Cherwell extends platform depth with developer support

Service management specialist Cherwell has opened the doors to the developer community as it encourages more involvement with its software platform.

The ITSM player has launched its Marketplace as it starts to build up a catalogue of free and paid-for apps built on its CORE platform.

The marketplace has kicked-off with around 120 applications, a hundred of which have come from the firm’s partners and developers.

Some household names, including AWS Cloud Management, have already got apps on the system as Cherwell looks to increase the options for customers looking to get more depth out of their IT service management (ITSM) tools.

“Chief information officers routinely cite speed, innovation, agility and automation as top priorities to improve employee experiences and drive growth through the rapid roll-out of new digital services,” said Scott Gainey, chief marketing officer at Cherwell.

“Our extensive library of applications and integrations, available within the Cherwell Marketplace, backed by a strong community of developers, demonstrates our commitment to helping our customers make work flow,” he added.

One of the firms that has added an app into the Marketplace mix is HCL Technologies, which has put its own take on ITSM on top of the platform.

“The Marketplace provides a clear path for strategic partners like us to extend our innovations on the Cherwell platform directly to customers,” said Kalyan Kumar, corporate vice-president and chief technology officer of IT services at HCL Technologies.

“Our first Marketplace listing, the DRYiCE Gold BluePrint mApp, provides an ecosystem of ITSM best practices built as features that integrates seamlessly into Cherwell’s IT Service Management product,” he added.

The ITSM market presents a fair amount of opportunity for the channel and can be combined with other business process areas to make a more compelling pitch.

Research from Ivanti, released in February 2020, found that there was a chance for resellers to pitch in with asset management tools as a combination with ITSM. The firm found that 43% of the IT professionals it canvassed were still using spreadsheets to track IT assets.

“When ITSM and ITAM [IT asset management] are closely aligned and integrated, many activities and processes become more automated, efficient and responsive, with fewer things ‘falling through the cracks’,” said Ian Aitchison, senior product director at Ivanti.

“IT teams gain more insight and are better positioned to move from reactive activities to more proactive practices, delivering higher service levels and efficiency at lower costs.

“While IT teams are starting to better track their assets, collaborating with other teams and understanding the benefits of combining asset and service processes, time and money advantages are being lost as they don’t have the data they need to effectively manage and optimise their assets and services,” he added.