The Value of Partnerships in the Enterprise
Gone are the days of one-vendor-fits-all. As cloud computing and demand for mobile access create revolutionary changes in the enterprise, the largest companies in the world are increasingly searching for innovative solutions in order to address new difficulties and elevated expectations.
YOU SAY YOU WANT A REVOLUTION
Looking to solve large-scale challenges, companies have shifted focus from the cost-cutting imperatives of the last ten years to a renewed focus on investment in innovation for mission critical areas like finance, supply chain, human resources and sales. Many of these exciting initiatives are being enabled within the enterprise by a tidal wave of new technologies in cloud computing such as Wifi, LTE and the accelerating enterprise adoption of smart phones and tablet computers. Large market cap companies like IBM, Salesforce.com and SAP are each going through critical transformations as they look to offer customers new cloud-based and mobile solutions from both new product offerings and partner platform enhancements.
DAZED AND CONFUSED
Forrester principal analyst, Scott Santucci, calls the opportunity for spending on cloud and mobile solutions “gigantic”, however, as he says in his recent LinkedIn post, there is a LOT of noise out there. Companies large and small are bombarding would-be technology buyers inside and outside the IT organization with InMails, Emails, texts, Tweets and chats. As a result it is increasingly difficult for these buyers to understand the pains they are trying to solve, much less how to solve them.
BENEFITS OF PARTNERSHIPS
At Mediafly, we see this confusion as a unique opportunity to create a value of partnerships in this shifting competitive landscape. Whether partnering with a digital agency, a consultant, an analyst firm or a complementary technology platform, we see the development of a partner ecosystem as a crucial initiative for companies like Mediafly to cut through the noise, drive mutual benefit and ultimately improve the opportunity for customer success — the only measure that truly matters.
AGENCIES: THE NEED FOR SPEED
Digital agencies are being asked to do more than ever before. Many agencies that we’ve talked to have been “forced” to provide a patchwork solution for a customer due to a time requirement. Time-to-market is critical and agencies don’t have the bandwidth to explore all the solutions in the marketplace or the expertise to build the solution themselves — often to the detriment of the customer. In fact, one of our agency partners recently explained how they inadvertently strained their relationship with a customer when attempting to deliver elements outside of their core areas of expertise. The quote: “I wish I knew about Mediafly just four weeks ago. We could have partnered together and offered perfect-fit solutions”. Agencies can be confident they can have the right solution in place within weeks and, more importantly, have a happy customer by partnering with a technology company that can offer a quick-deployed solution that is enterprise-class.
ANALYSTS AND CONSULTANTS: SUPPORT FOR DAVID VS. GOLIATH
Analysts and consultants are continuously fielding requests from large clients for innovative ways to address new requirements born of recent cloud and mobile enterprise initiatives. These thought leaders are increasingly recommending a new crop of best-of-breed software solutions as legacy providers have been slow to augment their offerings with cloud and mobile solutions. What is also becoming clear is that these recommendations also help analysts and strategy consultants win. Connecting the enterprise to new providers helps thought leaders deliver current engagements while demonstrating a unique understanding of an increasingly complex marketplace. The major challenge when developing partnerships with analysts and consultants is establishing credibility. Innovators need to demonstrate long-term viability and value in order for thought leaders to be comfortable with recommending them to their key clients.
One way that Mediafly is working to develop strategic partnerships with companies like Forrester, is to share new use cases, new features and new updates on a regular cadence. As a result, we provide these partners with another arrow in their proverbial quiver, arming them for conversations with other thought leaders or prospects and keeping ourselves top of mind.
SOFTWARE PROVIDERS: A RISING TIDE LIFTS ALL BOATS
Recent announcements from enterprise software providers like Box, SAP and Salesforce to open their software platforms to development partners result in a win-win-win. When a software platform is enhanced with high-quality integration, utilization of the platform and associated revenue increases, new introductions are made and the customer gains access to best-in-class solutions unavailable with a single solution provider.
As we said in our recent announcement, Mediafly’s integration with Box is an exciting advancement for both companies. Mediafly solutions, like ProReview for the Media & Entertainment industry, enhances the Box platform, extending Box workflows while providing users and administrators with a secure and elegant mobile experience. Mediafly is excited with the chance to work with Box’s customers, while Box is thrilled that Mediafly provides a unique mobile-user experience.
WHERE ARE WE HEADED?
In what Forrester calls the Age of the Customer, it is critical for established providers to offer a complete set of cloud computing and mobile solutions. Today this is most easily done by partnering with like-minded, high quality solution providers. By working to develop the right partner ecosystem, partners win and customers gain access to the right set of technology solutions for their internal and external constituents. As a result, we expect the recent wave of partnership announcements will continue:
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- Digital agencies will recognize the benefit from the speed with which a platform can deploy, resulting in the development on an increasing number of platforms and reduction in the frequency and complexity of custom development.
- Analysts and consultants will continue to tailor their recommendations based on a mix of established software companies and an increasing number of select best-of-breed solutions to meet the needs of savvy companies looking to invest in innovation.
- Established software platform providers will continue to provide APIs, validating and supporting those select partners that add the most mutual value.
Would you like to learn more about the Mediafly Partner Ecosystem? Click the link above.
Johnathan Evarts
CFO & COO
John Evarts provides leadership and guidance in the areas of operational strategy, financial management, and general administration at Mediafly. A “Flyer” since 2010, John brought his decade of C-suite experiences scaling small organizations (as CFO, AIDSCare) and transforming large organizations (as CFO, Lifelink Corporation) to the leader of content mobility solutions. Prior to his executive experience, John led domestic expansion initiatives as AVP, Investment Banking at Robert W. Baird & Co. John is frequently requested to speak on topics related to small business strategy and operations.
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