Service Provider Insider

I Guess It's Time For An Update?

Mortified, I recently realized that I hadn't updated this blog in a l-o-n-g time.

I don't have a good reason.  There's been plenty of interesting developments, to be sure.  And lots of stories to tell, perspectives to share, etc.  And I'm still as much interested (and engaged) in this topic as ever.

So, maybe it would be a good idea to simply share with you what's going on -- at least from my perspective?

Service Providers And Helping IT Break The Stockholm Syndrome

I work with enterprise IT organizations.  And, over the last few years, I've increasingly started to work with enterprise-focused IT service providers.  The similarities can be amazing.

On my other blog, I often discuss a topic that matters to *both* audiences.  And this is just such an example.

If you're thinking about how to best position yourself as a trusted partner to enterprise IT leadership, it's worth a read.

Why APTs Should Matter To Service Providers

A few things in the news today that ought to serve as food for thought for any SP targeting enterprise IT workloads.

For starters, I'd encourage you to read up on advanced persistent threats (APTs).  These are organized attacks using a combination of social engineering and traditional hacking techniques.

In a scarily prescient post, I talked a bit about APTs during the run-up to the recent RSA Conference.  Then the unthinkable happened: EMC's RSA division got hit pretty hard.

How they did it is no longer a mystery.  Who did it, and why they did it, is currently a matter of an ongoing investigation, so not much will be said about that for the time being.

If you think it's isolated cases, feel free to scan the headlines on any given day, and you'll hear about the most recent breach.  This morning, it was Epslion's service that got dinged.

In related news, EMC's RSA division announced the acquisition of NetWitness, a key technology player in this space.

So, how does this apply to service providers?

The Evolving Enterprise SP Supply Chain

It's now happened about a dozen times, maybe more.

In the meeting, we're hip-deep into discussions around SP business models (especially those that want to target enterprise IT organizations).  I start getting into differentiation and specialization, which inevitably leads to a core question: where and how do you want to play in the supply chain?

Supply chain?  Puzzled looks all around.

OK, back up the train.  Draw a big picture on the whiteboard, start filling in boxes, where do you see yourself?

Since it takes so long to draw these pictures, I've decided to whip up a sample slide for two reasons.

One, I'm essentially lazy at heart. 

And, two, there are about a dozen or more meaty SP strategy discussions I can drive off of this single chart.

The Rapid Segmentation Of The SP Industry

Sorry if I haven't been keeping this blog as updated as I should. 

Yes, there's a lot to talk about.  No, there's never enough time in the day to write it all down :)

I suppose the first observation is obvious: the "IT as a service" service provider industry in in full swing.  Many new players, many new plays.

A while back, I offered up some thoughts as to how the industry might segment itself along predictable lines. 

Turns out I was both right and wrong.  It's happening, but much faster than I would have predicted.

Live From London: The EMC EMEA SP Summit

It was a good week last week.  I was fortunate enough to help out at EMC's first-ever EMEA service provider summit.  Many thanks to Richard Bradbury and his team for a wonderful event.

For those of you who are interested in the whole IT-as-a-service provider thing, I wanted to recap a few key learnings for those who couldn't attend.

Of Cloud Trust Authorities and Service Providers

Yes, I have been neglectful in keeping this blog updated.  It's not for any lack of potential content, it's just the usual blogger excuse of busy, busy, busy.

EMC's recent announcement of the new RSA Cloud Trust Authority, though, is potentially impactful enough to SPs that it's worthy of making some time.

For some, I think it's going to be a big deal.

Verizon To Acquire Terremark -- You Shouldn't Be Surprised

Today's news is relatively straightforward: the ever-astute Verizon announced its intent to acquire SP vanguard Terrmark for $1.4 billion, a nice 35% premium over current trading levels.

Transactions of this sort shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who's following this space.  Undoubtedly, there are many more like them to come.

And here's why ...

DPA For Service Providers

Lots of great stuff in the EMC portfolio for service providers -- almost too much to talk about today, with more goodness coming along every day!

In this post, I'd like to stretch out a bit, and share how EMC's DPA -- Data Protection Advisor -- is creating an interesting cluster of new opportunities for a wide swath of service providers.  

Regardless of your SP model, there's probably something here that's worth a moment of your attention.

Marketing Predictions For SPs in 2011

As I work with various IT-oriented service providers, I now am trying to assess the size and scope of their marketing function.  

Why?  I think that marketing-related disciplines may hold the key to success for a great number of SP business strategies in the coming year.  

And I don't want my SP partners getting caught by surprise :-)