Telco Channel Business Model Development
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Business Challenge
Microsoft’s existing approach to selling its products via the Telco channel, while successful in pockets, lacked a comprehensive strategy to create successful partnerships and drive revenue in the long-term. This resulted in the following pain points for Microsoft’s partnerships with Telco companies:- No clear roadmap to enable Telcos to integrate the various and valuable Microsoft products into common Industry Solutions oriented to the Telco customer base.
- Higher go-to-market time and costs for Telcos due to Microsoft’s focus on individual products
- The need for additional follow-through from Microsoft to support partner deployment, operation, sales and marketing, and customer care.
Solution
Microsoft’s Communications Sector team engaged WrightRobbins as a consultant in 2007 to support the initiative to develop a new business model for the Telco channel. WrightRobbins developed a unified Solution-Selling approach story for Microsoft centered on the development of targeted industry solutions for the Telco distribution channel, rolling up cross-product solutions into a single cohesive set of Telco offerings. These customer-focused solutions combine Telco core services, Microsoft products and services, and products and services from third parties in new service offerings geared to consumer, small to mid-sized business, and enterprise segments. For this initiative, WrightRobbins delivered research, analysis, strategic development, and executive/team communications that included the following:- Competitive research and exploration of current industry business models
- Conceptual business model development including establishment of a global services offering that Telco partners can quickly leverage to go to market and scale their own customer offerings
- Detailed industry research to identify the “highest priority” top 40 global Telco companies in terms of scale and ability to begin adoption of the new services model
- Planning documentation and presentations to secure buy-in from executives and other stakeholders
- Support for the development of a back-end services technology framework to provide a higher level of Telco partner support
Results:
For Microsoft, this Solution-Selling approach provides repeatable, easily executable processes for development, launch, delivery and support of partner engagements that allow the company to maximize profit potential. WrightRobbins continues to support Microsoft’s Communications Sector as they use this new business model to inform priorities for FY09 planning and evangelize the initiative in the months ahead with executive communications.