Carolyn April Posts

CompTIA Senior Director, Industry Analysis, Market Research Carolyn April weathers a car accident and a bank error -- but retrieves her laptop.

Spirited discussion about the channel’s future

Cloud has changed how we look at the channel—but how has the channel responded?

Do you know what managed services means? How does it differ from conventional, enterprise-focused outsourcing? How can MSPs and internal IT departments co-exist and complement one another?

Business transformation is — or should be —an ongoing journey. Tweaking, tinkering and constant review are part of the process, but many channel firms fail to recognize this. They start with a transformative activity, but fail to follow the plan to its full evolution. Learn to keep pace in today’s market with insight from CompTIA researcher Carolyn April.

A whopping 70 percent of channel firms participating in CompTIA’s new UK State of the Channel said they’re taking transformational steps in their organizations, change driven by the rising popularity of cloud computing and customer demand for new delivery systems and services models. But change, of course, comes with challenges.

The education market is a good target for today’s channel, according to CompTIA’s latest study, “The Changing Classroom: Perspectives from Students and Educators on the Role of Technology.” As educators realize the benefits to student performance, achievement mandates and overall efficiency, information technology will continue to increase in importance — and spending.

Cloud adoption has jumped 90 percent since 2010, according to CompTIA’s 5th Annual Trends in Cloud Computing, and resellers, solution providers, MSPs and other channel types are reporting a sunny outlook related to cloud revenue. But that doesn’t mean channel firms aren’t experiencing growing pains.