SAP, especially in the Canadian market has really increased their commitment to the channel business. It was one of the reasons why CDN named subisidary president Mark Aboud a top 5 newsmaker in 2011. The market and solution providers should not forget that these decisions are market driven and come from the top.
The other excellent moves SAP Canada has made over the years is getting top executive talent to run its channel operations. Conrad Mandala and now Mary Peterson have great experience dealing with solution providers and know exactly what works and what will not fly.
I think it is one of the reasons why SAP’s channel plans have run smoothly and why they continue to grow.
The issue going forward are accounts that go direct and those that go indirect. It’s my opinion and the opinion of the channel in Canada that its needs to open up more. But other than that SAP Canada has done a great job with its channel push and direction and these new offerings in analytics will only go to support that.