What Service Firms Seek in an IT Channel Partner
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What Service Firms Seek in an IT Channel Partner
The majority of accounting, legal and marketing/PR firms seek out VAR/service provider partners to get the most from their tech spend. -
Tech Spend
42% of accounting firms spend $100,000 or more every year on IT, compared to 36% of marketing/PR firms and 31% of law firms that spend that much. -
Prime Player
78% of survey respondents at these firms said technology is important in terms of reaching business objectives. -
Ahead of the Curve
41% of survey respondents at accounting businesses described their firms as "early adopters" of tech, compared to 37% of those at marketing firms and 26% of those at law firms that claim the same. -
Vision Statement
52% said their firms are well-positioned in aligning tech vision with a strategy, while 40% said they have a general vision, but could use help in coming up with a strategy. -
Business Plan
56% said the need to reach new clients is a top business priority for the next 12 months, while 49% said they must improve staff productivity/capabilities and 48% are looking to reduce costs/overhead. -
Tapping the Channel
78% said they either occasionally or often go to electronics/computer retailers for IT purchase needs, while 77% said the same about buying from an IT hardware or software vendor. Seven of 10 said they occasionally or often acquire tech from a VAR or service provider. -
Channel Expertise
46% said they turn to IT solution providers/channel partners because they want to take advantage of greater tech expertise on the part of providers/partners, while 44% said they must use IT providers/partners because their systems are getting too complex to manage internally. -
Tapping MSPs
35% said they are currently managed services provider (MSP) customers;12% said they are considering becoming MSP customers. -
Security, Cloud Skills Gap
40% said they lack sufficient cyber-security skills internally, and 38% said the same about cloud computing skills. -
Extent of Cloud Use
69% of survey respondents at marketing/PR firms described themselves as either moderate or heavy users of the cloud, while 57% of those at accounting firms and 54% of those at law firms said the same thing. -
Stance on Cyber-security
70% of survey respondents at accounting firms said they've increased their prioritization of cyber-security within the last two years, compared to 64% of those at law firms and 61% of those at marketing/PR firms who have done so.
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Why Metrics Matter to the Channel The vast majority of accounting, legal and marketing/PR firms say IT remains crucial in meeting business objectives—and most seek out VAR/service provider partners to get the most from their tech spend, a recent survey from CompTIA finds. About 600 professionals from firms in those three fields took part in the study, which reveals that a significant share of services professionals describe their firms as "early adopters" of IT. Through solution providers/channel partners, they take advantage of better tech expertise, while outsourcing the management of IT systems that have grown too complex. Without such assistance, they could fall behind in their industry's deployment of tech, thus risking competitive disadvantage. "In these information-intense businesses, the use of computing devices, software applications and related office technologies is ubiquitous … [but] in this era of rapid and pervasive innovation, even the most tech-savvy early adopter professional services firms may struggle to keep up, which serves as the underpinning for the need for providers of IT solutions," the report read. Here are key findings from the study.