Heartland Tech Group Launches U.K. Program

HTG was founded in 2001 as a means for solution providers to share ideas and best practices, as well as business opportunities. The consortium is divided into smaller groups of about 12 VARs, who meet each quarter to provide updates to fellow members. The U.K. expansion was developed because members have more customers doing business overseas and were looking for partnerships, said Sorensen, who is also CEO of solution provider Heartland Technology Solutions, Harlan, Iowa.

"We've already had two or three instances where U.S. partners needed someone on the ground in the U.K. for fulfillment," Sorensen said. "One of our U.S. partners based in New York City needed someone in London to help with a server rollout. Another member in Wisconsin needed help there. We were able to connect to counterparts there, make the introductions and they were able to leverage feet on the street. Somebody has to unbox the stuff and hook it up. We're also seeing that happen in the states. Nobody just does business in their own little backyard anymore. Everybody has customers that span large geographies."

But HTG is more than sharing business leads, Sorensen said, and he's already noted some differences between VARs in the U.S. and across the Atlantic.

"We recognize that business is done differently but we can learn from each other. They're behind us in terms of managed services and its rollout to their customer base, but some of the partners I talked to are ahead of us in the way they use tools like ConnectWise to manage their companies," Sorensen said. "They have a more disciplined approach to the marketplace. It's good to get that different take."