows that in times of increasing regulatory pressures only a third of businesses think they have robust processes in place to manage governance risk and compliance (GRC), writes Linda Endersby.
May 10, 2012 10 May'12
Mozy backs up reseller programme with online portal

Data protection provider Mozy, has taken the wraps off first online portal for resellers in the UK just days after it kicked off its channel programme, writes Linda Endersby.
May 10, 2012 10 May'12
NCC aims to reduce web attacks with .secure domain

NCC Group has set up a separate business to deliver secure web infrastructure services to meet the growing need for watertight web surfing.
May 09, 2012 09 May'12
VMware pushes partners towards new SME business

VMware's new UK channel boss Ed Dolman has called for partners of the virtualisation vendor to ramp up their focus on the SME market, vowing to provide increased support levels and offering up to 10% additional rebate on sales into net new customers.
May 08, 2012 08 May'12
Global SMB IT spend on the rise, reports Spiceworks

According to the State of SMB IT survey results released today by Spiceworks, the social business network, SMBs are continuing to expand IT budgets, which now average £94,000 ($152,000) per year, writes Linda Endersby.
May 08, 2012 08 May'12
In-depth: Dress servers up for sales success

To succeed in an evolving server market, resellers must package up hardware and services to sell a complete solution.
May 02, 2012 02 May'12
Revitalised Getronics strategy puts emphasis on collaboration

Services and outsourcing house Getronics has been detailing aspects of its evolving business strategy as its acquisition by Germany-based investment vehicle Aurelius, first announced in January, closes.
May 02, 2012 02 May'12
ACEs shortlist announced

The shortlist for the MicroScope Awards for Channel Excellence has been unveiled with voting now open. A large number of entries made the judging of the long-list a challenge with many submissions containing quality reference points to back up the ...
May 01, 2012 01 May'12
Column: Just who is the ICO penalising with fines for data breaches?

I was fascinated by a story concerning how the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) punishes organisations that self-report data breaches.
May 01, 2012 01 May'12
Monitoring tools key to managed services success

Resellers looking to move into managed services have been advised to think carefully about their choice of monitoring tools.
May 01, 2012 01 May'12
ACS guzzles Microsoft, Cisco partner Fabric Technologies

Software and services provider ACS has bought City of London-based Microsoft Gold Partner and managed services provider Fabric Technologies Ltd for £4.6m.
April 27, 2012 27 Apr'12
Events: Managed Services Convention - London 2012

The Managed Services Convention is the primary UK channel event addressing the implications that the combination of the Cloud, Mobility, new intelligent devices and consumerisation is having on the implementation and delivery of business solutions.
April 25, 2012 25 Apr'12
Carbon rising up the channel agenda

It's looking like June will be the first opportunity companies will have to buy carbon tax credits under the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC), writes David Galton-Fenzi.
April 24, 2012 24 Apr'12
Barracuda urges partners to change security conversation

Networking security firm Barracuda Networks has urged partners to change their pitches around security solution sales in order to get the most out of their customers.
April 23, 2012 23 Apr'12
Column: The poaching clause that sounds like a closed shop

So it looks as if Apple, Google, Intel, Adobe, Walt Disney and Pixar are going to have to face the prospect of a trial in a class action lawsuit claiming they conspired not to poach each other's staff, writes Billy MacInnes.
April 20, 2012 20 Apr'12
Customer experience marketing is in the cloud of confusion

Customers. Let's be honest, they're an expensive pain in the assets. You can never do enough for them so who'd blame you if you took a leaf out of one famous telco's book and didn't bother?
April 19, 2012 19 Apr'12
Colt expands channel with managed services franchise options

Networking services provider Colt is to add a new string to its bow, creating a franchise partner channel in a bid to increase its exposure to end-user customers across Europe and help comms VARs make the transition into a managed services role.
April 19, 2012 19 Apr'12
Resellers warned BYOD will disrupt support services

The bring your own device trend is set to reach a £2bn opportunity in the UK software and IT services market by 2016 but could spell problems for those resellers who fail to move with the times.
April 18, 2012 18 Apr'12
Services continue to deliver for Computacenter

