Building Better Businesses

The New Year always brings change. And with the changing of the calendar, VARBusiness unveils the next stage in its evolution, continuing its mission to bring you--the solution provider--the best in strategic guidance for running your business better.

With this issue, you'll notice several changes in VARBusiness' look and feel. These changes are designed to provide you with the essential information and analysis you need for understanding the channel and IT market, vendor programs and technologies, and channel dynamics. Going forward, you'll find all the intelligence you need in five basic sections: Business Intelligence, Strategic Insight, Partnership, Tech Advantage and In the Field.

Business Intelligence is the VARBusiness foundation. The CMP Channel Group conducts more research on channel trends than any other source in the industry. In this section, you'll find the results of research you've come to rely on over the years--the State of the Market and State of Technology series, the Alternatives brand study and Best Midmarket Products. In addition, we've added new reports, including Human Resources: Recruiting and Retention, Managed Service Strategies and the IT End User Spending Forecast. You'll also notice changes in the three special research issues we produce each year: the venerable VARBusiness 500, the Annual Report Card study on solution-provider satisfaction with leading vendors and the Partner Program Guide.

Strategic Insight blends VARBusiness research with expert guidance on running your business better. This includes tips on everything from lead generation to cash-flow management. It also addresses business intangibles that few in the channel talk about enough, such as benefits and compensation plans, and M&A strategies. With Strategic Insight, you'll learn actionable techniques for maximizing your operations and growing your business.

In Partnership stories, you'll read about vendor channel programs and key business strategies. You'll learn about vendor channel conflicts, new incentives and partner enablement programs, and innovative partnership models.

Tech Advantage, a longtime staple of VARBusiness, is standardizing on a new mission: defining the competitive differential of like products. Market leaders produce great products, but in the channel, best doesn't always win. Not every VAR--or customer--needs the very best. In Tech Advantage, you'll learn about the minute differences among similar products and receive guidance on which ones fit best with your model.

In the Field is a series of stories about solution providers and how they're innovating for success. Here, you'll read about how your peers are building partnerships with solution providers to reach broader markets, innovating in technology to deliver higher-value solutions and executing on strategies to improve their competitive positions.

A few other changes we've made will make VARBusiness easier to read as well. We've redesigned In the Beginning (now called Begin), giving you more concise information on contemporary channel issues and trends. The section now includes a book review, news of channel-executive appointments and a quick reference to news stories and intelligence packages on our Web site, ChannelWeb.com.

In each issue, you'll find the SMB Report, an article highlighting a trend and opportunity in the small-and-midsize-business market; and TechWatch, quick takes on new products available to the channel. In every other issue, you'll find probing reports on the VARBusiness 500, distributors, alternative vendors and custom systems.

VARBusiness is committed to being your best source of channel intelligence and business-strategy guidance. We're sure you'll enjoy the changes we've made to the magazine, but we welcome your feedback. Let us know what you think; e-mail me.