Editor Speak
From San Francisco to Cisco, the company has come a long way. It has built the brand in such a way that today Cisco is synonymous with networking solutions. If one asks for a switch or a router, it is Cisco’s. The genesis of Cisco dates back to 1984, when the company was founded and today the company has not only routers and switches but a host of other products in Ethernet switching, remote access, branch office routers, ATM networking, security, IP telephony, and Intelligent Contact Management solutions, etc. Cisco’s vision has changed over the period of time from “Changing the Way We Live, Work, Play and Learn” to “Welcome to the Human Network”. It clearly suggests the influence that Cisco wants to exercise on human life.
This California-based networking vendor entered into India in 1995. And since then, Cisco has spread across India in various cities for marketing and sales activities. Later on in 1999, Cisco established its R&D Centre in Bangalore also. The company employees 3,000 people in the country, who look after sales, support and R&D operations. Cisco has also announced a billion-dollar investment with $1.1 billion allocated towards expansion in R&D, marketing and support. India’s growing importance for Cisco is also reflected in the country setting up its Globalization Centre in December 2006.
In the lifespan of the company, Cisco has received many accolades. It has been ranked as one of the “World’s 25 Most Innovative Companies” in the Business Week–Boston Consulting Group study in 2007 and in India, Cisco is fifth in the Hewitt Best Employer survey and is well recognized as one the most respected companies. The company was featured in the Businessworld’s annual survey of “Most Respected Companies” for the quality of its products and services, people practices and talent management, ethics and transparency, financial performance and quality and depth of management.
Ever since the company entered India, it has solidified its position as the number one player in enterprise routing and switching market and sustained the growth also. Varghese Thomas, Head – Corporate Communication, Cisco – India and SAARC, says, “Nearly four years ago, Cisco identified India as a strategic region, one of the fastest growing markets and announced its verticalization strategy ahead of the industry. Today, we continue to streamline this approach and deepening our focus on new verticals, offering customer-centric, vertical-specific solutions for sectors like banking, finance, manufacturing, retail, service provider, and infrastructure.”
He adds, “Commercial business (small-medium business) is viewed as a great market opportunity and Cisco has announced a strategic roadmap to tap this segment – from customized solutions, the Network-on-Wheels campaign and strong support provided by dedicated channel partners through the Select Certification programme.”
Cisco’s networking solutions include the core technologies of routing and switching, advanced technologies such as Security, Voice and Unified Communications, Optical Networking, Storage Networking and Wireless. The company offers end-to-end solutions including Application Networking Services, Network Management, Server Networking and Virtualization. Last year, Cisco launched TelePresence Meeting Solution that creates unique, in-person experiences between people, places, and events over the network.
As customer needs evolve, Cisco is offering vertical or industry-specific solutions based on Cisco Service Oriented Network Architecture to address segments such as small-medium businesses, retail, education and media & entertainment. For instance, Branch of the Future addresses the retail banking industry, while Cisco Connected Real Estate caters to the real estate sector. The industry solutions enable organizations to accelerate applications, business processes and profitability.
Cisco leads the routing, switching and Wireless LAN market in India and is a significant player in network security, IP Telephony/Unified Communications and Storage. Cisco focusses on the following verticals in the country – Telecom Service Providers, IT Services, Enterprise, Commercial (small-medium business), Government and Defence.
Cisco’s strength globally lies in its ability to spot market transitions ahead of time and leverage them to sustain market and technology leadership. In terms of technology, Cisco envisioned convergence (data, voice and video with mobility) on the network, IP, and the shift from point-products to holistic solutions much ahead of its competitors.
To achieve all these feats, Cisco has acquired many companies. Out of all the acquisitions, the major ones are Cerent Corp., Scientific-Atlanta, Linksys, etc.
Some years ago, the company identified some advanced technology areas, including Security, Unified Communications, Storage and Wireless are growing and having a market potential of $1 billion globally. Therefore, it started investing heavily in these technologies. Varghese says, “We see the future in upcoming technologies that are identified as having significant potential, what Cisco refers to as Emerging Technologies. These include TelePresence, IP ICS, Digital Media Services and converged physical security. With its dominance in core networking technologies such as routing and switching, and aggressive focus on advanced technologies, Cisco is well-positioned to capitalize on changing market trends and evolving customer needs.”
