EMC - Go for maximum Velocity

Country manager Craig Stoddart joined EMC from IT services specialist Axon earlier this year. Although potentially a difficult leap from a New Zealand-owned company to a multinational corporate Stoddart says he’s been delighted with EMC’s culture.“EMC is just a really nice organisation to come into. It’s a corporate with a reseller feel,” he says.Stoddart says the company has been busy changing its image from that of a hardware company to a complete information management specialist. “These days hardware is being treated as a commodity by CIO’s and, while EMC’s hardware is best of breed, the real focus is on content and information management.” Software now represents around 30% of EMC’s business and Stoddart says the portfolio breadth gives partners more access into organisations. EMC continues to work closely with distribution partner Datastor to further strengthen its tier two partner relationships. Stoddart has been delighted to note a substantial increase in the number of zero touch transactions partners have completed.“I think that’s a direct reflection on the amount of training partners have done and it’s a really pleasing trend.” Stoddart says EMC has been creative in designing its partner programs, which recognise that partners are under a lot of pressure from other vendors. “I’ve seen a lot of vendors use the term business partner but they operate more like bus conductors. In New Zealand we’ve gone out of the way to change the model to suit the market.”Having worked at IBM and Axon Stoddart genuinely believes EMC has one of the most effective partner programs he’s ever seen. Partners can choose training modules to suit their business requirements, cutting down on the cost and time required to complete certification.Stoddart and his team are also working hard to inject fun back into partner interactions.“We want to make sure people enjoy dealing with us and that means putting some fun into doing business.”Velocity 2

Designed to help partners of all types become more profitable selling EMC solutions, above and below the line, through incremental services revenue and managed services attach. Partners chose the building blocks necessary for continuous advancements and growth in the markets they service. There are five levels of the Velocity partner program; Signature, Premier, Advantage, Associate and SMB Partner. Levels are dependant on the depth of the partner relationship with EMC and business potential. Velocity serves commercial and enterprise focused resellers, solution providers, distributors, system integrators and ISVs. It is designed so partners of all types can be successful working within their preferred business models. Benefits of the program include:Special performance-based rebates, incentive opportunities, co-operative marketing program, partner support centre dedicated to Asia Pacific and Japan, business development and marketing support.Velocity SMB

Complimentary to the Velocity program the Velocity SMB program is aimed at solution providers servicing the SME market with EMC’s Insignia line of software and hardware. EMC says it has combined products with a support program specifically tailored to the needs of SME resellers to enable partners to capitalise on the latest storage trends.

David Henderson, EMC’s general manager of channels, is responsible for ensuring the company’s hardware, software and service offerings are comprehensively represented across the channel community. Henderson says partners who fully embrace the Velocity program can maximise their revenue through three main annuity streams; hardware, software and services.“By completing the EMC partner training program channel partners become trusted advisors and gain access to a broad range of customers. EMC encourages these partners to provide consultancy practices as well as implementation and support services,” he says. Henderson believes it is imperative that EMC’s channel partners understand the significant impact the company’s acquisitions have had.Within the last 24 months EMC has acquired 24 companies and is now the sixth largest software company and the ninth largest technology company globally. “This acquisition and growth has seen EMC transform to exist with a partner-centric mindset. Successful partners will keep abreast of all the additional technologies added to the EMC Solutions Portfolio and benefit from its investments.” Henderson says that the relevance of EMC at all levels of an organisation has increased, allowing customers to have one conversation with a single vendor for all their information infrastructure requirements.