1) Name the general IT vendors your company has alliances with. If they differ in SA from elsewhere, state how.
Lenovo has alliances with IBM, Microsoft, Intel and LANDesk.
2) What type of relationship is it? Collaborative R&D? OEM? Sales?
Lenovo has a collaborative relationship with IBM. When IBM sold its PC business to Lenovo, the first priority was to ensure that customers were reassured and both parties are still committed to this goal.
Lenovo has a close OEM Sales relationship with Microsoft. The relationship with Intel is collaborative and includes R&D. The alliance between Lenovo and LANDesk is collaborative, including R&D and Sales.
3) Provide details, e.g. if Dell resells EMC gear, does it rebrand? Does it target different markets? Any details that might help.
Lenovo has the rights to continue using the IBM name on the ThinkPad and ThinkCentre ranges of products. With Microsoft, we have an agreement to include Microsoft software in all our PCs. This relationship has improved so dramatically in recent months that all Lenovo boxes now ship from China with Microsoft licences.
Lenovo works very closely with Intel under a non-disclosure agreement, particularly in areas such as our ThinkVantage Technologies, which also interface with LANDesk`s software.
4) What does the alliance help your company with - e.g. gives a competitive edge over a competitor.
The objective for any alliance is to deliver value to the customer. The best partnership in the world is meaningless if the organisations are unable to add tangible value in the marketplace.
5) What does each partner bring to the table?
Trust and the ability to add value. Without a win/win situation and a willingness to keep the customer in mind at all times, no alliance can work.
6) Value of the investment/commitment/R&D/other means of quantifying the relationship`s value?
In the end, customers decide whether an alliance will work. It`s all about adding value to the marketplace.
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Lenovo is dedicated to building the world`s most innovative personal computers. Lenovo`s business model is built on innovation, operational efficiency and customer satisfaction as well as a focus on investment in emerging markets. Formed by Lenovo Group`s acquisition of the former IBM Personal Computing Division, the company develops, manufactures and markets reliable high-quality, secure, and easy-to-use technology products and services worldwide. Lenovo has major research centres in Yamato, Japan; Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, China; and Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information about Lenovo, see www.lenovo.com.
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