Authority Issue 4

DOCTORS GO MOBILE | BECOMING A CLOUD PRACTITIONER | MIRROR, MIRROR
JANUARY–MARCH 2015
A Better
Data Center
for the
New Year
INCREASE EFFICIENCY
IN 4 EASY STEPS
Meet Chris Frey:
Lenovo’s Vice President
of North American
Commercial Channels
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H
HOME
ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY
ABOUT YOU
» From the Publisher
Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe that another year has
come and gone. As we look ahead at the many opportunities
waiting in the New Year, we hope you are as excited as we are
about our partnership in 2015.
James Cash Penney, founder of JCPenney, once said,
“Growth is never by mere chance. It is the result of forces
working together.” In my experience, he’s exactly right.
Together, we can grow your business, find ways to expand
for years ahead and uncover the latest opportunities in the
channel. In fact, that’s why Authority exists.
In our first issue of 2015 and final issue of FY15, we highlight
new opportunities, tips to grow your business and the latest
trends on the market. Whether it’s the energy-saving tips
offered in our cover story—“A Better Data Center for the New
Year”—or diving into the latest opportunities with Lenovo
in a special Q&A with Chris Frey, Lenovo’s vice president of
North American commercial channels, you’ll find a plethora of
exclusive trends and opportunities for 2015.
We keep a close eye on the fastest growing areas of IT—
cloud, mobility and much more—so be sure to check back for
updates, look for new communications and count on us to help
you stay on top of what’s happening in the IT channel.
Of one thing you can be certain, your best interest is always
our top priority. Be sure to let us know what you think of
Authority by sending a letter to the editor at sending a letter
to the editor.
Sincerely,
Eric Jessen
Publisher, Authority
2

“ Together, we can grow your business, find ways to
expand for your years ahead and uncover the latest
opportunities in the channel. That’s why Authority exists.”
Editorial Staff
Publisher
Eric Jessen
Editor-in-Chief
Brian Kosoy
Creative Director
Alex Fox
Editor
Jessica Chapman
Lead Designer
Leandro Castro
Production
Janie Gibson
Authority (ISSN #1940-9249)
is published quarterly by Tech
Data Corporation, 5350 Tech
Data Drive, Clearwater, FL
33760, Phone: 800-237-8931
www.techdata.com
©Copyright 2015. All rights reserved.
Material in this publication may not
be reproduced in any form without
written permission from the publisher.
Tech Data and the Tech Data logo are
registered trademarks of Tech Data
Corporation in the United States and
other countries.
All other trademarks are the property
of their respective owners.
We welcome your feedback on
Authority. Please drop us a line at
authority@techdata.com or visit
techdata.com/authority.
Writers
Laura Stewart
Christine Hale
Tracy Blalock
3

January–March 2015
ON THE COVER
A Better
Data Center
for the
New Year
INCREASE EFFICIENCY
IN 4 EASY STEPS
page 10 »
4

ACTIVITY
Events
Channel Link
and TechSelect
6 » In the News
Get the latest news
from Tech Data
page 8 »
TRENDS
page 16 »
16 » Meet Chris Frey:
Lenovo’s Vice President
of North American
Commercial Channels
OPPORTUNITY
Becoming a
Cloud Practitioner
A new way to think
about sales
22 » Doctors Go Mobile
The latest opportunities
in healthcare IT
page 24 »
ABOUT YOU
Mirror, Mirror
What do customers
see when they look
at your business?
34 » Off the Clock:
Adventure by the Tankful
Surprising lessons lurk
beneath the surface
page 30 »
5

A HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
In the the In
Hot off the presses, here are a few key
More Opportunities
Tech Data Executive Vice President and Chief
Information Officer John Tonnison was named
to Computerworld’s Premier 100 IT Leaders
list for 2015 in November. The list spotlights
leaders from both technology and business
sides of companies for their exceptional
technology leadership and innovative
approaches to business challenges.
Since joining Tech Data in 2001, Tonnison
has built an agile IT infrastructure that is fully
equipped to provide scalable solutions for a
high volume of business.
Tech Data’s Phil Filippelli, vice president,
e-Business, and Marc McClure, director, Field
Sales for the Eastern U.S. have also been
named by CRN to the 2014 100 People You
Don’t Know But Should list. Chosen by the
CRN editorial staff with input from vendor,
distribution and solution provider
executives, the list recognizes those who
have demonstrable impact on vendor
channel strategies, initiatives and programs.
Learn more here.
6

