Availability is central

Channel Post speaks with Omar Akhtar, Regional Channel Manager, Middle East & SAARC at Veeam on the company’s solutions and strategies.

Omar Akhtar, Veeam

Please elaborate on Veeam’s Always-On Availability solution.

There is a clear digital dependency nowadays; many businesses and processes simply cannot operate in a ‘manual mode’. A number of companies run mission critical applications on virtual servers and for smooth business operation they need to ensure that all their digital information is available round the clock, without any data loss. To drive the availability of our customer’s data as they digitize and transform their companies, the Veeam Availability Suite delivers something fundamentally different called Availability for the Always-On Enterprise. This solution leverages IT investments in server virtualization, storage and cloud to help organizations meet service-level objectives, enabling recovery of any IT service and data in the shortest frame of time.

Which verticals have adopted your solution in this market?

The modern data centres are built around virtualization which has impacted every industry, making our offering applicable in most verticals. We have had tremendous success in the Oil & Gas, banking, government and education verticals across the entire region.

How do you enable enterprises to stay ahead in times of rapid virtualization and digital transformation?

Digital transformation is essential for all enterprises, across all industries. Mobility and connectivity clubbed with a clear ‘data availability’ strategy can successfully drive this transformation. Veeam Availability Suite helps organizations meet recovery time and point objectives (RTPO) of less than 15 minutes for all applications and data. This solution helps organizations save time, mitigate risks and dramatically reduce capital & operational costs.

What is your channel strategy?

Veeam is evolving into a ‘non-touch business’. Our objective is to continue investing in our partner network and enable them to perform end-to-end sales (proof-of-concept to sales to closure). We are already very committed to our resellers and have initiated some new programs to extend this relationship to service providers and system integrators as well. We have also evolved our channel ecosystem to fit the requirements of the enterprise business space and are working to build a strong SMB and commercial customer base.

Can you tell us about your partner program?

The Veeam ProPartner Program is designed to help partners create new opportunities for faster business growth and better profitability. As a ProPartner, the company gains exclusive access to resources that will drive both license and service business, create new opportunities, increase profitability and close deals faster.

In addition to this, we recently announced the launch of Veeam Accredited Service Partner (VASP), a program that highlights a select list of partners, distributors, system integrators and freelance IT consultants that possess the necessary technical skills to deliver valuable and reliable professional services for Veeam product portfolio implementations.

What advantages does your partner program offer to your partners?

A comprehensive Veeam ProPartner Program provides partners with the tools they need to become trusted advisors to customers and gain long-term competitive advantages. With its robust deal registration program, ProPartners can benefit from upfront discounts, margin retention, comprehensive sales and marketing tools.

Veeam has a dedicated sales and marketing team to drive sales through Veeam ProPartners. Our marketing team provides our ProPartners with diverse supporting resources, including Co-op/MDF, sales tools, customer referrals, email marketing campaigns and more. Also included in this package are front-end margin and back-end rebates. The Veeam ProPartner Program is also designed to reward partners who invest time and effort in learning and selling Veeam solutions. Participation in our certification programs results in maximum benefits, including quarterly rebates, higher margins, accrued co-op funds and reward programs.

Also, with the launch of VASP, we’re offering partners extra support from senior Veeam resources, NFR licenses and intellectual property that will enable them to differentiate and add significant value to customers, while helping partners become more profitable from Veeam solutions.

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