GERMANTOWN, Md., April 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- A recent survey of
executives and IT leaders at large U.S. companies by Boston-based market research firm, Chadwick
Martin Bailey (CMB) indicates that enterprises are increasingly
relying on managed network service providers to keep their business
operations running reliably. But according to the survey,
enterprises aren't opting for just any service provider that offers
WAN connections. Rather they are trending toward specialty service
providers that have high-touch customer service, vertical market
expertise, and offer managed applications specifically tailored to
their business.
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CMB surveyed 342 decision makers at large distributed
enterprises with WANs ranging from 100 to more than 500 networked
sites, and typically more than 5,000 employees. The study was
commissioned by Hughes Network Systems, LLC (HUGHES), the global
leader in broadband satellite solutions and services, and a leading
provider of managed network services.
"Respondents told us that their IT departments are stretched
thin. They are increasingly turning to managed network providers in
order to free internal resources so they can work on more proactive
projects," said Chris Neal, vice
president and technology practice leader at CMB. "No surprise
there. What did surprise us is that it's no longer enough to just
offer WAN 'pipes.' Enterprises are seeking providers who offer
unwavering customer service and deeply understand their unique
applications."
For example, a large fast-food franchise needs more than
site-to-site connectivity these days. It's looking for expertise in
restaurant operations and the ability to deliver industry-specific
solutions like managed PCI Wi-Fi security, digital signage, or
employee video training over the WAN.
Strong customer support is by far the most important criterion
for large enterprises when selecting a managed services provider
(nearly 4 times as important as technical criteria such as the
provider's network architecture), followed by strong SLAs, a
provider's understanding of their unique business applications and
related industry expertise. Combined, these top criteria account
for nearly two-thirds of all the weight in an enterprise's final
MSP selection. The need for WAN optimization was another key
finding in the research.
According to Mike Cook, senior
vice president at Hughes, "The net-net of the CMB study is that
enterprises are stretched thin, need to do more with less, yet
can't afford to fall behind their competitors technologically.
Industry knowledge and great customer service is what matters most
to enterprises now. Managed service providers, like Hughes, who can
deliver those values -- and make their applications run faster --
will ultimately win the day."
Many enterprises rely on ordinary DSL or cable broadband to
network a majority of their distributed sites. Investing in major
upgrades to their WAN infrastructure isn't currently feasible. Yet
they are under growing competitive pressure to deploy advanced,
bandwidth-hungry applications across their WAN. A majority of large
enterprises (55 percent) have boosting application performance over
their WAN as a top network infrastructure priority in the near-term
future. Consequently, a majority of respondents favor providers
with managed WAN optimization technologies that overlay their
existing slower WANs, providing WAN acceleration and Quality of
Service (QoS) performance without the associated costs and
complexities.
About Chadwick Martin
Bailey
Chadwick Martin Bailey is a
custom market research consultancy that works with many of the most
successful companies and best known brands in the world to help
them acquire, maintain and grow their customer base. CMB is a
Honomichl Top 50 member and continues to demonstrate thought
leadership at numerous conferences worldwide. Chadwick Martin Bailey focuses on using
leading-edge research techniques to collect and translate the data
into simple, business decision-focused deliverables.
www.cmbinfo.com.
About Hughes Network Systems
Hughes Network Systems, LLC (Hughes) is the world's leading
provider of satellite broadband for home and office, delivering
innovative network technologies, managed services, and solutions
for enterprises and governments globally. HughesNet® is the #1
high-speed satellite Internet service in the marketplace, with
offerings to suit every budget. To date, Hughes has shipped more
than 2.5 million systems to customers in over 100 countries,
representing over 50 percent market share. Its products employ
global standards approved by the TIA, ETSI and ITU organizations,
including IPoS/DVB-S2, RSM-A, and GMR-1.
Headquartered outside Washington,
D.C., in Germantown,
Maryland, USA, Hughes operates sales and support offices
worldwide, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hughes
Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: HUGH). For more information, please
visit www.hughes.com.
©2011 Hughes Network Systems, LLC. Hughes and HughesNet are
registered trademarks of Hughes Network Systems, LLC.
SOURCE Hughes Network Systems, LLC
