On October 27th we announced the channel general availability of the industry leading OneConnect™ Universal Converged Network Adapter (UCNA) and OneCommand™ Manager, a centralized console for network convergence infrastructure. The general availability of Emulex’s OneConnect UCNA marks our expansion into 10Gb/s Ethernet networking for Local Area Network (LAN) on Motherboard (LOMs), Network Interface Cards (NICs) and Converged Network Adapters (CNAs) that accelerate and are optimized for Internet Protocol (IP), Network Attached Storage (NAS), clustering, cloud objects and Storage Area Networks (SANs). That is a tall order for a single product, but OneConnect delivers like no other network connectivity product ever released in our industry. However, a technology without go-to-market partners is nothing more than a science project, and Emulex’s OneConnect UCNA was designed to change the connectivity market with the help of its distribution channel partners.

The Emulex Edge

The key when it comes to market transitions is the Value Added Reseller (VAR) community. Obviously, OEM support and certification create the opportunity for mass market adoption, but it is only when the VAR and integrator communities, the trusted advisors of the IT world, support market transitions do we, as technology vendors, see our technology move from science fiction to scientific fact. This is why we have created the new Emulex Edge Partner program. The Emulex Edge is built on four core elements:

1. Rapid Access to the New One Billion Network Convergence Infrastructure Market – Dell’Oro predicts that the host connectivity for 10Gb/s Ethernet-based LOM, NIC, Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI) and Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) will exceed one billion USD by 2013. VARs and integrators who partner with Emulex will be at the forefront of this new profit engine. The Emulex Edge Partner Program drives rapid time-to-market for our partners through strong Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and partner ecosystems certifications, training and solution development with Brocade, Cisco, DELL, IBM, HP, Juniper, SUN, EMC, NetApp and more. To learn more, visit http://www.emulex.com/solutions/convergenomics.html.

2. Education and Expertise in the Convergence Market – When I think about network convergence, I am reminded of the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) transition. VoIP brought two markets together and created an entirely new class of VAR: VoIP VARs. These new VARs created value by bringing expertise and best practices to the combined market. I see network convergence as a similar opportunity where LAN, SAN, NAS and security VARs merge skills and best practices to build transition plans, establish new value-add best practices and create new, high-margin services. The Emulex Edge Partner Program will deliver, via our new training portal and regional boot-camps, best practices from our OEMs, partner ecosystem and internal expertise to our channel partners:
– Sell with our convergence expertise via Emulex University and Emulex Expert Training
– Tracks for both sales representatives and sales engineers
– Channel Resource Center and online, self-paced training provide the sales and technical tools you need, when you need them
– To learn more, visit www.emulex.com/emulexedge

3. Enhanced Profitability and Incentives – We are business partners, and that starts with having the right business model that drives revenue, profits and customer satisfaction in equal portions to build a sustainable partnership. The new Emulex Edge Partner Program helps our partners through:

– More time for selling with new and easy-to-use deal registration and Sales Promotion Incentive Fund (SPIF) tools
– Protecting VAR’s time investment and higher profits with expanded registration margins
– Obtaining rich Emulex Rewards (SPIFs) on both Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) and UCNAs for sales and engineering representatives in any program tier level
– Reaping additional benefits for quarter-over-quarter growth through incentive rebates
– Customized sales incentives that fit VARs’ business models
– Access to a whole new set of Emulex connectivity products, which bring enhanced margins to your existing server business

4. Maximize Sales Support Resources – Great technology is not useful to growing your business unless IT managers know about, understand the value and are comfortable buying the new technology.

– MDF dollars available for joint business development activities
– Demo and proof-of-concept units available to help you close deals

Profit-As-You-Go with Pay-As-You-Go

We have all heard the line, “the gift the keeps on giving.” The Emulex OneConnect UCNA and OneCommand Manager will keep giving our partners profit even after the first sale is done. Why? The UCNA has a pay-as-you-go business model. As you know, our industry sells far more NIC ports than Fibre Channel or iSCSI ports. The reasons for this are obvious. Ethernet networking is ubiquitous and that is why Emulex’s “10Gb/s Ethernet first strategy” for network convergence is game-changing. Our strategy is based on leading the 10Gb/s Ethernet NIC transition and allowing IT managers to add iSCSI offload and FCoE offload as they need them. This allows them to start off in network convergence with a base 10Gb/s Ethernet NIC without having to pay a “tax” to be “network convergence-ready.” You can sell the UCNA from Emulex in a NIC-only, NIC + iSCSI offload or NIC + FCoE offload.

One of the reasons Emulex did this was because it provided unique differentiation in the market and at the behest of OEM manufactures like IBM. If you look at Emulex’s Virtual Fabric Adapter (VFA) for IBM BladeCenter as an example, they provide a cost-effective 10Gb/s Ethernet NIC and a path forward to iSCSI and FCoE offload without making customers pay for everything all at once. If you are looking at the world from a server perspective, this makes perfect sense and provides product differentiation. Emulex’s new OneConnect UCNAs have full hardware protocol offload support for TCP/IP, iSCSI and FCoE. However, unlike many of our competitors, we think VARs and IT managers should have the option to pay-as-you-go, versus having to pay-all-at-once for things they don’t need. To learn more about this strategy, read the Unified Data Networking Industry Brief from industry analyst IT Brand Pulse.

Emulex has a simple goal: to expand the market for network convergence. That means we have to enable 10Gb/s Ethernet as well as 10Gb/s iSCSI and 10Gb/s FCoE, which the Emulex UCNAs do. So if your customers need a 10Gb/s Ethernet NIC today and want investment protection, or if they are ready to jump into FCoE all at once, our pay-as-you-go UCNA plan lets you offer them what they want and need, while building a strong base of 10Gb/s Ethernet network convergence business that will provide an incremental and sustainable business opportunity over time, not just during the first sale. This model is better for the VAR and the IT manager, as it maximizes the value and return on investment (ROI) on the relationship over time, and that is the key to being a trusted advisor.

Not Just Words

Emulex is committed to providing a world-class partner program for VARs and integrators of our direct VAR, OEM resellers and ecosystem alliance partner channels. Everyone in this business knows that no company can do it all, and none can do it alone. That is why we have launched the new Emulex Edge Partner Program with our new UCNA product line, because new products and markets require new investments in our channels, and because Emulex does not make markets alone, we rely on trusted partners at every phase of the sales process.

Tags: business, Channel, emulex edge, Partners
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