Boston – While the tightening global economic situation may be giving some technology companies and their partners the jitters, with a healthy balance sheet and cash on hand Dimension Data sees opportunity.
A global IT services and solution provider based in Johannesburg, South Africa, Dimension Data expanded into Canada last fall and now has 20 people in the country headed by former NexInnovations executive Wendy Lucas as area vice-president. Speaking at an analyst and media briefing, Dimension Data executives said at the moment they’re mainly serving the Toronto-market (with plans to expand), and they’re focused on growing organically.
“We opened our office in Canada, and it’s amazing how much Power Point colour you can get there,” joked Brett Dawson, group CEO, Dimension Data as he displayed a map of the company’s global operations with Canada included. “We painted the whole country (on the map); we’ve got 20 people there and those people are pretty busy.”
A strong team is being built in Canada says Jere Brown, CEO of Dimension Data Americas, adding they’ve developed some very strong skills and certifications in the Canadian market.
“It’s hard to believe we didn’t have a presence in Toronto. Our Canadian business is really a phenomenal organic story,” said Brown. “We went from zero to Cisco Gold Certified in nine months in Canada; that’s really phenomenal. I’m really proud of the expansion we’ve had.”
While the focus is on growing organically, Brown says the company isn’t opposed to acquisition to fuel its growth in the Canadian market. He adds Dimension Data did bring on several employees from failed solutions provider NexInnovations, whose demise he says opened a void in the Canadian market. At this point, about 60 per cent of Canadian business is servicing the Canadian operations of multinationals Dimension Data is working with in other countries and 40 per cent of the business is being generated locally, but Brown says the team in Toronto is earning some strong wins.
Dimension Data will probably be going after two markets in Canada says Jon Arnold, a research analyst and principal with J. Arnold & Associates in Toronto: the Canadian multinationals such as banks and resource companies looking to grow overseas and leverage Dimension Data’s global reach, and local companies doing business across Canada.
“They clearly have a strong track record and capabilities, so there’s no reason why they can’t succeed in Canada,” said Arnold.
It’s that global reach that makes the company’s pitch particularly compelling, says Arnold, and stronger than its 20-person Canadian presence would suggest. To succeed, he says, Dimension Data needs to tell that complete story of its global reach, and in addition to touting how well it integrates with vendors such as Microsoft and Cisco Systems, also promote its own technology capability, bench strength, and its ability to support its solutions.
“(The large multinational enterprise) is a smaller market within Canada but within that market, who are they really up against?” asked Arnold. “Sure Bell, Telus and Allstream are there, and you’ve got AT&T making inroads, and of course existing integrators and VARs serving that market, but the local ones don’t bring (Dimension Data’s) expertise.”
Looking globally, Dimension Data’s Dawson says he’s often asked whether Dimension Data is concerned about the state of the economy. However, with the company’s strong balance sheet, cash on hand, and its focus in “recession-proof” or resistant markets such as security, virtualization, data-centre consolidation and converged communications, he’s says he’s not concerned at all.
“We actually think a bit of a downturn will be an opportunity for us…to fight for more market share,” said Dawson.
Brown adds the economic jitters, particularly in the U.S., are fueling a consolidation trend in the industry, and Dimension Data intends to capitalize.
“To take market share you have to be aggressive and you have to execute,” said Brown.
“We’re viewing the economic times as an opportunity, rather than a challenge or an obstacle.”
