www.technologyreseller.uk THE MAGAZINE & ONLINE CHANNEL NEWS & RESOURCE FOR MSPS, IT RESELLERS & SUPPORT PROVIDERS Helping you maximise on the Converged Communications Opportunity TECHNOLOGY RESELLER MAGAZINE IN PRINT & ONLINE SINCE 2016 IN PRINT & ONLINE SINCE 2016 IN PRINT & ONLINE SINCE 2016 INTERVIEW PAGE 08 Paul Burn looks back over Nimans’ first 40 years CLOUD TELEPHONY PAGE 20 How NFON is stealing a march on the competition TECHNOLOGY RESELLER AWARDS 2025 PAGE 26 Meet this year’s judges A specialist distributor, focused on empowering you to excel in a competitive marketplace. Nuvias UC offers a robust vendor ecosystem, paired with award-winning services and a strong commitment to channel support.
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03 CONTENTS technologyreseller.co.uk ISSN 2632-9301 (Print) ISSN 2632-931X (Online) Technology Reseller is published by Kingswood Media Ltd., 7 Amherst House, 22 London Road, Sevenoaks TN13 2BT • Tel: 01732 759725 Email: [email protected] www.technologyreseller.co.uk No part of Technology Reseller can be reproduced without prior written permission of the publisher. © 2025 Kingswood Media Ltd. Editor: James Goulding 07803 087228 · [email protected] Publishing Director, Social Media and Web Editor: Neil Trim 01732 759725 · [email protected] Advertising Director: Ethan White 01732 759725 · [email protected] Events & Commercial activities: Paul Johnson 01732 759725 · [email protected] Account Manager: Jeff Root 01732 759725 · [email protected] Designer: Brian Cloke 07484 288189 · [email protected] If you no longer wish to receive Technology Reseller magazine, please email your details to [email protected] Register online To receive your regular FREE printed copy of Technology Reseller Magazine simply fill in our online registration form at www.technologyreseller.uk/register Read Technology Reseller online, on tablets and smart phones www.technologyreseller.uk Join us : Follow us technology-reseller-magazine technologyreseller.co.uk 04 Distribution News Eurostar Global Services reveals new corporate identity 08 Interview Paul Burn looks back over Nimans’ first 40 years as a leading technology distributor 12 Reseller News MSPs anticipating growth of 20% or more 16 View from the Channel With Carl Hamill, Managing Partner of Alton Valley 17 Security Goldilock supercharges its FireBreak network isolation solution 18 Cover Story How Nuvias UC is helping resellers and MSPs exploit opportunities in converged communications 20 Cloud Telephony NFON sets the pace in AI-powered business telephony solutions and process automation 21 Q&A Alexander Wettjen, VP Group Sales at NFON, explains what the company’s AI strategy will mean for channel partners 26 Technology Reseller Awards Meet the Judges for the 2025 Technology Reseller Awards – and don’t forget to vote for your favourite disty 28 Review On test: the HP Envy 16 x360 30 Marketing Introducing bfusion, the new subscription-based marketing portal 31 Cloud UK channel partners eye cloud growth but must upskill to seize opportunities 32 60 seconds With Neil Langridge, Marketing & Alliances Director at e92plus 34 Tech Digest A round-up of the latest developments from established and emerging technology providers 40 People New faces, new places TECHNOLOGY RESELLER MAGAZINE IN PRINT & ONLINE SINCE 2016 IN PRINT & ONLINE SINCE 2016 IN PRINT & ONLINE SINCE 2016
01732 759725 DISTRIBUTOR NEWS 04 New logo, new era Mobile device distributor Eurostar Global Electronics (ege) has entered a new era with the unveiling of a visual identity designed to reflect its transition from an end-of-life mobile device reseller into a technology solutions provider and its plans for services expansion and diversification in the future (for more details on the company’s history and evolution see our interview with Peter Carnall from 2022 https://technologyreseller. uk/room-to-grow/). www.eurostarglobal.co.uk … TD SYNNEX to distribute Ootbi Object First has appointed TD SYNNEX to distribute its Ootbi ransomware-proof backup storage appliance in the UK and Ireland. Purpose-built for Veeam, Ootbi, an acronym of Out-of-the-Box-Immutability, gives 900-plus Veeam partners on TD SYNNEX’s books a simple, secure data protection solution for Veeam backups, plus technical/sales support provided by the distributor’s Veeam experts. In April 2024, TD SYNNEX was named Veeam Distributor of the Year for the UK and Ireland for the fourth consecutive year. As the only UK distributor to hold Veeam Accredited Service Provider (VASP) status, it is able to offer fully approved professional services on the vendor’s solutions. https://uk.tdsynnex.com/ … Sophos solutions now available on Pax8 marketplace Sophos is helping MSPs streamline operations, simplify billing and reduce the complexity of cybersecurity management through a strategic partnership with cloud commerce marketplace Pax8. The collaboration will give Pax8’s network of 40,000 MSPs access to the security company’s comprehensive portfolio of cybersecurity solutions, including Sophos Managed Detection and Response (MDR), Sophos Endpoint powered by Intercept X and Sophos Firewall. The Sophos MSP Perspectives 2024 report states that MSPs that consolidate their security stack with a single vendor can cut daily security management time by nearly 50%. This rises to 69% for MSPs juggling six or more security vendors. Sophos Chief Product Officer Raja Patel said: “By managing all their customers’ cybersecurity in the cloud-based Sophos Central platform, MSPs can reduce workload and free up valuable billing hours. What’s more, with a complete portfolio of Sophos cybersecurity solutions at their fingertips, Pax8 MSPs enjoy extensive opportunities to sell additional revenue-generating products and services.” Sophos already protects over 28,000 organisations globally with its MDR services, supported by real-time threat intelligence from Sophos X-Ops. More than 60% are managed by MSPs. www.sophos.com/msp. … Actian stations Arrow Electronics is helping channel partners in the UK & Ireland deliver advanced data intelligence solutions through a partnership with Actian, the data and analytics division of HCLSoftware. Actian data management and intelligence solutions enhance advanced analytics and AI initiatives by enabling businesses to integrate, discover, analyse, govern and manage data across cloud, mobility, IoT