London - April 7, 2009 - NetApp
(NASDAQ: NTAP) reported today on its mid-size enterprise (MSE)
market initiative in EMEA. NetApp is committed to help MSE
customers to leverage the proven storage efficiency benefits of its
solutions and services. By adopting the latest in virtualisation,
deduplication and management tools, customers are able to reduce
complexity, simplify administration, and save cost. Packaged MSE
solutions and a dedicated effort in channel sales drive NetApp's
MSE initiative throughout EMEA and help to approach new
customers.
"We saw the need for a demand-driven solution
set, a dedicated sales channel and an easy procurement process that
would support a strong reseller base in bringing storage efficiency
savings to a broad base of customers. And we delivered on these
premises when I look at the results", said Eric Saillard, director
EMEA Channel, NetApp. "The 1,000th reseller just signed up for our
Silver Partner programme. The Silver Partner programme is dedicated
to the MSE marketplace, and was kicked-off in May last year being
adopted by more and more NetApp EMEA regions since then. 1,000
resellers in less than a year clearly shows the value of our
offering and its appeal even in a difficult economic climate. Our
data storage and management solutions help to improve efficiency
and reduce cost for customers' and our programme delivers the sales
arguments and values that resellers need."
Brett Edgecombe, sales director at 101 Data
Solutions, one of the first resellers to become a Silver level
partner said: "This programme is proof that NetApp understands the
needs of resellers and customers in this space. They have taken
away the complexity and provided the right level of support in
terms of tools, such as the dedicated Silver PartnerCenter web
portal, allowing us to focus on what we do best -- selling and
supporting our clients. NetApp solutions and services help our
business to flourish even in tough times."
A major pillar of the MSE programme are the
NetApp distributors, who are responsible for the recruitment,
training and provisioning of the partners. Silver level resellers
are limited to the FAS2000 series, with a number of pre-established
and certified configurations to simplify the go-to-market process.
The dynamism of the distributors in the creation of specific
partner bundles has also been a key factor to the programme's wide
adoption. In the UK, DNS Arrow, Bell Micro and Hammer are
distributors for the Silver Partner programme.
"NetApp has always regarded channel sales as
key to their growth strategy and have come up with effective
initiatives to support this. The Silver Partner programme is a
great example. The combination of a simplified process and
competitive pricing, together with a solution offering enterprise
class features, has clearly resonated with the resellers targeting
the MSE sector. NetApp has also provided the tools and the platform
to make this a success," said Jason Beeson, solutions director at
Hammer Plc.
Key to the popularity of the programme is the
NetApp FAS2000 solution which offers enterpriselevel reliability in
a small and cost-effective package. The FAS2000 series products are
particularly well adapted to the needs of mid-size enterprises with
dispersed departments or remote branch offices. Besides having a
very competitive product, the massive buy-in from the resellers is
also due to the simplicity of the programme, and the support
offered by NetApp and the distributor to make it as easy as
possible for the reseller to be rapidly operational, to make sales
and to provide a good level of support to their customers.
NetApp created a variety of tools to help
resellers be more efficient, including a dedicated PartnerCenter
web portal, available in English, French, Italian, German and
Spanish, that provides useful, up-to-date information on the NetApp
solutions portfolio. It also provides an interactive platform
through which the reseller can maintain permanent contact with
their distributor. New partners also have access to a training
programme which has been simplified and adapted for this specific
level. Silver level partners also have the opportunity to grow
their business and to move up the VIP Partner Programme ladder
through training, up-selling and further investment with
NetApp.
About NetApp
NetApp creates innovative storage and data management solutions
that accelerate business breakthroughs and achieve outstanding cost
efficiency. Discover our passion for helping companies around the
world go further, faster at www.netapp.com.
NetApp, the NetApp logo, and Go further,
faster are trademarks or registered trademarks of NetApp, Inc. in
the United States and/or other countries. All other brands or
products are trademarks or registered trademarks of their
respective holders and should be treated as such.