The services business continues to deliver for Computacenter with the long-term picture looking rosy for the channel player, despite some current margin erosion.
April 16, 2012 16 Apr'12
Gartner survey reveals CEOs will increase IT investment

According to a new Gartner CEO Survey 85% percent of CEOs believe their enterprises will be impacted by an economic downturn in 2012, writes Linda Endersby. Despite this cautionary feel most CEOs will increase IT investment, but the analyst house ...
April 16, 2012 16 Apr'12
Software resellers named to Pro5 public sector framework

A grand total of 12 resellers have been named to the Pro5 public sector buying consortium's new software and associated services framework, which covers over 200 local authorities and public sector organisations across the country, with two firms, ...
April 16, 2012 16 Apr'12
The Internet Group eyes exiting MSP owner-managers

Managed service provider owner managers looking to exit their businesses will form a key part of The Internet Group's (TIG) acquisition strategy, the firm has said.
April 11, 2012 11 Apr'12
Axing ICT teaching could worsen skills gap

With the deadline looming for responses to the government's proposal to axe ICT from the school curriculum one of the industry skills groups has called for a rethink.
April 05, 2012 05 Apr'12
Azlan revamps SMARTnet quote tool for Cisco VARs

C2000 enterprise networking wing Azlan has unveiled a series of tweaks to its Felix platform, which provides quoting, ordering and contract management for resellers using Cisco's SMART net support services plan.
April 05, 2012 05 Apr'12
FAST, Trading Standards piracy campaign heads for South East

The Federation Against Software Theft (FAST) and Trading Standards are to bring their anti-software piracy campaign to London and the South East, writes Linda Endersby.
April 04, 2012 04 Apr'12
Scottish IT firms encouraged to get behind paid intern scheme

Channel businesses located north of the border are being encouraged to support a new initiative from e-Placement Scotland.
April 04, 2012 04 Apr'12
Avnet extends helpdesk support for resellers

In a move that will support resellers selling managed services Avnet has unveiled a 24 hour helpdesk feature.
March 27, 2012 27 Mar'12
Longer relationships on offer to managed services providers

The benefits of managed services for channel partners are fairly well established with recurring revenues and greater chances of incremental revenue on the list. But additional rewards are emerging including gaining longer relationships with ...
March 23, 2012 23 Mar'12
BYOD pricing models lead to MSP head scratching

Managed service providers are struggling to come to terms with the pricing of providing support for those who bring their own devices to work.
March 19, 2012 19 Mar'12
Juniper channel operation coalesces around social media

In the wake of a major partner programme refresh, Juniper Networks is making the case for integrating channel marketing strategies more tightly with social media, saying its partners need to transform the way in which they interact with both vendors...
March 14, 2012 14 Mar'12
MTI appoints new managed services boss

Storage and virtualisation reseller MTI has appointed former IPsoft EMEA service delivery management head Simon Walters to run its Managed Services division.
March 13, 2012 13 Mar'12
Events: The Level Platforms MSP opportunity

The way events usually work is that resellers gather in a room and a vendor stands up and talks about how their solution can improve their lives. Usually the vendor, although with many years in the business, is coming from a background having worked...
March 13, 2012 13 Mar'12
Services and European performance boost Computacenter

Computacenter expects the continuing demand for services as customers look to get the most out of their technology investments is a trend that will continue to bolster its bottom line.
March 01, 2012 01 Mar'12
Search for recurring revenues driving managed services

Managed service providers (MSPs) continue to grow their revenues and are moving into delivering cloud based support for customers according to the latest survey of the state of the channel.
February 28, 2012 28 Feb'12
Education seen as key to opening up managed services

Resellers pitching managed services still have to educate customers to get past hurdles being thrown up around cost.
February 23, 2012 23 Feb'12
Managed services an alternative to struggling hardware sales

Those resellers sticking with hardware and minimal services face serious problems going forward as margins tighten and competition becomes more fierce. The call to make the move into managed services, with the recurring revenues it offers, was made...
February 06, 2012 06 Feb'12
CompTIA calls on channel to tackle IT misconceptions

