2009 Certification & Training Study

Channel Insider & Amazon Consulting teamed up to identify the necessity and value of technical and sales certifications. We surveyed more than 450 solution providers, 185 vendors and 200 end users for this project. The results show that certifications are a true differentor in both channel programs and the general technology market. In this special section, you'll find the complete results of this research project. Channel Insider will continue to add more modules as reports become available. 

		7 Vendor Tech Certifications That End Users Love Technical certifications are a major factor in end users' selection of solution and service providers. Channel Insider and Amazon Consulting asked more than 200 enterprise and midmarket purchases which vendor certifications they value the most when selecting a solution provider. Here are the top seven.
		Sales Training: More Bang for the Buck  We asked IT vendors about the professional sales training and certification they make available to channel partners and the benefits they gain from it. We also polled 457 solution providers on the same topic to see how regularly they avail themselves of sales training and what rewards they receive from it. The results are a clear indication that solution and consultative selling leads to higher sales and margins.
		Top 10 Most Profitable Vendor Certifications Solution providers that invest in vendor technical certifications are more profitable, sell more complex systems and have better relationships with their customers, according to the new Channel Insider/Amazon Consulting certification study. But not all vendor certifications have the same ROI. The following vendors have the best certifications for return on their partners’ investment.

For more information about Channel Insider research, contact Larry Walsh at lawrence.walsh@ziffdavisenterprise.com

For more information about Amazon Consulting services, contact Beth Vanni at bvanni@amazonconsulting.com