I suppose a good starting point is to understand what a var system integrator is. Well, these are effectively two different things that work really well together to help businesses to build a computer system that will amalgamate software, hardware, storage and networking products from various sellers and saves them money and time.
So, firstly what is a VAR? VAR stands for Value-added Reseller. They buy products in bulk for a much cheaper price then you could in order to resell that onto their customers. This simplifies things for the customer so instead of having to deal with a long list of companies they are dealing with one. But they do much more than resell a product, they look at the needs of the company and based on that they would tailor a package together that would include the required software, hardware and then installation. So, for example, say you want to buy new computers and have them all preloaded with various software like Microsoft Office, this raises a number of questions. How will you manage the many licences you would need and make sure you stayed within your agreement with the companies involved? How would you implement them without disrupting your company or your customers?
But this is where the term “Value-added Reseller” comes in, they not only sell these products they provide all the necessary training for your staff and provide warranty support, but they also look after the licencing issues. Because you are dealing with one customer instead of many, they make upgrading your IT a much easier process. By doing these things this they ‘add value’ to the original product or products.
But how do you know what IT upgrades you need? This is where a system integrator comes in. Their role is to learn your business needs, see what challenges you are facing, then look at where you want to be in the future and then come up with a plan as to how you can do this. They will set out what IT systems you will need, which could well be something you would have never thought of, for example, have you thought of having a cloud-based system? While it may be helping you to see what hardware, software etc you need to upgrade your current setup, it could also advise designing and building bespoke software and networking solutions and then integrate all of this together.
This is why they work so well together; one learns what your company needs now and for the future while the other works to purchase, install, train, provide support, etc. at a price that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.
