Surrounded by glitz and glamour, yachts, casinos and in the blazing sunshine, some channel partners may have found it difficult to concentrate, but for the most part, concentrate they did.
At the Canalys Channels Forum in Monaco last week, the great and the good from the UK channel ­ heads of the major vendors, distributors and key resellers ­ gathered to hear how, in a converging market, they can still make money, how the reseller market might look come 2010, and no doubt hear world-famous referee Pierluigi Collina talk about man management.
Events such as this are vital, critical even to a channel business. Firstly there is the networking value of such an event ­ when I asked one reseller why he had attended, he replied ‘because my competitors did and I wanted to know what they are up to’. With such a collective of channel supremos the bar chatter was interesting to say the least and it is worth more to a channel business than monetary value to be part of that.
But these types of conferences are also absolutely essential to break in new ideas and to discuss business models and operational strategy. Listening to visionaries such as Dan Tapscott, author of Wikinomics, talk about the future of the technology sector may seem slightly blue sky, but it is from such speeches that the seeds of ideas are cultivated, which can help businesses grow.
And hearing analysis of which technologies might provide opportunities, which vertical sectors are set to grow and how to retain key staff can provide direction and be the basis for change.
However, the most important element of any such event is returning to business once back in Blighty. Listening is key, certainly, and discussing ideas is also important, but without action, it would have been more useful spending your time on that tempting beach or casino after all.
Sara Driscoll is editor of CRN ­ sara.driscoll@incisivemedia.com