TORONTO – Dell’s worldwide channel chief Cheryl Cook paid a visit to Canada for the Dell IT Summit last week and informed the more than 300 attendees that the company would be making two changes to its channel direction.
Cook told CDN that Dell would be integrating its services partner program into the overall Partner Direct program. With that, Cook announced a two per cent incentive for the channel attaching professional services and support to a sale, called Pro Support Plus.
The second change sees Frank Vitagliano, the vice-president of channel sales for Dell, expanding his focus to join Cook at the global channel team. Vitagliano will be dealing with distribution issues and global channel program strategy. Cook added that Vitagliano will also help her develop the overall channel strategy for the company.
Vitagliano said that since the major Dell World announcements, the channel team has seen significant up-ticks in deal registration and overall interest level from the partner on the street.
“The partner on the street is significant and amazing because the deal registrations are up by 40 per cent from Q4 to Q1, all because of the announcements. Certifications and training are a big area of focus and we believe if we can explain and teach we can get the mindshare of the channel. And that area is up 48 per cent quarter to quarter. Considering that those announcements were made starting Dec. 8, 2013 and that’s not a busy time it tells you the buzz that has been generated around the announcements,” he said.
Cook added that Dell’s channel growth is now greater than its growth from its traditional direct business.
The acquisitions of Wyse and Sonicwall made Dell more influential with distributors such as Tech Data and Ingram Micro. In his new area of focus, Vitagliano will be working to expand those relationships that will see Dell’s networking portfolio more through distribution.
As for the Canadian market, Cook supported subsidiary president Kevin Peesker’s Canada-first approach, saying it was highly aligned to the marketplace.
“We want to leverage the benefits of any North American and U.S.-based programs and tailor them to Canada. We want to localize it as much as possible. This is an approach we use around the world. We have the latitude to do it here and get the best of the benefits globally,” she said.