So here we are, a new year and a new decade – full of possibility: the Year of the Metal Rat in the Chinese calendar, a year of energy for numerologists, and a year with an extra day to braai (or work-in) for the rest of us.
By Guy Whitcroft
In South Africa, of course, we’re facing a really tough economy, potential power issues, the likelihood of a downgrade and its impact on our currency, and a continued rise in unemployment as these issues take hold.
But all is not lost … From adversity comes opportunity, and we’re a nation known for “making a plan”!
So, where do we look for these opportunities this year? Just some of my thoughts on the subject:
- XaaS – remember the days, around 10 years ago, when everyone was looking for annuity revenue? Well, now we have it – in spades – thanks to cloud computing. The move from SaaS to embrace IaaS and more is now leading people to stop making outright purchase of even PCs and printers, but rather to rent them. Do you have a comprehensive offering for your customers to cover ALL aspects of their IT? (Talking about PCs and printers: it looks quite likely that Xerox will be bidding for HP’s printer business which could possibly lead to the PC business also being sold. Lenovo, perhaps? Change like this always leads to more opportunities, so always be aware of moves in the market.)
- Security is always an area of opportunity and even more so today. Poor economic conditions invariably mean more crime – of all kinds – and so more security is needed. Are all your clients fully covered for security? Do you test them periodically (pen-tests / white hat hacking)? And, of course, allied to that is a comprehensive backup routine that will ensure even if they fall victim to something like a ransomware attack, they can roll back to a pre-ransomware environment to minimise losses.
- Of course, our increasingly connected world means the need for faster, more robust networks. What are the opportunities for helping your customers with their network improvement? Do you manage their networks and, if not, should you be doing so? It’s all part of that XaaS thing … An interesting aside: Like many others, I found myself without usable international Internet due to the well-publicised cable breaks. It took my ISP four days to put rerouting in place. What are your customers facing in that event, and do they have a) solid processes in place for bypassing problems, and b) assurance from their ISP of its processes? How can you assist?
- And, of course, there’s the issue of storage. Not just backup (onsite, offsite), but growing demands for keeping more information, for data mining and analytics (“big data”) to improve companies’ reach, effectiveness, revenues and profitability. How can you get involved in more than just the occasional supply of hardware?
- PoPIA/GDPR. Many local companies don’t realise the need to be GDPR-compliant. If you have EU customers, or even South African ones who can transact while in the EU, compliance is a must so better to be safe and ensure GDPR compliance now. PoPIA is almost certain to start being enforced this year too, but if you’re GDPR-compliant, PoPIA should be a breeze. Are you offering GDPR/ PoPIA compliance services?
These are just a few thoughts on some of the great opportunities I think still exist for the local channel. Of course, there will be many more that will emerge in the course of the year. But that’s for a column another day …
Guy Whitcroft is a 45-year veteran of the IT channel, covering southern Africa, the Middle East and UK. How is now based in Cape Town and consults, coaches and mentors to businesses of all sizes