Split Licences
The move to split licenses will have an impact on the channel. A greater choice presents both opportunity and the potential for confusion in the channel. More time will be spent choosing the right options for each customer and new documentation will be required. On the flip side, this could make the market more competitive. The unbundling of licences will create price rises for some customers, which may lead to new opportunities as customers shop around for the best deals.
Opportunities
Microsoft Teams continues to provide opportunities for resellers and MSPs. End users benefit from using Teams as a phone system and collaboration tool. Using one app makes life simple. It’s quick to roll out and allows users to work from anywhere.
Certifications
Microsoft certifications have two main advantages for resellers. Firstly, they demonstrate knowledge of the product set, key features and benefits for a wide range of customer requirements. Secondly, they ensure the development of in-house skills required to maintain complex customer solutions.
That said, automation is driving that minimum requirement down and enabling more resellers to support customers in easily deployable solutions. This drives down the cost of providing those services, benefitting the channel in terms of margin, and end-customers in value for money.
Case studies
We have partners operating in financial services providing Microsoft solutions for investment companies with over 200 employees over three international locations, who also require call recording. The challenge faced is a limited calling plan with unpredictable usage across multiple locations. Jola provided a Direct Routing solution with unlimited UK calling for EMEA, and unlimited in-country dialling for APAC and LATAM locations. Each had a call recording solution on a 3-year fixed term.
We also have partners working in education who require connected tablets for staff and students to use at home. The challenges they faced related to connectivity at home, as well as security issues. We provided a Private APN to address to control the accessible web pages for students and protect them online. Devices were connected using unlimited 5G SIMs which were up and running within 48 hours.
