DEALER PROFILE - CS&T looks at the wider picture for IT

COMPANY FOUNDED The US base was started in the mid 80s. The UK office was founded in 1987.

COMPANY HEADCOUNT About 800 globally, with 120 employees in the UK.

UK BOARD MEMBERS David Cumming, UK managing director; Nikki Cole, director of consulting and technology services; Kevin Vaughan-Smith, sales director; Rob Bloor, financial controller; Carl Baiden, operations director; Linda Doran, personnel manager

It's very unusual to have two women on the board Yes, it is a very male-dominated environment. Nikki Cole came to Corporate Software and Technology (CS&T) from Hewlett Packard four months ago, where she was a managing consultant.

COMPANY YEAR-END 31 December

Last year's turnover #50 million in the UK and about $1 billion worldwide.

PROFIT We don't disclose such figures.

Why not? We are a privately owned company. We have financial and management backing from RR Donnelley, the printing company, and Bain Capital, a financial house. But we remain an independent company.

RESELLER BASE The UK headquarters is in Bedfont Lakes, near Heathrow terminal four in Middlesex. The US base is in Massachusetts.

OTHER OFFICES We have three main European areas: Northern Europe - based in the UK, with offices in Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden; Southern Europe - based in Paris, with offices in Spain and Italy; and Central Europe - based in Munich, with offices in Austria and Switzerland. We also have offices in Japan, Singapore, the US and Canada.

MAIN LINES SOLD Microsoft, Lotus, Symantec, Hummingbird, Seagate, Wall Data, and Novell.

MAIN ACCREDITATION HELD Microsoft European LAR and Certified Solution Provider Partner, Lotus Premium Partner, IBM BesTeam Partner, Symantec Competence Centre.

KEY ACCOUNTS Guinness, NatWest, SmithKline Beecham, KPMG, Price Waterhouse, British Airways, Burma-Castrol, Allied Domecq, British Gas, Yorkshire Water, Yorkshire Electricity, JP Morgan and British Steel.

MAIN DISTRIBUTORS Computer 2000, Ingram Micro and Metrologie

MAIN COMPETITORS The traditional resellers like Computacenter and Infobank, as well as companies like IBM global services and ICL Sorbus

BIGGEST CHALLENGE CS&T is going to face this year Making companies see the bigger picture when buying IT. Resellers often deal with the company purchase officer, who will be told to buy a certain number of units at the cheapest price. But companies have to think whether this is the best value in the long run.

WHAT SHOULD THEY BE DOING? We encourage clients to consider available licensing options, as well as shrink-wrap, to ensure they optimise purchasing power and retain flexibility, to accommodate changes such as mergers and acquisitions.

THE ONE THING TO WATCH FOR THE NEXT 12 MONTHS Over the next 12 to 18 months, we will see a tightening of the supply chain. It will have to be streamlined for an effective and shorter route to market. And the distributors will play a part in making sure we get the maximum hit rate.

HOW WILL THIS BE DONE? I think the internet will play a big part. We are starting to see it now, with distributors using their Websites for easier access to products. This will not necessarily involve clients using e-commerce to order kit, but rather increasingly using the Web to discover what products are available and at what price.

THE ROLE OF DISTRIBUTORS They are more necessary for the physical, PC and shrink-wrap side of the business. They aren't used so much for the software licensing side, which often comes straight from manufacturers.

One useful aspect of some distributors is that they can deliver straight to the reseller's customer.

ISSUE THAT WOULD MAKE LIFE EASIER FROM A BUSINESS POINT OF VIEW I don't know if it would be any good for life to be too easy. The way things are at the moment, it is better to differentiate yourself from the competition and show what you've got to offer.

What is an important issue in the software environment at the moment?

What amazes me is the lack of awareness in the industry and user base about the illegal software use. Many companies don't realise they can be both over-licensed and illegal at the same time. A significant number have used software illegally in the past and run the risk of doing so in the future. They must realise that there are huge legal and commercial implications in not keeping track of what they have bought.