and edge computing. Jennifer Jackson, Chief Marketing Officer at Actian, said: “Today’s data environments are more complex than ever, and organisations need the right tools and expertise to unlock the full potential of their data to drive meaningful and trusted insights. By combining Actian’s continued... Northamber partners with Six Degrees AV and IT distributor Northamber has added managed cloud and cybersecurity services to its product offering through a partnership with Six Degrees, the UK-based secure, integrated cloud services provider. Services available to its network of more than 5,000 reseller partners include penetration testing; Managed Detection and Response (MDR) for endpoint protection; and Managed Extended Detection and Response (MXDR), which extends MDR to cloud identities, apps and more. Grant Reddin, Director of Cyber and Solutions at Northamber, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Six Degrees to the Northamber portfolio. Their expertise in secure, cloud-led managed security services perfectly complements our existing cybersecurity and solutions offering. This partnership will enable our resellers to provide their customers with market-leading, resilient and scalable IT solutions, backed by Six Degrees’ proven track record in security, compliance and digital transformation.” https://www.6dg.co.uk/ Charging growth TD SYNNEX is encouraging UK partners to look at opportunities in electric vehicle charging after adding Eaton’s EV chargers to its existing portfolio of uninterruptible power supplies, surge protectors and power management products. James Reed, TD SYNNEX Managing Director – Endpoint Solutions, UK and Ireland, said: “Many end customers looking to make EV charging available on-location are likely to turn to their trusted provider of managed services or IT systems for advice. For partners, the ability to provide and install EV chargers could be a good opportunity to add value and generate additional revenues.” James Reed
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01732 759725 DISTRIBUTOR NEWS 06 powerful data intelligence solutions with Arrow’s proven expertise in deploying and managing data solutions, we empower resellers and customers to accelerate their journey to becoming truly data-driven.” Arrow supports partners with technical expertise, training and enablement workshops and experts skilled in deploying and managing data solutions in cloud, on‑premises and hybrid environments. www.arrow.com … Crowdstrike added to Westcon-Comstor AWS Marketplace Westcon-Comstor, the 2024 CrowdStrike Global Distributor Partner of the Year, has extended its relationship with the vendor by adding the CrowdStrike Falcon unified cybersecurity platform to its AWS Marketplace programme. This will enable channel partners in Europe to purchase CrowdStrike from Westcon-Comstor via private listings and sell directly to their customers as part of an end-to-end process entirely within AWS Marketplace. Canalys recently predicted that more than 50% of hyperscaler marketplace sales will come via channel partners by 2027. As part of its advisory and consulting services, Westcon-Comstor will guide partners through AWS Marketplace setup, training and enablement and help partners to secure authorised Channel Partner Private Offer (CPPO) status. www.westconcomstor.com … Infinigate on track to hit growth target Year-on-year growth of 14% across EMEA and ANZ in the final quarter of its current financial year has helped cloud, cybersecurity and network infrastructure distributor Infinigate exceed global revenues of €2bn, putting it on track to achieve its target for this financial year and longer term goals. Klaus Schlichtherle, CEO of the Infinigate Group, said: “Overall, Infinigate is on track to achieve its ambitious targets, progressing towards its stated goal of €5bn revenue for financial year 20272028. We have a strong organisation that benefits from an extensive portfolio of leading-edge solutions, close partnerships with a growing number of vendors and channel partners and fast expansion through our MEA and ANZ regions, towards global scale.” Infinigate Chief Growth Officer Denis Ferrand-Ajchenbaum highlights global managed security services as a big opportunity for Infinigate and its partners, with a forecast CAGR of 11% to 2030 (source: Fortune Business Insights). He said: “Our Infinigate Cloud platform enables channel partners to add a managed services offering to their portfolio to address their customers’ growing need for advanced, flexible and cost-efficient cybersecurity.” In the 2023-2024 financial year, Infinigate Group recorded revenues of €2.3B. www.infinigate.com … Foxit and Pax8 announce strategic partnership Foxit is looking to boost sales through MSPs by building a strategic partnership with cloud commerce marketplace Pax8. This will enable MSPs to access four of the company’s solutions via the global Pax8 Marketplace: Foxit PDF Editor for creating, editing and managing PDF documents; Foxit PDF Editor+ for professional users; eSign for Business for e-signing documents, collecting payments and keeping workflows moving; and Foxit AI Assistant, an intelligent assistant that enhances productivity and streamlines document workflows with document summaries, content generation and natural language queries. www.pax8.com/vendors/foxit/ … Sonicwall award for Renaissance Renaissance Contingency Services Limited, the Irish value-add distributor of cybersecurity solutions and services acquired by Northamber in July, has been named Sonicwall’s Distributor of the Year UK & Ireland at the 2025 SonicWall Partner Awards. Other winners include Utilize (EMEA MSP Partner of the Year), Xerox (Partner of ...continued CDP B rating for Westcon-Comstor Westcon-Comstor has been awarded a B rating by Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), a global non-profit that runs the world’s only independent environmental disclosure system, awarding companies scores of A to D-minus based on their progress towards sustainability goals. Kevin Brzezinski, Chief Sustainability Officer at Westcon-Comstor, said: “As a business we believe openness and transparency should be at the core of our sustainability strategy, which is why we chose to disclose our data to CDP independently for the first time. We are pleased with our initial B rating and will strive to make further