Be the solution to MARC’s innovation problem

The pandemic fundamentally change the equation for IT departments. Internal roadmaps and carefully planned upgrades went out the window to ensure business continuity.

This has left most companies with a weird mix of highly user friendly products that likely are Cloud SaaS and their core system of records…which are old, tattered and getting less intuitive with each passing day.

For MARCs (Mid-sized companies with regulatory overhead) rip and replace is not an option and neither are expensive Enterprise API gateways.

For more on their business profile: “Meet Marc”

Yet the problem of creating a single user experience that enables productivity still exists.

For developers and IT service businesses this is a clear opportunity- and the good news is that there are a plethora of options available to create a business model to take advantage of the opportunity.

So how should you evaluate the various APIs, open source, SDKs from companies of vendors?

The key lies in simplification, clarity, and showcasing real-world use cases.

1. Understanding the MARC Profile: Mid-Size Active Regulated Complex. This group will buy your services. IF you can convince them that your solution meets their specific industry regulations.
2. Showcase Clear Use Cases that demonstrate your flexibility to remove their complexity. This is crucial for with tight budgets MARCs constant evaluate vendors on the software VS PS hours spend. By providing clear use cases you reduce sales cycle and identify interested customers.
3. Cater to Both Technical and Business Audiences: This is the hardest part. When dealing with MARC companies, it’s essential to remember that there are two main audiences: the over-worked IT manager who does not want to be left with another wonky band-aid and the business decision-maker that could care less how it works but needs to know that you will make it work. To cater to both audiences, provide a mix of technical use cases, practical tips and tricks.

So…..what do YOU need to do to be ready?

Evaluate “Build vs. Buy vs. Rent” [or Open source, Resell or APIs]

I am biased- where I have seen success in this particular market is in embedding enterprise ready- software. In cloud era this means that I believe that APIs are the first choice.

To determine the value of using APIs, developers and businesses must evaluate their options based on three key factors:

1. the need for updated functionality. Are your primary targets looking for specific capabilities to max out their new cloud systems? APIs provide the best value to both you and the customer for keeping up with the speed at which their core SaaS apps will be changing.
2. the scope of the project. Is this one request part of a longer term migration strategy? This is where a resell of cloud SaaS may be the best answer. This depends on your primary value prop as a company- if you are a “Dev shop” then APIs are probably more valuable to you because of # 3.
3. One off or repeatable solution across multiple customers. This is where careful evaluation the capability vendor is important; do they provide the application management and user management? or will you be left creating and managing your own API gateway?

As technology continues to evolve, having the right tools like APIs in your digital arsenal can significantly impact your business’s success and growth. (I warned you I was biased)

Start with customers that need technical solutions by catering to the “MARC companies” by creating smaller, repeating solutions that can be deployed over, and over again. The OpenText Cloud Platform provides a set of tools that allows you to build one and deploy a configured solution to different geographical regions or customers with limited pain.

Don’t take my word for it; See for yourself https://developer.opentext.com/imservices/developertools/developertools

Confused? Have questions; DM me on LinkedIn- I love to talk about this stuff!