Autodesk to let top UK resellers buy direct

CAD vendor to introduce dVAR and iVAR concept to UK as part of global standardisation process

Autodesk will allow a small handful of UK resellers to bypass distribution and buy direct from next February as part of its move to standardise its channel strategy across the globe.

The CAD vendor has created a new worldwide channel sales organisation that is headed up by former Americas sales boss Bill Griffin.

Talking to ChannelWeb at Autodesk's channel summit in San Francisco, Griffin said the standardisation would see several changes for UK partners, including the division of partners into indirect and direct VARs (iVARs and dVARs).

DVARs must meet certain criteria around credit and pass a revenue gate, which stands at $3m in the US where the programme has been operating for several years along with several other European countries.

In return they will be given the option of buying direct from Autodesk, as well as improved margins and marketing funds. The vendor is currently finalising where the revenue gate will stand in the UK.

There are 16 dVARs in the US and Griffin stressed that only a small number of UK Platinum and Gold partners would make the grade. He argued that some of those eligible would choose to continue using its distributors, which are Computer 2000 and Mensch und Maschine in the UK.

"There are a lot of reasons to use distribution but we want to reward partners that have delivered proven performance," Griffin said. "This will give them an additional benefit and a little leverage with the distributor to say ‘hey, Autodesk think I'm a little bit better than the average partner', so they should get a slightly better deal."

Adi Drotleff, chief executive of Mensch und Maschine, admitted the change would mean a smaller cake for his firm and C2000 but insisted the impact on revenues would be minimal.

"It just means we have to cut our organisation a little and if it is done in a sensitive manner by Autodesk we can use the growth of the market to adapt," he said. "In the UK only two or three dealers will go direct and these dealers have the best conditions - so a lot of volume will go away but not much gross margin. I don't see this as very dramatic."

Autodesk currently operates a "polarised" distribution strategy in the UK and other parts of Europe that sees its distributors specialising in either its manufacturing or AEC [architecture, engineering and construction] products.

From next February, its distributors will have access to both sides of the portfolio, in line with the vendor's increased emphasis on software suites that cut across manufacturing and AEC.

Griffin said many resellers are increasingly having to split their orders between two distributors.

"That way of distributing doesn't make a lot of sense," he said.

Other programmes running in the US and elsewhere that are set to come on line in the UK include a comprehensive deal registration scheme and a programme tailored to volume resellers.

Griffin stressed Autodesk has never had a global channel strategy despite its 28-year history in the channel.

"That's why we got lumpy implementation in our channel programmes," he said. "No-one was there to drive consistency."