improvements.” This is the first time that Westcon-Comstor has independently disclosed its sustainability data to CDP. Previously, it contributed to an annual submission by its South Africa-based parent company, Datatec. In 2023, Westcon became the first major global technology distributor to have its net zero target and other science-based emission reduction aims formally validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). These include an ambition to power global operations entirely through renewable electricity by 2030 and to be net zero by 2050. Mobile Tornado seeking to capitalise on PTT growth with Syndico partnership Push to Talk (PTT) provider Mobile Tornado has appointed Syndico as its exclusive UK distribution partner to capitalise on growing demand for PTT over Cellular as an alternative to narrowband two-way radios spurred on by the continuing upgrade and roll out of 4G and 5G networks. Syndico Managing Director Andrew Wilson said: “Push-to-Talk over Cellular is emerging as a crucial technology for modern enterprise communication and we are seeing ever-increasing demand for these solutions, both from users of traditional Push-to-Talk technology and from those who have never employed PTT as a method of organisational communication before. After a comprehensive tender process and extensive testing, it was clear to us that Mobile Tornado’s PTToC technology was superior to other solutions.” This includes robust support, from instant voice communication to GPS tracking and safety alerts, all delivered via smart devices rather than proprietary two-way radio hardware. As part of the agreement, all existing Mobile Tornado UK resellers will operate under Syndico’s distribution model, giving them a single point of contact for onboarding, training, sales and first-level technical support. Kevin Brzezinski Klaus Schlichtherle Infinigate
DISTRIBUTOR NEWS technologyreseller.co.uk 07 the Year) and Nostra (Partner of the Year Ireland). Daniel Shone of Apex Computing Services and Dan Kenny of Infinity IT were named Partner Sales Hero of the Year for the UK and Ireland respectively, with James Obank of Utilize and Justin Archer of Leaf winning Partner Technical Hero of the Year awards for the UK and Ireland respectively. https://www.sonicwall.com/ partnerawards … Ingram partners with Keeper Keeper Security, a provider of zerotrust and zero-knowledge cybersecurity software, is expanding its relationship with Ingram Micro in the UK and other European markets with the launch of a joint offering that will make it easier for MSPs to deliver Keeper solutions through Ingram’s Xvantage platform. Designed to protect passwords, passkeys, privileged access, secrets and remote connections, Keeper’s security platform provides a suite of products and services from Privileged Access Management (PAM) to dark web monitoring, compliance reporting and seamless integration with existing IT environments. Scott Unger, Director of Global Channel Account Management at Keeper Security, said: “Cybersecurity is paramount to the success of resellers and MSPs. By expanding our partnership with Ingram Micro, we’re offering partners and MSPs a powerful, streamlined solution to secure critical assets and enhance their operations. Together, we’re making it easier for valued partners to provide the robust, scalable protection their clients need while driving their own growth and efficiency.” KeeperSecurity.com www.ingrammicro.com. … Exertis Enterprise to distribute Quantum data management solutions Exertis Enterprise is strengthening its product portfolio through a distribution partnership with Quantum Corporation, a provider of scalable data storage and management solutions that enable organisations to secure their data, optimise storage performance and leverage data to support AI initiatives and data-driven insights. Guillaume Crapart, Vice President, Global Channels at Quantum, said: “Through our partnership with Exertis, we look forward to expanding our presence in the UK. As data volumes continue to grow rapidly, organisations need solutions that not only manage and protect their data but also unlock its potential. Together, we deliver end-to-end data management solutions that empower customers to drive innovation; support AI, media & entertainment and other demanding workflows; build secure and cost-efficient private clouds; and ensure data protection from edge to core to cloud.” https://exertisenterprise.com/ www.quantum.com … Midwich launches PLUS Professional Services Midwich is enhancing the support and expert assistance offered to channel partners with the launch of PLUS Professional Services. Offering support at every stage of an AV project, from design and planning to installation and ongoing maintenance, PLUS combines Midwich’s extensive resources with the expertise of the former Farm AV team. Available for any size project, from a large stadium to a small meeting room, PLUS offers a range of services, including Project+ (end-to-end project support, from design to documentation); Deploy+ (onsite or remote commissioning and system optimisation); Code+ (custom control and DSP programming for bespoke solutions); and Protect+ (advanced replacement warranties and 24/5 technical support). https://midwichgroupplc.com/careers/ … Westcon-Comstor extends Splunk collaboration to EMEA Cybersecurity and observability company Splunk, recently acquired by Cisco, is extending an existing distribution agreement with Comstor in Asia-Pacific to EMEA. Comstor, which has had a relationship with Cisco for almost three decades, will utilise its expertise in both the Cisco and Splunk portfolios to provide a suite of value-added services to help partners scale and unlock new growth opportunities. The partnership will give Cisco partners in EMEA access to a dedicated Splunk portfolio and existing Splunk partners the ability to deploy and sell leading Cisco solutions including AppDynamics and ThousandEyes. Willem de Haan, Executive Vice President, Comstor Europe and Comstor International at Westcon-Comstor, said: “Comstor is ideally equipped to enable partners to take advantage of the opportunities presented by this agreement, as reflected by the fact that around 90% of our teams are accredited with Splunk sales or engineer certifications. We look forward to using our Cisco and Splunk expertise to drive accelerated growth across