Resellers in the UK and Ireland have identified virtualisation management as an area where spending is set to grow in 2009, according to research released by CA, Inc.
The survey revealed that more than half (51%) of respondents expect spending on virtualisation management to increase this year. Resellers also predicted growth in cloud computing and software-as-a-service with 44% and Business Service Management with 25%.
Resellers were also questioned about where they anticipate deriving the most profit. 52% of respondents expect Internet security to be one of the most profitable, followed by virtualisation management with 44% and recovery management (data protection, business continuity and disaster recovery) with 40%. The EMEA-wide survey, conducted online by CAs partner community, revealed 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, commented: Its great to see that our partners in the UK, Ireland and across EMEA 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. Armed with our innovative product portfolio which firmly targets these areas of opportunity, our partners are in a strong position to keep winning more deals and remain profitable.
The survey also provided useful insight into reseller sentiment about the recession and what they expect vendors to do to help them.
Economic outlook will get a little worse
When asked about the economic outlook, 80% of resellers in UK and Ireland said they expect it to deteriorate throughout 2009. Encouragingly though, more than half (56%) think it will only get a little worse.
Resellers predict stable IT budgets
The survey revealed a relatively high degree of budget stability against the backdrop of the declining economy. While 89% of respondents anticipate cuts, more than a third (39%) said these will be small.
Resellers looking to vendors to help
More than half (55%) of UK and Irish resellers said lead generation is a very important factor when investing in a vendor relationship, followed by a strong product roadmap (54%) and financial incentives (51%).
Brooks continued: Theres no doubt were all operating in tough times, but Im pleased that this survey shows an encouraging balance of realism and optimism within 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. Already this year weve introduced new margin enhancement programmes where resellers enjoy additional margin if they dislodge competitive products. The channel is extraordinarily important to us and were committed to ensuring our partners remain profitable during this time.
Survey Information
The 2009 CA Channel Index surveyed 1,339 of CAs partners across EMEA from 18th December 2008 to 27th January 2009. Respondents completed an online survey. Breakdown of number of respondents in each region: Austria 99, France 186, Germany 298, Israel 6, Italy 112, Middle East and Turkey 60, North Europe (Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark) 184, Portugal 59, Spain 80, Switzerland 119 and UK & Ireland 136.
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