News News
highlights of recent Tech Data announcements:
Tech Data Named Best Place
to Work for LGBT Equality
Tech Data received a perfect score of 100
percent on the 2015 Corporate Equality Index
(CEI) in November, earning the distinction of
being a “Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality.”
This marks the 10th straight year that Tech
Data has earned a perfect score on the CEI,
a national benchmarking survey and report
administered by the Human Rights Campaign
Foundation. Learn more.
Heather Murray Appointed
Vice President, HP Solutions Group
Heather Murray was appointed vice president,
Product Marketing, HP Solutions Group,
in August. In this role, she leads the sales,
marketing, technical and supply chain
operations in support of the company’s full HP
Solutions portfolio in the United States.
Learn more.
Cloud Climbing the Ranks
Tech Data has been busy in the cloud marketplace, one of the company’s key strategic focus
areas. In August, company veteran Stacy Nethercoat was appointed Vice President, TDCloud,
providing dedicated leadership for the U.S. cloud business. Recently, Tech Data was
selected by Microsoft to participate in their Cloud Solution Provider program, expanded its
relationship with IBM to offer Softlayer’s Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), introduced a new
cloud education and enablement program for solution providers through TDCloud, and was
named one of the Top 100 Cloud Service Providers in the world by Talkin’ Cloud.
7

A HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
Events
Tech Data’s Fall Channel Link event was
held in Orlando, FL, in September and
was a huge success. Take a look at some
of the highlights.
Learn More
Visit techdata.com/ChannelLink
8

The TechSelect community celebrated
its 15th anniversary at their Fall Partner
Conference in November in Las Vegas. Here
are a few fun moments from the conference.
Learn More
Visit TechSelect.com
9

ssica Chapman,
r
T HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
A Better Data
for the
INCREASE EFFICIENCY
IN 4 EASY STEPS
It’s no surprise how rapidly
the evolution of data has
taken off, but what impact
has the surge in data had
on your server room?
This New Year, it’s time
to take a look at how to
maximize efficiency in your
data center while preparing
for the exciting year ahead.
10

Center
New Year
By Jessica Chapman, Editor
Data centers are becoming one of the
largest consumers of electricity in
developed countries, according to the
National Resource Defense Council’s
recent study. In fact, data centers
consumed approximately 91 billion
kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2013,
the study reports. That’s enough
electricity to power all the households
in New York City—for two years.
If that doesn’t encourage you to find
hidden energy-suckers in the New
Year, how about this: The study also
found that in five years, our data center
consumption is projected to increase
to 140 billion kilowatt-hours, costing
American businesses $13 billion per year
in electricity bills and emitting nearly
150 million metric tons of carbon
pollution annually. Turns out progress
really does come at a price.
Making the most of your data center,
conserving power and saving money
is easier than you think. Two leaders
in data center power, Emerson Network
Power and APC by Schneider Electric,
offered some helpful tips on how you
can do just that in 2015.
“There’s a huge expansion going on,”
says Steve Hammond, director of
global partner marketing at Emerson.
“Most data centers are still pretty aged,
and with the economy the way it is,
that’s causing problems. They put in
new servers or other routers or things
that create heat. So what do they do?”
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T HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
WHERE TO GO NEXT?
Do an Efficiency Audit
“Do you have the right floor space
consumption layout?” Hammond asks.
“Do they pile a bunch of servers or pack
a bunch of blade servers in one area that
might create a huge hot spot? They need
to get a handle on what there energy
consumption actually is today.”
To find opportunities, you need to
determine where they are and how to act
on them. Take time to truly evaluate your
business. Find out where your energy
hotspots are, determine problem
sections and then move forward with
the below steps to improve efficiency.
Double-Check the Hardware
Think about efficient hardware and smart
hardware, suggests Himanshu Patel,
senior strategic marketing manager
at APC by Schneider Electric.
Managed services or services that provide
easy power monitoring may be the answer
for no-hassle implementing.
“[APC can] install intelligent power
distribution and monitor those remotely—
that way the customer can actually see the
power that’s being used by every device
that’s plugged in and any of the equipment
not critical can be turned off remotely until
it’s needed,” Patel says. “That’s something
[resellers] can use as a remote service,
a managed service offering.”
With an increasingly taxed group of IT
managers, Hammond also recommends using
tools and programs that monitor energy
intake for you, including tools offered through
Emerson’s Innovative Partner Program.
“Bring everything together in a single pane of
glass, and it gives them visibility,” Hammond
says. “They don’t have to do it on-premise,
they can do it off-premise through a pane
of glass that’s not even in the building.
[Emerson] provides a broad portfolio of
solutions that address those issues.”
12

