Fujitsu looks to reduce its reliance on traditional business with new MSP programme

Vendor is hunting 10 partners for new pilot initiative

Fujitsu is continuing to shift away from its traditional hardware business and towards services with the launch of a new MSP programme.

The pilot initiative will see the vendor "co create" solutions on a one-to-one basis with partners, according to Fujitsu's UK MSP boss Leigh Schvatz, which will allow them to offer tailored solutions to customers.

"We want to make sure that we are working side-by-side with partners so that we jointly build solutions [and] they can offer those services out to their customers in a shared-risk model, enabling them to be highly personalised and flexible," he explained.

"There's a lot of change in the channel at the moment in terms of providers who already exist doing services work and we're seeing a lot of push from our current reseller partners and VARS who are being asked by their customers to deliver more services work."

This shared-risk model allows partners, particularly those currently transitioning into MSPs, to "de-risk" their business, Schvatz explained.

"Fujitsu wants to help partners with the initial start-up cost risk of building a service, along with maintenance and support," he added.

"If the provider wants to manage and maintain their own product and platforms, we can enable them to do that.

"If they want us to take away that headache and install and manage the platform for them, so that they can focus on the higher level services to their customers, we can do that too."

Paul Mclean, director of channel sales at Fujitsu UK, said that the new focus on services is a deliberate move to improve the revenue mix at Fujitsu and decrease some of the reliance on its traditional hardware business.

Fujitsu is seeking to recruit 10 partners over the next year to help build the programme and is already working with partners such as Wanstor and Viadex to ensure that it is built "with partners for partners."

Mclean added that a new rebate structure for the partners in involved in the programme will be put in place during the vendor's current financial year.

"We'll be evolving a rebate plan [through the 2018 financial year] where partners - based upon certain levels of business - will be receiving rebates back from Fujitsu," Mclean added.