Bigger is not always better when it comes to ICT partners, and SMEs can deliver the support and agility CIOs want, says Elingo CEO Ian Goss-Ross.
He adds that when a corporate entity grows beyond a certain size, it has a tendency to become slower to adapt to change, bogged down in bureaucracy, and less inclined to focus on individual customer needs, compartmentalising customers and delivering the same services across the board.
According to Goss-Ross, this is in contrast with what CEOs and CIOs need from their ICT partners in an increasingly competitive landscape.
"Enterprises are increasingly seeing the value of partnering with SMEs when IT matters. In the past five years, we have seen a growing volume of the work done through the channels involving numerous smaller implementation and support partners. In some cases, this may be due to empowerment procurement imperatives, but mostly, we believe it is due to the fact that SMEs offer several advantages over large enterprises when it comes to delivering," he says.
For Goss-Ross, SMEs are likely to have fewer customers than major enterprises and each of these customers contributes a significant portion of the SME's revenue, unlike in a major corporate.
Because each customer is so important to the SME's survival, the small enterprise will try harder to ensure it delivers faster on its customers' needs. "By their nature, SMEs employ the best skills and have a low tolerance for employees who do not perform. There is nowhere for a non-performer to 'hide' within an SME environment and such staff tend to move on rapidly," he says.
"Because SMEs are small, management is likely to be in regular contact with all staff, ensuring that strategy is communicated on an ongoing basis. This means staff within an SME tend to be skilled, enthusiastic and committed to its success - which ensures better service for its customers," Goss-Ross adds.
He advises that, when choosing an SME partner, one should rely on word-of-mouth recommendations, make site visits and carry out customer checks, as well as look at the SME's track record. In the case of start-ups, the track records of individual founding members should be considered, he advises.
He cautions that it isn't easy for ICT start-ups to succeed in SA; it takes funding, skills, resources and up to three years to build a track record worthy of customer attention. Those that achieve this have invested heavily in their survival. The fact that they have survived in a highly challenging market demonstrates their agility, skill, problem-solving ability, perseverance and service excellence, Goss-Ross concludes.
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