Industry trade association CompTIA claims to have uncovered a damning lack of career information for those interested in pursuing a job in IT, with misconceptions and half-truths about the sector a bounding.
February 03, 2012 03 Feb'12
Resellers making services migration from tough hardware market

Some resellers are continuing to sell hardware and make a business from it but increasingly the price pressure and slow demand from customers are forcing them to look for alternative sources of income.
December 08, 2011 08 Dec'11
Civica signs SAM pact with FAST Ltd

Software asset management (SAM) and IT compliance specialist FAST Ltd has teamed up with IT services house Civica to offer FAST's customers access to additional expertise around licensing and ICT planning.
December 02, 2011 02 Dec'11
Azlan bolsters services support

Azlan is looking to ramp up the services support it offers resellers as one of the main planks of its recent reorganisation which has been rolled out over the past few weeks.
November 15, 2011 15 Nov'11
Smartphone challenge a managed services opportunity

Resellers offering managed services are going to have to ensure they can cope with supporting a diverse number of mobile devices for the long-term.
November 10, 2011 10 Nov'11
Managed service players looking to cloud future

Resellers that have already established a strong business in the managed services market are preparing themselves for further change to their business models as the cloud becomes more widely adopted.
November 10, 2011 10 Nov'11
Channel can help reduce managed services fears

The channel has a major role to play helping users overcome fears that are holding them back from making the move to adopt managed services.
November 07, 2011 07 Nov'11
FAST opens up SAM, compliance training programme

Software Asset Management (SAM) and compliance specialist FAST Ltd has opened up a number of its courses to non-customers in an attempt to boost awareness of SAM standards and best practice frameworks across the public and private sectors.
November 07, 2011 07 Nov'11
Stonesoft lifts lid on managed services programme

Stonesoft has launched a managed security service provider (MSSP) programme for resellers targeting the SME market and those customers that are looking to outsource their data protection responsibilities.
October 26, 2011 26 Oct'11
Value added distribution is key, says Citrix

Citrix has stressed the importance of maintaining a value added distribution channel in the face of increasing pressure from larger distributor rivals. EMEA vice president of channel strategy Carsten Thomsen said it was one of Citrix's priorities to...
October 26, 2011 26 Oct'11
Big rise in costs dents Amazon Q3 results

Investment in the Kindle Fire and further expansion has dented Amazon's third quarter profits which declined 73% to $63m on an increase in the company's costs of almost 50%.
October 25, 2011 25 Oct'11
Cost still an issue for desktop virtualisation customers

The cost of additional infrastructure, licensing issues and complexity of virtualisation technologies are top of the list when it comes to customer concerns about desktop virtualisation.
October 17, 2011 17 Oct'11
Lanway bolsters managed services business

Public sector cuts have prompted a change of direction at AV education specialist Lanway over the last year and a half with the reseller moving into the managed services arena and now making a major appointment to beef up that side of its business.
October 14, 2011 14 Oct'11
UK performance takes shine off Computacenter first half

The UK continues to drag down the performance of Computacenter with a poor performance in the professional services business a blot on the channel player's half year numbers.
October 10, 2011 10 Oct'11
New Hammer services business goes beyond storage

Specialist storage distie Hammer has spun out its in-house services business into a new company to be called Malleus Ltd. Speaking to MicroScope, former Hammer solutions manager Paul Hickingbotham, who has moved across to the new firm as technical ...
September 26, 2011 26 Sep'11
Gartner recommends use of low-cost services

Customers are being advised by Gartner to look at using low cost automated managed services as a way of reducing the strain with users being urged to look at no-frills options.
September 21, 2011 21 Sep'11
Managed services can deliver higher reseller valuations

Resellers have been encouraged to consider the positive impact on their value being involved with services can have raising the potential to be gained when the 'for sale' signs go up.
September 19, 2011 19 Sep'11
Ingram takes wraps off Channel Transformation Alliance

Ingram Micro has taken the wraps off an alliance that is tasked with promoting and furthering the spread of cloud computing and managed services in the channel.