Information technology (IT) skills remain in very short supply in Kenya, with a lack of senior technical resources available in-country to provide skills development and transfer.
Sending people overseas to receive vendor certifications is cost-prohibitive, and while online training can help to a certain extent, it does not replace the in-person interaction and networking necessary. This negatively impacts the customer’s experience of a brand, while at the same time making it difficult and expensive for end users to receive support.
IT vendors need to foster a strong skills development mindset to not only improve customer service, but to help resellers build sustainable businesses and keep money in the country, which is key to developing a circular economy.
“The reality is that resellers cannot afford to travel to receive certifications, and vendors can no longer afford to pay for them to do this,” says Sudhansu Saroha, CEO of Tech First Gulf. “We also see resellers trying to sell many different products to remain profitable, but without the necessary skills to support them, the customer experience is impacted.
“Vendors and distributors need to assist resellers by focusing on skills development to enable them to provide managed services, which will enable them to create additional revenue streams and better service their customers.”
One area that distributors and resellers should be focusing on is data management, as this skill set underpins the entire IT stack in a world where data is a business’ most important asset. Resellers that can offer managed services around data management will be well positioned to support and help their customers thrive.
“Typically, the focus for skills development is around infrastructure and networking, but data management is equally important, and often businesses only realise this when it is too late,” says Gerhard Fourie, Africa channel lead at Commvault. “Ransomware and data loss events are increasingly common and can have a devastating impact on business, but with data management best practices and leading global solutions in place, the risk can be mitigated. This is a significant opportunity for resellers.”
Data management skills are critical, and vendors need to partner with distributors and their resellers to ensure that partners are skilled effectively to deliver these services. For the partners themselves, there is immense value in owning the customer from end-to-end and significant competitive advantage to be gained from fostering these skills. For vendors, having local resources and a local presence can help to grow the business while providing more effective and more affordable customer service.
“This is a win-win situation. Investing in resources on the ground gives confidence to customers and resellers alike, and having a local presence demonstrates vendor commitment to the region. These resources become an extension of the vendor brand and help to avoid the cultural mismatches that can occur when customers are forced to obtain managed services and solutions from overseas suppliers. This helps to build trust,” Fourie adds.
Customers benefit from solutions that are designed and architected properly based on a local understanding of their business, while resellers have ongoing business through maintenance and support of the solutions they sell. Offering these services locally makes them more affordable, as they are delivered in local currency rather than being dollar-based and are not subject to the same taxes; for the customer this can be a 35-40% reduction in service costs. In addition, it ensures that this money remains in the country, which is essential for creating a circular economy.
“The more money vendors and distributors invest in a region, the more demand there will be in the region for products, and the more demand for managed services and support, which creates additional employment. However, it all hinges on skills development. Vendors and distributors need to collaborate, not work in competition, with a focus on skills development and transfer to improve economies and customer service,” Saroha concludes.