That’s enough electricity to power all the
households in New York City—for two years.
Determine If You’re Right-Sized
New technology and the latest trends are
fantastic—but make sure they’re compatible
with your server room or data center before
you jump in.
A large part of the reason for inefficient
data centers is their age—many were built
10 or more years ago before the latest
opportunities in virtualization became
available. Older server rooms were not
built to handle the capacity required for
new technology.
A good example of updating IT
infrastructure to maximize compatibility
with latest technology is Microsoft
end-of-support for Windows Server 2003.
3
“All these enterprises are coming out
saying, ‘we’re going to be out of compliance.
We need to move to the cloud,’” Patel says.
“That’s an opportunity to look at the power
and cooling and an extra service you can
offer your client.”
Patel says partners who talked to their
customers about power and cooling
found 10 times the service revenue,
based on APC’s internal sales data.
Start installing new power and cooling
techniques, and you’ll see a lot of
energy savings.
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T HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
“All these enterprises are coming out
saying, ‘we’re going to be out of compliance.
We need to move to the cloud.’ That’s an
opportunity to look at the power and cooling
and an extra service you can offer your client.”
– Himanshu Patel, Senior Strategic Marketing
Manager at APC by Schneider Electric
Make it Visible
Let’s say you’ve got a Microsoft application,
Cisco for networking and VMware—those
are all software and application layer, but
Patel points out that no one is actually
looking at the physical data center.
“What happens if you buy a new
hyper-converged appliance and drop
it in there?” Patel asks. “Now that’s a lot
more power in one section. It’s going to
change your airflow and that’s going to
create inefficiency.”
That’s also why it’s the resellers’ job, with
help from partners, to provide as much
visibility into power and cooling in the
server room as possible.
4“We have to be able to position our
resellers in that regard as a trusted advisor,
filter through all those changes and help
break it down,” Hammond says.
There are more ways to save money and
become more efficient in 2015 than you
think, but you have to know where to look
first. So next time you’re updating your
IT infrastructure, keep the small things in
mind—and don’t forget to turn the light off.
14

PROMOTIONAL ADVERTISEMENT
Big Opportunities From
Windows 2003 End of Service
When support ends for Windows 2003 on
July 14, 2015, will your customers be ready?
According to Microsoft, 94 percent of companies
currently using Windows Server 2003 intend to
migrate their applications to a newer version of
Windows Server or Microsoft Azure.
More than 8 million servers—representing an
opportunity worth more than $10 billion—need
upgrades to provide the proper infrastructure
for Windows 2012. It’s estimated that more
than 60% of businesses don’t yet have a plan.
Forming a Migration Plan
The earlier you start consulting with your
customers, the better. Tech Data’s Systems
& Peripherals IT division will work with you
to develop end-to-end solutions to help you
capitalize on this tremendous growth prospect.
“Solutions providers can count on our
knowledgeable teams to guide them as they
pursue growth opportunities in data center
management,” says Wendy Maurer-Linsky,
vice president, Product Marketing, Systems &
Peripherals IT . “We have a wide range of vendors
making great strides in enterprise storage
solutions and power and energy management to
build more productive and efficient data centers.”
You are your customers’ biggest asset in
developing a migration plan for their data center.
Work with them to assess their current needs
and future demands, finding the proper hardware
that offers scalability, density, reliability and
efficiency for legacy applications, and identifying
which workloads can be moved to the cloud.
Cost Savings
IDC's customer-based research found that
failure rates began to climb as servers aged
into their fourth year and beyond. Upgrading
resulted in a return on investment (ROI) of more
than 150 percent over three years. The initial
investment (payback period) was less than a
year (11.7 months). Enhanced power and cooling
technologies and thermal designs help reduce
total cost of ownership.
Security
Intel Xeon processors running Microsoft Windows
Server 2012 leverage features to speed encryption
and improve security. Microsoft will no longer
provide patches for security issues that develop
on Windows Server 2003. Companies that must
comply with regulations, such as HIPAA and PCI,
must upgrade to ensure they aren’t penalized for
non-compliance.
Call our industry-certified staff at 800-237-8931
or visit our Solutions Hub to find out about the
innovative enterprise storage and power and
energy management solutions that will increase
your customers’ capabilities while adding
margin to your bottom line.
15

