Adaptec Enriches Top-Tier Channel Program

Adaptec

The Platinum program will be targeted at about 75 of Adaptec's top solution providers, said Rhonda Hagstedt, Americas VAR manager for the company, based here.

Qualifying solution providers will receive increased training, including end-to-end, multivendor SAN training in real-world situations, said Hagstedt.

Under new support programs, Platinum resellers will receive priority access to technical support, including the ability to jump to the top of the tech support queue, she said. In addition, Adaptec will provide a dedicated support person at the manager level to ensure solution providers' business needs are addressed, she said.

In the financial area, Platinum-level solution providers will be eligible for market development funds at the 3 percent level, volume product discounts of up to 2 percent, and a 25 percent discount on training, Hagstedt said.

To get support at the Platinum level, solution providers will need to commit to selling $100,000 in Adaptec products per quarter. Hagstedt said Adaptec does not expect all potential Platinum partners to reach that goal right away and that Adaptec will work with them in setting reasonable goals.

Platinum solution providers will also be expected to have a strong background in Adaptec products and go through the company's certification courses, Hagstedt said. They will also have to be active in new product launches and provide adequate customer-service levels to clients.

The new program, which covers Adaptec's SCSI, RAID, Fibre Channel, iSCSI, InfiniBand and external storage products, will be phased in during the third quarter of calendar 2001.