July 28, 2009
By

D.H. Kass

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Fujitsu America Inc. is prepping its channel network for a run at the small- to medium-sized enterprise market, hiring a new global channel chief, honing its vertical market expertise, rolling out a new, entry-level server and expanding a key distribution relationship.

Invigorated earlier this year by a reorganization of its business around six strategic vertical markets—healthcare, public sector, telecommunications, manufacturing, financial services and retail—the vendor has embarked upon an ambitious strategy to drive more sales through channel partners into those segments.

To shepherd that effort, Fujitsu has hired channel veteran William Buie as senior vice president of alliances, channel and system integrator sales. Buie, who previously served as vice president of global partner sales for Symantec Corp., already has overseen an extension of Fujitsu’s Accelerator channel program to include retail solutions.

Buie said that fortifying Fujitsu’s indirect channel is the remedy to growing its presence not only in the retail segment but in other target areas as well.

“Unlike some retail technology vendors, our goal is to fully support industry VARs, ISVs and distributors not compete against them,” he said. “We have the right products with the right price, performance and service options to drive profitable partnerships with resellers.”

Buie said that the key to building Fujitsu’s share of the SME market is to provide top products that partners can turn into affordable vertical market solutions.

“Recognizing the value of our indirect sales program in achieving our global sales growth targets, Fujitsu developed a strategy to help its partner community tap into the SME market,” he said. “By affording our partners the ability to deliver cost effective vertical market solutions to each of their clients, SMEs are able to protect and grow their businesses with world-class Fujitsu products.”

Fujitsu’s directive to aim channel partners at select vertical markets appears to be returning early rewards. The vendor said that its year-over-year sales growth in the education market spiked by 80 percent while healthcare posted a 20 percent increase.

The company pointed to an 80 percent growth in storage sales through channel partners since the recent introduction of its Eternus storage system and credited the Accelerator channel program for propelling a 20 percent uptick in its number of mid-market clients.

Among Fujitsu’s new product rollouts aimed at boosting sales through channel partners is an entry-level server, the Primergy TX100 S1, positioned to the SME segment as affordable, efficient and secure.

To showcase the new equipment, Fujitsu has broadened its existing distribution agreement with Synnex Corp. to encompass the vendor’s entire server line. The distributor also carries Fujitsu’s notebooks, tablet PCs and storage systems.

Fujitsu’s additional distributors include Tech Data Corp., D&H Distributing Co. Inc. and Seneca Data, which sells the company’s pen-based products.

Fujitsu recently standardized its global storage portfolio under the Eternus brand name and branded its application servers under the Primergy name, looking to cement a unified, global offering for its products, solutions and services.

TAGS: vertical, server, enterprise, Fujitsu, channel partners

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