3Com South Africa has launched an intensive training and certification programme for its Gold, Silver and Bronze Focus partners as part of a drive to enhance service delivery and grow market opportunities.
According to Debbie Hunter, 3Com`s marketing manager, the company`s partners - of which there are more than 100 in SA - will be certified according to a number of criteria, including the number of qualified staff on board.
"Our partners already have high levels of 3Com product knowledge and technical skills, but with the increasing complexity of networking technology, customers want the reassurance that they are dealing with companies whose skills are recognised by the vendor and correctly certified," says Hunter.
"By implementing minimum certification requirements, our partners will be able to demonstrate their commitment to customers and be in a better position to win new business and offer additional value-added services."
In terms of the certification requirements, Gold Partners will have to have at least two 3Com Certified Solutions Experts (CSE) and two staff members with 3Com Certified Specialisation.
Silver Partners should have two people with the CSE qualification on their staff complement and Bronze Partners need to have at least one employee with Certified Solutions Associate (CSA) status.
"All training and examining for certification is available free of charge on the Web-based 3Com University, but to fast-track the programme in SA, we are also offering instructor-led, fee-based courses via our three distributors - Axiz, Comztek and Westcon," adds Hunter.
A CSA qualification is designed for networking professionals working primarily in non-technical capacities. It serves the needs of sales, marketing and management individuals who require fundamental knowledge of networking technologies, 3Com products and recommended business solutions.
A CSE certification is aimed at highly technical professionals such as systems engineers and IT/MIS staff who focus on activities such as determining customer needs as well as recommending and designing customer solutions.
In addition, two certified specialisation categories are available. A Certified Networked Telephony Specialist is for technical staff that need to validate proficiency in recommending, designing, maintaining and troubleshooting 3Com networked telephony solutions. A Certified 3COM Wireless Specialist is similarly qualified on the range of 3Com wireless products.
According to 3Com, resellers can build on their specialisation certification by developing vertical solutions-based businesses that require additional expertise. These NBX Voice Authorised or Wireless Preferred resellers have access to in-depth training, Web-based resources and special offers and receive tailored sales tools and financial incentives.
"Our Focus Partner programme has been designed to equip our partners with the knowledge and tools to help them market both products and their services, while ensuring our customers enjoy optimum, well-supported network solutions," adds Hunter.
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