From SLA To XLA: The Shift In Managed Mobility Services

The latest Magic Quadrant for managed mobility services illustrates the breakthrough of the XLA approach in this market. Who stands out? XLA logic is now well-established in managed mobility services (MMS). More than half of the suppliers ranked in the latest Magic Quadrant dedicated to this market are entitled to a positive remark about these “experience level agreements”. At the forefront are the three suppliers appearing in the “leaders” square: DMI, HCLTech and Kyndryl. But also, among others:

Sakon, which is launching into this aspect in partnership with the DEX Nexthink
Tangoe, which now provides XLA for around half of its operating indicators
Techstep, which introduced, as part of its platform DEM, XPIs to evolve into XLAs
Telefónica, which launched in particular in the United Kingdom with VMO2

From one Quadrant to another, many markers are found. Once again, between TEM (telecoms life cycle management), integrators, operators and pure players, there is no dominant supplier typology. In 2021, Gartner noted the timid entry of laptops into MMS strategies. Since then, it has integrated it to a lesser extent: to appear in the Quadrant, you must manage laptops… for at least one client. The functional scope to be covered has stayed the same. It was always about providing services in five segments:

Procurement/Logistics
Terminal management (mainly MDM + MAM + identities)
Security (beyond what UEM offers)
Financial management (contractualization, inventory, reporting, etc.)
Overall governance (centralized supplier management, third parties, supports, SLA, etc.)

From a business perspective, a criterion has evolved. At least 1.5 million “smart” mobile devices (tablets and wearables included) had to be opened, up from 1.25 million previously.

Seventeen Suppliers, Three “Leaders.”

Suppliers classified in the Quadrant are positioned on two axes. One is prospective (“vision”), which is focused on strategies (sectoral, geographical, commercial, marketing, product, etc.). The other focused on the ability to respond to demand effectively (“execution”: customer experience, pre-sales performance, quality of products/services, etc.).

DMI And Orange Business, In Opposition To XLA

The positioning of Orange Business is stable from one year to the next. The French group is always in the most extensive of the squares: that of the “visionaries”. Gartner appreciates its sustainable development program, its “constructive” pricing and the cost optimization/user experience balance. The American firm, however, regrets the limited geographic presence (centered on Europe, despite access to non-European partners via the FreeMove Alliance), the TEM strategy fragmented according to the region… and the absence of standard XLAs.

The launch of XLA standards is, on the contrary, a good point for DMI. Like the level of automation of the service desk and the prices, “more competitive than they were”. The same cannot be said for ticket resolution performance (it “varies”…). Nor expense management (uncertain strategy between a brick developed internally and two partner solutions) and DaaS. For the latter, Gartner specifically deplores an offer based exclusively on leasing devices.

Pay Attention To Prices At Kyndryl… And Cost Optimization At HCLTech

Aside from the XLAs, the advice part earns Kyndryl a good point. It’s the same thing for user support, on which the American group has “made progress” (creation of four XLAs, automatic resolution of more than 90% of tickets). The other side of the coin is above-average prices, particularly for kitting, inventory management, and repairs. Gartner also points to the growing dependence on partners and the need for more focus on financial management (solutions delivered to less than 10% of the installed base).

In addition to XLA, HCLTech has a position in wearables. It is one of the few suppliers where these technologies constitute more than 10% of the installed base. It also stands out in the proportion of customers who have adopted its solutions in all of the five segments mentioned above. Once again, Gartner emphasizes that projects focused on “quick win” cost logic are not the Indian group’s strong point. Which also has room for improvement in the commercial approach and the balancing of its geographical presence.