accelerate your ambition

Consider How A Diversified OEM Environment Can Lower Your Risk. Large OEMs are beginning to realise that the trend among the majority of clients is towards greater diversification, not towards single

vendor estates

Gorillas on your list – a diversified OEM Environment can lower your risk

accelerate your ambition

One in a series of 6 insights related to Secrets and strategies

to long-term cost savings on the network

•  Why they should pay a premium for a commodity? •  Are we staying with a particular original equipment manufacturer

(OEM) simply because of familiarity? •  By aligning with limited OEMs are we missing out on more

innovative and cost effective technology that would suit our evolving environment better?

•  Is it really worthwhile to refresh devices as often as stipulated by OEMs simply to stay with premium products that are supported

•  What are the real risks of pushing end-of-life boundaries?

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Is your business asking the tough questions that are changing the landscape for large OEMs?

?

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However, having too many vendors in your network is just as risky as having one ‘gorilla’… the ideal approach is somewhere in the middle: a balanced approach with few carefully selected and well-managed vendors

Navigating the changing landscape

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An example: Global expansion made easier with multi-vendor approach

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They took the bold decision to put out to tender each and every piece of networking and security equipment – from software phones to specialist routers.

Before the acquisitions its environment was as much as 80% single-vendor focused – a situation the business began to see as both risky and expensive to maintain.

A client’s embarked on an aggressive growth strategy, acquiring businesses at a rate of up to 12 acquisitions per year. The acquisitions brought new employees with a variety of certifications.

It wanted to better understand whether the business was paying the right price for this equipment; whether it was paying for what it needed, or more; and whether procuring the technology at that price was really maximising the benefits for the business itself, and not only for the OEMs that provided it. Had the organisation continued to enforce a rigid one-vendor policy, it would have incurred unnecessary costs, lost qualified employees and negated the flexibility and expertise brought into the organisation through the acquisitions.

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Later the organisation settled on a range of OEMs that best aligned with its strategy, and enforced the implementation of these technologies as a global standard. But before reaching that point, the multi-vendor approach helped ensure that it maximised the gains from its rapid, global growth

Financial benefits above all else

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Sticking to a particular OEM because you have engineers certified to support them is a double edged sword. Large OEMs simply can’t lead in all areas. So, while all OEMs use as much training as possible to ensure they move more product, some smaller vendors are beginning to realise the benefits of niche specialisation and focus more of their training on interoperability

Training and certification: a double-edged sword

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Client organisations are understandably nervous about moving away from large OEMs with which they’ve forged close relationships.

Seeking a systems integrator

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Moving to a multi-vendor approach requires a high level of decision-making maturity in the organisation in order to evaluate OEMs without bias and with a focus on strategic benefit. An ICT provider with broad in-depth skills, and close relationships with a range of leading OEMs, can be invaluable in helping this process along.

Copyright © 2014 Dimension Data

In Closing …

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Make sure you are not blindly following the strategy of any one ‘gorilla’ on your list

Related articles to Secrets and Strategies to long-term cost savings on the network:

3 tough Questions to ask your ICT Support Provider

Outsourcing your network Lock, Stock and Barrel in Bite Sized Chunks

The Messy Costs of Multi-vendor Management

Lowering your network support costs can’t be done blindfolded

Service Providers and OEMs Better Together