African Legend Technologies (ALT) has consolidated its IT interests - partly to be appointed a master distributor under BMC Software`s One Partner Programme.
The group announced yesterday that it had merged African Legend Indigo and African Legend Solutions into the ALT brand, forming a 95% black-owned entity with more than 250 IT professionals and turnover of about R450 million for the 2005/06 financial year.
Mashudu Romano, executive chairman of holding company African Legend Investments, said the aim was to consolidate the group`s core skills, creating a single administrative platform.
Former African Legend Indigo deputy CEO Michael Jacobus has been appointed CEO of the new company, while former African Legend Indigo CEO Ed Gassner will remain with the group to ensure a smooth integration and will also be responsible for the establishment of an east African office.
Romano said the two businesses had been serving the same clients, but with different products.
BMC`s One Partner Programme was launched internationally in April. Consolidating the partner programmes of BMC, Remedy, Marimba, Magic, Viadyne and Calendra into a single programme, it gives partners a streamlined interface to BMC and provides them with the opportunity to build practices around specific product areas.
BMC country manager Arjen Wiersma told ITWeb that BMC wanted to take its partnership with Africa Legend Indigo to the ALT level, to avoid a situation where the company was both a referee and a player (with sister company African Legend Solutions competing for business against other contenders).
"They had to do it," he said. "We put them under extreme pressure."
Wiersma said BMC asked the group if it wanted to take the partnership to the next level or whether BMC should appoint someone else.
"They said they wanted to do it, so we said, 'Here are the steps`. They did each step, and on time."
He added that BMC was very pleased with the African Legend partnership.
Edouard Fourcarde, BMC`s VP for emerging, growth and channel markets in Europe, Middle East and Africa, said it was important for BMC to provide more value to the market and to its customers.
He explained that in terms of the One Partner Programme, African Legend was the only frontline entry into BMC. "It will have to opportunity to expand through new lines of business or appoint resellers under the African Legend umbrella."
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