As an entrepreneur, operator and investor, I’m passionate about the promise of the Platform Economy and how it will improve the way B2B tech buyers, consultants and vendors do business. I’m not alone in my enthusiasm. EY, in a June 2023 report, says: “Today, companies are racing to get ahead in a rapidly growing and hugely competitive Platform Economy. Their reasoning is clear. When deployed effectively, platform business models allow companies to increase their scale, tap into external capacity, optimize internal investments to accelerate product and service development, and quickly identify and capitalize on market opportunities across sectors.”But I’m not just a fan. I’ve pioneered and refined the B2B platform business model in the tech space over the past 25 years. My platform vision extends beyond a marketplace, which centralizes sourcing, to also include tech design, engineering, consulting and ongoing management of costs, performance and risk.During my career, I’ve learned that the critical component is “data” – not for its own sake but to drive decision-making. This experience has evolved my approach to realizing the potential of the platform model.Lesson 1 – Early in my career at PAETEC, I saw firsthand the power of network data to help business customers drive purchasing decisions. PAETEC’s strategy helped grow and retain customers, which ultimately led to its acquisition by Windstream in 2011.Lesson 2 – At the Premiere Worldwide tech advisory firm, I helped our client, Alaris Consulting, develop tech roadmap strategies using quantitative and qualitative data analysis to help businesses make outcome-driven decisions. Based in part on the success of that work, Alaris was acquired by PwC in 2009 to be a foundational part of its tech consulting platform. Lesson 3 – Soon after, I founded RapidScale where I took a first step into the platform model, delivering managed cloud services through an "app store” experience that enabled purchasing and management. RapidScale was acquired by Cox in 2018 as a foundational platform for its managed cloud services.Lesson 4 – Today, I’m using all those lessons learned to create Procure IT, which builds on the app store concept but transforms IT procurement into a data-driven decision.The Procure IT platform promises value to all players in the tech ecosystem – buyer, partner, distributor, installer, engineer, vendor and more.I’d love to share more about how Procure IT lives up to the B2B platform vision. Connect with me or message me to set up a time to chat.