"Solutions" is one of those slippery words that can mean anything and everything. Working with some of the world's top technology companies, ITSMA has developed a useful definition:

"A combination of products, services, and intellectual property focused on a specific business problem that drives measurable business value. The solutions components can be from either the vendor and one or more partners, and the solutions implementer can be the vendor, the partner, the customer itself, or a combination of the three."

It's a bit dense, and doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. Nevertheless, we have found that it clicks with both buyers and sellers given its emphasis on solving specific business problems with measurable business value. Understood as such, the "S" word can get beyond the hype and provide important direction to business strategy and operations.

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