Over the period of time, Cisco has been rated highly by the consulting houses and customers. It is because of Cisco’s end-to-end solutions, robust partner network, service and support facilities and flexible finance/leasing programmes are unparalleled in the market. In addition, Cisco partners with customers to help them transform business with next-generation solutions, adding value with Advanced Services. We provide domain-specific strategic consultancy from industry experts of the company’s Internet Business Solution Group (a US-based Strategic Executive Council comprising domain experts) to help address issues of business transformation. HDFC Bank is one such example of how Cisco is helping its BFSI customers create the next-generation customer experience in retail banking.
The company’s go-to-market approach relies upon its channel engagement programme. In India, Cisco is present in over 100 cities through 1,500 resellers. Besides, the company has eight national Sis, i.e. Cable & Wireless, Datacraft, HCL Comnet, HP, IBM, Wipro, TCS and Integrix. Out of these eight SIs, the first six are gold certified partners and the rest two are silver certified partners. For logistics and availability of products, the company has two national distributors including Ingram Micro and Redington.
Even if Cisco is the market leader, it does not feel complacent as it takes proper care of the channel partners.
Varghese says, “It is our constant endeavour to encourage and enable our partners selling foundation technologies to equip themselves in our advanced technology portfolio. We work with our channel partners to align them with our new goals, thus imparting training and awarding specializations and certifications.”
Cisco Channel Incentive Programmes are designed to reward partners who successfully align their business strategies in defined advanced technologies, new business, or solution sales opportunities. There are specific offerings defined under these respective programmes. Qualifying channel partners can participate in these programmes and realize econ
omic benefits in the form of additional discounts or rebates, depending on the specific programme. Some of the successful programmes include:
=> Opportunity Incentive Programme (OIP) provides economic incentives to reward channel partners for the presales investment associated with securing new business opportunities in the targeted market segments. The OIP is designed to encourage the profitability and success of its channel partners. OIP rewards partners fairly and equitably who actively identify, develop and win new business opportunities in the targeted market segments.
=> Solutions Incentive Programme (SIP) rewards opportunities delivering vertical and horizontal customer solutions that integrate proprietary or third-party applications and services with Cisco technology. The SIP is based on the premise that customers buy solutions that can help solve their business problems. These solutions are most often delivered by Cisco channel partners, as they require more than Cisco products alone. The Cisco SIP rewards partners that invest in the development and sales of solutions that integrate proprietary or third-party applications and services with Cisco technology. This programme recognizes a partner’s efforts and expertise in developing solution opportunities, the customer relationships they influence, and their ability to expand and accelerate Cisco solution sales. The programme also offers financial incentives to partners along with better engagement opportunities with the Cisco marketing and sales teams.
=> Value Incentive Programme (VIP) rewards those partners who have a focussed, robust business practice in selected technology areas like Unified Communications, Wireless LAN and Security.
=> The VIP seeks to reward partners that specialize in Cisco Advanced Technologies and successfully meet revenue and customer satisfaction targets. This programme is open to Gold, Silver and Premier Cisco partners specialized in Unified Communications or Express Unified Communications, VPN/Security; and/or Advanced Wireless LAN.
=> Select Certification Programme – a channel initiative focussed on partners who cater to small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). This programme has been designed to focus on training for skill development and offers certification to indicate partner’s competence in selling and deploying Cisco SMB solutions.
All the programmes, complemented by its robust support networks across nine logistics centres in the country, enable the channel partners to work aggressively towards Cisco business. Cisco’s ARNBD (advance replacement next business day) is one of its kinds for its resellers, which is unique in the industry.
Finally…
Cisco’s growth continues to be robust, and, as a market leader, its aim is to grow the overall networking market. Over the recent years, IT and networking have become strategic to organizations and are becoming a CEO agenda. Cisco’s strategy is to deepen its verticalization strategy adding more verticals like retail and banking and improving its understanding of its clients’ business. Another focus area is educating its clients about networking as a business necessity. Other strategies to improve market penetration by enhancing its logistics, opening 15 spare depots in India and taking Cisco Capital (the equipment leasing arm) to the small and medium businesses are part of this plan. The company is also automating internal processes so that Cisco personnel can spend more time with its customers to help them understand how networking can transform their business.
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