2023 was a landmark year for Infinigate Cloud from our rebrand of Vuzion to Infinigate Cloud, to launching the business in Switzerland, Norway and Belgium and expanding our secure cloud portfolio with new vendors including Barracuda, WatchGuard, SonicWall, and Hornet Security, it has been a busy and exciting year for all.
As we come to the end of 2023, it is the perfect time to look forward at the areas of innovation and opportunity we see that will help spark growth in 2024 and beyond.
Widespread Adoption of Copilots
In November 2023, Microsoft launched Copilot for Microsoft 365, to Enterprise Agreement customers only initially, with the aim of drastically enhancing productivity, enabling employees to focus on meaningful work. Studies from Microsoft indicate that Copilot for Microsoft 365 has made a substantial impression on its early adopters, with 77% stating they would not want to return to their previous work methods without it.
It might sound like hyperbole but this era of Generative AI will drive more change to the way we work than either Windows or the Internet! Massively impacting productivity and the way we collaborate and create.
Microsoft has a Copilot for just about every cloud experience, ensuring that no matter what your cloud needs are, there is a Copilot ready to assist and enhance your experience.
Copilot for Microsoft 365 is expected to be available through CSP for SMB customers in Q2 2024. The period leading up to this provides a great opportunity to start customers on their journey to “Get AI Ready” and take advantage of Copilot for Microsoft 365. It is also the time to build the internal skills and GTM propositions to take advantage of the opportunity from the moment of launch.
The foundation to be ready is the right Microsoft 365 service, with Microsoft 365 Business Premium the best option for most SMBs. Second is to ensure that all business data is stored within Microsoft 365 so that Copilot is able to leverage it. The third and biggest element of getting ready revolves around the data management and security strategy of each customer, ensuring the correct policies, access control and security is in place.
The opportunity to upsell customers to the Business Premium licence is a strategic move for MSPs to offer their customers access to advanced security features, crucial for business protection more broadly and not just to take advantage of Copilot for Microsoft 365. This includes industry leading identity and access management, information protection and vulnerability management. Endpoint protection and multi-factor authentication further secure customer data, users and devices.
Our Microsoft Solutions and EDGE teams are on hand to help Infinigate Cloud Partners unlock this opportunity. Workshops such as ‘Do More with M365 Business Premium’ which can be delivered directly to your customers and monthly Townhalls and webinar series such as ‘Get Copilot Ready’ provide Partners with the latest updates and an opportunity to ask questions.
Over the winter, EDGE will be introducing fully funded Copilot workshops. We already provide Microsoft AI certified courses for AI-900 and AI-102 with dates already available for 2024. In late-winter and through to the Spring we’ll ramp up even further with several new courses on Copilot itself, as well as getting your environment ready for Copilot with Microsoft Purview, Microsoft Loop and Data Access Governance through Microsoft SharePoint Premium.
Security
Security enables productivity!
Implementing modern security solutions best enables today’s flexible and work from anywhere culture, allowing full access to information, systems and group collaboration, regardless of device or location.
In 2023, the cybersecurity landscape grappled with the challenge of the growing sophistication of cyber-attacks and increased diligence needed to thwart the attackers.
However, AI’s capacity to scrutinise extensive data and discern patterns is helping tip the balance in favour of the defenders. This is evident in solutions like Microsoft Defender XDR, now integrated with Microsoft Sentinel and Security Copilot.
One area we see both significant interest and opportunity is offering a 24*7 always-on security monitoring remediation service. This is a confusing space with many acronyms – SOC, SIEM, SOAR, MDR and XDR to mention just a few. Within the Infinigate Cloud portfolio we have several options available for partners to best align with their existing solution preferences.
Security Posture Management and Cost Optimisation for cloud solutions are also hot topics and the recently announced Infinigate Cloud SCOUT solution addresses both requirements in a single, easy-to-use solution. 25% cost savings for customers are typical, alongside ensuring that all available security capabilities are correctly enabled and configured. We often see these cost savings diverted into the purchase of enhanced security solutions, providing better protection for no incremental overall cost.
With products such as Acronis, Barracuda, Mimecast, SonicWall and WatchGuard, Infinigate Cloud provides a range of solutions to improve your customers’ security posture in 2024.
We can also support you in taking advantage of this opportunity through a wide range of security training courses through , across all of the vendors within the portfolio.
Partners can also capitalise on Marketing and Sales support through which provides content and resources such as readily available campaigns and topical, problem-solution driven content tailored to end customers to drive better marketing success.
Skilling
In 2023, the UK continued to see a significant deficit in IT skills, posing a serious hurdle for businesses nationwide. A staggering 93% of UK companies acknowledged this IT skills gap, attributing it to the rapid advancement of technology. The lack of adequate training and relevant educational programmes exacerbates this issue, with 41% of businesses citing these as contributing factors.
One of the ways that Partners can distinguish themselves in a competitive market is by highlighting their unique skills and services. Achieving Microsoft Solutions Area Designations brings numerous advantages. Firstly, it provides industry recognition and credibility, signifying proficiency in providing top-tier solutions, helping to draw in more customers and financially unlocks access to Microsoft’s Channel Incentives, which can provide incremental profit for your business.
The Infinigate Cloud EDGE program is designed to support you attain these Designations and to upskill your teams. Regardless of whether you want to go to market with a new technology, such as Copilot for Microsoft 365, or upskill your workforce on new security solutions such as WatchGuard and Barracuda, EDGE has training resources to meet those needs.
Managed Services
One benefit of the IT skills shortage is that SMB customers increasingly need to turn to Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to deliver their IT solutions and keep their digital business assets secure.
A recent survey found that every MSP in Europe expected their revenues to grow in 2024!
Many companies face the challenge of reducing costs and increasing efficiency. This along with the skills shortage is leading more and more companies to use MSPs. Managed services offer companies the opportunity to outsource IT and business processes, thereby reducing cost and freeing up time to focus on their core competencies.
Infinigate Cloud has years of experience in helping IT providers develop Managed Service offerings and the team is here to help you develop your propositions and transition your business to a recurring revenue model.
Infinigate Cloud PRO packages up our technical expertise and provides Infinigate Cloud partners with the technical help they need when they need it. In addition to the wide range of technical presales and professional services, we provide and deliver a portfolio of managed services that partners can resell, freeing up your engineers and architects from mundane tasks such as backup monitoring and management, allowing them to focus on higher value solution delivery.
Final Remarks
A core principle at Infinigate Cloud is that we are only successful if our partners are successful. 2023 has been a year of significant change and the pace of change will only accelerate in 2024, with Generative AI fundamentally changing the way we are all able to work. If your business is looking to take advantage of any of these opportunities, we are here to help spark your growth.
In closing I would like to say thank you for your partnership with Infinigate Cloud, we never take this for granted! We remain committed to supporting you and your business in plotting a path through the ongoing changing landscape of risks and opportunities, and doing all that we can to help you and your customers stay secure and thrive.