From left: Troy Roberts, Global Vice-President, Professional and Security Services, Fortinet; Julie Noizeux Inder, Channel Manager South Africa, Fortinet; Ryno Weideman, Networking Operations Manager, NEC XON; Grant Ferreira, Regional Manager Security, NEC XON; and Valentina Panci, EPSP Lead, Program Manager Global Partner Support and Services, Fortinet.
NEC XON has received recognition from Fortinet at its EMEA award ceremony for its professional services capabilities. The award highlights a business model that gives customers access to specialist technical expertise without the cost of building equivalent capabilities in-house.
Presented at a Fortinet event in France, the recognition relates to NEC XON’s status as an expert-level professional services partner (EPSP). Its approach combines Fortinet technology with implementation expertise and ongoing support, addressing a common challenge for organisations that can afford technology but lack the skills to deploy it effectively.
Making specialist expertise accessible
For customers, implementation and ongoing support can be as important as the technology itself. The recognition validates NEC XON’s decision to invest in specialist skills before individual projects are secured, making that expertise available when customers need it.
Highly experienced network security engineers are expensive to recruit and may be needed only for specific implementations, migrations or complex projects. NEC XON shares specialists across multiple customers, spreading their cost while giving engineers exposure to varied technologies and projects. The company also invests in training and certification, funding employees who undertake the required examinations and pass.
Anthony Laing, General Manager of the Networking Business Unit at NEC XON. (Image: NEC XON)
Anthony Laing, General Manager of the Networking Business Unit at NEC XON, said this model allows the company to maintain technical expertise that individual customers might struggle to sustain independently. Customers can access specialist support when needed without employing permanent staff or relying on international vendor resources at their full commercial rates.
Beyond selling the technology
Laing described how NEC XON helped a large corporate customer resolve problems with a Fortinet implementation. The issue was attributed to insufficient implementation expertise rather than a fault in the technology. NEC XON deployed its own technical resources to resolve the problem, subsequently strengthening the customer relationship.
The project illustrates a wider challenge in enterprise technology: buying a solution does not guarantee the skills needed to configure, integrate and operate it successfully. NEC XON’s model combines local expertise with access to Fortinet technology to help customers realise the value of their investments.
Fortinet’s professional services partner programme assesses a partner’s technical competence and delivery capability. According to Laing, qualification involves interviews, assessments of staffing and experience, and a simulated customer scenario in which the partner must produce technical designs, reports and documentation. The award recognises NEC XON’s ability to deliver professional services to Fortinet’s standards, not simply to sell its products.
