Software demonstrations might be pointless

Posted on May 31, 2019 by - News

It might be that providing software demos to customers are a waste of time.

Research by Peter Cohan, author of Great Demo! suggests that nearly half of all software demonstrations given during the sales process are “wasted” because they are premature.

“Software vendors often attempt to use an ‘overview’ demo to start a dialog with a customer – and may try to use these to do Discovery along the way. If you ask presales managers how many of these ‘overview’ demos actually lead to a qualified prospect, the answer can be painfully low”, said Cohan.

We need more AI education

Posted on May 31, 2019 by - News

Many firms are in the dark over AI and need better training on its advantages

According to research into US firms from CompTIA just 29 percent of firms are using AI regularly, which is not much different from 2017.

The industry group has found that UK businesses are often following the same trends and reported that a lack of knowledge is holding back customers with more than half the customer base admitting to having a low understanding of the technology.

Tech Data’s Euro revenues slide and fall

Posted on May 31, 2019 by - News

Tech Data’s European revenues tumbled the first quarter and CEO Rich Hume expects things to get worse this year.

Tech Data was doing well worldwide and Europe was the only region to under perform. Revenues in Europe slumped by eight percent year on year to $4.3 billion.

Across the pond the Americas segment was meanwhile elevated by a five percent year on year revenue boost to $3.8 billion, while Asia Pacific sales jumped by 15 percent to $310 million.

Avaya releases new cloud product

Posted on May 30, 2019 by - News, Products

Avaya introduced its new cloud-native, Unified-Communications-as-a-Service product to its partners.

The system runs on the Google Cloud Platform.

Initially available in 24 markets globally, this new offer enables Avaya partners to move SMBs more effectively to Google Cloud communications.

Colt uses ADVA gear

Posted on May 30, 2019 by - News

ADVA announced that Colt Technology Services is using its ADVA FSP 150 with ConnectGuard security technology to deliver its new Ethernet Line Encryption service.

It’s said to provide end-to-end data protection for low-latency high-speed performance of up to 10Gbit/s. It claims to protect enterprises dealing with overly sensitive information to simply and  safeguard against increasing security threats and meets strict new regulatory requirements including the EU’s GDPR.

Major PC renewal cycle kicks off next year

Posted on May 30, 2019 by - News

The end of Microsoft’s support for Windows 7 at the start of next year will create a spurt of PC renewal throughout the rest of 2019, according to beancounters at IDC.

According to IDC, shipments of traditional PCs (desktops, notebooks and workstations) will decline by 0.4 percent year on year in 2019, but the commercial market will experience “significant growth” as a result of the operating system upgrades.

CSI gets Fresche

Posted on May 29, 2019 by - News

CSI has partnered with Fresche Solutions (Fresche), a provider of IBM “i” modernisation solutions, to unblock access to the cloud for IBM “i” applications.

CSI’s private cloud offering (CSI PowerCloud) allows IBM i and AIX systems to be migrated to the cloud and directly connected to the world’s leading public clouds whatever the platform.

Managed services and hosting is pulled all over the place

Posted on May 29, 2019 by - News

While most attendees at the third annual Managed Services and Hosting summit this week in Amsterdam thought life was grand, many of them reported that the industry was being pulled in different directions.

Several surveys discussed for the first time at the event point to continuing growth in what is a maturing industry, but issues remain on customer relationship management, security and a lack of skilled resources.

Digital transformation is critical

Posted on May 28, 2019 by - News

While everyone wants digital transformation projects, punters need a realistic expectation of the tech’s maturity, a new report said.

The research, conducted by Forrester Consulting and commissioned by Ivalua, used a digital maturity index to assess organisations’ structure, strategy, process, measurement and technology to determine the right level of digital maturity.

MSPs capitalise on recurring services

Posted on May 28, 2019 by - News

More than 80 percent of MSPs are finding that recurring services now drive a portion of their revenue according to the latest research from Datto.

Datto’s ‘State of the MSP’ report highlighted an “industry shift” from service providers solely modelled on ad-hoc services to becoming more strategic advisors to their SMB clients.

Ingram Micro splashes out in France and picks up a new VAD

Posted on May 28, 2019 by - News

Ingram Micro has acquired French cybersecurity VAD Abbakan, as part of the expansion of its cybersecurity business in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). The acquisition of Abbakan expands Ingram Micro’s network of system integrators and telecommunications companies across France.

Sophie Deleval, Chief Executive for Ingram Micro France, said: “This acquisition cements the transformation we initiated two years ago to strengthen our ability to support our partners in developing their business and stay relevant and sustainable. Abbakan’s and Ingram Micro’s teams will combine their expertise, dynamism and engagement to provide an outstanding value proposition to the new market in which we operate.”

Phil Doye makes industry comeback

Posted on May 27, 2019 by - News

Phil Doye has made an industry comeback by acquiring SBL.

Doye’s acquisition vehicle, Glebe Holdings, has bought all of the firm after current CEO and majority shareholder Dennis Hobban approached him to lead “the next stage of its growth”.

For those who came in late,  Doye built tech reseller Kelway over 25 years before selling it to US peer CDW in 2015. He resigned as a director of the firm in 2017.

Cloudy security baffles customers

Posted on May 27, 2019 by - News

Customers are finding it tricky to match in-house resources with cloud security issues, according to new research from Claranet.

Claranet said that there has been a skills shortage on the security side of things more than half of UK firms do not have the in-house ability to protect data in the cloud.