Veeam Expands Partner Program With Focus On Incumbency, Training

‘We’re providing protection both on the front end and the back end. And frankly, it's been inconsistent. We've had three different partner programs. We now have a global program. We're still paying attention to regional differences. However, we’re adding a global framework [to] give more rigor and a better, more consistent framework,’ says Larissa Crandall, Veeam’s vice president of global channel and alliances.

Data protection and management software developer Veeam this week expanded its channel partner program with improvements to how partners earn and continue earning over time via sales of its technology, as well as improvements in training and certificates.

The changes to the program align with what Veeam’s channel partners are telling the company, said Larissa Crandall, who just last year joined Veeam as the Columbus, Ohio-based company’s vice president of global channel and alliances.

This includes offering a more predictable program around profitability and with a global framework and construct that includes improvements around deal registration and incumbency, Crandal told CRN.

The company is also offering expanded training and enablement programs, along with new competencies and certifications, to go with its expanded emphasis around cyber resilience, she said.

“The evolution of the market and all the changes going on in the partner ecosystem requires a new approach and refresh on our side,” she said.

First, Crandall said, Veeam is improving the front-end margin partners get via deal registration. Crandall (pictured above) said the deal registration is increasing, but declined to say by how much.

“It's an increase to be more competitive,” she said. “We're investing in the front end and changing some things on the back end structure across the entire portfolio. And that's not the way it is today.”

Veeam is also changing its incumbency program so that when a contract comes up for renewal, the original partner can maintain the relationship, Crandall said.

“They bring us into an opportunity and close it, and when it comes up for renewal, we have improved incumbency,” she said. “So we’re providing protection both on the front end and the back end. And frankly, it's been inconsistent. We've had three different partner programs. We now have a global program. We're still paying attention to regional differences. However, we’re adding a global framework [to] give more rigor and a better, more consistent framework.”

Expanding incumbency and deal registration is a key move for Veeam, said Bob Panos, vice president of sales and services at American Digital, an Elk Grove Village, Ill.-based solution provider which has partnered with Veeam for over 10 years.

“Acquiring a customer takes time and resources,” Panos told CRN. “Veeam is now making it easier to keep a customer once we have a relationship, and not letting others swoop in and grab them. Some companies tend to be better than others in terms of protecting incumbency. It’s not very common. But it’s a great thing to have.”

The other major change to Veeam’s channel program is the addition of new technical and sales training around the company’s increasing focus on cyber resilience, including helping partners learn how to talk with customers about how Veeam fits into their security conversations, Crandall said.

The company is also extending those trainings to cloud and Kubernetes technologies as well, she said.

“Veeam has built incredible products for a long time,” she said. “What the partners were asking is, ‘How do I bring Veeam into a security conversation? We know you fit. You need to train us more. How do you align with the hyperscalers? How do you fit within backup as a service solutions, or Kubernetes.’ So all of those are being refreshed with more of a use case, business outcome approach.”

Veeam is also moving to increase its reach into the larger global systems integration space and with MSPs, Crandall said.

“You'll see us continue to unveil more security partnerships, hyperscale partnerships, and storage partnerships, and then really push into enterprise around the GSI (global systems integrator) side,” she said. “Veeam has 35,000 partners worldwide, and has had loyal partners for a long time. As the market has changed, customers are buying differently. It provides opportunity for us to spend more time with the GSIs, the MSPs, and different partner profiles.”

Veeam is very focused on the enterprise, and the company’s release of Veeam Backup & Recovery v12 opened up a lot of new enterprise opportunities for the company around security and scale, Crandall said.

Veeam this year will continue to expand its cyber resilience capabilities with the signing of several new large security partnerships similar to the relationship it signed in October with Abingdon, England-based Sophos, she said.

Veeam has proven to be a great partner for American Digital, Panos said.

“The company always wants to invest with us by educating our sales team,” he said. “We have a tight partnership with their executive management teams. It’s one of those partnerships that spans the entire organization.”