the region.” ProGlove turns to BlueStar ProGlove, a pioneer in ergonomic, wearable scanners, is increasing its global reach through a partnership with BlueStar, a distributor of specialty B2B electronics devices with a global network of over 13,000 customers. Together, the two companies aim to address the growing demand for advanced data collection solutions in manufacturing, logistics and retail by offering ProGlove’s complete product suite, including MARK wearable scanners, chargers and lifecycle care solutions, through BlueStar’s distribution channels and online portal. www.proglove.com www.bluestarinc.com Arrow earns additional Microsoft Azure specialisation Arrow Electronics has been awarded Infrastructure and Database Migration to Microsoft Azure Specialisation, following a third-party audit of its migration practices and an assessment of its achievements in migrating customers’ infrastructure and database workloads to the Azure cloud. Brendan Murphy, Global Director of Public Cloud for Arrow’s Enterprise Computing Solutions Business, said: “This Infrastructure & Database Migration to Microsoft Azure Specialisation is a significant milestone for us. It highlights our ability to support our channel partners in accelerating their end customers’ migration journeys to Azure. We are committed to providing our channel partners with the best tools and support to ensure their success in the cloud.” arrow.com Brendan Murphy Willem de Haan Comstor Europe
01732 759725 Paul Burn, Managing Director of Nimans, talks to Technology Reseller about the distributor’s first 40 years, the secret of its longevity and the changing nature of distribution Nimans is still Nimans “The reason we’ve been around for 40 years is our diversity, and we try to help our customers achieve the same level of diversity so they don’t get penned into a single market that can leave them exposed. Just look what happened to the phone system market in COVID. It was basically decimated,” he says. “If you’d told me in 2019 that in 2025 Samsung wouldn’t be doing phone systems, Panasonic wouldn’t be doing phone systems, NEC wouldn’t be doing phone systems, I’d have said you were insane. But that’s what’s happened. As a result, in the last couple of years, we have seen some niche distributors in that area have difficulties, people like Trust. It’s a shame there isn’t the space for those small distribution businesses that there used to be.” When pressed on the changes he has seen in distribution over the last 40 years, Burn highlights the decline of specialist, niche distributors as one of the biggest developments. “There used to be more segmentation in the industry, with different lanes for comms distributors, AV distributors, security distributors, specialist distributors and broadline distributors, but over time, everything’s melded together. If I look at who my competitors were 10 years ago, there was a much wider spread. Now, everyone’s dipping into everybody else’s market. “It’s difficult to offer only the one thing. If you’re offering a cloud telephony solution, but you’re not offering minutes and all the associated networking equipment and the handsets, or if you’re only providing the headset or only doing video conferencing, but not the screens, all you’re doing is encouraging that customer to have a look around and say ‘Is there a single place I can get this from rather than having to buy it from 10 different places?’. It’s definitely more difficult to be niche these days.” Burns adds that diversity might not give the explosive growth that being a specialist in a single technology can but points out that involvement in multiple sectors can protect you from dips in the market and provide more consistent, reliable growth. years later there’s not much left of what was originally there. That’s not how Midwich operates. We are Nimans, we are still here, still in the same premises, still with the same staff, still with the reputation that we’ve spent 40 years building up, albeit with greater global reach and scale. We’re dancing that tightrope between being part of a big, super-company and being that day-to-day, friendly business we’ve always been,” explains Burn. “One of the best barometers of this is how many of our customers know we’re owned by Midwich. I would say it’s probably not that many, because from their perspective all they see is Nimans continuing to be Nimans.” Well, that and access to an expanded product offering that now includes AV solutions, in addition to security products and Nimans’ core networking, telephony and collaboration portfolio that provides a straight line back through multiple technology evolutions to the distributor’s origins in the liberalisation of the UK comms market in the 1980s. Burn cites Nimans’ ability to diversify into new markets as one of the keys to its longevity, from two-way radios (a passion of founder Julian Nimans) and fax machines in its earliest days to telephone systems and mobile comms to more recent innovations such as video and unified communications, and latterly the new product areas of security solutions and AV. This year is Nimans’ 40th anniversary. The leading technology distributor founded by Julian Nimans in 1985 was acquired by Midwich in 2022 but is still run as a separate entity. As Managing Director Paul Burn says, Nimans is still Nimans, even if it is part of a bigger group. “Sometimes, when businesses get bought, they get swallowed up and five 08 INTERVIEW continued... Paul Burn
