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Dell has unveiled further details about its anticipated channel programme, including the exact structuring of its partner tiering and certifications.
Dell’s president of the Americas, Paul Bell, in an interview with Channel Insider, revealed the details of the plans.
He said that both the US and Europe would share identical programs, and that VARs will be able to use a Dell authorised reseller logo, although this would only be the entry-level tier and that many more were being planned and would be revealed before the end of the year.
He also revealed that Dell would offer channel partner certifications on specific competencies such as storage, as well as on specific product lines such as PowerVault.
"We have thousands of solution providers that specialize in storage and they wanted more support in technical certifications. We will go into the channel in phases, and there will be a list of competencies in phase one, then we will flesh the list out as we go along."
He did, however, warn that Dell had little intention of relying on distributors – in part due to channel feedback, saying that partners had told the vendor that they wanted to maintain a direct relationship. "We won’t rule it out in all cases, but for our core business, we will not use distributors; partners like dealing directly with us and we want to build on that," he said.
