Get into the enterprise growth game

In the conversations I have with service providers, we all agree that the enterprise market offers a huge opportunity for high-growth and high-value on a global scale. There is a strong demand for new cloud-based and managed services as well as unified communications. It is just a matter of finding the best way to get in the game and tap into this new growth.

Cloud IP traffic will grow at around 32% from 2013 to 2018, according to Cisco Systems. Infonetics predicts VoIP and unified communications services will grow to become an $88 billion market by 2018 with hosted PBX and unified communications (UC) services expected to show double-digit growth.

It is a market where a service provider can win big and create long-term sustainable revenue streams. The challenge is to develop these new cloud, UC and managed services for enterprises and incorporate these with their WAN infrastructure to roll them out on a global scale. This will enable service providers to take advantage of new technology and tools in a secure manner to enable intensive collaboration, productivity and innovation.

So what is limiting enterprise growth for service providers?

For most service providers, it will be some combination of geographic reach, service portfolio, and internal resource. These are not simple challenges to overcome on your own.

Local providers in emerging markets often struggle to break out of their home markets while regional players can find it difficult to develop new services and compete on a global scale. Service providers can see the opportunity in the enterprise market but many have yet to find a clear path forward to tap into this new revenue stream.

The fastest and simplest way to remove limitations in the enterprise business is to find a global partner to support growth. The right partner can help a local provider win global business or a regional player accelerate entry into new markets or verticals.

A strong partner can really transform the potential of a service provider’s business. Here are five tips I hope will be useful in helping service providers win more enterprise business by choosing the right partner:

1. A rich portfolio of services
The partner can help service providers to rapidly roll-out new services without the need for in-house development. These new capabilities can be white-labelled for enterprise customers and deliver a risk-free way to offer new cloud, managed service and UC services.

2. Global reach
The ideal partner has global reach and can enable a service provider to capture global enterprise business. Global infrastructure can change what kinds of business a service provider competes for and enables them to serve enterprise needs beyond their home market.

3. Experience in serving verticals
Partners that have experience in serving different verticals can help service providers to win business in unique industries. Aviation, for example, operates on a global scale and the partner can help an inexperienced service provider to tailor solutions to the industry’s needs.

4. Proven performance
The partner can enable high availability and reliability of networks and services as well as security on a global scale. They should have a track record of delivering a high quality of experience for end users and understand their needs.

5. Commitment to success
More than network or services, the best partner will be committed to the success of the relationship. This is critical to capturing new revenue in enterprise services. The partner must be completely dedicated to the service provider’s success and see the relationship as mutually beneficial. This means shared objectives and goals without competing interests.

At Tata Communications, we believe we have the experience, expertise and global infrastructure to help service providers win new enterprise business and take their business to the next level. If you’d like to discuss a partnership opportunity, please get in touch.