Motorola Partner Event Update - Las Vegas March 6-8th 2010
Having just returned from the annual Motorola partner conference in
1. Partner Program Integration. Motorola has officially consolidated all their channel partners such as qdata under one program. What this means to the end user is greater access to all of Motorola’s products and services. Bar coding partners will still have to get certifications in order to resell, say broadband products like mesh or canopy, but the process of applying and getting certified will be easier and with less red tape. Also being all under one roof from a partner perspective means it’s now easier for partners from different specialties to engage one another.
2. Deal Registration. A contentious area for sure, deal registrations seeks to identify those partners who offer the best Motorola value add for any particular deal and through that process provide that partner will additional discounts and privileges. Will this lessen competition? I don’t think so but what it’s telling the channel is to focus on those deals where you have a good shot of winning and don’t compete on price alone. For the end user at least on the larger deals over $50K, it means better more skilled partners will be bidding for your business and ultimately you’ll have a better bar code implementation.
3. Motorola Solution Certification. Motorola wants to identify those partners whose solutions are best of breed. In this regard they are putting renewed emphasis on their Motorola Validated solution program. While qdata’s inventory control solutions have long been validated, the consolidation of the partner channel requires a way of sorting and identifying the best solution sets. In doing so it will allow Motorola Channel managers from across North America to recommend solutions to their customers with a great deal of confidence. This represents a huge opportunity for resellers to rapidly expand their geographic footprint beyond their traditional markets.
4. Advanced Services. Motorola has recognized that some of their products require services that are beyond the expertise of the reseller community. So they are rolling out a whole set of professional services that will allow partners to complement their services with that of Motorola’s. As a result, customers can now completely outsource the installation, management, and service of their wireless networks. These services include basic project implementation to hosting, on-going monitoring, and remote device management.
5. RFID. I took in an update seminar on RFID and I applaud the efforts of Motorola’s John Rommel who took it on the chin for extolling the payback virtues of RFID. Like many other resellers, qdata invested heavily in the technology 5 years ago when then Symbol (now Motorola) told us to prepare for the onslaught of this new technology. Well we all know what happened. Walmart has since quietly shelved RFID opting instead for green projects and cutting costs while the Department of Defense has shifted RFID compliance to item level tracking. So where is RFID today? As Rommel explained the payback is in two areas: asset tracking markets like aerospace and data centers and the second is high end retail. RFID costs have fallen dramatically but for supply chains, where RFID was first promoted, it is pretty much a dead story until the technology itself improves.
The event was likely my best Motorola channel event ever. Great networking and a good general update on the industry. Like all the participants, I’m honored to part of this industry; we are entering the golden age of mobility with our industry at the epicenter. Wireless combined with the internet is revolutionizing the way we work and play – big changes are happening and qdata not only has front row seats but we’re playing in the band.
Here’s to Scanners On in a big way!
Posted By: Jeff Lem @ 7:57:09 PM