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10 01732 759725 a piece of equipment? Am I selling a principle? Am I selling a dream? Am I selling an opportunity? What am I actually selling? Because, ultimately, these things often require a change in working practices to get the most value from them,” explains Burn. “It used to be that if I sold you a piece of hardware or technology it was probably to complement what you were already doing. Now, I’m selling you something, and I’m encouraging you to change your business practices to get the best out of it. That changes the sales process.” Sustainable relationships Arguably, AI also makes it more difficult to predict what the major technologies and major vendors will be in five years’ time – although Burn is confident that the key supplier relationships that Nimans has had for years will persist. “Take our relationship with BT, our relationship with Jabra, our relationship with Yealink. They are the kinds of business that will continue to evolve and over the years we’ve been loyal to them and they’ve been loyal to us, so I’m confident that those relationships will continue to grow. Then it’s a question of which others we bring on. It’s difficult to pin that down other than to say we will do that with as much energy and with as much integrity as we’ve always done.” In the meantime, Nimans will continue to develop its services offering and use its 40th anniversary year to make customers and its own employees more aware of its strengths and capabilities in this area. “People very much know us as that reliable place they can go to place an order for some headsets they will have the next morning. That’s all very good, but we’re also doing quite a few million pounds on software and network services and we’ve got to make sure everyone knows that, because software services is critical. If you’re buying a piece of video equipment now, people want to know how you service it, what software you’re putting on it, what applications you’re using with it. “People also want instant gratification – ‘I want to buy something and I want it now’. That’s the online world that’s been created by brilliant people like Amazon. We’ve spent a lot of time on that in the last couple of years and our online services are much better, but it’s something we’ve got to keep evolving, because it’s a fast moving and costly area. You have to have the right platforms to be able to do that. That is going to be a big part of our plans for the future.” www.nimans.net whereas at Nimans we used to look only months or perhaps one year ahead – it was very much about the here and now. As part of Midwich, we are really benefitting from looking further ahead, saying ‘Okay, what’s our longer-term plan here? How do we evolve to support what our customers will be doing five years from now?’. From being a ‘ship-that-thing-to-thatplace’ business Nimans has been shifting more towards network services, software provisioning and the like. You can’t make that switch overnight; you need to evolve your systems and architecture to support that, which is encouraging us to engage in longer-term planning.” Disruptive forces In the last 40 years Nimans has had to contend with hundreds of small crises and one very large one – Covid – when overnight the market, in Burn’s words, turned from being an oil tanker into a speed boat, the bow-waves of which we are still experiencing, for example in the reversal of hybrid working and the accelerating return to office. Now, the great disruptor is AI. This is clearly impacting Nimans, with many of its vendors, especially in the video and unified communications/customer experience (CX) space, incorporating AI into their products. Perhaps more than anything, this is changing the sales conversations that Nimans and its reseller/ MSP/SI partners have with customers. “At the moment, AI is throwing up a lot of questions for businesses. How do I use this? What do I get out of it? How much is it going to cost me? How does that impact us culturally, from a staff and a customer point of view? For our customers, these conversations raise different questions like How does this affect my sales process? Am I selling Enduring values Julian Nimans founded and ran Nimans very much in his own image and, seven years after his death, his values remain central to the distributor’s corporate culture. For Burn, staying true to his ethos continues to be a source of strength and a contributory factor to the company’s longevity – and staff retention. “We’re a nice place to work. We’ve got lots of staff who’ve been here 10, 15, 20 years and our senior management team, give or take one or two, have all been promoted through the business, so that fundamental DNA about how we treat customers, how we treat suppliers, how we treat staff still exists within the business. Do we get it right all the time? Of course not. Does that mean every relationship works? Of course not. But the fundamental principles on which Julian ran the business continue to hold us in good stead.” Burn, who has effectively been part of the business for 29 years, having started as a trainee account manager at Rocom (bought by Nimans in 2009), says the potential drawbacks of a loyal, long-serving workforce and management team have been eliminated by being part of Midwich, which has encouraged everyone to think more strategically. “Having a team that’s been in the business a long time can be a strength, but it can also make you a little insular and prone to doing things how they have always been done. Being part of the Midwich Group exposes us to fresh voices and new ideas and has allowed us to challenge ourselves and say ‘just because we’ve done it this way for 20 years, doesn’t make it right’. “One of the differences between an owner-run business and a business with a responsibility to shareholders is that Midwich tends to look further ahead, INTERVIEW ...continued
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12 01732 759725 RESELLER NEWS Principle Networks an official Zscaler MSSP Building on a long-term collaboration between the two companies, network services provider Principle Networks has been formally acknowledged as a Zscaler Managed Security Service Partner (MSSP). As an official Zscaler MSSP, Principle Networks can give its customers access to the Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange platform and service offerings including Zero Trust SD-WAN/SASE, Zero Trust network and segmentation for IT/OT and Zero Trust Cloud for data protection and workload security. Russell Crowley, Co-CEO at Principle Networks, said: “ We invested in Zscaler expertise because we believe their Zero Trust Exchange platform is the most comprehensive platform for zero trust security and network transformation. Together, we can help our customers gain control, become more agile and enhance their cyberthreat protection.” … Eureka launches Sage Intacct connector Business software solutions provider Eureka Solutions is giving users of the Sage Intacct financial management platform new opportunities to improve efficiency and productivity with the launch of a Sage Intacct connector under its Besyncly sub-brand. Already accredited by Sage in the UK, Ireland and US and listed on the Sage Intacct