M&A Mentality

So your favorite small vendor has been subsumed by an industry behemoth. Indeed, you may lose some face-time and a fair bit of the personal relationship you've enjoyed, but it doesn't have to mean losing business or jeopardizing your existing deals. Here are five ways to survive and thrive when moving into a bigger partner program.

1. Anticipate Change
Tier 1 Innovation's Scott Nesbitt credits his firm's anticipation of the Oracle-Siebel deal with the success he's seen since the merger. Karen James, CEO of GeminiTech, says VARs should "be visible to the corporation. Take the time to go to their executive briefings for partners even if there are costs to your company. It will pay off tenfold from the relationships."

2. Alter Course
GvTechSolutions' CEO Robert Deitz says he's more diligent about contracts now that he's suffered through several mergers. "At least we have protections when [mergers] occur. Any reseller that signs a reseller agreement with a manufacturer is dead [when mergers] happen. They all have outs or cancellation clauses. We won't accept that and we write our own contract. If they don't want to sign it, we'll pass."

3. Build Strong Relationships
"Meet and host the new sales team for your territory," James suggests. "Understand how [reps are] compensated and commit to building your business to align with their new model. They have to follow what their new CEO tells them. Make sure that you get on board with their new program even if you hate it."

4. Communicate with Customers
"If they know and understand the benefits of the merger, they're more likely to come to you to solve more complex problems, because you now have a broader portfolio and support system," James says. "As a small business, it's only to your benefit to leverage the size of your manufacturer relationships."

5. Embrace Change
"We tried hard to maintain our Siebel contacts, for sure," Nesbitt says. "But we also worked hard to understand what was happening and how we could make the most of it."