Is Michael Dell Pure Evil?
Please forgive The VAR Guy for the headline. He’s actually a Dell Inc. customer. But after reading all of the negative channel press about Dell in recent days, you’d think that Michael is working for the devil himself.
Sure, Dell is acquiring Silverback Technologies and moving into the managed services market. According to many channel publications, the Dell-Silverback deal is cause for panic. Hmmm. The VAR Guy begs to differ.
Let’s be honest, folks. Dell’s customer support has been a mess in recent years. The PC giant needs feet on the street to offer on-site support. (Memo to Michael: Call OnForce for help.) And Dell also needs tools to remotely manage customer settings. Buying Silverback (and its remote management tools) was a logical, strategic move.
The deal is not some sort of Dell conspiracy to destroy the channel, destroy VARs and destroy third-party managed service providers. Alas, many channel publications and Web sites have spent recent days stirring fear, uncertainty and doubt about the deal. But then again, that’s what legacy channel publications have always done. Over and over again. Check out some of this week’s coverage…
- CRN: MSPs Worry as Dell Enters Market With Silverback
- CRN: Dell, Silverback Deal Sparks Commoditization Worries
- Ziff Davis: Dell’s Silverback Purchase a Cause for Channel Concern
Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!
Relax, folks. The sky isn’t falling. Michael wants to work with you. Really.
If VARs are worried about Dell, then why don’t they express the same worry about Tech Data and Ingram Micro working so closely with MSP platform providers? Surely, big distributors could hijack the MSP market if they so chose.
Instead of worrying about commoditization (CRN’s word, not The VAR Guy’s), VARs should welcome consolidation. There are too many MSP platform providers in this highly fragmented market. The VAR Guy hears about three or four new managed services every week. It’s time for some order. Some MSP standards. Some application programming interfaces to tie everything together. If Dell goes on an MSP buying spree, so be it.
Bottom line: Do you really think Dell can wrestle small and midsize business customers away from VARs and thousands of regional MSPs? The VAR Guy thinks not. Dell may supply the hardware to SMB accounts. But the channel continues to provide the trusted guidance and support that so many SMBs require.
Avoid the temptation to press the panic button as Dell enters the MSP space. And do what you’ve always done: Focus on your customers’ evolving needs. Heck, you might even wind up offering them some managed services — using Dell’s Silverback platform or a range of third-party platforms.
The sun wouldn’t come up each day unless CRN was bashing Dell, as they have done repeatedly for more than 15 years. Do you remember a certain editorial they wrote in 1992 that predicted that Michael Dell was driving his company to certain ruin because they were competing with the channel? (I do…)
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Great blog thanks! I disagree with you on the OnForce inclusion though. I’m a little behind the ball here but I took another angle to this argument. MSP’s should take a wait and see attitude to these devlopments you may be surprised by the outcome!
http://www.everymethod.com/blog/2007/08/dell-and-silverback-michael-dell-flip.html
Johnny,
Why do you disagree with the inclusion of OnForce?
The VAR Guy
Hey Var Guy
My biggest objection is the duplicitous approach they’ve taken with the providers. Most importantly for all of us they are forced, no matter what their skill or training, to compete for piece-meal work purely upon price and availability. Like I said in my post (http://blog.kitrx.com/2007/08/7-traps-for-prospective-managed-service.html) it’s really easy to find a certain segment of the population who will gladly participate without knowing the long term impact, effectively dragging down the entire industry.
Also the end receiver of the service is unable to get continuity or consistency because the SP has a “never contact the customer direct” clause – although the SP can be contacted by the customer direct through OnForce that almost never happens because the jobs are so narrow in scope. Thirdly, there biggest source of work is “tweeners” who gather up regional work and pay a flat rate to SP’s and pocket the rest.
I could go on but the bottom line is the SP’s and the customers get screwed..Maybe I’ll blog about it whatyathink?
[…] can ask Dell representatives directly during the MSP Alliance summit in San Jose on Sept. 24-25. Dell acquired Silverback Technologies, an MSP platform provider in July. Silverback#8217;s Web site now carries both a Dell and […]
[…] can ask Dell representatives directly during the MSP Alliance summit in San Jose on Sept. 24-25. Dell acquired Silverback Technologies (an MSP platform provider) in July. Silverback#8217;s Web site now carries both a Dell and […]
[…] recall that Dell’s acquisition of Silverback Technologies, the MSP platform provider, attracted a lot of concern from VARs, aspiring MSPs and established […]