Check Point ditches revenue-based partner programme to 'level the playing field'

UK channel boss explains rationale behind vendor's programme overhaul

Check Point's new partner programme will give partners of all sizes the chance to reach higher tiers, regardless of revenue generation, according to UK channel boss Michael Wakefield.

The cybersecurity vendor's new Check Points programme will reward partners with points based on their activity and engagement with customers, rather than the previous model which was based on revenue generation.

The programme will start on 2 April, and more details - specifically around margins and discounts - will be released in September. In January 2020, partners' total points will determine their tier on the new programme.

Wakefield explained that this will help smaller specialist partners that have traditionally struggled to reach higher tiers compared with their larger, generalist counterparts.

"This new programme allows all partners to operate on a level playing field," he told CRN.

"It can be difficult sometimes when a partner invests hugely in us and is trying to drive sales, but under our previous Stars programme - and in similar programmes from other vendors - they would not be as high tier as some of their competitors based on revenue.

"This is something we have been aware of and discussing with our partners for a while, and moving to this activity-based tiering model will address that."

The UK boss added that the rationale behind overhauling the partner tier model was due to changes in the market, as well as changes it has witnessed in partner profiles over the years.

"The changes to the programme will break down barriers," he said.

"Our partners have changed over time and this gives us the ability to reward those that might not be a huge revenue contributor but have great expertise when talking to customers about moving to cloud."

The UK and Ireland channel boss heads a team of 20, which he claimed was the largest vendor channel sales team in the region.

His current ambition as head of that team is to increase the number of partners working in specialist fields.

"We need to work more closely with our current partner base and help them develop because they have been the cornerstone of our success," he said.

"I'm also looking at new partners working in niche areas, such as cloud.

"We are not looking for massive partner recruitment, but we do want to do lots of things with partners, such as develop those we already work with while, at the same time, being open to the market."

Ian Turnbull, MD of Check Point partner Pentesec, welcomed the changes to the programme.

The Peterborough-based security consultancy has been partnered with Check Point for five years and Turnbull said that the previous Stars programme has helped the company grow and become disruptive in that time.

"It is refreshing that I have had access to their executive team and they have taken the time to work with us, listen and engage with us and what we think should change moving forward," he told CRN.

"When introducing a new programme, sometimes you run the risk that not everything has been considered, which can be disabling for certain partners, but the message I'm getting from Check Point is that they are prepared to keep refining it to ensure that it is benefiting everyone."

Turnbull agreed with Wakefield's description that the new Check Points programme will make it a level playing field for all partners, and hopes that it brings success to smaller partners.

"It is important that those smaller businesses are being recognised and supported because it allows them to be disruptive in the way that we were," he said.

"When you are competing against some of the household names it becomes difficult to become a challenge.

"But you have to keep evolving because the market is constantly changing. If resellers and consultancies stagnate, then customers won't get the service they deserve."