"We have created a shared business environment where it is easy to navigate and create added value for one another," explains Liis Tammekivi, head of the partner segment at Greenergy Data Centers. A center of gravity of sorts has thus formed around the Baltics' largest data center, with a value that reaches far beyond hosting equipment. A data center is said to be the foundation of an IT business, but the facility in Hüüru on the edge of Tallinn proves the benefit is considerably wider.
Liis Tammekivi, head of GDC's partner segment, explains what exactly it consists of.
Liis Tammekivi. Photo: Andres Oolberg.
You say the data center grows IT companies' business and is a hub. What do you mean by that?
A data center is a meeting point for different services and value propositions. Besides hosting equipment, the companies operating from here offer connectivity, cloud, hardware, software, equipment management, cybersecurity and much more. That ecosystem creates fertile ground for new partnerships. So a company that previously sold only hardware and software, for example, can with the support of partners offer the customer a full service, from selecting equipment and software to hosting and hardware management. That allows customer relationships to be strengthened and extended and profitability to grow.
To illustrate the idea, we can be compared to Ülemiste City or another business campus, where different companies sit together and can intertwine and cooperate. If a customer comes to Ülemiste City and asks one company whether they sell servers, it is good to be able to answer: we sell laptops, but you can get servers from the building next door. In the same way, if someone comes to us and we do not offer that particular service, we recommend our partners. It is equally easy for partners to recommend someone else in our building or in the partner ecosystem.
In short, it is a business environment where it is easy to navigate and create added value for one another.
What businesses does this business environment or ecosystem consist of, exactly?
Our ecosystem consists of various connectivity providers, such as providers of internet and fibre-optic connections. We are neutral. That means the customer can choose which service provider to use.
We also have partners in the IT field who help customers find solutions in cloud, hardware procurement, software development, backup or full service. Where needed we can offer financing solutions as well.
The main thing is that the customer keeps the freedom to put together a suitable package themselves.
What do they gain from it?
For an IT company it means more convenient management, because all partners and customers are in one place: no need to drive around different sites to manage and maintain equipment. Thanks to that the customer also gets a better overview of IT costs.
By bundling colocation with other services, the company also invests in longer customer relationships. Since equipment is as a rule kept in the same place for years, the IT company is guaranteed a stable monthly income.
One of the most easily understood benefits is the freedom to grow and expand, which does not exist in the same form in your own office, for example. As the business expands, at some point there is not enough power, space, security or reliability. Our possibilities are considerably wider.
Can smaller companies take part in this, and how?
Smaller companies can take part in our ecosystem through larger IT partners. If a small company wants to offer a backup service, for example, it can host its equipment in a larger IT company's cabinet. While volumes are still small, it is not necessarily practical to rent a separate rack.
How does the GDC partner programme work?
Today many companies have a bridge of products and services to their end customer. By joining the partner programme they can add a new layer to that bridge in the form of colocation. The IT company thereby has the chance to earn more and invest in more lasting relationships with the end customer, while the latter receives the value our building offers with all its capabilities.
The partner also has more flexibility. The larger the volume, the greater the discounts that come with it.
How many connectivity providers do you have today?
More than ten, and more are added as the need arises. If a customer says they definitely want to use one provider or another, that is doable too. At the end of the year we expect one new large service provider to join, which creates further options.
Our neutral character is attractive to connectivity providers. We are the newest and most modern data center in our region, business is seen to grow with us, and international transit certainly plays a part. For those building communication corridors through or past this area, we are a very sensible solution.
How do you build trust in yourselves and the wider ecosystem?
Building trust is a continuous process that requires consistent work and keeping promises. It is like building a tower: you lay one block on another. Over time the tower becomes ever sturdier.
Since we have a unique building with unique capabilities that did not exist in Estonia before, we are inevitably an important component in the development of the local IT landscape. Together with the interested parties among the IT companies here, we contribute to the whole Estonian IT landscape taking its next steps. That in turn creates trust in us and in the other IT companies here, both locally and internationally.
Our certificates, such as EN 50600, prove our quality and help customers prove the credibility of their own business.
What have been the main obstacles to the adoption of your service?
The first answer we often hear is "Can't be bothered". Moving is a time-consuming and complicated undertaking that inevitably comes with a series of challenges. Naturally it is a little daunting at first.
I can say hand on heart that so far nobody who has taken this road with us has regretted it. When customers come to the facility to maintain their equipment, they often call: "Come and help, I don't remember where my cabinet was!" That shows the service is so high-quality and reliable that they have no need to come here often.
By now several successful companies host their equipment with us, and that fact has contributed a great deal to building trust. It is like a snowball effect: the bigger we grow, the more we draw others along and the more confidently we move forward. At one event I sat at a table with representatives of three different companies, and one of them discovered with a start that he was the only one not yet in our building. Such moments are pleasant and encouraging.
Does it not prove trust in you that you hold various certificates, starting with the EN 50600, unique in this region?
It always has to be explained what that certificate represents. People have come across ISOs, but EN 50600 is a very demanding certificate specific to data centers that nobody else in the Baltics or even Finland holds.
It plays a bigger role for customers with international ambitions. The certificate makes the customer's life easier: if they keep their things with us, it is much simpler for them to prove the reliability, security and greenness of their business. That paves the way to quite a few partnerships. Internationally it is a very strong mark of quality.
More information about the partner programme and the benefits it brings: https://www.greenergydatacenters.com/partners