We recently welcomed Copie Davis to the team as Director of Channel Development. We sat down with him to find out his views of the channel, the industry and his plans for RF Code.
What are the future trends in the channel?
Channel partners today, especially in the data center space, have to be more agile and need to have more diversified portfolios. Over the past several years most customers were able to pick certain partners for certain purchases and those partners were able to concentrate on one or two core product lines to make their revenue goals.
Now, the market has become much more competitive and partners are having a hard time differentiating themselves from their competition. We provide solutions which provide that key differentiating factor.
What are companies looking for when investing in data center monitoring solutions?
Companies want a solution that addresses specific pain points, works immediately and therefore provides immediate value. They want solutions that are simple to deploy, simple to learn and simple to use.
Organizations are also extremely cost-conscious, so they want solutions that don’t bruise them too badly from a CapEx perspective.
Where do you see growth coming from – MSPs, integrators, consultancy firms?
All of the above to a certain extent. But I see the biggest growth potential in regionally focused VARs who can sell the solution as well as provide installation, configuration & integration services.
Customers want a trusted advisor. They want to build a relationship with a partner that knows them, knows their business and cares about keeping that business successful.
Do you think the industry faces a lot of M&A activity in the coming years?
I think we will see some M&A activity in the data center management space over the next few years, but not a ton. I expect to see a few companies acquired by some of the bigger players in the market, but for the most part I think some of the vendors that jumped on the DCIM bandwagon hoping for a quick hit will probably just fold up their tents.
The companies that will survive and thrive are the companies that have a long track record of consistent growth and provide immediate, measurable benefit to the customer.
How will subscription pricing affect the channel?
I firmly believe that the channel will enthusiastically embrace the subscription model. Subscription sales are typically considered an operating rather than a capital expenditure for the customer which simplifies the sales process a great deal.
Subscription also serves as a mechanism to build a solid relationship with the customer, keeping them engaged over the long term rather than just processing POs every few months.
Where do you think RF Code’s strength lies?
I think we have a tremendous opportunity for growth in the next few quarters. What we do is laser focused on solving very specific problems that all data centers face. Environmental management & asset management are critical for IT & data center managers to lower costs while increasing productivity and availability. I haven’t seen a data centers yet that did not need intelligent ways to do that.
RF Code can also help customers improve the ROI of future DCIM investments by leveraging the real-time data we provide.
And finally, what are you hoping to achieve at RF Code?
I want to help move this company into its next phase. I think we have the tools and the talent necessary to at least double our revenue over the next three to five years, and the channel is going to be a critical part of that process.
I’ve spent the better part of the last ten years in Channel Sales in the physical threat, environmental monitoring and DCIM spaces and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to use my experience to help grow this company.
