At a time when traditional technology service providers are struggling to co-exist with the competitive SaaS and cloud computing market, innovation still remains the nucleus of any success story.

Though the timing may seem inappropriate, given the harsh economic realities all over the world, we believe maintaining status quo would be the biggest folly technology service providers would be committing.

In other words, this crisis should be perceived as a catalyst for innovation. A case in point? The dot-com bubble.

E-Commerce Times columnist Jeffrey M. Kaplan says: “While there is no question that the role of the traditional channel will be significantly impacted by the rapidly evolving on-demand services market, there is still plenty of room for innovative channel organizations to operate.”

The need of the hour is to stay abreast with the ever-changing dynamics of technological advancements. For example, service providers can uniquely position themselves with value-added and feature-rich solutions that enhance the use of SaaS and cloud computing services.

Some tips:

The lead

The seeds of any success are sown the moment you hit upon a new idea, and that is half the job done. Service providers can start by targeting the downturn requirements or the issues that come with the implementation of SaaS and cloud computing services. “User organizations of all sizes still need help evaluating and selecting the rapidly expanding array of SaaS providers and cloud computing vendors,” says Kaplan.

The crisis has also reinstated the need for value-added services at affordable prices. Service providers can capitalize on this opportunity and enhance their services portfolio with new solutions specifically designed for the downturn.

Customer requirements

The next most important step is studying the customer’s requirements and matching them with the team’s skill set. For instance, in the case of SaaS and cloud computing services, technology service providers can study the technical requirements of optimizing these services. Armed with this knowledge, the team can prioritize investment decisions and outline new services and solutions that can meet the market’s requirements.

Implementation

The next step, diversification or augmentation of the services portfolio, is a challenging task, particularly in a downturn. But if you have diligently implemented the first two steps, the probability of success is much higher, since the team would already be aware of the possible pitfalls and can address the issues in their implementation roadmap.

The key to successful implementation is to continuously innovate to deliver services that effectively address the gaps created by downturns or industry developments. And with the right approach and intelligent strategies in place, the technology services sector can dismiss the skepticism that prevails. Crisis? Do you mean opportunities?