MSP 501 Flashback: Cloud Services Platform Vendor ZNet Technologies Thrives

ZNet Technologies, the 2019 Channel Partners MSP 501 Newcomer Award winner, perfectly timed the development of its cloud services platform.

The India-based company won the award last year after pivoting its business from hosting and domain services to cloud services. Starting in 2017, the company successfully productized and marketed its in-house cloud platform to customers. The product, RackNap, has helped grow the company’s business by automating cloud delivery for users.

That dramatic change in direction for ZNet is now paying dividends, senior VP and CEO Sabarinathan Sampath told Channel Partners. With COVID-19 affecting the world, business is even more hectic for the company due to its well-timed cloud platform.

The MSP 501 Newcomer Award goes to a first-time MSP 501 nominee that is shaking things up. Channel Futures chose ZNet Technologies for the 2019 award because of the dynamic path it took in its own digital transformation. Needing a better cloud services platform for its own use, the company developed one in 2014. When it worked well, the ZNet wisely decided to offer it to customers — and the strategy took off. With only a hunch, the company used its own digital transformation journey as a blueprint for the customers it serves.

ZNet’s Sabarinathan Sampath

In a Q&A with Channel Futures, Sampath talks about how ZNet Technologies is doing today in the aftermath of COVID-19.

Channel Futures: It has been a busy few years for the company. What are your thoughts about the progression? 

Sabarinathan Sampath: Looking back, I feel proud of what we have accomplished to date. Since we started in 2009, we had this goal of making ZNet a leader in the hosting and domain industry. But there were also challenges in this line of business that needed to be addressed to achieve the goal. So we wanted to expand our offerings. Around 2015, the cloud market was booming, and we thought to explore the opportunities in this market. Then, Microsoft gave us an opportunity to work as a cloud service provider partner. This was a completely new offering and really helped in building our reputation in the market. We then signed up with other cloud providers as well.

CF: That’s what led to your RackNap cloud services platform?

SS: Soon, the cloud demand started to rise, and we started facing challenges in selling cloud services and managing the operations. We knew we needed to reorganize the process. This is when we decided to productize our in-house software that we had built and commercialize this as RackNap. This cloud services delivery platform really helped us to streamline our business processes. We launched RackNap commercially in 2017.

CF: And after all these changes, value-added distributor RP Tech India acquired ZNet in February 2019?

SS: That acquisition paved new ways for our organization. We saw more growth by strengthening our partner network, and thus, we became a distributor of cloud services. We had the means and the know-how to empower our partner network to grow with us. Also, we signed up with Acronis, Alibaba Cloud and GlobalSign to sell their services as a distributor.

CF: Does your progress in such a short time surprise you?

SS: I am pleased to see the fruits of our hard work showing now. Even during COVID-19, we have not stopped. We are working hard to continue to service our clients. I am so impressed by how we …