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VARS: IS SAGE LISTENING?

Bill KizerA reseller-organized event drew 100 consultants as the Sage channel is grappling with the question of whether Sage is listening to its members. About 50 attended in person in Lake Forest, Calif., another 50 by remote feeds. Much of the discussion surrounded the impact of recently announced subscription pricing. But concerns are broader than that.

The event was arranged by Bill Kizer, channel manager of Xkzero. (I have not yet had the chance to talk with him). The group was also able to get sponsors: Altec and Avalara, the two main ones, along with Fujitsu ScanSnap and Fisher Technology."In the past six months, Sage has appeared to be running from partner questions in a game of hide and seek," said one VAR who participated. Another questioned Sage's timing. The problem is not so much decisions, he said, as Sage's not giving enough notice for VARs to respond.  But he also added, "If I were in their shoes, I'd try and avoid the conversations until emotions have calmed a bit. I'm not giving them a pass, but it is the only way to handle the changes." He said that a  decision that would reduce the ability of VARs to sell their own support agreements to Sage customers would cause him to lose money he had already budgeted. The first person quoted here said Sage North America has avoided having question-and-answer sessions with its announcements, choosing to only have questions submitted to it. This meeting did draw the attendance of Tom Miller, the channel VP for North America. Forget the question of who is right. When this many people get together with complaints, something needs to be done, if nothing else to set the record straight. The session included a panel with some important resellers including Doug Deane of DSD Systems and Mary Abdian of Macabe Associates.

 

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