Marketplace, the connector automates the transfer of essential data between a business’s existing financial systems and a wide range of applications, including ecommerce, CRM, fundraising and ticketing platforms, saving admin time, reducing data entry mistakes and ensuring systems stay aligned. The Besyncly cloud-based integration platform already connects some of the biggest names in business software, including NetSuite, Salesforce, Xero, Amazon, eBay, Shopify and WooCommerce. David Lindores, CEO of Eureka Solutions, said: “With this new connector, we hope to give our Sage channel partners a robust, scalable solution they can take to their customers, helping them offer an even more comprehensive solution than before... With a growing global network of over 25,000 Sage Intacct users and adoption rapidly increasing in the UK, it’s the natural choice for ensuring smooth transitions and long-term operational success for Sage Intacct users.” https://besyncly.com/ https://eurekasolutions.co.uk/ … Semperis and iC Consult extend partnership to UK Following a successful collaboration in DACH and Southern Europe, identity security specialist Semperis and iC Consult, a global consultancy, SI and MSP for identity-driven cybersecurity, are extending their partnership to the UK. The two companies will work together to help joint customers improve their operational resilience and combat increased threats to identity systems, especially Microsoft Office365 Active Directory (AD) and Entra ID. Under the agreement iC Consult will provide the Semperis Lightning Platform; the real-time tracking and auditing solution Directory Services Protector (DSP); AD Forest Recovery (ADFR) for fully automated disaster recovery orchestration; Purple Knight, a free AD vulnerability assessment tool; and Forest Druid, a free tool to discover identity system attack paths. www.semperis.com … M247 an Everything ICT approved supplier M247, a provider of ICT products and services to schools, colleges, universities, NHS Trusts, local authorities and charities, has been listed as one of 200+ approved suppliers on the Everything ICT public sector procurement platform. Included in the Department for Education’s ‘Find a Framework’ initiative, Everything ICT is used by more than 6,000 educational institutions to procure ICT hardware, software, AV and cloud services via competitive bidding or direct awards. M247’s portfolio includes ultrafast and secure connectivity, scalable cloud hosting, advanced cybersecurity, proactive managed IT support, unified communications and IoT technologies. www.m247.com … Node4 app improves clinical photo sharing at NHS Trust Node4, the cloud-led digital transformation MSP, has enhanced Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust’s Electronic Patient Record (EPR) solution with the development and implementation of a UK SMEs becoming more reliant on managed security services Two-thirds of SMEs expect to be more reliant on managed security services in 2025 compared to 13% who believe they will be less reliant and 19.5% who expect no change, according to independent research commissioned by integrated cloud services provider Six Degrees. Its new whitepaper, Mapping the UK SME Cyber Security Landscape in 2025, reveals that the top two reasons for purchasing managed security services are to compensate for a lack of in-house cybersecurity skills (37%) and to meet compliance directives, industry regulations and/or legal requirements (36%). Other factors are the increasing sophistication and volume of cyber-attacks (34%), the need to be able to cope with surges in cyber activity (31%) and the requirement for 24x7 support (28%). More than one-fifth of respondents say they purchase managed security services to shift responsibility to a third party. However, Six Degrees CEO Vince DeLuca warns that compliance requires a more strategic approach. He said: “We’ve instinctively known for some time that a significant number of cyber security service purchases are driven by the need to demonstrate compliance with directives, regulations and laws. We also understand that the ongoing cyber security skills shortage leaves these organisations increasingly vulnerable to cyber-attacks, exposing them to risks that could jeopardise that compliance. That heightened risk makes it more likely that they would want to shift their responsibility to a third party. “However, if a cyber security solutions or services provider has open and honest discussions with its customers, those customers will know purchasing a cyber security solution means accepting a shared risk profile – it’s not a way for businesses to abdicate responsibilities. The cyber security tool or service purchase and its ongoing management must also form part of a broader strategy that informs business change in every single context. If you don’t re-engineer your organisation to be secure, no amount of tooling will fix it.” Business leaders were also asked about their biggest cybersecurity frustrations. The top four are implementation costs (43%), implementation times (37%), inability to fully utilise existing cyber security protection solutions (33%) and the departure of inhouse cyber security experts (24%). DeLuca added: “There’s a direct link between the lack of specialist skills needed to operate cyber security solutions and some of the biggest cyber security frustrations encountered by SMEs. By increasing their reliance on managed security services, SMEs are taking proactive steps to address these skills shortages and, therefore, resolve their frustrations.” https://www.6dg.co.uk/whitepaper/mapping-theuk-sme-cyber-security-landscape-in-2025/ https://www.6dg.co.uk/ Vince DeLuca Russell Crowley Principle Networks David Lindores Eureka Solutions
