Nuvias’s latest UK channel partner survey has discovered that many are wrestling with hybrid working.
Most partners expect the growth that they experienced last year to continue, with 75 percent experiencing growth between 2-10 percent last year, and 62 percent expecting that to be the same again this year.
Cyber security was believed to be growing the most with the need for compliance continuing to drive investments. Demand for network visibility tools was thought to be an area where the channel could make some cash.
There were two camps – one accepting that remote working had increased productivity and helped strategic thinking; while the other, which was smaller, expressed their views that working remotely had made running the business more difficult.
The negatives around hybrid working included working long hours, and struggling to see customers and colleagues. Nuvias suggested that the different responses could be linked to generational divides and job categories.
The channel has not been alone in recording varied responses to hybrid working, and most customers are going through the same process of trying to strike a balance between the demand for flexibility and the need for some face-to-face interaction.
Lee Driscoll, UK managing director and vice-president of South Europe at the Nuvias Group said that 2021 was always going to be tricky.
“It’s fantastic to see there was still strong growth over the past year. We have seen customers’ cyber security demand rise and we have strengthened our portfolio accordingly. It was not a surprise to see the rise of network visibility as a new top category, in view of the need to manage extended networks”, he added.
Nuvias also asked resellers what they wanted from distribution. Among the answers was a call for ongoing marketing and sales support, help with lead generation, and keeping supply chains running as smoothly as possible.
Channel partners were looking for support in a post-pandemic world as they reacted to a customer landscape that is adjusting to two years of Covid and opening up to hybrid working and running more distributed networks with a greater need for security.
“Our priority is to support partners in sustaining their revenue stream and business model in a changing landscape, by adjusting to new customer needs and market conditions, providing service-based offerings and expertly designed solutions that protect business networks”, said Driscoll.
