RSA Security is improving rewards for select resellers who meet the security vendor's more stringent certification and sales authorization rules implemented earlier this month.
The changes to the RSA SecurWorld program—including enhanced rebate programs—aim to reward partners that commit to RSA solutions through certification and sales quotas, said RSA officials in Bedford, Mass. Re-launched in May 2005, SecurWorld now includes more than 2,900 RSA partners worldwide. The company added more than 700 of those partners in the past year, officials said.
Michael Ross, area vice president for North American Channels at RSA, said the vendor wants to help its most skilled and invested partners drive more sales, especially in integrated solution sets, which often involve complicated sales efforts requiring more technical knowledge. He said he expects end users to ultimately benefit from the program changes as they end up dealing only with those resellers best qualified to handle unique customer problems--from pre-sale analysis through implementation and ongoing support.
Effective Aug. 1, RSA's SecurWorld partner program includes: an improved Deal Registration Instant Rebate program; updated Solutions Partner Certification Rebates; and stricter Sales Authorization requirements.
As the name implies, the Deal Registration Instant Rebate, means all registration rebates will now be applied as soon as an order is placed with a distributor. The incentive is designed to reward partners for investing time and resources in developing new customers and business opportunities for RSA, officials said.
To read about RSA's balancing act, click here.
The Solutions Partner Certification Rebate, which offers financial incentive to those partners who maintain sales authorization and technical certification, will no longer be paid upfront, but rather as a monthly five-percent rebate connected to qualifying product sales.
Sales Authorization is still required, but the program gets more stringent. RSA partners must now complete specific sales authorization for RSA enVision, RSA Access Manager, RSA Certificate Manager and RSA Federated Identity Manager products in order to purchase those technologies from a distributor. RSA officials said the requirement specifically targets the company's more complex products, which require a more informed sales efforts.
The changes to the channel program at RSA, the security division of EMC, come at a time of notable growth for the company. Partners have completed more than 11,000 sales and technical courses in the past year. And SecurWorld partners have also registered more than 7,750 deals through RSA's Deal Registration initiative.
"RSA continues to add more value to its partner relationships with new benefits and incentives through its SecurWorld program," said Myron Bari, President and CEO of IPM, a long standing RSA partner in New York. "We've been able to develop a more strategic relationship with RSA, and through additional product and solutions offerings, especially Envision, we expect to continue to grow our product and professional service business."
Channel News and Analysis 
