COVID-19 Presents Channel Opportunities Around Edge Computing

There has been much talk as to how technologies like IoT and 5G will impact where and how companies collect and process data.

The answer is that their growth is fueling the move away from centralized data processing. It is shifting to where data is increasingly generated, processed and consumed — the “edge” of the network. Indeed, Gartner has stated that by 2025, 75% of enterprise data is expected to be created and processed at the edge.

However, the opportunity for the channel around edge computing may arrive much earlier than that. Forrester analyst Jay McBain says the move to remote working during the early stages of COVID-19 in March fueled an increase in procuring and provisioning edge products for 72% of channel partners.

Now in August, McBain says customers are talking about automation, cloud acceleration, security, compliance and governance of this new edge topology.

Forrester’s Jay McBain

“We have business professionals at home on a consumer notebook, on a consumer network, going through a consumer router, shared with their neighbors getting access to enterprise class data and systems,” he said. “Securing this remote topology at every layer from physical security to edge authentication, network and web, applications and data is top of mind and a growing opportunity for the channel.”

Where to Begin

So where should the channel start with edge computing? For UK channel firm EfficiencyIT, the opportunity lies in pinpointing the customer’s exact business needs.

“Consultancy is crucial, and there isn’t one single answer to each of our customers’ problems; everyone is different and that’s the approach we take,” said managing director Nick Ewing. “Rolling out edge computing isn’t the same as selling PCs. Every data center is sized differently; it’s housed in a different location and uses different technologies. We go in, identify the pain points and help them overcome them. Usually it’s to do with knowing what’s happening with their IT and when.

“Customers are pretty good at identifying what they need their technology to do,” Ewing added. “They are less comfortable at being able to identify exactly what they have, where it’s located and how it can best be deployed and managed to support their business. That’s where we really find our sweet spot, helping our customers visualize their IT environments so they can monitor and manage both their local IT and wider edge compute.”

2 Types of Partners

Unsurprisingly, a growing number of vendors are recognizing the move to edge computing and are tailoring their partner engagement accordingly.

Schneider Electric recently expanded its partnerships with Lenovo, Stratus Technologies and industrial software specialist AVEVA. It wanted to produce new reference designs and pre-integrated systems that address the convergence of IT and OT — a key market for edge computing.

Schneider Electric’s David Terry

“Within that space there is a greater need for the skills of two different partner types, IT solutions providers and industrial systems integrators,” said David Terry, VP, IT channels, Schneider Electric, Europe.

As such, the firm has created an ‘Industrial Edge Community,” which allows the two groups to engage with each other and facilitate new business on IT/OT projects. It has also added a new edge module to its Opportunity Registration Program (ORP). So this offers partners greater margins and profits for …