A
T HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
16

MEET CHRIS FREY
LENOVO’S VICE PRESIDENT OF NORTH AMERICAN
COMMERCIAL CHANNELS
By Christine Hale, Contributing Writer
Tech Data sat down with Chris Frey, Lenovo’s vice president of
North American Commercial Channels, to discuss what drives
Lenovo’s success and what solution providers can expect from
the company following last year’s acquisition of IBM’s x86 server
business and Motorola.
How are channel sales
affecting Lenovo’s
SMB business?
» Chris: The channel
is so important for us—
85 percent of commercial
business that we do in
North America goes through
the channel. That’s large
accounts, public sector,
state and local, federal,
SMB—all the commercial
business. hI credit that to
the strategy of the company.
There isn’t one geography
in the world where we go to
a meeting and don’t discuss
what we’re doing in the
channel. There’s nobody
in the company that has
different profit motives or
elements to make them
have different behaviors.
It’s all in. I’m excited that,
as we’ve scaled this revenue
from $1.5 billion to $4 billion
in the last four years in the
channel, that the 85 percent
has never changed.
There’s a very consistent
protect-and-attack strategy
where we protect our China
business, we protect our
large account business, and
we attack our retail business
and SMB business. That’s the
global strategy. Everything
is under attack in North
America—we’re attacking
data center, we’re attacking
SMB, we’re attacking retail,
we’re attacking different
form factors. If you look at
the U.S. in particular, we’ve
outgrown the market for
three years. So our business
on the large account side
and SMB continues to grow
very fast.
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T HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
What can solution providers
expect from Lenovo’s acquisition
of the IBM x86 server business?
» Chris: There are a lot of us at Lenovo
that were part of IBM, and we saw this
change of the culture (when Lenovo took
over IBM’s Think business). I learned so
much business acumen, ethics and sales
techniques while I was there, so I’ve
always taken a lot of pride in all the great
things I learned at IBM. Then I came to
Lenovo and the handcuffs are off a little
bit. We’re allowed to make decisions and
move faster.
We’re going to integrate fast—we want
the channel to see us as one company,
not individual brands with a logo. I’m
really excited to take the opportunity
to take their products and our products
and leverage the Lenovo channel—the
depth and breadth of our channel, our
SMB market strategy and take their
great innovations, pick the best of both
organizations’ processes, and try to bring
the best experience possible. It’s going
to be a lot of work but it’s going to be
exciting. Our historical results of what
we’ve done in the PC business are an
indicator to the market of what we’ll do in
the x86 business. We want our partners to
want to be a part of it. The Lenovo channel
is super-excited about the opportunity.
18

