Network Computing Business Plan




 



In 1994, having worked on Ethernet networks and TCP/IP protocols for some years, I was acutely aware of the developments of both 10BaseT twisted pair technology, advanced routing protocols and network computing evolutions by Netware, Banyan, Windows for workgroups etc.

MCM, as TIS was renamed after aquisition by MiSys, were verly slow to respond to these trends and were were still selling and maintaining Unix systems with Thicknet 10Base5 networking, perhaps with AUI drop cable hubs, supporting RS232 terminal servers for user connectivity and Layer 2 LAN bridges for WAN

As I had learnt (and put into practice) the product pricing strategy, discount structure, reseller network, product marketing etc. for my UPSmon software system, I was driven to impress on the company management that we should move into these areas ASAP and so I wrote the business plan below and it was shared to the company board in the memo on the right 


















The full business plan on the left has a SWOT analysis, Risks and Compettition and implementation sections, along with a detailed spreadsheet at the end, covering full Revenue, Costs and Overheads, as shown below



Click the image for the full document














The many variable factors, such as field/workshop costs, chargeable/contract rates, discounts/mark-ups, spares budget and numbers of monthly cabling instatllations, hardware sales, software sales, field repairs and workshop repairs were all tuneable in the original spreadsheet - these variables were marked by an asterisk, as show below




































As the memo at the top of this page suggested, I did present my business plan to the board but instead of them adopting the approach, I was seconded to the Bicester office to set up the Network Computing Skunk Group, which was an over-arching excercise to bring together the expertise and market footprint of MCM, TIS and MCL (all now MiSys companies) together





Click the image on the right for my full
Initial Thoughts report from the Bicester Skunk Group












As the Raising Awareness section on the left shows, I was clearly angling for a group-wide realignment of resources here and perhaps even a rearrangment of the companies themselves - certainly a much closer and more coordinated approach to projects and new business








As my report on the right shows, the Bicester Group caused quite a stir amongst the MiSys companies and it, along with my initial business plan, had exposed what and where the group lacked resources to move into advanced networking

Around the time of writing this report in September 1994, I realised that MiSys would not muster the dynamism required to make the changes required for this project

In view of this situation, I decied to leave the company in 1995 and seek employment with a VAR in the network arena, making use of all the technical knowledge I had learnt during my investigations









I had mentioned one such VAR in my business plan (left) - Logical Networks - and I applied for and secured a position in PreSales, shown in the advert below (click for full page "YOUR NEXT MOVE IS LOGICAL")