Avnet
Technology Solutions launched new sales tools and training materials for
solution provider partners selling Oracle’s Exadata Database Machine and other
Oracle hardware and software data center solutions at Oracle’s Open World
conference in San Francisco on Monday.
First, Avnet
announced expansions to its “Under Our Wing” program, designed to give VARs the
tools they need to obtain Oracle PartnerNetwork Specialization for the Oracle
Exadata Database Machine. Avnet also launched a new mobile-enabled sales kit
for Oracle hardware and software data center solutions.
The “Under Our
Wing” program helps solution providers demonstrate to customers the benefits of
incorporating Oracle Exadata in their data centers, both in-person and
virtually, and also provides a training curriculum for OPN Specialization
tests.
“Avnet’s
‘Under our Wing’ program has been very successful in helping our Oracle
partners obtain their OPN Specialization, and we are enhancing the program to
build on these achievements and take our partners’ skill sets to an even higher
level,” Chris Swahn, vice president and general manager for Avnet Technology
Solutions, Americas’ Oracle Solutions group, said in a statement.
“For example,
Oracle Exadata Database Machine is a powerful data center offering, and we
wanted to provide our partners with a cost-effective way to demonstrate its
compelling benefits to prospects. Now, our Oracle partners can reduce their
upfront Specialization investment costs by leveraging Avnet’s centrally
available and customizable Oracle Exadata demos, while still meeting the system
qualifications needed to achieve and maintain Oracle Center of Excellence
status.”
VARs will be
able to use Avnet’s Global Solutions Center in Chandler, Ariz., to demonstrate
Exadata solutions to potential customers. It can also be accessed remotely
through the Avnet Demo Center portal.
“We were
pleased to work closely with Avnet in expanding their ‘Under Our Wing’
program,” Ted Bereswill, senior vice president, North America Alliances and
Channels, Oracle, said in a statement. “Oracle Exadata is an extraordinary data
center solution with unlimited potential. Working with the Avnet program, we
can help minimize the up-front financial investment for our partners while
still cultivating the complex sales and technical expertise partners need to
bring this solution to market.”
Oracle
launched the Exadata Database Machine at its Open World event in 2008. It was
designed to take on other enterprise data warehouse products from companies
like IBM, Netezza and Terradata.
Avnet’s
mobile-enabled sales toolkit is designed to help sales teams demonstrate and
close sales on Oracle solutions, and can be accessed from any mobile device.
“Today’s
technology sales teams are road warriors and regularly conduct business while
at airports, customer sites, conferences and a wide-variety of other locations
outside of their offices,” Swahn said in a statement
“We wanted to
provide them with valuable information as we always have, but in a format that
was easier to access for sales teams on the go. Avnet’s new mobile-enabled
toolkit is a natural sales companion that provides complete data center
solutions information and helps our customers conduct business easily from any location.
By creating this mobile-enabled toolkit, partners can access Avnet and Oracle
expertise wherever and whenever they need it in a way that is both highly
informative and portable.”
The toolkit features
access to customer role profiles, feature and benefit specs on Oracle products,
and an Avnet and Oracle glossary.
“Mobile
devices have become a way of life for our sales team as they conduct daily
business and prepare for sales calls,” Rob Wetterer, director of Enterprise
Architecture for Cincinnati Bell Technology Solutions (CBTS), an Avnet partner,
said in a statement. “With this new toolkit from Avnet, our sales team can
quickly brush up on the solutions offered and hone their solutions-selling abilities,
so they are better armed when they walk in a customer’s door or pick up the
phone for a sales opportunity. We know this toolkit will help our sales team
competitively differentiate themselves and close deals faster because they will
approach every opportunity better informed and well prepared to meet customers’
business needs.”
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