Cisco Focuses On Technology Partners

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Created a new partner segment that will focus on selling specific technology solutions...

Being one of the biggest IT infrastructure companies can be quite a task. To maintain such a business one needs a strong ecosystem of channel partners, and solution providers. And that is what Cisco Systems, one of the largest IT infrastructure companies in the world, is doing currently. In a bid to push its partners to do better in the post recession market, the company has created some focussed channel strategy.

To begin with Cisco is developing what it calls the Advanced Technology Partner segment. A new breed of channel partners, who are really solutions providers, to devise and sell new technology solutions rather than just products. Says B Raghavendran,  Vice President, Channel Operations and Commercial Strategy, Cisco India&SAARC, The advance technology partners are niche players, with focussed technical skill sets, and customer base. We wanted to develop this segment so that we can push technology solutions rather than simple products to the clients. In fact the

client demands are changing. And to address that we decided on creating this partner segment.

Cisco has two levels of partnerships. The tier one partners are strategic alliance partners like the gold and silver partner. They have better product knowledge and are basically solution providers with high level of technical knowledge and develop solutions for their clients. Then the company has tier 2 partners, which includes the premium partners like national distributors Ingram and Redington. And finally the select partners who are resellers, who mainly push boxes rather than technology.  This time round we are going with a more focussed approach to technology. How different is it? Well traditionally we have have had partners who have done both technology focussed selling and box pushing. But now with tech partners we are looking a driving larger growth for the partners as well as us. This focussed way will help us do larger number of business, he explained.

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