Four key talking points as Dell brings new changes to partner programme
Dell partner execs reveal partners can sell VMware, open up more on the new Project Apex as-a-service offering and why it wants partners to work together.
Dell Technologies' has refreshed its partner programme annoucing a host of changes for partners including a simplified new business incentive, a "personalised" end-to-end experience and the ability to sell VMware licencing directly.
Cheryl Cook, SVP of global partner marketing, Denise Millard, SVP of global alliances and new global channel chief Rola Dagher expounded upon the new additions and revealed a little more of the Project Apex as-a-service offering, as well as the opportunities for partners around VMware.
Here are our four key takeaways from the event.
UK partners will have to wait for Project Apex
Project Apex was announced last year during the Dell Technologies World event in October. It is a combination of the vendor's as-a-service offerings and cloud strategies with its go-to-market.
The first product that will be available under the new scheme will be storage-as-a-service, which will be piloted in North America first, according to marketing boss Cook.
"Under Apex our first offering is going to be storage-as-a-service and that will be North America first, extending to Europe and a few key countries after that, with Asia to come in the second half [of the year], so it'll be a phased implementation as we bring new offers to market," she explained.
"[It's that] flexible consumption model that many of our customers want. We know and acknowledge that there will be multiple models coexisting here for the foreseeable future. You're still going to have traditional capex purchases, but clearly there's a trend of just wanting overarching simplification and Project Apex will do that.
"We know that that will add tremendous value and provide a public-like cloud experience on-premise for our partners and their customers and this will absolutely be a multi-year journey."
VMware licencing for top-tier partners
Some partners will be able to transact VMware licencing directly through the partner programme with an aligned base rebate. This is available only to Titanium and Platinum-tier partners who have a direct purchasing contract with the vendor.
Dell is the majority shareholder of the virtualisation vendor and is currently mulling over a spin-off.
Cook said that this access to Dell's wider portfolio was a result of partner feedback.
"Through feedback from our partners and tangible business results [there are some areas] that we're leaning in and investing a little more in and you'll see more with the partners and extending the opportunity for VMware," she stated.
"I think that's going to be incredibly well received as it shows more collaboration and seamlessness with which our partners can do business with us."
The refreshed partner programme also includes a simplified new business incentive, which will have expanded eligibility to include VxRail. It is also rolling the partner preferred programme into its Power Up scheme, which has a broader go-to-market.
Dell has also launched an Incentives Centre which provides partners with a "comprehensive" view of all their programme incentives in one place.
‘Blurring lines' among partners
Delivering products as-a-service will be a "differentiator" for Dell, according to global alliances boss Millard (pictured right). The pandemic has caused many of its channel partners and alliance partners to reconsider their own go-to-market strategies and models and Project Apex will also be a differentiator for these partners.
"That ability to deliver things as-a-service is going to truly be a differentiator for Dell and also for our partners," she stated.
"There's a massive opportunity and the lines are blurring with our partner base; many of our solution provider partners are also CSP partners. We see this alignment coming together: not all partners will have the ability to build out core competencies and subject matter expertise, so we see them partnering in the field at a more rapid rate to address this need to stand environments up at rapid scale.
"We're still dealing with the flexibility of the hyperscalers and we need to be able to respond in a similar way and I think the combination of bringing our partner community together, along with offers like Apex, is really going to give us an advantage."
Watch out for cybersecurity
When asked during the press roundtable where they see enterprise customers underinvesting, Millard replied that the cybersecurity opportunity is "massive" and that many Dell partners are now investing in cybersecurity offerings because of the size of the addressable market.
"Companies sometimes don't invest there until there's a challenge or problem and the pandemic as elevated the gaps in the strategy for things like cybersecurity," she elaborated.
"Many of our partners are massively investing because they see a tremendous opportunity within their customer base to make sure that those environments are secure."
The edge is another area of underinvestment by organisations that Dell is keen to assist partners to seize the opportunity around, she added.
"I don't think anybody has that completely figured out yet but if you look at some of the things that we're doing in the market…I think it just brings to light the opportunity to transform how we work and how we go to market, and the ecosystem of partners to go do that is going to evolve," she stated.