EMC Corp. has made a few sales structure changes its EMC Velocity Solution Provider reseller program for cloud computing and Big Data technologies, to encourage channel partners to better target the mid-market segment.
“The improvements to the Velocity Solution Provider Program and Velocity Services Program have been made with one objective in mind: to help customers thrive in an IT environment that is undergoing wholesale change,” said Havier Haddad, channel and alliances director for Turkey, Emerging Africa & Middle East at EMC. “This means accelerating the journey to the cloud, harnessing the power of Big Data and enabling IT departments to more effectively manage, protect and analyze their data. Our program is designed to help partners optimize their offerings in these key areas and provide their customers with solutions that make a profound impact.”
He added that more than half of the company’s storage revenue is now derived from the channel.
“This is clear evidence that organizations are increasingly relying on EMC resellers to help them transform their businesses and drive growth,” he said.
To encourage mid-market sales, the company has implemented rebates for Premier and Signature Partners for targeted EMC technologies that align to the company’s small- and medium-sized business initiatives. Eligible products include EMC VNX and VNXe unified storage, EMC Avamar and EMC Data Domain backup and recovery solutions, and the server Flash caching solution, EMC VFCache. This rebate is paid from the first sale and is in addition to – and can be combined with – EMC’s existing performance-based Specialty2 rebate.
Meanwhile, the EMC Isilon Partner Program has now been integrated into the Velocity Program – Former Isilon resellers can now become eligible for Velocity benefits on other EMC products, and existing EMC resellers can become eligible to earn benefits from selling Isilon.
On the support front, EMC is doubling its investment in demand generation funds, programs and resources to accelerate revenue growth, along with an expanded library of online and video-instructor-led services training provides a more convenient and efficient way for resellers to access EMC’s technical training. A new online labs allow resellers to hone practical implementation skills on EMC technology in a proctored virtual environment, and the EMC Cooperative Services portfolio provides resellers EMC guidance on their solution design, as well as post-implementation review.
EMC is making changes when it comes to specializations, too. For one, the program no longer requires resellers to earn an implementation certification to achieve a Specialty2.
“While EMC encourages resellers to become services-enabled, removing this requirement from the reseller program now allows pure-play resellers a more direct path to achieving Velocity Specialties, where benefit opportunities accelerate,” the company said. “For resellers who include services in their business model, EMC has strengthened its Velocity Services offerings.” For instance, there is no longer a revenue requirement for resellers to achieve a specialty. And, three specialties are now required for Signature (top-tier) resellers worldwide.
To help resellers align their portfolio with the growing demand for cloud and Big Data solutions, EMC has also added more products that are eligible for financial benefits within the Backup and Recovery Specialty: EMC Mozy cloud backup, EMC Atmos object-based cloud storage platform and EMC Centera content addressable storage. The EMC Isilon scale-out network attached storage platform is also now eligible for benefits within the Consolidate Specialty.
“The enhancements to the Velocity Program serve to create a competitive edge for resellers like us who focus on providing our customers real choices and the ability to leverage world class technology and professional expertise,” said Prakash Mohapatra, deputy general manager at Mannai Corp. “By improving access to training and educational resources especially for key technologies like cloud computing, EMC is helping Mannai Networks and Telecom chart out a competitive service portfolio to help customers go the extra mile to be successful.”
