How 3 Dell EMC Solution Providers Are Seeing Big Growth
Posted by CRN on May 10, 2017:
Whether they're one of the largest solution providers in the market, like World Wide Technology, or a smaller player like Hipskind Technologies, those laying out aggressive plans for growth with Dell EMC are reaping the rewards. That growth is coming from customers large and small whose needs range from the traditional to the cutting edge. Solution providers say the ability to stitch together effective, customized solutions and services that can demonstrate clear value to customers is a winning strategy.
Dell Technologies Chairman and CEO Michael Dell argues that customers want to do business with fewer vendors rather than more. World Wide Technology, Hipskind and MicroAge executives would agree and, in some cases, might add that those customers are willing to pay more in the process.
Driving 'Bigger Deals, Better Margins' With Dell EMC And An Advanced Approach
For Bob Olwig and World Wide Technology, being a Dell EMC channel partner is all about offering solutions that are far more than the sum of their parts.
"We are able to demonstrate VBlock with enterprise hybrid cloud technology from VMware and we are able to prove to customers how these solutions work in total, not just the piece parts," Olwig said as an example of how WWT is able to formulate powerful solutions using Dell EMC's broad portfolio.
The result is market leadership for both Dell EMC and its partners, Olwig said. WWT's revenue grew about 26 percent overall between 2015 and 2016 in what Olwig, vice president of business development and innovation, called "a fantastic, record-setting year." He's confident that it will grow another 20 percent this year, and he sees no reason why its Dell EMC business won't see the same increase.
One of the primary drivers of that success is St. Louis-based WWT's approach, which Olwig said meshes perfectly with Dell EMC's drive to be "No. 1 in everything, all in one place." About seven years ago, WWT, a longtime EMC partner, established an advanced technology lab, and the lab has become a vital proving ground for WWT and Dell EMC solutions, Olwig said.
"Deals are bigger, margins are better," Olwig said. "The multi-technology solutions — storage, compute, along with software and services — for us, the value we're adding isn't just after they've bought it and we design it and deploy it, we're starting very early with our Advanced Technology Center and our labs and providing customers access to innovation. They're being exposed to the Dell EMC portfolio in a real-world environment. Customers really value the independent viewpoint that World Wide Technology has and how we're able to show these technologies from Dell EMC and how it would work in their specific environment."
That approach paid off in one recent deal with a global service provider, Olwig said. That customer did more than 50 proofs-of-concept in 18 months in WWT's lab on its way to deploying a Dell EMC solution. Another global service provider that's been working with WWT for almost two years is on a similar track, Olwig said.
"They're doing everything from functionality testing to performance testing. They've told us we're enabling them to be fast. We're helping them act like a startup. They have a lot of capabilities themselves, but they believe they have better access to innovation through our advanced technology center," he said.
"Customers appreciate us just validating what they're doing with Dell EMC," Olwig said. "We have really good insight into what works and what doesn't work. We're gaining a lot of expertise by vertical industry, whether it's financial services or health care, and clients value working with a solution provider like World Wide Technology for all of their spend."