New-look Calyx to cast off its reseller roots

Brady: It is hard to change mind sets

Managed services provider Calyx has asserted that the firm has been transformed into an entirely services-focused business.

Tara Brady, formerly of Getronics and LogicaCMG joined the firm a year ago.
“I come from a services background,” he said. “We have invested heavily in our services capability.”

Brady stressed that the strategic change need not jeopardise Calyx’s vendor relationships. “A lot of managed services deals have a big product pull through,” he added.

Brady claimed hardware revenues now accounted for less than a fifth of business. He revealed he had been working to change the approach of sales staff at some of Calyx’s VAR acquisitions.

“Some businesses were core product resale,” he said.

“It is hard to change mindsets, but we have been successful in the main. This is not cross-selling, it is a different go-to-market strategy. This is the evolution of Calyx.”

Calyx has undergone numerous top-level management changes over the last year and Brady claimed the line-up he had assembled could further drive growth.

“I have brought in a strong new team which is of a very high calibre for this market as it stands today,” he said. “But I felt we needed a radical shift.”

He said that Calyx was already in far better shape than when he joined, with profits and service levels rising.

“I am pleased with the integration and our growth strategy is aggressive this year,” he said. “I believe managed services revenue will double by the end of 2010.”

Keith Humphreys, managing consultant for analyst euroLAN, claimed Calyx was “well-placed to compete” with other managed services providers.

“Accenture and Capgemini have gone this way and it means greater gross margin,” he said.