Recent Articles
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Partnering Will Be Key for VARs in ’06, IDC Says
VARs must master partnering if they are to stay competitive in 2006, according to analyst predictions released Jan. 24 by IDC. As VARs are pushed into thinner verticals to meet customer demand for deeper business process knowledge, they will be forced to bring in multiple partners to fulfill complete solutions, said Christina Richmond, a Hardware…
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CDW Invests in the Future
CDW achieved its highest fourth-quarter earnings to date last year, but the company faces less-lucrative months in 2006 as it makes investments in its sales, distribution and back office facilities for future growth, analysts said Jan. 25 following the company’s announcement. The IT reseller reported $1.61 billion in revenue in the fourth quarter—$1.13 billion corporate…
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Avnet, Lakeview Give SMBs Some Backup
Avnet Partner Solutions, the value-added arm of IT distributor Avnet, unveiled a data and disaster recovery solution for IBM shops from Lakeview Technology, a data management software maker. APS resellers will be able to offer IBM customers Lakeview’s MIMX line of “information availability” software for a range of platforms, including i5/OS, Windows, UNIX and Linux,…
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Own More of the Solution Than You Can Afford
As the managed services world is still defining itself, Green Beacon Solutions is redefining its corner of it. Green Beacon, a 4-year-old CRM (customer relationship management) solution provider, is rolling out an offering—PAMS (Professional Application Management Services)—that is neither a solution delivery nor MSP (managed services provider) contract. Part consultation, part monitoring, part implementation, PAMS,…
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Process Improvement v. Outsourcing
Process improvement caused a fair amount of excitement a few years ago in the business management community. Thanks primarily to efforts by such corporate giants as General Electric, process improvement methodologies such as TQM (Total Quality Management) and later Six Sigma became standard approaches to assessing existing processes for improvement opportunities and as a basis…
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Company Urges VARs to Push Maintenance
Unrelenting margin pressure on IT product sales should make channel companies more diligent in providing maintenance services, but that often is not the case, according to IT services management company MaintenanceNet. The number of companies capitalizing on maintenance contract opportunities is far lower than it should be, the company said in a report released this…
