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Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) 
has triumphed in the digital music arena, and has won hearts in the consumer, educational and creative media markets. Yet it seems to have a tough road ahead in cracking the corporate IT department, despite a wealth of hardware and software options that could be employed in an office environment.
Some analysts believe that Apple has already missed its chance to find a home in the budgets of corporate customers. If Apple is used at all in the office, they say, it is most likely by the designers in the art department -- and that is all.
But the lack of widespread corporate adoption does not keep the company from making a play, and hoping for future success. With its servers, new storage hardware, and grid-computing technology, Apple is eager to get a place in the enterprise.
Can Apple gain a spot in the IT department after all? What type of battle plan does the company need to deploy?
Product Bonanza
Although Apple had a modest presence in the enterprise environment with some laptops and desktops dotting the office landscape, it was not until the introduction of its back-end technology that it really seemed to be embarking on an enterprise strategy.
In 2002, Apple released its first rack-mounted servers, a G4-based series called Xserve. Doug Brooks, Apple's product manager for server and storage hardware told MacNewsWorld that the server was created in response to customer requests. Before its development, the company offered Mac OS server software, and customers began asking for hardware to go with it.
"We've seen tremendous growth with the Xserve," he said. Besides the education market, in which Apple has significant presence, the server helped the company reach out to corporate customers as well.
"We have a very strong server product line that is doing well in our core markets, and with some enterprises," Brooks added.
For his part, IDC analyst Roger Kay said that Apple has worked to make the servers very aggressively priced in order to compete with the likes of IBM (NYSE: IBM) , HP (NYSE: HPQ) and Dell. "They've got some good enterprise products," he said in an interview with MacNewsWorld. "Especially on price, they're trying to stay competitive."
Store House
Another major part of its enterprise plan is the Xserve RAID, a companion to the company's server hardware line. The storage technology holds up to 14 hot-swappable Apple drive modules, which constitute 3.5 terabytes of data.
Xserve RAID is geared for Apple customers that need a higher level of performance , said Brooks.
So far, the company has been pleased with adoption, he added, especially with the amount of Apple technology being introduced into formerly Windows-only environments.
"We see customers that are using the hardware to provide connectivity for Windows and Unix clients," Brooks said. "We're happy to see that."
The company is also finding success with Xgrid, which can turn a group of Macs into a supercomputer. The technology is mainly used at universities, but as grid-computing moves toward mainstream use, it's a product worth watching, Aberdeen analyst Peter Kastner noted.
Bonus Points
Although Apple lags behind its competitors in the office arena, it does have some attributes that could keep it a contender.
The company stresses the lack of client licenses with its hardware, which tends to be particularly appealing to the education market. It also prices its technology well, and perhaps most important, the hardware plays well with others in the corporate playground.
"Apple now does very well in a Windows LAN environment," Kastner told MacNewsWorld. "Therefore, the oil and water issues that existed a few years ago are much reduced."
Kastner added that the introduction of Xserve and Xserve RAID complement the company's desktop and laptop products, and give it a chance in the corporate market. "They've made the company much more relevant for any kind of enterprise infrastructure value proposition," he said.
The RAID in particular could prove intriguing to corporate IT departments, if Apple is able to sell it widely, Kay noted. "It wouldn't be surprising to a see an Apple RAID in the back, with other technology. It gives them a chance to get back into the corporate market."
Rewriting History
According to Kay, Apple had its chance with corporate customers. Now, rather than navigating to an entry point, it must try to rewrite history. With other companies already dominating the office scene, Apple will have a difficult time ahead of it, even with new technology.
"People are already committed to a platform," Kay said. "Apple is going to have to deal with inertia, and that's not easy."
To make any kind of inroad in the corporate sector, Apple will have to change the perception that it's a company that deals only in proprietary technology. Since that is a widespread belief, the company needs to make a stronger effort at training sales representatives in techniques for wooing IT departments.
"The company needs a specialized SWAT team that can go out from Cupertino and make a business case in front of skeptical enterprises," said Kastner. "The weak link here is Apple's indirect channel. Its business partners are not strong enough to successfully win over large enterprise deals."
Stay tuned for part two of this story, when MacNewsWorld examines whether Apple's software has the potential to make an impact on the corporate market.
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