NetApp EMEA channel boss opens up on rationale behind new partner incentives and certifications

Kristian Kerr speaks to CRN about where NetApp is concentrating its partner efforts

The vice-president of EMEA channel sales for NetApp, Kristian Kerr, has highlighted growing specialisations, increasing commercial business and accelerating the journey to the cloud as the three biggest areas of focus for its partner network.

NetApp announced several changes to its Unified Partner Programme centred around these areas back in May - including new specialisations, greater incentives for those that win new business and a focus on driving cloud growth.

The vendor's UK channel boss, Denise Bryant, summarised the further developments to the programme at a Partner Academy event last week, telling partners they would need to become certified in at least one of two specialisations to do business, and, speaking to CRN at the event, Kerr outlined where NetApp is focusing its partner efforts moving forward.

That includes a bigger focus on partners providing more specialised services, with NetApp's specialisations including SAP, AI and machine learning, cloud, infrastructure and others which are aimed at helping customers tackle "more diverse challenges".

"There's a big focus on driving specific specialisation and becoming specialists," he explained.

"It's really about identifying where the opportunities are in that account, pulling in the right resources, the right partners, and having the right vehicle to motivate, reward and incentivise them, and build a long-lasting partnership with them."

NetApp earlier this year unveiled a sales restructure which Kerr said would "put some structure" around the key segments the company is focusing on, including these specialisations.

He also wants partners to focus on winning new business, particularly in the commercial sector, with NetApp paying an eight per cent margin for its larger partners that win a new logo in that space, and said NetApp had acquired 360 new commercial accounts during the last quarter.

"There's a big focus on the commercial space, which involves working with distribution a lot. Distribution is really how we amplify through the commercial space and that's critical to our success there," he said.

"We're looking to extend our reach and coverage using digital platforms to address a wider set of commercial and new acquisition accounts by working through distribution and their extended partner ecosystem."

And NetApp also wants its partners to focus on accelerating and helping customers shift to the cloud and hybrid environments.

"The margins are there. The analysts are telling us that's the direction of the market and we're hearing it in every single conversation that we have with partners and customers," Kerr added.

"So we need to make sure that we've got the programme, the framework, the education, the enablement, the tools, the platforms, the rewards, incentives, to support partners as they take those different customers on that journey to the cloud."