Novell has unveiled enhancements to its PartnerNet programme designed to make it easier, more strategic and more profitable for partners to work with Novell.
PartnerNet 2007 introduces several key new benefits, including technology specialisations to enhance partner expertise and visibility in specific markets, a new, integrated partner portal that will make it easy to work with Novell and optimise business opportunities, and new partner tracks to ensure partners get the right attention from Novell for their specific business model.
As a result, partners will become an even more tightly integrated extension of Novell, giving customers new, high-quality options for buying, deploying and maintaining Novell solutions.
"Novell has been a pioneer in working with partners from its earliest days, and the innovations they're introducing for 2007 show they still have their finger very well placed on the pulse of the partner community," said Arnaud Delin, CEO of Prestige R?seaux in France.
"Specialisations will help us differentiate ourselves from our competitors in key growth markets like Linux and identity services, and the new partner portal will make it not only easy to get what we need from Novell, but also give us insights into our Novell business we didn't have before, helping us work together to optimise our business. Novell understands what partners need to succeed and is delivering the goods.
Novell's PartnerNet programme contains a series of enhancements for 2007 designed to increase the value to partners of doing business with Novell. These improvements focus primarily on three areas. They are:
* Specialisations: Novell will now require solution provider partners at the Platinum and Gold levels to specialise in one of four areas: Linux; security and identity management; systems and resource management; and workgroup. These specialisations will help partners promote their expertise, increase visibility, improve sales opportunities and shorten sales cycles. Partners will benefit from discounted, focused training; marketing campaigns; incentives and rebates; and qualified leads aligned to these specialisations that lower their costs and improve their competitiveness. Silver level solution provider partners do not need to specialise, but have the opportunity to do so in Linux, and can advance to higher levels as their business with Novell grows.
* New partner portal: The new PartnerNet Portal provides a fully integrated global system for Novell partners, allowing a clear, consolidated view of the partnership, including programme membership details and Novell sales-related information. It combines Novell's financial and global opportunity management systems, providing a single set of data that gives a customisable picture of a partner's complete relationship with Novell. It includes revenue tracking, integrated reporting and generation of campaign-driven leads to help partners identify new sales opportunities.
* Addition of key partners: In addition to its existing solution provider, technology partner and training partner tracks, Novell is adding two critical partner types to the PartnerNet model: global strategic partners and distribution and fulfilment partners. This change is designed to improve management of the overall Novell partner ecosystem and better allocate Novell resources to meet the diverse needs of Novell partners. With global strategic partners, including both technology and delivery partners, Novell will drive relationships with top global players to enable effective market positioning in major global customers. The new distribution and fulfilment track meets the unique requirements of Novell distributors and fulfilment agents and allows Novell to better serve these partners based on their business model. Other tracks are also enhanced for 2007. As outlined above, the solution provider track establishes new value around partner specialisations. The technology partner track enables ISVs and IHVs to license Novell technology, develop and certify products, and market or sell them through Novell and their own channels. Finally, the training partner track helps training partners deliver a high-quality training experience to customers and partners, enabling them to derive maximum value from Novell solutions.
Trish Barwick, marketing and channel manager at Novell SA, said: "With PartnerNet 2007, we've really moved from a partner programme to a business development platform. We are committing strongly to partners who commit to Novell, and elevating partner relationships from a programme level to a joint business value level. We can only succeed by helping our partners succeed, and our PartnerNet programme in 2007 is aimed squarely at driving that partner success."
For more information about additional benefits in Novell's PartnerNet programme, or to sign up as a Novell partner, please visit http://www.novell.com/partners/index.html.
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Novell, Inc (Nasdaq: NOVL) delivers software for the open enterprise. With more than 50 000 customers in 43 countries, Novell helps customers manage, simplify, secure and integrate their technology environments by leveraging best-of-breed, open standards-based software. With more than 20 years of experience, 4 700 employees, 5 000 partners and support centres around the world, Novell helps customers gain control over their IT operating environments while reducing costs. More information about Novell can be found at http://www.novell.com.
Novell is a registered trademark, PartnerNet is a registered service mark, and Software for the Open Enterprise is a trademark of Novell, Inc in the United States and other countries. *Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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