www.commsvision.com
COMMS VISION CONVENTION SPECIAL REPORT
Double act breaks in four horses of the apocalypse
GAMMA’S Comms Vision double act was visually daz- zling as Bob Falconer, CEO, and Marketing Director Richard Bligh stole the show with an eye catching presentation based on the four horses of the apoca- lypse. But their final message was a long way from Private James Frazer’s immortal phrase, ‘We’re doomed!’, in the classic TV comedy Dad’s Army. Based on the premise that threats attract more attention than opportunities, Falconer and Bligh deployed their equine theme to good effect, with each horse represent- ing a major cause of concern – Churn, Disintermediation, Obsolescence and Commoditis- ation. “We decided to focus on the threats we face rather than star gaze at opportunities,” explained Falconer.
The channel is approaching a critical moment in its history and only a full assessment of the dangers will do, says Falconer. Commenting on Churn he said: “Customers are lost because they want to consolidate their services. This is a primary cause of churn so resellers need to broaden their portfolios.” Galloping close behind is a fierce animal called Disinter-
increasing churn and enabling disintermediation. “You need to keep running,” advised Falconer. “You can’t just stand still. You must have a role in the value chain.” According to Bligh, Gamma has been ‘running like stink’ to help resellers ameliorate the four threats in preparation for future growth.
Bob Falconer
mediation, which is Dalek speak for cutting out the middle man as the supply chain nar- rows from an average of five to three suppliers.
Racing ahead is Obsol- escence, a horse that signi- fies the demise of one trick ponies as the need to have a full and relevant product portfolio becomes paramount.
“Gamma was at one time a calls and lines business,”
recalled Falconer. “But this is a shrinking market so we focused on SIP and hosted. “It’s about having the right portfolio and making sure your business knows what the impor- tant long-term value drivers will be. You must ensure that the high growth areas are recog- nised within your business.” The horse called Commo- ditisation is gaining legs as margins reduce in many areas,
Key areas of development have been data, applications and a move into the mobile space following an MVNO agreement with Vodafone. “We have also developed a comms platform working with BroadSoft,” said Bligh. “This integrates mobile and offers a managed end-to-end solution and an upsell roadmap based on glued-up solutions. We have moved from a one or two prod- uct company to a multiple prod- uct one. Our next challenge is to develop cloud services that are right for us and our partners.” Even as the four horses of the apocalypse loom large, Gamma is focused on minimising the threats by developing growth opportunities. And while stand- ing firm against the galloping cannonade, Dad’s Army’s Lance- Corporal Jack Jones would also say... ‘Don’t Panic!’.
Finance on the money for change
Daniel Proctor
LEASING specialists have an active role in financing business transformation because of their ability to structure service agreements that fit with the subscription model. Daniel Proctor, owner of Lease-Desk, a provider of software solutions for leasing, blasted the myth that leases cannot be applied to opex agreements, and highlighted that the reason for using finance is not always about cost, but also about financing business transformation.
He explained to delegates how leasing programs can be used to drive sales because software solutions such as those provided by Lease-Desk help to generate low hanging fruit. Proctor explained: “Every lease has a technology refresh,” he said. “The software automates a structured finance process, enabling resellers to understand upgrade opportunities. Every lease is an upsell opportunity.”
Delivery and customer engagement now key
GETTING the delivery and cus- tomer engagement right should be firmly established as a sky- high priority, says Chris Stening, Managing Director at Platinum sponsor BE Wholesale. “For me the customer expe- rience is defined by what your customers say about you and how it feels to do business with you,” Stening commented. “Every interaction, if got right, is very powerful. If wrong, you are doomed.”
BE was formed in 2005 and quickly caught the eye of O2
Chris Stening
which acquired the start-up in 2006. A claim to fame is its wholesaling of both mobile and
fixed networks which Stening says is a significant stand-out factor for the company. Stening identified four trends that, combined, offer a reliable picture of the future landscape. He cited the importance of future stakeholders common- ly referred to as ‘Generation Y’, individuals born any time between 1975 and 1995. By 2020, this segment of the popu- lation is expected to account for 50 per cent of the workforce. “This group live and breath a digital social life,” said Stening.
“They have harnessed the power of social media.”
Stening also cites the con- sumerisation of IT as a key determining trend, and this is being played out now.
“Smartphone growth has
taken off and the rate of growth for tablets is predicted to be even faster,” he commented. “Mobile devices are being used in a different way, they consume rather than create con- tent like a PC. High quality connectivity is crucial to the success of this trend.”
Mobilisation of the cloud also features prominently in Stening’s outlook, a develop- ment that is driving mobile data traffic growth which is expected to mushroom 26-fold by 2015, helped along by a 10-fold increase in connection speeds. Stening’s fourth market trend, a greater demand for quality bandwidth, completes the picture. “New devices and users coming into the market give us so many opportunities for growth in connectivity and managed services,” he noted.
www.comms-dealer.com
COMMS DEALER DECEMBER 21
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