EC News DeskIn every industry, digital transformation has become a corporate imperative. From manufacturing to biotechnology, leading companies are harnessing data to stay competitive. As enterprises adopt digital transformation solutions across the region, NetApp and distribution partner Ingram Micro, are gearing up and adapting to these changes in the market. NetApp is making continuous changes to its channel strategy across the Middle East to maximise opportunities and its return from digital transformation.
According to Maya Zakhour, Channel Sales Director Middle East and Africa at NetApp, digital transformation includes the building of a digital ecosystem in which there is seamless integration between customers, partners, employees, suppliers, and external entities. Most importantly, it is dependent on managing exponential growth, intrinsic value, and the movement of data.
As a vendor, NetApp has digitally transformed its solutions a few years ago to ensure value differentiation and launched its Data Fabric. Data Fabric is a set of data services that integrates data management across cloud and on-premise to accelerate digital transformation. It delivers consistent and integrated hybrid cloud data services for data visibility and insights, data access and control, and data protection and security.
As part of its go to market for digital transformation solutions, NetApp is now positioning itself as a vendor of hybrid cloud data services and data management, and no longer as just a storage vendor. However, some of NetApp’s legacy customers may not be ready for the cloud or they may not have their own data centres.
Future proofing
“We are helping our customers modernise their infrastructure so they can scale on demand and respond quickly to business needs. We want them to get the results they need, boost performance for existing applications and analytics workloads, and improve data centre economics, so they can fund their transformation by reducing infrastructure and operations cost,” says Maya.
NetApp supports customers in deciding how to manage their data best – whether on-premises or connected to one of the hyperscalers like AWS, Microsoft and Google. “Customers now have the choice to select which hyperscaler they would like to partner with. They can even manage their data between several clouds and on premise,” explains Maya.
Any NetApp solution can be connected to the cloud in future. This is giving customers confidence in their investment. They can engage with NetApp on how to build their Data Fabric and how to connect to the cloud when they are ready. On the flip side, if customers feel their data needs to be resident on-premises and cannot be moved to the cloud, they have the choice of investing in converged and hybrid cloud infrastructure solutions from NetApp. They can build private clouds and host their data on-site in a cloud-like environment.
“With NetApp’s hybrid cloud infrastructure, we integrate data management across cloud and on premise to accelerate digital transformation no matter what the customer’s cloud strategy demands,” elaborates Maya. NetApp’s cloud data services are realigning the company and reshaping its future. The company has created strong alliances with global hyperscalers to offer cloud data services, whether from the edge or the core. This gives customers the flexibility and freedom to drive their data between clouds as required.
Customers can move their data across these platforms from their legacy on-premise installed base to the cloud or between clouds. “Our solution works with any of the hyperscalers and is opening the door for bigger opportunities,” says Maya.
Go to market
In a dynamic and competitive market like the Middle East, channel partners are required to adapt the way they interact and sell to customers. This essentially means that partners not only need to reassess existing capabilities and gaps, but also modify their go-to-market strategy to stay on top of changes that emerging technologies are making to customer demands. They need to evolve with the market by investing in resources around digital transformation, service delivery, advisory capabilities and portfolio offerings.
“To take Data Fabric to the market, we decided to transform the way we reach our distributors, partners and customers. Our distributors play a key role in NetApp’s two-tier channel structure,” says Maya Zakhour. The value-added distributorIngram Micro supports NetApp in its go-to-market strategy to target commercial and run rate business. The relationship between NetApp and Ingram Micro spans several years. Ingram Micro’s value distribution model is purely partner-first by collaborating with them from the inception of the end user requirement. One of the distributor’s key focus areas is cloud, and this works well with NetApp.
Maya points out that Ingram Micro has relationships with significant channel partners in the Middle East. To leverage its go-to-market, Ingram Micro collaborates with NetApp to ensure a closer working relationship to transform not only its structure and strategy but also its product portfolio. Together, they provide technical, financial, and added value to the partners.
Role of Ingram Micro
“Collaboration with NetApp is helping us address storage opportunities effectively. We see requirements from customers using mission critical applications, which demand higher IOPS and performance. We can address these with NetApp and provide them with the best in class solution,” says Bahaa Salah, Managing Director, Ingram Micro, Gulf and Near East.
A key requirement for both NetApp and Ingram Micro is the skill set of channel partners. Salah points out that channel partners who understand the infrastructure and applications of a customer are an ideal fit. On top of that, partners whose solutions are aligned with hyperscalers and are helping end users along their digital transformation journey are essential.
“We enable our channel partners in various ways by constantly updating them with tech refresh sessions on digital transformation and cloud solutions. One of the main events we host every month is the NetApp Café, where we focus on technologies. We give a classroom-style training to partners’ sales and presales champions to help them become successful,” points out Salah.
In addition, Ingram Micro created the Experience Zone in its office to demonstrate solutions around digital transformation. Also, channel partners are encouraged and motivated in their go to market activities through various joint rebate programmes. By closely aligning with both end customer and channel partner requirements, NetApp and Ingram Micro expect to see continuous increasing demand for their high value digital transformation solutions.
