EMC aims high with Velocity enhancements

EMC has ‘enhanced’ its Velocity channel partner programme in an effort to make it more profitable for resellers, with rebates for a range of EMC technologies and simpler tier advancement among the changes.

Both the Solution Provider and Services programmes have been revised, with the Isilon Partner Program – from EMC’s early 2011 purchase of Isilon – now integrated into Velocity.

On the Solution Provider Program side, a new targeted products rebate is now available for Premier and Signature partners, with rebates paid on sales of targeted EMC technologies aligning to the company’s key mid-market initiatives.

Brett Harris, EMC ANZ channels general manager, says the rebates are paid from the first sale and are in addition to – and can be combined with – EMC’s existing performance-based Specialty rebate.

Products covered include EMC VNX and VNXe unified storage, Avamar, Data Domain.

“With a lot of rebate programmes partners have to hit a particular target before getting the rebate, but in this category payment is from the very first sale so you have a predictable income stream.

Partners will no longer be required to earn an implementation certificate to achieve a Specialty. Harris says the change is recognition that ‘there are different sorts of partners and not every partner has a focus on the services aspect’.

“While EMC encourages partners to become services-enabled, removing this requirement from the reseller programme now allows pure-play resellers a more direct path to achieving Velocity Specialties, where benefit opportunities accelerate,” EMC says.

The Velocity Services offering sees the revenue requirement to achieve a specialty has also been dropped.

However, partners seeking to gain top tier, Signature, partnership status will now require three Specialties.

“It’s another way of differentiating themselves,” Harris says. “In some respects we’ve made it easier and less rigorous [to become a partner], but to really differentiate and become Signature, they will need the three specialties.”

In other changes, more products are eligible for financial benefits in Velocity Specialties and EMC is doubling its investment in demand generation funds, programmes and resources.