While Vendor Layoffs Continue, Channel Partners Add to Headcount
59% of channel partners are adding headcount in 2023 – we delve into some of their recruitment plans.
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Peter Strahan is CEO of Dublin, Ireland-based Lantech. In 2022 the MSP added resources in engineering, sales and account management. In 2023 there has been no let-up in recruitment.
“We’re seeing a significant increase in demand as businesses look to leverage technology as part of their strategy,” said Strahan. Firms, he said want to become more efficient, and embrace secure and productive remote and hybrid working.
But cybersecurity, while critical, still seems to be lagging in businesses. “However awareness is growing. It is just unfortunate it takes some level of incident to spur them into action,” he said.
“While the digital transformation phase has been around for some time, it’s only since late 2022 and in 2023 we’re seeing businesses embrace technology fully. Most businesses don’t know where to begin, which shows a lack of available talent in the market. We’re certainly seeing that when strategic consulting services are coupled with the technical execution there is a high rate of adoption. With all the new and improved platforms such as Azure and M365, education around technology adoption has become a key critical growth area for service providers.”
Giant channel partner Softcat also continues to add to its headcount. Rachel Colwell, head of recruitment at the company confirmed the growth in its sales recruitment.
“To the extent that we already have a healthy pipeline of future recruits which has happened far sooner than we have had in the past. From a tech perspective, the market still continues to be tough with regards to the niche skill sets we’re hiring for and the competitive market. But we have still managed to increase our hiring number compared to prior years,” she explained.
Distributor DataSolutions is currently looking to fill three roles, which represents a 10% increase on 2022. However, managing director Michael O’Hara noted the challenges that still exist with recruiting the right people.
“Getting good talent in today’s market is proving very difficult across all areas, Be it sales, technical or finance etc.,” he said. “It is a seller’s market and a good indicator of how well the IT industry is performing in the domestic market.”
However, in the last 12 months, DataSolutions has recruited more women to the business. Women now make up 41% of the workforce with the aim to grow this to 50%. The company has also developed new initiatives to support employee wellbeing, mental health and staff retention.
John Hayes-Warren, chief revenue officer at Agilitas agrees that finding and hiring new talent in a competitive market has been an ongoing challenge. He said industry data highlights that job vacancies remain at an all-time high across the channel and wider technology industry.
“This creates a climate where candidates have a choice, so organisations must do more to stand out to attract and hire the best talent.”
He said many channel partners have worked hard to develop their recruitment strategies in line with their own transformation. “This allows them to appeal to a wider talent pool that is capable of meeting customer needs, while also introducing new skills that can fulfil emerging technology-based roles.
“At Agilitas, we haven’t increased our headcount, but we have put a focus on internal promotions, skills development, and investing in our managers to provide solid foundations for employee engagement … we are using more bespoke recruitment channels rather than our standard PSL agencies.
“We have also created new opportunities across our sales, engineering, and technical services teams. This includes internally recruiting a head of inventory and investing more resources in logistics. This is in line with our roadmap to strengthen our three core areas: Inventory Assurance, Professional Services, and Smart Logistics, as well as automate workflows and evolve our proposition to enhance digital access to all services.
“There is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to hiring talent. But a robust recruitment strategy needs to be a top priority for channel businesses as we move through 2023. It is promising to see, however, that companies across the industry are widely confident when it comes to recruiting the next generation of talent.”
Birmingham, U.K.-based Intercity is looking to increase its total headcount by 25% this year. Many of those roles are in sales, engineering, or technical service, said head of channel sales, James Finucane.
“It’s our brilliant people that make Intercity what it is. That’s why we’re committed to being investors in people and maintaining our 3* best companies to work for accreditation.
“Our investment and confidence in our people is reflected in our performance. We are ahead of our EBITDA target for Q1 and are anticipating continued revenue growth this year following 20% growth in 2022.”
Oracle channel partner Symatrix has more than doubled headcount over the past 18 months. The company has now surpassed 100 members of staff.