E-COMmunication Update 03/24.

Ace your AI Dialogue: 15 minutes AI talk with your customer.

Everyone is talking about Artificial Intelligence (AI), including our customers… Therefore, it makes sense to ramp up your AI knowledge to ace your AI dialogue with the customer! Luckily a brand new and high-quality e-learning has been developed by Ashley Wieferink which provides a self-paced and interactive way of learning. 

In the first part of the course, you'll breeze your way through topics such as the AI Landscape, Algorithms, Symbolic Reasoning, Artificial Neural Networks, Machine Learning, Deep Learning, NLP and generative AI. These key concepts are a MUST in any AI conversation. 

In the second part of the course, you'll learn how to discuss the knowledge you've acquired with your customers. Also, you'll find out more about the AI solutions of Planet AI you can offer your customers. 

Learn more about AI

Appreciation and thanks go out to Planet AI for their support. 

_{NB: available in English and German. French will be available soon. Other languages can be added upon request.}

Intel AI International Campaign.

You want to make sure that your sales teams are on top of everything? We got you covered! 

Since the end of July the new Intel AI training course on our E-Com SharePoint page is live: Learn about Artificial Intelligence (sharepoint.com). 

Please make sure to spread the news across your teams, and in case of any questions, you can always reach out to Sónia Anabela Margarido (sonia.margarido@bechtle.com) 

NBAx Windows 11 Campaign: First OneBechtle Campaign Across All Entities.

We’re excited to announce the launch of the Next Best Action (NBAx) – Windows 11 Campaign, our first OneBechtle initiative across both segments and all entities. The campaign kick-off took place on September 10th, 2024, with all E-commerce entities involved. 

During the kick-off call, Konstantin Ebert emphasized that this campaign is an at-scale opportunity recognized by both Bechtle and our vendors, as customers must act before Windows 10 support ends on October 14th, 2025. He highlighted the importance of leveraging a data-driven approach, pushing cross-sell, and maximizing the CRM to empower sales teams. Konstantin also encouraged sharing feedback and best practices to enhance the campaign’s effectiveness, underscoring its interactive and data-centric focus to drive sales. 

Bechtle sees Windows 11 as a great opportunity not only for device replacement, but also for offering a full range of end-to-end services and solutions. These include IT consulting and migration planning, AI applications like Copilot, standard or individualized managed services, as well as training and workshops. This approach allows us to provide complete support to our customers, ensuring their systems remain secure, compliant, and optimized for the future. 

This campaign is a collaboration between central teams and local entities. Every Account Manager and Sales Lead has a vital role in its success. With your commitment, we are confident we have the right team to make it happen! 

Please reach out to Ardian Hasanaj, Celine Schell, Matteo Francesca, or Dimitri Schell regarding this campaign. 

Training: Selling with trust and presence.

Are you… 

• Struggling to present yourself in a way that allows you to influence executives? 
• Looking to understand the behaviors that improve your executive presence? 
• Wanting to explore what it’s like to act as an executive? 

Selling with trust and presence is a virtual classroom course which explores why we focus on executives and how to present yourself to them with trust and presence. 

The next session starts on 28th October 2024. 

Register now directly via the Learning Campus. 

GITA is Top Procurement Services Provider.

Global IT Alliance (GITA) has been recognized as one of the Top Procurement Services Provider in Europe by Business Management Review. The Global IT Alliance is a prominent consortium of leading IT service providers worldwide, dedicated to delivering cutting-edge solutions and innovation across diverse industries. With a robust network of expertise and collaborative partnerships, they strive to drive digital transformation and enhance business capabilities on a global scale. “Our focus is to provide the most consistent experiences in IT services and products for MNCs, regardless of their constituents’ location,” says Emery Geosits, executive director at GITA. 

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Recruiting Community.

We're excited to announce the reactivation of the International Recruiting Community! 

This closed community will collaborate on recruitment topics internationally, with one recruiter per country participating where possible. We'll have online meetings with a potential in person meeting somewhere in the future. The kick-off of our community is in September. The main purpose is to: 

• Provide updates on the central portfolio e.g. SuccessFactors 
• Build working groups based on evaluated development wishes of the group 

This enables us to implement cross-border measures that would otherwise have to be developed individually. We can benefit of the expertise of the whole group, profit from different viewpoints and exchange innovative ideas. Together we can achieve more! 

Sales Leader Community.

Over the past few months, we've successfully built a vibrant and dynamic community, bringing together groups with shared interests. Instead of having just one large group, we've aligned these groups based on specific interests, creating more focused and meaningful connections. We've also hosted several productive calls with these groups to ensure that, as a sales leader, you receive the valuable insights and experiences you need. We're thrilled to see that these discussions have been not only relevant to this community but also beneficial to others. As we look ahead, we will reassess the next steps for this community, and we warmly welcome your input.  Please feel free to reach out to Manon Smulders (manon.smulders@bechtle.com) with any ideas or suggestions you may have. 

Champions League – Hall of Fame.

