Dell Restructures PartnerDirect Program
    		Dell on Monday officially restructured its three-year-old  channel program, but Round Rock appears to have only made tweaks around the  edges of the program rather than the kind of dramatic moves that might signal a  reversion to Dell's direct-first origins.
		When Dell launched  PartnerDirect in December 2007, the big question was whether the famously  direct vendor would remain committed to the channel for very long.
		Now, with Dell boasting double the number of partners  worldwide -- 60,000 from the 30,000 Dell started with -- and with the program  still in existence more than three years later, that question seems to be  settled as well as anything is ever settled in business.
		The restructuring Monday takes Dell from a two-tier program to three tiers. Formerly partners  were either Registered or Certified.
		Now partners will be Registered, Preferred or Premier.  Requirements and benefits both increase along the three tiers. Preferred  Partners must get certified in one of Dell's specialty areas, which include  storage, server, systems management, networking/security and managed services.  Premier Partners are channel companies with multiple certifications.
		"We have made these changes based on our Partners'  needs -- strong field support, improved Partner relationships and greater  opportunities for Partners who develop skills around Dell solutions. We believe  this new structure meets these needs, while maintaining the program simplicity  that our Partners appreciate," wrote Greg Davis, vice president and general  manager of Dell Global Commercial Channels,  in a letter to Dell partners  on Monday.
 
	Posted by Scott Bekker on May 09, 2011