Panel: Cost Not A Factor In Selecting Solution Providers

Customers want an IT service provider that has spent time with them and understands their business, not one that just vows to save them cash.

"You guys come to us and say, 'We can save you money,'" said Elisabeth Brooks, an administrator at Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) of Georgia, Tuesday during the Varnex Spring Conference in Atlanta. "But you don't know what I'm spending money on today."

Marty Joplin, the enterprise technical director at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Okla., seconded Brooks's position, saying that engagement, being a problem solver and a person of integrity are far more important to him than price.

For fast-paced environments like New Brunswick Investment Management Corp., speed and efficiency – rather than cost – are the most important factors when it comes to selecting an IT partner, according to Steven Bishop, network administrator for the pension fund management company.

"I need the product here today, not tomorrow," Bishop said. 

Bishop, Brooks, Joplin and their two fellow end user panelists said they've selected their channel partners based on their responsiveness to requests, comprehension of particular verticals and ability to be proactive and identify more efficient IT solutions.