In April, we held our annual Dell Enterprise Forum EMEA in Frankfurt, Germany. This conference offers an intensive, interactive learning experience across the data center—from servers and storage to networking and converged solutions. At the event, direct customers and PartnerDirect channel partners have the opportunity to learn directly from the engineers, architects and other experts who design and develop Dell enterprise solutions.
One of this year’s attendees shares his observations of the event in the guest post below.
**************************
I recently visited the Dell Enterprise Forum event in Frankfurt and it was a great success! Just having the chance to meet other partners from across the EMEA region and to be able to share our experiences was incredibly valuable. It’s events like Dell Enterprise Forum that enable partners to gain access to Dell executives both from EMEA and the US and to benefit from the specialist knowledge and opinions they have; this is invaluable in terms of fostering meaningful and beneficial relationships.
At the event, I was interested to find out more about Dell’s new channel strategy, and hearing about the end-to-end proposition and its storage vision were also truly enlightening. This was particularly relevant for my organisation as a big chunk of our business involves the provision of storage solutions to companies in the Netherlands. It was also great to get more information from Dell Software Group about its products such as Foglight, for example, which monitors performance to improve customer satisfaction – this will undoubtedly be a huge asset to businesses across the globe. The event allowed us to gain additional insight and information about Dell’s plans for the future; something that was really useful in terms of how we approach our planning. This insight will also allow us to ensure that our own value proposition is even stronger.
As a member of Dell’s Partner Advisory Council I feel extremely positive about the opportunities that partners have to share feedback with Dell on forthcoming initiatives and product news. ITON has been a Dell partner since 2008 and over the years we have seen real changes and improvements to Dell’s channel program, PartnerDirect. Dell likes to move with the times and the addition of a range of new programs and incentives for partners is testament to the company’s ongoing commitment to its partner community. As a company we’re dedicated to selling Dell solutions, so we have been truly delighted to witness this evolution.
Everything we sell is based on Dell. We made this decision because we prefer to focus on developing our relationship with one devoted partner, in the true sense of the word, rather than working with multiple vendors. We have worked this way since our inception in 2008 and since then we have grown significantly, with our revenues increasing by over 500%. The last six years have been very rewarding, and Dell has been instrumental in our success.
We really appreciate the openness and clarity we get from Dell regarding its plans for the future. We welcome this and look forward to Dell’s continued transparent approach.
If you’re a Dell partner you must take steps to participate in forthcoming Dell Enterprise Forum events; they’re also extremely worthwhile for customers. The information and insight available provides excellent opportunities for all businesses using Dell solutions.
My only regret is that I didn’t stay longer – perhaps next time I’ll make it to the after party, too!
*****************
Rody van Egmond is Managing Partner at ITON an IT service provider with offices in Enschede, Moordrecht, Nijmegen and Veenendaal. ITON designs, builds and maintains IT infrastructures for medium and large organizations and is a Premier Partner in Dell’s PartnerDirect program.