Pictured: CA’s UK channel sales director Tamar Brooks
Resellers in Ireland and the UK have identified virtualisation management as an area where spending is set to grow in 2009, according to research by CA, the enterprise IT management software firm.
Over half (51%) of survey respondents expect spending on virtualisation management to increase this year. Resellers also predicted growth in cloud computing and software-as-a-service (44%) and Business Service Management (25%).
Resellers were also asked where they anticipate making the most profit, to which 52% cited internet security as one of the most profitable areas, followed by virtualisation management with 44% and recovery management (data protection, business continuity and disaster recovery) with 40%.
The survey, conducted online by CA’s partner community, showed that virtualisation management was widely considered to be a top area for growth and spending across EMEA.
Tamar Brooks, UK channel sales director at CA, noted: “This survey shows an encouraging balance of realism and optimism in our partner community. CA will continue to provide a mix of training and enablement activities to help our partners win business but we now have a stronger focus on financial incentives and lead generation.” She said new incentives encouraged resellers to dislodge competitors’ products. “The channel is extraordinarily important to us and we’re committed to ensuring our partners remain profitable during this time.”
The survey also provided useful insight into reseller sentiment about the recession and what they expect vendors to do to help them.
More than half (55%) of Irish and UK resellers said lead generation was a very important factor when investing in a vendor relationship, followed by a strong product roadmap (54%) and financial incentives (51%).
Brooks noted: “Our partners recognise that there are real commercial opportunities to help their customers increase the effectiveness and cost efficiency of their IT. Successful management of the virtualisation infrastructure is one clear example which can bring huge productivity gains and deliver exceptional ROI.”
Asked about the economic outlook, 80% of resellers in Ireland and the UK said they expect it to deteriorate throughout 2009. Encouragingly, though, over half (56%) think it will only get “a little worse.”
The survey revealed a relatively high degree of budget stability against the backdrop of the declining economy. While 89% of respondents anticipate cuts, over a third (39%) said these would be small.
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