Why Enterprises Are Moving to Hardware-as-a-Service | WEI's Greg LaBrie

Enterprise customers are rethinking how they buy, manage, and maintain IT hardware. Instead of large upfront investments, more organizations are turning to Hardware-as-a-Service (HaaS) models that offer predictable monthly costs, ongoing support, and simplified technology upgrades. In this Channel Insider interview, Greg LaBrie, Vice President and General Manager of WEI Connect at WEI, joins Victoria Durgin to discuss how changing customer expectations are reshaping the business models of value-added resellers (VARs), managed service providers (MSPs), and other IT solution providers. LaBrie explains why enterprises are shifting from capital expenditures to operational spending, what recurring hardware services mean for channel partner operations, and how customer expectations around business outcomes and service-level agreements (SLAs) are evolving. The conversation also explores WEI Connect, a managed connectivity offering that incorporates Starlink satellite technology, SD-WAN, and other network services to help enterprises improve connectivity and network resilience. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction: The shift to Hardware-as-a-Service 01:19 – Meet Greg LaBrie and WEI Connect 02:16 – Why enterprises are moving from CapEx to OpEx 04:46 – How HaaS changes the reseller business model 05:51 – Why customers are prioritizing IT outcomes 07:14 – The business value of outsourcing infrastructure management 09:11 – Is everything moving toward as-a-service models? 10:22 – How WEI Connect brings Starlink to enterprise networks 12:47 – Solving connectivity backup and resilience challenges 14:45 – Enterprise demand and HaaS trends heading into 2027 15:49 – Closing thoughts Subscribe to Channel Insider for interviews, news, and analysis covering the IT channel, managed services, cybersecurity, AI, and enterprise technology. #HardwareAsAService #ManagedServices #ITChannel #Starlink #SDWAN