Digital Services Company
First and foremost, ESN, or “Entreprise de services numériques”, is the new acronym for companies formerly known as SSII (Société de Services et d’ingénierie en Informatique).
An ESN generally offers a large number of expert consultants capable of building, updating, maintaining and repairing computer systems hardware, product and/or service. It therefore provides a wide range of skills and expertise to meet the IT needs of various digital players.
The genesis
Initially, ESN were local and sent a technician to make the equivalent of a house call. Then came information technology as a service.
This model was originally developed with the idea that data centers would be accessible via the cloud, and with the emerging belief that IT systems would become more standardized, uniform and shared. Unfortunately, IT systems never became more uniform and data centers generally remained in-house. So the use of managed IT service providers via the web logically grew and flourished.
These managed services are billed on a monthly basis for services rendered, and based on the number of users within an organization. ESN has become quite popular because it helps to promote business continuity by reducing overhead, increasing revenue, while reducing technical problems and minimizing downtime.
How does an ESN work?
An ESN currently performs three basic types of work: application or custom software development, maintenance and support. They also offer consulting.
Software development is usually done when a client wants an additional feature or service added to their system. This can range from developing a basic financial services application to developing a mobile application. Application or software development, and the search for software solutions, is of paramount importance in the digital transformation of a business.
Maintenance is primarily a monitoring process, and if a problem is identified, it will be analyzed and corrected as soon as possible. The need to analyze the source code and data in a file or database to find the problem is a possibility.
Support is provided when a customer emails or calls the ESN to inform them that they have a problem. Problems can range from a simple virus to faulty software.
Consulting is necessary to assess the needs of a new client. Experts are there to answer questions and provide advice that can be vital to a company’s survival and to best support its digital transformation.
What are the main advantages of joining an ESN?
Mobility
It’s not for everyone, but the mobility that an ESN offers can be a real plus for people who don’t want to get stuck in an overwhelming routine.
If you are a bit of a wanderer with an adventurous spirit, then the variety of locations that an ESN can offer is a blessing. If, on the other hand, you are a person who prefers stability and/or have a lot of responsibilities (such as young children), then it would be much better to turn to a direct hiring in a company, even if it is always possible to find arrangements with your ESN in order to keep a fixed workplace for a longer period of time than usual.
The variety of missions
The advantages of joining an ESN are numerous and can be combined with a profile at the beginning of a career. Indeed, working within an ESN allows you to evolve in different organizational and technical environments, which is intended to provide a rich and diverse experience. For an inexperienced or polyvalent profile, it allows to store a tree of knowledge in a greatly reduced time. On a career level, given the variety of missions offered, the progression is all the faster.
The expertise
Being taken to work on the client’s premises contributes to an efficient increase in skills and, as a result, you quickly become a reference in your field of expertise. Accumulating assignments, each one more different than the last, allows you to acquire this expert status in an accelerated manner. Aiming for a position of responsibility quickly becomes a realistic scenario.
The opportunities
Networking remains without a doubt one of the main qualities of being in ESN. The contexts and the people you meet are constantly changing, which significantly increases the scope of your professional network. This is a great asset, which becomes more and more important as the years go by.