Get the scoop from CRN and VARBusiness. Then find out what your colleagues think about the issues and other news items at the ChannelWeb Discussion Center. Here are some of the hottest talkbacks for the week of October 16.
"CRM and PRM applications are attractive to both manufacturers and channel partners only when both have overcome the basic paranoia that exists in a competitive sales environment," writes Louis J. Finnegan. "The best tools for communication and organization of shared information about 'our' customers cannot cause the channel partner to play nice if they think that the manufacturer may take over the account.
"I always encourage my manufacturing clients to take a longer-term view of the business benefits that result from cooperative selling, which might include some transition incentives when an account is fully developed by the partner and then taken (hence the paranoia) directly. In other words, if both parties are gaining financially from the account ownership transition, then an extended sharing of that benefit may be appropriate. Unless this old 'mine vs. yours' thinking is resolved, a channel partner will make no investment in advancing the customer knowledge base.
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"Most VARs could care less about someone being nice to them," writes reader Mike. "As long as the distributor gives the most aggressive pricing and delivers the products on time, I could care less if I have a relationship with them. It is a highly competitive market out there. Everybody is trying to get the best deal, so one might be able make maybe few points on hardware on a rollout. The channel and VARs have a tough road to hoe while the manufacturer is going through their identity crisis. If VARs and distributors do not take advantage of the web as a tool for procurement/service and create value-add to the customer, they will fail.
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"Our government competes with all of us on various levels," writes Kevin Busto. "From local to federal, we have been getting competition from government entities and then they hold their hands out for tax dollars. Example: My local MRDD Board has been using its tax money (i.e., my money), to offer manufacturing services to local businesses and state agencies. [So] local businesses I deal with and state agencies no longer require services we at one time provided. We therefore had to lay off employees in these areas. Is it fair for taxpayers [like] me to subsidize an organization that is competing against me? This is craziness!"
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Microsoft Strays From Standards
John writes, "Having spent quite a bit of time and effort with the various XML standards, I am concerned that Microsoft will not stick to their guns to be standard-compliant. For example, BizTalk seems to be based around Microsoft proprietary XDR schema formats rather than the W3C Working Draft XSD schema. It will be interesting to see what happens."
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In response to a talkback that said that NetWare was rebounding in the battle against NT, Earl Browning III wrote, "Can't agree. At no time in the history of the industry has a dominant software program ever lost dominance and then regained it. What is different about WordPerfect vs. Word and Novell v. NT? Of course, Novell is more stable. So was WordPerfect. It doesn't matter. This industry is about standards and momentum of those standards. Goodbye forever, NetWare. It's a matter of time!"
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Not Overtaking Microsoft Is Not News
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Scott Hoffman wrote, "The media could do everyone a favor and stop reporting that Linux is not overtaking Microsoft. Of course it's not at this point. Linux may be young, according to the media, but it is based on 30-year-old technology that Microsoft has not been able to replace (i.e., systems and OSs from HP, IBM, Sun and others). If you're waiting for Linux to 'win' before trying it, then don't even think about it."
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Simple Solution To Reducing Turnover
If employers want to reduce turnover in any industry, in any position, they will have to start treating their human resources as valuable people, not commodities," writes Lesley Chalmers. "The high-tech industry seems to be fraught with long hours, impossible expectations and little loyalty. Employees can do an exemplary job and still be terminated on the whim of a quarterly report. Most people are more than happy to give their absolute best when they trust and respect their employer. It is, however, a two-way street. Until the corporate culture learns this, they will reap what they sow."
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Peter Bochner is the director of community at ChannelWeb. If you have any ideas, advice or tips, send him an e-mail at pbochner@cmp.com or call him at (781) 839-1288.
