As a client’s business grows, so do their technological needs. Many turn to a single vendor for anything from servers to laptops to network administration. This approach can lead to vendor lock-in, where a company becomes reliant on a single vendor, making it difficult to switch to explore other options as their needs change.
A vendor-agnostic technology partner will package components from multiple suppliers to create customized solutions within your organization’s broader strategy. By working with a vendor-agnostic partner, you avoid being subjected to up-selling of products and solutions you don’t need. There is no incentive for them to sell the wares of specific suppliers and the solutions presented to you are the ones best-suited to your company.
Your technology partner should listen to your challenges and ask probing questions to understand your organization. They should use their hardware expertise and industry knowledge to find the ideal products while keeping your budget and timeline in mind.
Vendor-agnostic hardware partners act as a single source supplier for all your hardware needs, including purchasing, updating, and retiring all devices. That means one point of contact for everything, which can save those in IT management serious time.
Clear outcomes = clearer solutions
It’s important to have a clear business outcome in mind when embarking on your transformation journey. Understanding how you want your organization to change can guide the development of your strategy.
In this context, change can mean many things, including the scale, scope, and speed at which you do business or how stakeholders are affected. To ensure the success of any transformation, it’s crucial for all parties to communicate in terms of business outcomes to ensure transparency and facilitate cross-functional partnerships.
Outcomes to consider include:
- Fiscal outcomes: Financial or fiscal performance is the most prominent outcome for many business leaders, but it’s not the only one you need to consider.
- Agility outcomes: Today’s fast-changing business environment places a premium on time. The ability to quickly respond to and drive market change is the fundamental measure of a company’s agility.
- Reach outcomes: In a constantly shrinking market, global reach, or the ability to support global customers, can be measured by compliance in geographies relevant to the business.
- Customer engagement outcomes: Social marketplaces are redefining winners and losers at an unheard-of pace. Responding to user needs is a critical measure of customer engagement.
- Performance outcomes: Performance and reliability are assumed. When either falters, reputation damage can be painful and long-lasting.
- Sustainability outcomes: Organizations are increasingly discussing environmental goals and sustainability targets. Environmental sustainability is moving from a “nice to have” function of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to a centerpiece of business strategy, increasingly embedded into everything a company does.
A technology solutions partner you can trust
Adopting a vendor-agnostic approach also helps our clients avoid biases towards certain vendors or technologies, which means CBTS can focus on helping create solutions that gel with how you define successful business outcomes.
Contact the experts at CBTS today to learn more about how shifting your approach to IT solutions can help you reach your organizational goals.
Scott Seger is Senior Vice President of Global Accounts and Business Alliances. He reports directly to Jeff Lackey, President of CBTS. In this position, Scott leads the Business Alliance and Global Accounts teams and plays a crucial role in realizing our significant growth targets. A successful industry veteran who is an expert at navigating the complexities of the IT landscape and our clients’ constantly changing needs, he also advances key partnerships, vendor relationships, and growth within our strategic global account base.