With Lenovo leading in
smartphone share in China,
describe the impact of
the mobility market on
Lenovo’s success, and what
North American resellers
may expect to see with the
acquisition of Motorola?
» Chris: We do believe that
Motorola in North America
and Latin America is a known
name and matches the
premium name we have
as it relates to a product
category like Think.
Motorola has a very similar
premium connotation when it
comes to the phone business.
The nice thing about it is that
this whole mobility to the
cloud conversation—if you
think about it long term—
it’s not about being able to
offer the hardware. It’s the
ecosystem that ties them
together. That’s the vision of
the company. It’s not just to
be the best devices from the
pockets to the cloud, it’s to
create that ecosystem where
they all talk to each other.
I think the mobility practice
Tech Data [has] is going to be
an exciting one. If you look at
our business, we will be the
only company in the industry
that can solve the problem of
the pants pocket to the data
center. Mobility practice isn’t
just about devices. It’s not
only providing a device, but
also supporting it and creating
solutions around it, and I
think that’s what Tech Data’s
doing that’s going to be on the
cutting edge. And I think we’ll
be a nice fit to that.
“ Solution providers now have an opportunity to benefit
from an expanded Lenovo portfolio from the device to the
data center,” says Wendy Maurer-Linsky, Tech Data’s vice
president, Product Marketing, Systems & Peripherals.
“Lenovo’s unwavering commitment to the channel is
evidenced by the consistency of their robust programs,
promotions, resources and support. Lenovo is a great
partner, and it is our honor to support the launch and
success of the x86 server business.”
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T HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
“ Mobility practice isn’t just about devices. It’s not only
providing a device, but also supporting it and creating
solutions around it, and I think that’s what Tech Data’s
doing that’s going to be on the cutting edge. And I think
we’ll be a nice fit to that.”
– Chris Frey, Vice President
North American Commercial Channels, Lenovo
How will Intel’s new Core
M/Broadwell chip affect
Lenovo’s PC and mobile business?
» Chris: If you want thinness and the right
weight and you want the right battery life,
I think this Core M technology is going to
give it to us. I think you’re going to get
the same things you’re getting out of a
thick clamshell in a thin, light device where
the battery will last a long time.
This is an opportunity for business partners
to talk to customers. We already know that
the tablet did not takeover the PC business,
but there’s still a need for companion
devices and probably a lot of them are new
technology. It’s an opportunity to create
a new buzz and perhaps a new solution
out of this mobility practice. Because
mobility practice isn’t just about phones.
It’s anything that can go in a pocket
or a holster or whatever. I think small
businesses need that practice more than
anybody because they have no IT staff—
they need somebody to advise them what
to buy, why to buy it, how to support it,
how to get connected on it, how to make
the devices talk.
20

1 LENOVO.
1 CHANNEL.
Lenovo welcomes IBM x86 servers into its family of innovative
products. You can expect the same channel commitment
you’ve come to expect from Lenovo:
1 Partner Community
1 Sales Coverage Model
1 Sales Compensation Plan
1 Set of Programs
1 Open Distribution Model
1 Partner Experience
For more information,
contact Lenovo@techdata.com
or call 800-237-8931.
21

O HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
DOCTORS
GO MOBILE
The latest opportunities in healthcare IT
By Jessica Chapman, Editor
Visiting your doctor’s office
might soon be a thing of the
past. Mobility is infiltrating
the busy world of healthcare
at rapid speed, and it’s
starting to impact patient
care—in a good way.
With physicians and
healthcare professionals
constantly on the go, access
to patient information is
more important than ever.
And it works both ways. The
rising costs in healthcare only
add to the numerous reasons
patients need better tools to
monitor their own health. But
how can IT make an impact
on improving patient care?
More ways than you think.
According to the Healthcare
Management and Information
Systems Society’s (HMISS)
2013 Analytics Mobile
Technology Survey,
44 percent of respondents
(healthcare professionals)
consider mobile technology
a top priority. A whopping
83 percent indicated
physicians use mobile
technology to facilitate at
least some patient care.
“Internet of Things is
coming to healthcare,” says
Research Vice President
for IDC Health Insights
Lynne Dunbrack. “Sensors
are becoming smaller
and more passive so they
can unobtrusively collect
consumer health data.”
WHAT ABOUT EBOLA?
The potential impact technology can have on
preventing the spread of infectious disease is limitless.
IDC’s Dunbrack offered some tips on how healthcare IT
resellers can help America stay healthy.
“[We need] better access to physician and nursing
notes, a mechanism to flag upfront in the electronic
chart that the patient might be at greater risk for being
infected with Ebola or other infectious diseases that are
highly contagious,” she says.
Dunbrack also says that HIT providers should search
for better automation opportunities to flag these
patients—that streamlines the process and mitigates
the risk of information not being available to front-line
healthcare processionals caring for the patient.
22

Platforms like Apple
HealthKit, Google Fit or
Microsoft HealthVault are
good examples of how the
telehealth process works.
The three vendors are now
offering interactive platforms
that let you keep track of
your health and fitness
and even share access with
healthcare professionals.
Not surprisingly, physicians
and clinicians are most
interested in monitoring
patient health. According to
the aforementioned HMISS
survey, about 70 percent of
healthcare professionals are
viewing patient information,
while 64 percent are looking
up non-PHI information (like
clinical guidelines). But it gets
better for IT resellers—more
than half of respondents
said they’re using apps
developed by the healthcare
organization’s HIT provider.
Doors are opening in every
healthcare facility across the
nation to help your clients
launch a mobile strategy or
maximize opportunities to get
patient information updated
and to the physician quickly.
To dive right in, contact
Tech Data Mobile Solutions
at 800-237-8931, ext. 83662,
or visit their website here
to find out how to get the
process started.
TECH DATA
IS YOUR Rx
FOR HEALTHCARE IT
Join TechMED Alliance to grow your healthcare
IT sales using a broad range of services, products
and solutions.
800-436-5353, opt. 2 (Healthcare)
publicsector@techdata.com
Better Solutions.
Better Healthcare.
23

O HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
Becoming
Cloud
Type the word “practitioner” into
your Google search engine, and
you’ll come up with the following
definition: A person actively engaged in
an art, discipline or profession. Merriam-
Webster takes it one step further describing
this person as one “who regularly does an
activity that requires skill or practice.”
Most of us associate the term practitioner
exclusively with medical professionals.
Perhaps it’s because we’re creatures of
habit—or maybe we just don’t see ourselves
as more than the title behind our name.
Be it “sales representative,” “solutions
consultant” or even “cloud specialist,”
our title can sometimes define us, or at least
attempt to. But what if you flipped the sales
paradigm to reveal a different angle—to
consider yourself more of an artful, skilled,
outcome-driven practitioner of the cloud?
During a recent cloud solutions
presentation, Carlos Nouche, vice president
of Visualize, a company focused on
providing a value-focused sales framework,
used a compelling metaphor that struck
a chord. He likened the methodology
of medical diagnosis to that of sales.
24

a
Practitioner
A NEW WAY TO THINK ABOUT SALES
By Laura Stewart,
Contributing Writer
“What if your doctor approached your
health concerns like a typical sales person
would?” he asked. “What if he said, ‘So your
knee’s hurting you? Fantastic. I’m doing a
great job with knees these days. I’ve got a
98% approval rate and, by the way, if you
buy before the end of the quarter, I’ll give
you twenty percent off. What do you say?”
If you’re feeling uncomfortable with the
scenario, you’re not alone. But why would
this set most of us on edge? Doctors are
experts, right? They know what they’re
doing; they’ve studied. Why not trust
them to have all the answers? It may seem
obvious that a doctor can’t possibly know
how to diagnose a problem and suggest a
solution without asking questions, right?
Not so with sales—but it should be.
A good doctor will start by asking
questions in order to diagnose your
problem. They’ll want to hear about your
lifestyle and history, as much as understand
your recent challenges and pain points.
A good doctor will probably have done
some homework if they know you’re
coming in for a visit.
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O HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
“ What if your doctor approached your health
concerns like a typical sales person would?
What if he said, ‘So your knee’s hurting you?
Fantastic. I’m doing a great job with knees
these days.”
What if we approached selling cloud
services this way? Could it help
us break down barriers and build
relationships? Absolutely. Here are
some simple ways to get started.
ASSESS THE OPPORTUNITY
You might be the foremost expert on cloud
solutions in your area, but that doesn’t
mean you’re going to instinctively know
the right outcome for any given customer.
Prospects may expect—or at least hope—
that you can give them a quick and easy
answer, but don’t get caught in this trap.
“Take the time to ask the right questions,”
Nouche says. “If the customer doesn’t allow
you to go through this process—to get to
know them—then recognize that you don’t
have a qualified deal.”
Plus, asking the right questions will
differentiate you as a qualified consultant,
build trust and help you discern the right
outcome for your customer.
“Lack of differentiation very seldom
indicates poor product functionality or
service limitations,” Nouche explains.
“It usually means we failed to find out what
was important about our unique capabilities
in relation to the customer’s business.”
26