RESELLER NEWS technologyreseller.co.uk 13 bespoke mobile clinical photo capture and sharing application. Called Galerie, the app was originally developed to enable the capture of clinical images outside regular working hours, but as Sally Cooke, Head of Design, Photography and Reprographics at Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Trust, explains, it has other benefits. “Clinical photos need to be taken and accessed around the clock, but our department’s services are only available during regular working hours. The NHS did not, and still does not, have a national solution to this problem and none of the existing applications we looked at met our requirements for Trust oversight and ownership of captured media, storage safety and consent to photography. We also needed a connection into the NHS spine to ensure consistent demographic data,” she said. A particular problem was limited or nonexistent integration between the different Electronic Patient Record (EPR) systems used by the Trust’s community care and hospital teams, which makes it harder to deliver joined-up care and track treatment progress, particularly for patients who move between acute and community settings. Galerie gets around this problem by being EPR system-independent so that the app and centralised photograph database remain accessible even if the Trust changes or updates its EPR system; by being user-independent, so if a doctor leaves the Trust, the images stay within the application environment and do not leave with them; by enabling clinicians to add notes to images; and by connecting directly to the NHS spine, which enables the secure, encrypted sharing of patient diagnostics. In addition, Galerie ensures the Trust stores electronic patient data in line with current guidelines and legislation as Julian Beeton, Senior Designer, Photography and Reprographics at Lewisham & Greenwich NHS Trust, explains. “Galerie works on a phone, laptop or a smart device and looks identical in each instance. The only difference is that when Galerie launches on a phone, it also launches the camera so the user can take a photo. The key point here is that photos never touch the user’s camera roll or photo gallery; they stay within the application environment and don’t end up on a user’s mobile device, helping to protect against GDPR breaches. Galerie also restricts how photographs are shared via email, only allowing them to be forwarded to authorised accounts, such as nhs.net emails and other approved DCB1596-compliant domains from partner organisations.” www.node4.co.uk ISN acquired by ITGL, part of Conscia Cybersecurity, collaboration and networking specialist ITGL, part of Conscia has acquired Intuitive Systems & Networks (ISN), a Cisco technology solutions and services provider with 40 employees based in Royal Wootton Bassett. The acquisition of ISN comes 12 months after ITGL was acquired by Conscia, a Danish Cisco Gold Partner and provider of cybersecurity and networking solutions for mission-critical IT infrastructure in large European organisations. Now operating as ISN, part of Conscia, the provider of cybersecurity, managed network and software-defined solutions predominantly to UK midmarket customers and a number of public sector organisations will work in close partnership with ITGL teams in Oxford and Portsmouth, bringing the headcount of the newly merged organisation to 130. Neil Pemberton, CEO of ITGL, part of Conscia, said: “ISN is an ideal acquisition for us, from a culture, capabilities and market expertise perspective. With the organisation on board, we are better placed to expand our commercial client base and enhance existing managed services and cybersecurity offerings.” MSPs anticipating growth of 20% or more MSPs continue to be confident of strong revenue growth driven by rising demand for managed cybersecurity services, a greater focus on cyberresilience and compliance, new opportunities in comanaged IT and AI-powered automation of workflows and sales and ticketing processes. Almost two-thirds (59%) of MSPs questioned for N-able’s second global MSP Horizons Report, produced in association with Canalys, expect to increase revenue by at least 20% in 2025, with 90% anticipating increased demand for managed cybersecurity services (up from 80% last year). Almost 40% of respondents expect profit from managed services to rise by more than 20% in 2025, with security-related services making up the top four most important contributors to managed services revenue over the next three years. Third-party MDR tops the list of new services MSPs are planning to add. The most in demand future managed backup and disaster recovery services are SaaS application backup (53%) and AI-powered backup and recovery (51%). The main challenges identified by MSPs are new customer acquisition and upskilling staff, both of which are fuelling greater interest in M&A, cited by 90% of survey respondents, up from 44% last year. Commenting on the report, N-able President and CEO John Pagliuca said: “A central theme of this year’s report is cyber resilience. Conversations with MSPs worldwide make it clear that the line between IT operations and security operations has blurred. The leading MSPs differentiate themselves by addressing security across the entire attack lifecycle: from protection and detection to response and recovery. When it comes to cybersecurity, ‘good enough’ is no longer good enough.” Robin Ody, MSP Analysis Practice Lead at Canalys (now part of Omdia), added: “The forward-looking partner today is focusing on those specialisations that will provide the most value to the customer and help them remain competitive: cybersecurity, cloud, AI, risk management, compliance monitoring and vertical capability.” The MSP Horizons Report is based on feedback from 451 business-to-business channel partners across EMEA, North America, APAC and Latin America. n-able.com John Pagliuca dbfb partners with Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Telecoms and IT managed services provider dbfb is partnering with Manchester Foundation Trust Charity to help raise awareness and funds for Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital. The collaboration has great significance for recently appointed Director Paul Sculthorpe MBE who since 2013 has been fund-raising for the hospital where his youngest daughter was successfully treated for kidney cancer, aged just four-years-old. The rugby league hall of famer and former Warrington, St Helens and Great Britain captain said: “I am really thankful to the dbfb team for supporting a cause that means a lot to me and my family. I will be forever in debt to the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.” dbfb is kicking off its support by taking a table at the Champions For Children Gala Dinner, a fundraising event being staged in Manchester this March in aid of the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity and Foundation 92. www.mftcharity.org.uk Paul Sculthorpe MBE continued...
