TPM Vendor Directory
A subjective list of TPM vendors, their strengths, their weaknesses and things you should know about them.
Do not read this information assuming these are objective facts about these companies. Consider them as opinions.
Vendor Seventeen (Vendor Seventeen)
LI Stats: 1161 F up from 891 F up from 826 F; 64 E flat from 64 E up from 58 E
CB: 249,888 up from 251,906 up from 287,119
CRN: Not listed
Private Equity Owner: None
Recent Acquisitions: None
Strengths:
Knowledgeable sales reps who know the used Cisco hardware business very well; most came from Vendor Ten and left before the merger happened
Has access to high quality replacement devices; stocks and stores high volume equipment
Can handle x86 server secondary hardware but not necessarily a core or high volume offering
Weaknesses:
Relies on white label providers to deliver, white label providers rely on subcontracted field labor, very limited-to-no backline support in house
Very small company, core group of partners who were all top sales reps at Vendor Ten
Extremely sales driven company, so may make promises that can't be delivered on to get the sale; Potemkin Village constructors
Vendor One (Vendor, One)
LI Stats: 24,181 F up from 19,947 up from 17,407 F; 1905 E up from 1865 E up from 1799 E
CB: 7027 up from 13,047 up from 17,202
CRN: 65 (2023); 60 (2022); 82 (2021); 97 (2020); 104 (2019)
Acquisitions: Vendor Five (CRN 2020 #334) (2022), Vendor Six (2021), Vendor Seven (2021), Vendor Ten (CRN #65) (2020)
Private Equity Owner: Vendor One Owner
Strengths:
They are the biggest TPM, they sell their own services and they have the greatest aggregation of service delivery under one roof of any TPM company.
Likely your best option for global coverage with lowest risk of subcontracting field service delivery
Broadest range of items and devices covered, including large complex servers and large complex storage arrays that are typically found in large Enterprise IT shops.
Weaknesses:
M&A issues due to fast growth and recent purchase of largest competitor
Attempting to broaden beyond TPM services and may seem more focused on selling you ancillary services than delivering what you bought from them
Inside driven sales experience, especially for new and small buyers which can be a challenger for an experienced TPM buyer
Vendor Eleven (Vendor Eleven)
LI Stats: 5212 F up from 5091 F up from 4828 F; 332 E up from 320 E down from 325 E
CB: 211,158 down from 202,338 down from 186,014
CRN: 158 (2023); 152 (2022); 143 (2021); 143 (2020); 119 (2019)
Recent Acquisitions: Vendor Twelve (2016)
Private Equity Owner: Vendor Eleven Owner
Strengths:
Small company focused on Cisco network and telephony secondary hardware, been in business longer than other companies on this list
Has its own self-delivered Cisco and networking TPM offering, basically a NBD RMA style offering that is a good budget play, especially for SMB customers
Branching in to x86 server secondary hardware space to augment core network and telephony device business
Weaknesses:
Sells TPM service as an attach item to used/secondary hardware sales, not really focused on the TPM offering
Subcontracts the risk to white label providers for everything it can not deliver; very little backline support in house
Post-sale delivery experience is not strong, limited onboarding and limited service management capabilities
Vendor Two (Vendor, Two)
LI Stats: 32,988 F up from 30,694 F up from 27,834 F; 1106 E down from 1178 E up from 1115 E
CB: 120,761 down from 116,180 down from 54,552
CRN: 93 (2023); 137 (2022); 162 (2021); 301 (2020); 320 (2019)
Acquisitions: Vendor Sixteen (2023), Vendor Fifteen (2022), Vendor Fourteen (2020)
Private Equity Owner: Vendor Two Owner
Strengths:
They are the second largest TPM, they sell their own services and they have the second greatest aggregation of service delivery under one roof of any TPM company.
Strong in the Midwestern United States from a field delivery perspective. Certain areas of the United States are a challenge for them as they don't very many of their own field engineers in certain geographies such as the West Coast, the Northeast and the Southwest.
Good coverage of large complex server devices, strong backline support in this area.
Weaknesses:
Sales rep turnover historically high - many new to industry reps who might not be up to speed on your needs
Reliance on subcontracted field labor in areas where they have no local field presence (especially outside the United States)
Network device coverage is not their strong suit - for an all Cisco device list, they are probably not a good choice.
Vendor Four (Vendor Four)
LI Stats: 3246 F up from 2558 F up from 2183 F; 99 E up from 91 E up from 72 E
CB: 327,770 up from 293,418 down from 320,211
Recent Acquisitions: None
CRN: Not listed
Private Equity Owner: None
Strengths:
Many TPM industry veterans in sales and delivery, especially those who left or were left behind in TPM industry consolidations. Not Private Equity owned.
Has expertise in complex server, specifically IBM mid-range and IBM mainframe
Has hardware brokerage and secondary hardware sourcing expertise not found in the bigger TPM companies that could be useful for more arcane builds of specialized server or storage gear
Weaknesses:
Very small company in relation to the TPM industry leaders- real financial long-term viability concerns.
Field delivery model relies almost entirely on field subcontracted labor outside of their home operating market
Weak Cisco and network device service offering
Vendor Three (Vendor Three)
LI Stats: 74,499 up from 69,080 up from 60,191 F; 924 E up from 760 E down from 777 E
CB: 186,800 up from 188,282 up from 206,119
CRN: Not listed
Recent Acquisitions: Vendor Eight (2022), Vendor Nine (2021), Vendor Thirteen (2020)
Private Equity Owner: Vendor Three Owner
Strengths:
Strong sales and delivery presence in European market, acquiring TPM companies in North American market, has made acquisitions in South America and Africa
Similar sales and delivery model to Vendor Two and Vendor Three
Acquiring North American expertise through purchase of specialty and niche TPMs
Weaknesses:
Limited sales and delivery presence in North America, mainly through branded acquisitions
Field delivery model relies more on subcontractors than the other large providers.
Basically new-to-market in North America, most of their North American delivery will be for European based customers and hard to reference.