CREATE A SENSE OF URGENCY
Don’t try to diagnose everything at one
time. Instead, think like a practitioner—
look for the biggest pain points and find
the urgency. Sell them the “must have” not
the “nice to have” because that is what will
cause them to make a change.
“Whatever it is, you have to find it in
order to understand how to sell them a
solution,” Nouche says. “Know your client,
find the sense of urgency and then
differentiate yourself.”
BECOME THE TRUSTED ADVISOR
Remember that building trust starts before
you ever make contact with the customer.
Think like a practitioner. Research, assess,
diagnose and prove that you are interested
in providing the right outcome to meet their
needs. You won’t just be selling something,
you’ll be selling the right thing for their
company—including the service they need
to leverage cloud solutions.
DIFFERENTIATE WITH SERVICE
The market is shifting toward service:
consulting, selecting, deployment,
optimization, education, support and
management. You—and your sales staff—
need to embrace and understand how to
sell and manage these services because
that’s where the big opportunity is.
“You can assess and recommend, even
outsource the IT,” Nouche explains.
“There are all sorts of options. This is
the way that you can compete with
your bigger competitors.”
Margins in product are small. Not so with
service. Leverage service offerings as a part
of your outcome package. It’s a value-add
and a differentiator.
27

O HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
Smarter Education IT
Doesn’t Happen
Inside Four Walls
Inspire curiosity with cutting-edge
technologies from Tech Data’s
Systems & Peripherals IT division.
Industry-certified sales staff skillfully
architect end-to-end solutions that enhance
the way staff and students learn, communicate
and flourish, at home and in the classroom.
Visit our Solutions Hub or call 800-237-8931
to start building brighter futures with Tech Data.
28

A HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
SMB Spotlight
MIRROR, MIRROR
By Laura Stewart,
Contributing Writer
WHAT DO YOUR CUSTOMERS SEE WHEN THEY LOOK AT YOUR BUSINESS?
In an age when anyone can broadcast content to the world in a matter of seconds,
it’s more important than ever to value principles like sincerity, authenticity, originality.
Whether you’re a small-business owner or representing a larger organization,
the task of trying to discern what’s genuine, as well as cultivate your own authentic,
differentiated brand, can seem like an unreachable goal. But is it really?
Thankfully, the answer is no—it’s not unreachable at all. Companies and individuals
able to break through the clutter with a unique and well-defined message of who
they are, what they stand for, and what they offer the world are winning in today’s
marketplace. You just have to know where to start.
30

DEFINE WHO YOU ARE
“You cannot differentiate
that which you cannot
define,” offers Scott McKain,
internationally recognized
expert on distinction,
bestselling author and
hall-of-fame speaker.
“Start by developing a
clarity statement.”
Once you know who you
really are—and you’ve
articulated that—then you
can get creative, he says.
“Most small businesses
today lack a vision or mission
statement,” says Greg Banning,
vice president, SMB Sales,
and general manager of Tech
Data’s Costa Rica operations.
“Many don’t even have an
overall business plan, and the
few that do haven’t dusted
them off for years.”
Banning asserts that, in
today’s world, companies
should revisit their business
plan twice a year. The health
of an organization starts at its
core—and the core should be
clearly defined in a company’s
mission and up-to-date
business plan.
BUILD ON YOUR
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
“What makes you great today
is not necessarily going to
make you great tomorrow,”
McKain says. “If your business
is focused on selling products,
then you’re building your
business on shifting sand.
Products have a limited
shelf life.”
It may seem elementary,
but it comes down to a simple
paradigm shift that focuses
on selling to your customer,
not at your customer. Get to
know what your customers’
strengths are and know
their challenges. Develop
a relationship based on a
personal focus rather than
a product focus.
“You’ve got to sell your
intellectual property and
services because that’s your
differentiator,” McKain says.
“Sales folks need to know
their customers’ operation,
what services are important
to them, as opposed to giving
them a price list and launching
into a discussion about
installation dates.”
ASSESS YOUR BRAND
“Constantly assess (never
assume) how your customers
feel about your brand and
service,” Banning says.
That seems simple, yet many
of us miss it, not because
we’re unaware but because
we remain focused on
other priorities that tend
to scream louder.
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A HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
EDUCATE FROM
THE INSIDE OUT
Does every member of
your organization fully
understand and embrace
what value your company
offers? Could they give
a simple elevator pitch
on what makes your
organization competitive?
Regardless of what you think
is true, statistically they
probably don’t.
“Roughly 70 percent of
employees at any given
company can’t tell you why
their company is superior,”
McKain says. “When a
member of your organization
is in front of a client, they
become your CEO.”
So, what do your
customers see when they
are interacting with that
employee? What face are
they presenting?
GROW YOUR
GREATEST ASSET
“We often say that our
people are our biggest asset,
yet we turn right around and
treat them like an expense,”
McKain says. “If leadership
would just make that
simple philosophical shift
of nurturing their people as
assets rather than seeing
them as expenses, their
organizations would
grow stronger.”
When employees feel
supported and nurtured,
they will support and
nurture their organization.
And companies with the
most loyal employees tend
to have—guess what—
the most loyal customers.
It’s all connected.
32

