Enterprise customers are no longer choosing workplace technology on product specifications alone. Instead, they are increasingly evaluating long-term flexibility, lifecycle costs, analytics, and vendor support as workplace transformation projects become more outcome-driven.
That shift was a recurring theme during Logitech’s “Measuring What Matters: Tracking the Impact of Workplace Technology” panel at its Southeast Asia Partner Connect Conference in Hanoi, where systems integrators and solution providers discussed how customer expectations have evolved and why trust has become an increasingly important factor in enterprise buying decisions.
Market shift
For James Kok, Sales Director of Lionware Singapore, businesses have become more discerning in their technology procurement, meaning solution providers need to keep pace.
“Before, people just wanted a camera, a headset, and something that just works. Now, they want to look at a whole host of different things. It’s no longer just about a 4K camera, or microphones. They want to look at it from a total package standpoint. How much is this going to cost them over the next five years? How easy is it to use? How scalable is it?” he noted.
Anocha Udombuasuwan, Assistant General Manager of Thailand-based Innogineering, observed that customers increasingly value flexibility because they use multiple communication and collaboration platforms.
“When users come to meetings, they don’t just use one platform anymore. They switch between Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom. Meeting rooms now need to be more flexible, and the space itself is equally important. We are looking for a space that can transform from a formal boardroom in the morning into a casual workshop space in the afternoon,” she said.
IT teams in Thailand, she stressed, no longer focus solely on hardware, but also on the insights and analytics they can derive to understand how meeting rooms are being used and to present a clear return on investment to management.
Businesses also want assurance that they can rely on their workplace solutions over the long term, noted Chris Pitsillides, CTO of systems integrator ESCO.
“It’s no longer a list of specifications but is more about selling that experience, selling that overall journey with the client,” he said.
Looking at Southeast Asia, the region has transformed from an emerging market into one of the world’s fastest-growing regions for digitalisation.
“What that means is that hybrid work has actually become the norm. Whether you’re a remote worker dialling in from a Metro Manila office, or a facilities manager in Thailand, you want to have insights that will help your company make informed decisions. Three out of four employees are working from two or three places. We are not just talking about offices and homes, but also airports and cafés, and we see that trend increasing,” said Mani Nathan, Head of B2B Channels, APAC, Logitech.
Why trust matters
The executives agreed that brand trust goes a long way in the enterprise technology space. Kok said Logitech’s comprehensive portfolio of solutions, not only inside meeting rooms but beyond them as well, resonates strongly with customers.
“Having that full range of complete solutions allows partners like us to go in and have those really engaging conversations with customers. In terms of videoconferencing alone, Logitech covers everything, from personal workspaces, to small huddle rooms, to large boardrooms,” he explained.
For Anocha, Logitech stands out from competitors because of its Select program, which she said has given many customers greater peace of mind.
“In the Thai market, competitor brands do not offer global support from their engineering team. They just have local technician support, but when it comes to more serious problems, our clients require more expertise. With the Logitech Select program, it allows us as a systems integrator to connect directly with Logitech’s global team, and with that kind of support, it feels like we have engineers around the world standing right behind us,” she said.
Best practices
From Pitsillides’ perspective, AV and systems integration are often among the last considerations in a project, creating operational inefficiencies later on.
“When we’re talking about floor plans, for example, when the space is being designed, technology needs to be involved at that stage, not three or four months later down the road, when it becomes a rush for everyone,” he emphasised.
Designing a technology deployment strategy is key, Pitsillides noted, as is having a technology champion within the organisation.
“That’s more ideal rather than throwing the whole thing to an IT team that doesn’t want to look after that solution, and you end up delivering a bad experience,” he added.
Anocha, meanwhile, advised organisations to prioritise people rather than technology.
“The office is for work, not a showroom for technology. Choose technology that is easy for the IT team to support and for your people to use,” she said.
With every workplace transformation project, Kok said his team works backwards from customers’ desired outcomes to determine the best implementation approach.
“We ask them what they want to see at the end of the day in this meeting room or this space, and then we work backwards from there, fitting the products and the solutions to achieve that end goal,” he said.
For Nathan, having conversations with facilities managers, HR departments, and IT teams is crucial to the success of any workplace transformation project, reducing misalignment and unnecessary rework.
“Don’t talk about specs; talk about outcomes,” he advised.
