SA software firm secures sole distribution rights
Marval SA expands offering, supported by a host of new sales wins and sole distribution rights in South Africa to Marval Software’s products and services
Marval South Africa (Marval SA), the local representative and distributor of Marval’s integrated IT Service Management software solution (MSM), has embarked on a strategy to further entrench itself in the South African IT Service Management (ITSM) market. Established in 2008 as the South African representative of the UK based company Marval Software Ltd, Marval SA has recently become the sole official distributor of Marval products and services in South Africa. Initially focusing on the distribution of software, it has formed strategic partnerships and expanded its territory to now concentrate on service improvement programmes to meet a growing demand in South Africa.
As the economic downturn shook the business world last year, cost cutting meant many businesses were reluctant to make software purchases. However, despite a dip in software sales, there was light at the end of the tunnel. Edward Carbutt, Executive Director of Marval SA, explains: “2009 highlighted an opportunity for us to start focusing more heavily on service improvement programmes, as organisations started to take new compliance requirements more seriously. By adjusting our business model to one that leverages strategic partnerships, we have been able to position ourselves to take advantage of these conditions and align ourselves with Marval Software as a ‘one-stop-shop’ offering specialist service management solutions.”
Marval SA’s solutions and service offering now extends to include ITIL and ISO/IEC 20000 based IT Service Management advisory, training and software – vital components of IT Governance for organisations wishing to implement Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) frameworks.
Organisations are currently faced with several new Acts and legislation geared towards ensuring good corporate governance, such as the recently released King III framework and the upcoming launch of the New Companies Act. Marval SA’s partnership with Quency, an independent firm that specialises in advisory and training services to companies on GRC and ethics, has opened up opportunities for the two companies to leverage off each other’s complementary service offerings.
Comments Jayen Vyravene, CEO of Quency, “Quency focuses on assisting companies with the overall governance of the organisation. IT Governance is big part of this, with Service Management being a large component. This is where our partnership with Marval SA is beneficial, as we are able to provide our clients with specialist ITSM services. Quency and Marval SA share the same approach to governance principles, and we are excited about what the future of this partnership holds.”
Notes Carbutt, “Locally, businesses are starting to realise the internal and external requirements for IT governance. This has created a bigger demand for the advisory function we offer. To meet this demand, Marval SA’s advisory arm offers ISO/IEC 20000 training and implementation, and has bolstered its offering with new resources.”
Well on its way to entrenching itself in the southern African market, Marval SA has also gained a number of new clients in the last 12 months, including prominent players such as Webcom, Econet Telecom Lesotho, FNB Botswana, Stortech, Gateway Communications (Vodacom’s network company) and BAE Land Systems.
