Seattle, WA-based network security company, WatchGuard Technologies, recently announced a series of enhancements to its partner program, set for general release in January 2015. As of this writing, the updated program is not available in Asia Pacific. The WatchGuardONE program has pivoted focus from pure volume sales to a blend between volume sales and a big emphasis on reseller training and certification.
I’d like to start with a bit of background on WatchGuard, to set the stage before we get into the meat and potatoes. This organization has been in the Leader section of Garther’s Unified Threat Management Magic Quadrant for four (4) consecutive years. In addition, WatchGuard has received industry recognition for its WatchGuard Dimension visibility solution.
So why the enhancements to the partner program? Well, like many organizations today, WatchGuard is trying to focus on keeping its resellers prepared and up-to-date in a quickly-changing environment. As such, the updated partner program will have virtual, instructor-led sessions available across a range of time zones, topics and class levels. The company plans to expand this section of the partner program more as partner interest increases. “The more partners invest in training the more WatchGuard invests in the partner’s profitability,” said WatchGuard reps in a recent press release.
“Well-trained and well-educated resellers have happier customers and end-users, with safer networks. It’s that simple,” said WatchGuard Technologies Vice President of Sales, Alex Thurber.
Additional features include the ability for partners to sell via multiple channels, for example, in-person, online or in-store, and the option for partners of any size to sell at exactly their level, without high sales pressure. On that last point, WatchGuard’s partner program allows members to select a specific level for their size, and they are awarded discounts based on the number of resellers each partner trains.
For more information about the WatchGuardONE program, please visit the site here.
