3Com has clear vision for the channel
200-strong partner scheme will see vendor head back to enterprise
3Com is preparing to unveil its new Vision channel programme next year and has signed most of the 200 partners it needs to attack the enterprise market.
Earlier this year, 3Com said it needed 200-300 partners across EMEA and Asia to drive back into the enterprise market, which it dropped three years ago.
But now Pax Andersson, 3Com vice-president of European sales, said the company will need only 200.
Andersson added that 3Com wanted partners with a high level of specialisation.
"We are coming up with technology advances key to large projects. We will do that with a more limited number of partners," he said.
3Com is working with between 50 and 100 VARs in vertical markets, such as financial services, hospital applications and schools.
The vendor has also signed a deal with EDS, which will use 3Com's switches, routers and voice over IP enterprise networking products.
EDS will initially roll out the 3Com technologies in the US and UK, and in vertical markets such as retail and finance. The deal will also cover EDS's ongoing outsourcing contracts.
"EDS is the first global systems integrator we have signed up on a worldwide basis," Andersson said. "We see very clearly that customers need a second choice - they are no longer prepared to pay the Cisco premium."
He claimed the deal with EDS will help smaller 3Com partners pick up sub-contracted work.
John Pateman, network and telecoms sales manager at 3Com reseller Compusys, said the channel is 3Com's best weapon in the enterprise space.
"Email, voicemail and fax have been fantastic for the enterprise, but all we have managed to do with unified messaging is cause chaos. 3Com's products are strong in linking these all together, but they need the channel to help sell them," he said.
"They now need to get in place the sort of resellers they lost when they moved out of this space a few years ago. They must invest in marketing as Cisco is sitting firmly on top in this sector."