Amid the increasing blare of the pandemic and the spectre of omicron casting its long shadows over the tech landscape, we have ushered into 2022. Channel success which has always been the holy-grail for any business is all set to get a makeover in the new year.
As part of our effort to get the channel community better informed and get an earful of what the leading industry bodies, who sit at the most critical point of IT business, are thinking, expecting, and planning for the members, partners and the industry in 2022.
Here, as part of this special series of Tech Forecasts, Industry body ASIRT registers its predictions for 2022.
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“ASIRT’s mission is to grow its membership base to over 500 system builders, system integrators, and retailers in Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai, as well as to establish additional chapters around the country.”
Tushar Parekh,
Chairman, ASIRT
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Promoted by leading IT SIs in Mumbai, ASIRT is among the few pivotal Industry bodies in India, which facilitate business and trade in hardware, software and services. An association of, for and by the System integrators (SI) and Retailers in India, ASIRT aims to build partnerships and help the SI community to expand business boundaries and scale new heights.
In a special interaction with SME Channels, Tushar Parekh, Chairman, ASIRT shares his association’s Predictions for the year 2022. Edited excerpts…
Give a brief introduction about ASIRT
ASIRT, today, is Mumbai’s largest aggregation of Indian ISVs, SIs, Resellers and Cloud solution providers. Promoted by leading IT service providers in Mumbai, this association strives to foster collaboration and assist this community of IT businesses in achieving greater success and expanding their business boundaries. ASIRT is governed by a 13-member governing board. The board has a special agenda: to guarantee that ASIRT touches the businesses of all partners, not just those with enormous volumes, but also those with very modest volumes seeking new horizons. ASIRT’s mission is to grow its membership base to over 500 system builders, system integrators, and retailers in Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai, as well as to establish additional chapters around the country.
ASIRT seeks to foster the development of a unified SI and retail ecosystem. The association serves as a powerful voice for the SI & Retail community. The association’s mission is to act as a conduit between vendors and the SI community in order to benefit both parties. The association hosts educational events for the benefit of the SI and retail communities. The association’s mission is to promote the health and profitability of the SI community and was formed to promote more collaboration between the SI and retail communities.
As the pandemic is still there and a new variant is spreading, as an influential association what major market trends do you forecast for 2022?
Pandemic status may not continue indefinitely. Given the virus’s waning fatality, it may finish up as influenza or other viral fevers do. Hybrid working solutions are here to stay. Traditional hardware and software sales will continue to be conducted through brick and mortar establishments, with physical staff assisting. The SME sector will prosper. Will be more receptive to services offered.
Which are your current focus areas as a frontline association?
Assisting Members with financial solutions to meet their cashflow and growth needs – equipping them and their teams with new technology knowledge and training – enabling them to leverage social media for business growth – connecting them across boundaries to reach out to their PAN India customer base – establishing visibility for Members PAN India to begin with.
Today, new-age technologies like AI, Robotics, Big Data and Analytics, IoT, and 5G communications are opening new possibilities and new opportunities for tomorrow. As a tech association, Is ASIRT ready for talk more about this and create awareness among the members?
ASIRT’s mission has been to arm members with domain and peripheral knowledge that enables them to offer futuristic yet realistic solutions to their customers. Interaction with professionals during the monthly TechDay – a gathering of members for networking, collaboration, and knowledge sharing – is just one of ASIRT’s efforts.
What are your major strengths as a tech association?
The diversity of ASIRT’s membership across segments and facets of IT/InfoSec – their experience and subject knowledge – their readiness and eagerness to share, interact, and learn – their business ethics – principled approach – customer care – have all been ASIRT’s assets.
What major trends would you forecast in the channel market? Do you have any expansion plans for 2022? What are your plans for onboarding new partners or addition of new business lines for next year apart from Info-sec ?
To begin, we intend to expand throughout the state. Our focus would remain on the SI community’s activities outside of typical implementation domains, namely, research and innovation. As part of ASIRT, we are broadening the breadth of the SI’s definition to embrace all parts of our business eco-system. These may include service-oriented OEMs, distributors, and start-ups, among others.
How would you like to value add to pre-sales, training, post-sales services for your partners and customers?
This is a monthly activity that occurs in conjunction with TechDay. Our defined standards for Members and their teams provide ongoing technical and soft skill development through the TechEdge programme. Social media professionals share their experiences with utilising existing technology tools to assist Members in reaching out to and connecting with their customers. We are firm believers in routinely upscaling and inspiring our members, which we accomplish through the invitation of renowned speakers / TedX speakers to our monthly TechDays.
What is your plan for enhancing geo-spread from Point of Presence?
One of our aims is to connect with fellow business people in the information technology field across India. ASIRT and ASIRTers both highlight the importance of developing a “differentiator” feature. Uniqueness of approach – collaboration – cohesion of activities – work ethics – camaraderie – transparency – these are the critical components of this “differentiator” that will assist us in expanding our geographic reach beyond state borders.
