New Delhi, March 12: With the shrinking hardware revenues and consumerization of IT, the International Data Corporaton (IDC) predicts many of typical hardware or box pushers partners will start developing capabilities of offering third platform technologies of cloud and mobility and to a lesser extent big data and social.
IDC also raises questions on the future of core hardware partners as this traditional channel will be impacted with the growth of online and LFRs channel. According to the research organisation, India has close to 21,000 channel partners excluding retail outlets and has identified three major predictions for the Indian IT channel ecosystems.
Need of Smarter Channel Partners: Unlike most of the western countries, the channel ecosystems is critical in the Indian context both from the IT industry perspective and also from CIOs and end users organisation. OEMs can’t be everywhere and spread the reach as India is a vast market, moreover from the demand side in multiple services the CIos, IT leaders and owners of small companies for IT implementation and adoption of new technology. These companies would want to work with the local partners as they offer sense of proximity and closed relationship. Due to this IT channel plays a critical role and it has been traditional in the hardware side, but now the same trend in picking up in the software and services. In the recent survey, 36 percent of large organisations CIOs want to work with preferred partners over telcos and managed consultant. Hence, OEMs and channel partners need to get “Smart” to supplement shrinking IT hardware revenue.
In 2014 a big shift in channel will be witnessed as large channel partners will become more smarter and add service layer across hardware and services line of business to evolve and stay relevant.
Re-crafting of Channel Program: Another prediction IDC feels, is that the channel program will be undergoing transformation and will be redefined. OEMs run various flavour of partners benefit programs to engage and reward them, over the time channel partners find these programs irrelevant and complexed. In 2014, all the major OEMs will be re-crafting partners benefit programs to make them simpler, easier to consume and based on current technology patterns. Therefore, the disconnect/gaps between vendors aspiration and partner realties will drive channel programs that are simpler, easier to consume and more agile.
Blurring Channel Classification: IDC predicts the traditional classification of channel including VARs, ISVs and SIs partners types will get increasingly blurred as these companies try to broaden their value proposition.
Despite the fact that 2014 will be a challenging year, there will be pockets of investments across multiple industry segments. These segments/pockets can be primarily defined by the maturity of the organization and willingness to strategically embed IT in the business processes. Time invested to identify these segments and the dynamics associated with each of the segments will ensure success for technology vendors and service providers.