How To Build Successful Networking Practice

Building a successful networking practice is not easy. In a market that is fast evolving, it’s imperative to build a strong set of internal practices to help grow the business. Here are a few recommended ways a channel partner can build a successful networking practice.

Estimate the size correctly

A challenge which many network integrators face is their inability to size up an opportunity and create the right specifications for a quote. Says Alamuri Sitaramaiah, Director, Channel Sales, CommScope India, “We have seen many partners get some assumptions wrong and end up either underestimating or overestimating the project cost. Several partners have lost money or lost customers because of this.” While getting the bill of materials of a large passive networking project right is often complex, partners admit that things can also go wrong with a large networking project. “One solution is to work backward on no-regret quotes with vendors, and get a pre-sales technical person involved while bidding for the project. In many cases vendors are known to support you through some back-hand rebates or other discounting in case something goes wrong,” says Anoop Krishnan, VP, Quadsel Systems, Chennai. Another option is to use the configuration tools which are provided by vendors. “Schneider offers a number of tools which are usually bundled along with our products; these help a partner to plan a data center project to the finest detail,” informs Gurudutt M, Director, Transaction Business, Schneider IT Business. 

 

Focus on certification

Certification works in two ways in a partner’s favor. First, it increases the confidence among customers who consider the certifications of both the partner and the implementation team members as key criteria for awarding large projects. Second, vendors give extra rebates to certified solutions partners. Says K Subrahmanya, Director, Central Data Systems, “Our margins are often enhanced because the various certifications we have gained as a company have helped us to earn better.” 

 

Get the basics right

One of the main reasons for the success of several large network integrators has been their focus on some basic technology skills. Explains AL Srinath, CEO, Shell Networks, “Though newer technologies have evolved, the fundamental rules around basic technologies such as Internet Protocol or switching remain the same. When we hire our technical team we give a lot of importance to these basics.” Srinath says that to be a successful networking specialist knowledge of Cisco’s OS is necessary whether or not the partner is a Cisco partner. “Today, two out of three serious candidates aspiring to be networking professionals would have undergone some kind of Cisco certification.” 

 

Understand the customer’s business

CIOs and enterprise vendors are scouting for partners who have a strong understanding of how technology can help a customer’s business to grow. “Today, every CIO is aligning his IT strategy with the company’s business goals, so the right partner should also be able to understand this need,” says VC Gopalrathnam, VP, IT Globalization and CIO, Cisco India. KP Unnikrishnan, Director, Marketing, Brocade Networks, APAC, concurs. “A focus for the channel should be on investing in training its people so that they not only understand boxes but also have the ability to deliver business solutions that will help them service the enterprises of today.” 

 

Develop strong processes

Many CIOs have said that they look at internal practices and processes within an organization before assigning a work order. The reason is that they do not want to depend on specific people. Other parameters include long tenure, case referrals and vendor authorizations. “We prefer to work with partners who are good at knowledge sharing, provide us with longer road-maps, and present their plans on crisis management clearly,” informs Ramkumar Mohan, Head, IT & CISO, Orbiz, Gurgaon.