HIRE WITH
A VISION
“Every individual who
works for you becomes your
organization,” McKain says.
“The trend is to hire for skill.
It might sound strange to
disagree with that, but it’s
actually better to hire for
attitude and aptitude
first, then educate and
develop skill.”
It goes back to
understanding your core
values as an organization
and hiring people who
demonstrate those core
values. Not doing so can
have a devastating effect
on the health of your
organization and your
customers will see that.
DARE TO
BE HUMAN
So how do you ensure
that your organization
stays healthy on the
inside? Banning’s
approach is simple.
“It’s a human-to-human
approach,” he says. “The
same way we categorize
business-to-business and
business-to-consumer.
Today’s organizations need
to think human-to-human.”
Stop focusing on roles,
hierarchies and titles,
and start relating to people
on more of a human level.
“You need people with
different responsibilities
and titles to get the tactical
things accomplished—
the checks, balances and
approvals—but we’re all in
it together,” Banning says.
“Nobody is more valuable
than anyone else. It’s the
collective group that either
makes it happen or doesn’t.”
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A HOME ACTIVITY TRENDS OPPORTUNITY ABOUT YOU
Off the Clock
BY TRACY BLALOCK, CONTRIBUTING WRITER
SURPRISING LESSONS LURK
BENEATH THE SURFACE
When Harvey Mackay released
Swim With the Sharks Without
Being Eaten Alive in 1996, it was
meant to be a metaphor for how to outsell
the competition. Tech Data’s Director of
E-Business David Spindler took it literally.
Spindler has always been a thrill-seeker,
consistently keeping his heart rate well
above his target range by sky diving, bungee
jumping, riding motorcycles and racing fast
cars. Certified with both National Association
of Underwater Instructors and Professional
Association of Diving Instructors, Spindler has
been diving for 10 years—so seeing sharks
and other underwater life at a distance in their
natural habitat was nothing new. But when he
told friends and family he was going to swim
with them side-by-side in an aquarium, they
thought he was certifiably crazy.
Spindler’s shark-swimming adventures really
took off when he moved to Tech Data’s
headquarters in Clearwater, FL. Although
he’s been a member of the Tech Data family
for more than 15 years, he came to the
Clearwater office to support the SAP project
in November 2012. He was asked to stay on
as Director of E-Business and was hungry for
details after finding out his real estate agent
was a merman at The Florida Aquarium.
Now a dive master at Tampa’s Florida
Aquarium, Spindler says one of the biggest
challenges is keeping people calm during the
aquarium’s Diving With the Sharks program.
While customers want to get as close to the
sharks as they can, the reality of a 325-pound,
9-foot-long female tiger shark coming inches
away from your face can freak people out.
34

But Spindler has had many memorable
encounters. Like the time a few months ago
when a customer got a nose bleed. Before
Spindler could blink, the diver opened his
mask releasing blood into the tank. Spindler
says he wasn’t sure what to expect but was
relieved when there was no change in the
sharks’ swim pattern. He kept his cool but
admits using more air than usual on that dive!
As dive master, his favorite moment
underwater is seeing divers’ eyes wide with
amazement, the joy on their faces—and most
of all being part of an experience that stays
with them forever. He also enjoys teaching
them about how sharks react to different
situations, for instance, how they swim closer
to the surface when the water is warmer and
further down in cool water.
Most of us listen to music, watch a movie
or take a walk to relax. Not Spindler. As
a technologist, he’s always connected.
Underwater with the sharks is where he’s
completely unplugged and unwinds.
Ironically, for Spindler the sharks are in
fact a metaphor for life and succeeding in
business. The way he sees it, there are sharks
everywhere—in the office, on the road, down
the street. It’s about respecting people’s space
and their expertise.
In the water, Spindler respects the fact that
he’s a guest in the sharks’ home and feels
fortunate to be experiencing their world.
Plus, sharks never stop moving to keep water
through their gills. For Spindler, this is an
important reminder to stay in action—not
to avoid being eaten—but to keep making
waves. You never know where they’ll lead you.
35