Since April we’ve renewed the Champions League with new categories, and we’re happy with the feedback so far. Feedback also means sometimes you need to have a closer look and that’s why we changed the International Business Sales Professional. We’ve updated the criteria for this category. The International Ranking includes all Account Managers from BILT who achieve the highest international outbound revenue from leads converted within the last 12 months and that involved a lead fee payment. To qualify, the revenue threshold has been adjusted from 25k to 10k measurements for the International Business Sales Professional. 

Congratulations to our first-place winners of the last 3 months: 

• Newbie Sales Professional: Romano Sowidjojo (Bechtle NL),
  Francois Berthelot (Comsoft FR) & Dees van der Linden (Bechtle NL) 
• Experienced Sales Professional: Gailan Fahmi (Inmac Wstore FR),
  Anna Lena Krause (Bechtle Direct DE) & Bart van Zwieten (ARP NL) 
• Senior Sales Professional: Michiel Koolen (Bechtle NL),
  Floriane Debonte (Comsoft FR) & Bas Bax (Bechtle NL) 
• International Business Sales Professional: Pablo Saenz (Bechtle Direct ES)
  & Lucca van Dijk (Bechtle NL) 
• New Business Professional: Pawel Adler (Bechtle Direct PL),
  Martina Vlasáková (Bechtle Direct CZ) & Adam Mikoda (Bechtle Direct PL) 

In the Hall of Fame we've noticed some exciting shifts—let's keep celebrating our top performers. While no new colleagues have joined the ranks, the points for our current members have changed. 

Are you ready to take on the challenge? Let’s see who will earn their spot on the list in the coming months!

Let’s celebrate our colleagues in Europe for the great achievements.

New Business Community.

In June, we had a successful event that concentrated on new business development. The discussions emphasized innovative hunting strategies and explored potential compensation models. Key topics included creative thinking, team collaboration, and adapting to diverse markets. We also delved into recruitment, motivation, leadership within hunting teams, and explored AI management and the Irish business model. The event wrapped up with valuable suggestions for ongoing knowledge sharing and future discussions on topics like social selling and AI. In the upcoming month we hope to show the new and improved new business report. 

Our next steps involve focusing on developing individual business plans at the local level, aiming to drive new business success and elevate it to a higher level. 

The community also is starting to share inspiring stories around Europe. Have a look at their  Sharepointpage and Manon personally invites everyone to contact her if you have a story you would like to share. In exchanging experiences, we learn from each other. Do you have a story that went very well or completely wrong? She’s looking forward to hearing about it. 

Vendor Management Community Event.

The Vendor Management Community Event was hosted for a two-day event filled with enthusiastic participation. Vendor Managers and the L&S engaged in networking sessions and meaningful discussions and were collaborating to lay the groundwork for future partnerships.  

The event included sessions where Vendor Managers aligned on key strategies, explored Inmac Wstore’s approach, and discussed collaboration with local entities. An interactive workshop by our International Marketing team sparked creativity and ensured active participation. The L&S teams’ involvement added valuable perspectives, enhancing the exchange of ideas. 

We also introduced the Euro Vendor League, a competition ranking Bechtle entities on BackEnd performance and year-over-year development. This initiative aims to boost our group’s BackEnd target by 3%, with top-performing entities and its vendor managers receiving rewards. 

We’re excited about the connections and ideas that emerged and are eager to build on these successes. We remain focused on fostering meaningful discussions, impactful networking and driving growth, and we look forward to the positive outcomes in the coming months. 

Bechtle acquires Magnetic Media Network, a leading IT system house in Italy.

Bechtle AG acquires Magnetic Media Network S.p.A. (MMN) with headquarters in Trezzo sull'Adda (near Milan) and a further location in Roncade (near Venice). Founded in 1989, the IT service provider achieved a turnover of 68.6 million euros in the 2022/23 financial year. MMN currently employs around 100 people. The acquisition significantly strengthens Bechtle's existing market position in Italy. Bechtle direct Italy and MMN address key accounts, SMEs and the public sector. With MMN, Bechtle is integrating an Apple Authorized Enterprise Reseller (AAER). Bechtle already holds the far-reaching partner status in Germany, which enables it to offer comprehensive and specialized solutions for business customers based on the entire range of iOS and Mac technology. In Italy, MMN is the first and to date one of only two IT companies with this status. In addition, there are other close partnerships with IT manufacturers such as Xerox, Lenovo, HP, Dell, Jamf, Cyberoo, Fortinet, Cisco and Microsoft.

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Bechtle with new logo and concise corporate design.

Bechtle today announced the first radical corporate redesign in its over 40-year history, now presenting itself with a new logo. The step aims to bolster the company’s brand, increase brand awareness, and ensure a memorable, accessible and consistent presence in the digital space. A collaboration with the renowned brand and design agency, Peter Schmidt Group, delivered a corporate design that puts the core of the Bechtle brand front and centre and fully aligns with the requirements associated with modern, digital communication. The Bechtle name has been peeled off the logo to set the two side by side and lend greater impact to the wordmark. The new CD will first be introduced across Bechtle’s digital channels before gradually being rolled out to the Bechtle Group’s more than 100 sites in Europe beginning in 2025.

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