RESELLER NEWS 14 01732 759725 ...continued Global expansion drives growth at Kinly In the last two years, demand for managed on-site AV services, allied to continuing international expansion, has powered organic growth of 40% in global services at Kinly, a global provider of AV integration and collaboration services. Since 2022, Kinly has opened new offices for its Global Services team in India, Germany and Switzerland to meet the needs of customers with multi-national AV projects and extended its on-site managed services provision to new regions, including Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and India. This has provided employment to an additional 150 people worldwide, increasing Kinly’s overall headcount by 200%. Much of Kinly’s Global Services growth has come from deepening relationships with 15 leading enterprise clients, including one global financial institution that has extended its engagement with Kinly from support for a London-based team of 22 people to a fully managed AV services project spanning 700 cities in 62 countries. Kinly CEO Tom Martin said: “We’re proud to have deepened relationships with our enterprise clients while expanding into new markets worldwide. But growth alone isn’t our goal. We’re also focused on shaping the future of AV in the years to come. Whether championing sustainability, ensuring security by design or setting new standards for accessibility and corporate responsibility, Kinly will continue to lead the way.” Kyndryl launches end-to-end SASE services Global IT infrastructure services provider Kyndryl is launching end-to-end, secure access service edge (SASE) services in collaboration with strategic partner Palo Alto Networks, as it looks to accelerate customers’ adoption a cloud‑first, zero trust solution for network security. The global IT infrastructure service provider’s SASE services, combined with Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASE, powered by Precision AI, integrate customers’ network and security into a unified, cloud-delivered service with granular control over user authentication and authorisation, providing secure access to business applications as well as edge and IoT technologies. Paul Savill, Global Practice Leader of Network and Edge Computing at Kyndryl, says that the need for hybrid workers to access multiple business applications on various devices is creating a highly distributed IT environment that is difficult to secure without modernisation of the IT infrastructure. He said: “To mitigate operational risk, business leaders need to prioritise upgrading IT infrastructure and enhancing cybersecurity measures, as research shows that nearly half of the world’s mission-critical business technology is out-of-date or nearing end-of-life. Our new SASE services for Palo Alto Networks’ AI‑powered Prisma SASE solution will enable businesses to transform securely by adopting a true zero-trust approach to protect against cyber threats in real-time.” Kyndryl itself has gone through such a process, making the transition from an on-premises network architecture with 54 data centres to a flexible, scalable solution based on cloud-first, SASEbased, zero-trust security principles using services from technology partners including Prisma SASE from Palo Alto Networks. This has lowered its IT operational spend and enabled employees to securely access business-critical applications across any device. End-to-end SASE services provided by Kyndryl include consultancy, design & implementation, 24/7 management & optimisation and integration with Kyndryl Bridge, an AI-powered platform that enables customers to observe, integrate and orchestrate their entire technology environment and hybrid IT connectivity. www.kyndryl.com … The future of the IT service desk? Automation-first MSP Spherica Business Solutions is looking to transform the customer experience and significantly cut costs with the launch of an AI-driven, semi-autonomous IT Service Desk that redefines how IT service support is delivered. Accessible via multilingual chat, email, voice and ITSM systems, ServiceHive provides AI-powered support 24x7x365, streamlining operations, cutting costs, speeding up resolution times and providing the flexibility to handle spikes in volume. Key features include role-specific AI agents that assess the optimum resolution path for each issue raised; pre-built and customisable workflows for automating low-value, repetitive tasks; customer-specific knowledge banks for rapid resolution of problems and greater self-sufficiency; and an AI-driven triage and ticket management engine that seamlessly integrates with leading ITSM solutions. Steve Jennings, Managing Director of Spherica Business Solutions, said: “Customers can choose to deploy ServiceHive as an in-house first contact IT Service Desk or use it to enhance existing support services, such as processing high ticket volumes or providing out of hours support. ServiceHive delivers substantial benefits right from the start . We believe it is the future of the IT Service Desk.” BlueVoyant opens Cork-based SOC for EU clients BlueVoyant, the 2024 Microsoft Worldwide Security Partner of the Year, is building on last year’s establishment of a UK Security Operations Centre (SOC) and Customer Experience Centre in Leeds with the opening of a SOC in Cork, Ireland to provide 24/7 network and endpoint monitoring for clients in the EU. Since 2017, the cloud-native cyber defence platform provider has made multi-million-dollar investments in EMEA where it now employs 120 cyber security experts, helping to drive year-on-year growth of 70% in 2024. The Cork SOC, BlueVoyant’s first permanent office in Ireland, currently has a headcount of nine, but this is expected to grow to at least 15 as more EU businesses embrace managed security services to address new cyber threats and the requirements of EU regulations such as NIS 2 and DORA. Ger Kirby, SOC Manager for Ireland and EMEA, said: “As a Cork native, I am honoured by the opportunity to have local talent provide industryleading cyber defence for organisations across Ireland and the world. With new EU cyber security and privacy regulations, it’s more crucial than ever for enterprises to ensure they are quickly finding and mitigating the latest threats.” www.bluevoyant.com Robert Hannigan, BlueVoyant Head of International Business; Michael Conley, BlueVoyant Chief Revenue Officer; Councillor Dan Boyle, the Lord Mayor of Cork; Holly Steele, BlueVoyant Senior Vice President United Kingdom and EMEA; and Ger Kirby, BlueVoyant SOC Manager, Ireland and EMEA. Tom Martin Kinly
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