Can an independent computer reseller be all things to all people?

Conventional wisdom says no. But Don Conaby has found a way to greatly multiply the services he offers his customers: alliances with organizations whose strengths complement those of his own company.

Mr. Conaby is president of CONPUTE, an IBM Advanced Business Partner in Oshawa, Ontario. The 20-employee company addresses two different markets: small and medium businesses (SMBs), and local school boards.

School boards prefer to deal with large reliable vendors; but they also want close-at-hand personalized service. Small and medium businesses generally deal with local resellers; but they’re looking for much more than hardware and software.

"Everyone has stable networks today," Mr. Conaby explains. "Now they’re saying, what’s that next step? How can I get better return on investment? How can I use technology to drive out costs? How do I tie my multiple locations together? How can I integrate the Internet into my organization?"

Small businesses especially rely on technology providers for expertise because they usually don’t have in-house IT departments. But even medium-sized businesses with internal IT staff struggle with the increasing complexity of their IT environments, and turn to outside technology providers for help.

"More and more people are looking towards sole outsourcing," Mr. Conaby explains. "Instead of dealing with five or six providers who offer services in different areas, they want to work with one organization that can do it all.

"We pride ourselves on being able to cover very diverse needs," he continues. "Like a general practitioner, we have a batch of specialists on call. No one organization can provide everything every person wants. But through our extended family, we can give our customer a complete solution."

CONPUTE has nurtured strong relationships with leading vendors like IBM, which has strong ties with school boards in Durham Region, where CONPUTE is located. IBM sells and delivers the hardware, and manages the account. But it outsources installation and service to CONPUTE.

"A large customer like Durham Board of Education, which has over 10,000 workstations, feels the comfort of dealing with a large manufacturer," Mr. Conaby explains. "But it also wants the day-to-day closeness of a local reseller so nothing falls through the cracks."

"CONPUTE has provided outstanding computer network service and support to the Durham District School Board for the past three years," says Laura Elliot, Superintendent of Education/Technical and Information Services, Durham District School Board. "Their management and technical teams are responsive to the needs of staff and students in all 125 sites within Durham Region."

For business customers, CONPUTE assumes end-to-end responsibility for the IT environment. Working closely with leading vendors like IBM, CONPUTE configures the solution; delivers and installs the solution; and then provides ongoing service.

"IBM understands that resellers know their accounts better than anybody else," Mr. Conaby notes. "Their team works with our team to produce the best solution for the customer. So now we’re not a team of 20 people. We have a team of hundreds of professionals we can bring to bear on any project through our extended family. Close alliances with partners like IBM allow us to take on demanding projects like developing a highlevel virtual-private network, or configuring a sophisticated server array."

"CONPUTE has always been able to assist us with deploying leading-edge solutions to help us maintain our competitive advantage," agrees Kevin Moller, Manager of Information Technology, LEAR Corporation Canada Ltd.

CONPUTE also works with independent consultants to get the job done. One customer may be looking for help with an accounting system, while another wants a system for shop-floor production. One customer may need assistance with HTML programming, and another with database design. The possibilities are limitless.

"Do we specialize in any one of those areas?" Mr. Conaby asks. "No. But we want customers to come to us with all their needs. If we don’t have the internal resources, we’ll find external resources, take responsibility and put the pieces together. We’ll give a complete solution."

CONPUTE also partners with resellers in other areas of North America to look after customers with multiple locations. For example, a construction-products manufacturer based in Durham Region came to CONPUTE for a network to link six locations across Canada. CONPUTE worked with resellers in other areas for on-site installation, while maintaining overall responsibility for the system. The customer has the convenience of a single point of contact.

A recipient of IBM’s coveted T.J. Watson Gold Award for customer service, CONPUTE’s history goes back to 1969 when its parent company opened a retail electronics store. In 1983, it added computers and formed CONPUTE, which moved out of retail in 1991 to focus on the SMB and educational markets.

"Stability is very important," Mr. Conaby notes. "A lot of companies come and go. But we’ve been in the community for over 30 years. CONPUTE has a long history of service, and a vision for the future.

"We know the importance of face-toface, one-on-one relationships, so that you understand what the customer really wants," he continues. "We understand that our customers need us to be very accessible. We pride ourselves on the fact that if you call us, you’re going to get a response very quickly."

And what about the vision?

"We want to provide customized IT solutions that help customers achieve their goals," Mr. Conaby says. "It’s not just about technology. It’s about the way our customers do business, and about the way we do business.

"When we ask customers how we’re doing, they tell us, 'You help us achieve goals. You reduce our downtime. You make our users happier.' And that’s very gratifying."