Novell Partners See Growth in Demand for Linux and Identity Services
Sunday, 19 December 2004Novell's latest identity and Linux technologies are enabling its partners to achieve new customer wins in security, infrastructure and management. Partner offerings based on Novell technologies are addressing a wide range of real customer challenges, from helping a small medical practice lower management costs to letting state governments print reports more cheaply leveraging open source. Market interest in Linux and identity services is providing partners new opportunities to build a profitable business with Novell, increasing partner commitment to Novell and growing the company's partner network to give customers more options for addressing their IT needs.
Channel partners are a critical component of Novell's go-to-market strategy, reaching far more customers than Novell can directly. Extending its focus on Linux and identity services to embrace its channel partners, Novell has developed specialization programs, offered extensive free partner training on Linux, and shared with partners effective methodologies for deploying open source and identity services. These resources are driving new business for partners.
Novell partner Mainline Information Systems (www.mainline.com), a nationwide solutions provider and top IBM partner, has helped customers in many industries, including the government and education sectors, leverage Novell's SUSE LINUX platform. Mainline Information Systems helped the Idaho State Controller's Office design and install a z/VM zSeries SUSE LINUX infrastructure that is supporting open source solutions developed by internal IT staff. One of those solutions has replaced printed mainframe reports with web-based report publishing. Over $300,000 in savings will be recognized through the reduction of costs associated with printing and distributing hard copy reports. Additionally, Mainline Information Systems helped Boston University with a similar challenge, deploying SUSE LINUX on their mainframe to allow the university to quickly and cost effectively web-enable report distribution, saving money while improving the end user experience. "We're seeing tremendous interest in Linux across a range of customers," said Roger Luca, Senior Vice President of Sales for Mainline Information Systems. "Novell's technology, with the support and training they provide, makes Novell a very strong choice for Linux deployments in a wide range of scenarios."
Lille Corp. (www.lillecorp.com), another Novell solutions provider partner, also sees growth in the Linux arena, particularly in health care. “We've been actively deploying Linux in health care environments for several years now,” said Jordan Rosen, CEO of Lille Corp. “Novell has really expanded the range of Linux-based solutions that we can offer to our customers.” Capital Cardiology Associates is a case in point. With roughly 200 Linux desktop users, they recently moved from Red Hat to SUSE LINUX to take advantage of Novell's Linux management and identity services offerings. They also deployed Novell's GroupWise® for Linux. Another health care provider, Pulmonary and Critical Care Services, turned to Lille Corp. to move to a more cost effective environment. Leveraging Linux at both the server and client level, PCCS has moved its GroupWise collaboration solution onto Linux, continues to run Novell® NetWare® for file serving, and has tapped Novell eDirectoryTM to manage access across the mixed network environment.
Partners are seeing the value of working with a Linux vendor that also provides services to meet their customers' needs in heterogeneous environments. Novell's identity-driven solutions continue to add value to both partners and customers by solving pressing management and security challenges. Computer Integrated Services of New York (www.ciscony.com) helped the New York Public Library choose a Novell identity management solution to let its 3600 employees in 85 branches access the network securely. “Novell's leadership in directory technology has let them build strong management and security solutions that leverage identity really well,” said Michael Zepernick, president and CEO of Computer Integrated Services. “Identity-driven solutions that work across existing, diverse platforms help secure the network while also driving down administrative costs.”
Partners are empowered to provide these solutions to their customers through the Novell PartnerNet® program. In 2005, the program contains enhancements that will continue to promote partner growth. These include a new Silver level for smaller partners who wish to engage with Novell, additional free training offerings, and streamlined access to Novell resources. The value of the program continues to be recognized by partners and by the industry. Novell recently received the Xchange Xcellence Award for Best Partner Program and Strategy, voted on by participants at the VARBusiness Tech Innovators conference in October 2004. “We're gratified by the ongoing recognition our partner program receives,” said Ladd Timpson, worldwide director of channel marketing for Novell. “The program succeeds because our company-wide go-to-market strategy embraces the channel and focuses significant resources at the field level to drive business through a partner-led model. We reward our channel partners for driving demand for Novell's solutions – helping them grow their margins as they do.”
“We measure the value of our various partnerships in real dollars to the bottom line,” said Paul Hillman, president of C/D/H Technology Consultants (www.cdh.com). “Novell’s PartnerNet program year-in and year-out is always head and shoulders above the other programs. It's the most successful and most profitable relationship we have.”
Press Contacts:
Bruce Lowry
Novell, Inc
Phone: +1 (415) 383-8408
E-mail: blowry@novell.com
Source: Novell, Inc.
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