CASE STUDY Moving up the scale
The above 100 extension IP PBX market is showing stronger levels of growth compared to the SME market. Here, Craig Wellman, Business Development Director at Azzurri Communications, discusses the main drivers and adoption trends.
services and support, as well as the capability to link IP telephony with a corporate WAN, for example, to help firms move towards unified communications.”
Craig Wellman A
doption trends among the larger firms are driven by the requirement
for greater functionality, cost benefits and better resilience. The lower risk profile of smaller firms means they can usually get by with lower resilience, which helps to explain the comparative difference in growth levels. “Azzurri covers the whole spectrum from SMBs through to corporates and to FTSE100 firms,” said Wellman. “Moving up the scale to address higher growth markets requires a fuller gamut of managed
It’s not about a one off opportunity, it’s about an ongoing business partnership
2011
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Azzurri always takes a business-led approach. Most of its major contract wins will involve the executive board, sales, pre-sales, support and service. “By taking a long- term view of our customers’ business we ensure we are providing and managing a communications solution that lays a platform for growth,” added Wellman. “It’s not about a one off opportunity, it’s about an ongoing partnership.”
The primary pain point for businesses in the 100-plus extension market is capital expenditure, or lack of it. The ability to realise the benefits of the installed solution, usually due to poor user adoption, is also a painpoint which scares other firms off making the move. That’s why rigorous training and a managed service approach where the supplier assumes more of the responsibility can help ensure the benefits are realised.
Market inhibitors also identified by Wellman include apathy. He noted: “Firms can shy away from investing in technology and look to get by with what they have. Secondly, there is a fear of disruption. Firms with 100- plus extensions may only
Marriot St. Pierre, Chepstow,Gwent. 16th June 2011
have a small IT department looking after the entire ICT capability. So to plan and manage an IP upgrade may be perceived to be beyond the resource of their team.”
Enterprise requirements for voice and data convergence solutions in the 100-plus extension market differ according to geographical region, vertical and enterprise size. “Geographically, metropolitan areas benefit from greater bandwidth so firms can be more confident in running voice and data networks over them,” commented Wellman. “In rural areas it’s not possible to be that confident so customers may choose to have dedicated bandwidth going into their location.”
Key characteristics For vertical and size, there are also differences. “For example, IP telephony to a manufacturer might just mean delivering a dial tone,” commented Wellman. “For faster moving industries such as retail they expect the network to also support business applications, to allow them to enhance their service by processing payments quicker at the point of sale, for example. At the top of the chain are the banks and financial services organisations that are highly cash-generative, who have the capex to spend on cutting edge technology that gives them a competitive advantage.”
Segmentation and specialising in a vertical is the best way for resellers to approach this market because the requirements for IP telephony are so different. Wellman stated: “Our customer deployments range from manufacturers who just need reliable and robust connectivity, local governments that are aiming to rationalise offices and allow flexible home working, through to major NHS trusts that use their IP network to transport patient records and imagery to bedside terminals.”
In the 100-plus IP PBX market productivity improvements and customer satisfaction are higher priorities compared to cutting costs, presenting a big opportunity to Azzurri in terms of adding value. “We’d say that it does depend on the vertical,” noted Wellman. “For example, the Public Sector is interested in customer satisfaction, but in light of the restricted budgets they now find themselves more likely to focus on cutting costs now. But Azzurri’s ability to knit together all aspects of IP telephony into a managed service, and bring in data networks, contact centre solutions and mobility for example, is where our customers gain from integrated and unified communications. This allows them to offer a better service to their customers as well as saving costs year on year.” n
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