LAS VEGAS – Judging from the roughly 750 channel partners from more than 20 countries who are attending the Peak Performance Conference the important question on their mind came to the forefront by Calgary-based solution provider Carl Fransen of CTECH Consulting Group.
Can Dell/SonicWALL win back the partners?
Fransen, a very loyal Dell partner, notes that SonicWALL appears not to get the same fanfare as Dell’s server, PC, and laptop business units.
Fransen reflects on his experience post-Dell’s purchase of SonicWALL in 2012 “Dell bought SonicWall and messed up the entire procurement process. It took three months to get a unit shipped correctly.”
Asking Fransen flat out, will you give SonicWALL another look now that private equity group Francisco Partners and hedge fund management firm Elliott Management are going to be in the driver’s seat? “We have already switched to another product,” states Fransen.
When the new organization takes over SonicWALL from Dell, the “SonicWALL Secure First” Partner Program will be introduced. Will this new program be attractive to new and returning SonicWALL partners?
According to Steve Pataky, Vice President of Worldwide Security Sales, “This will be very attractive to new SonicWALL partners.” Pataky says that “SonicWALL is here to compete”. They are looking for the best partners to maintain competitiveness in the market.
When will SonicWALL complete its transition from Dell? Patrick Sweeney, Vice President of Marketing and Product Management, mentioned “November” during his morning keynote on Monday.
