Avnet To Help Partners Go Mobile

The Avnet Enterprise Mobility Team is now offering the distributor's reseller partners assistance in technical and sales support, lead generation, logistics and custom solutions development.

While the Phoenix, Ariz.-based distributor has had dedicated staff working in the mobility space since mid-2005, its investment was limited until last month, said Michael Douglass, vice president, Enterprise Mobility, Avnet Technology Solutions, Americas.

"It's important that Avnet be recognized and seen in the marketplace as a viable player in the space," said Douglass. "We have basically taken this past year to go out and profile and analyze this market. A lot has changed over the past two years in this particular space."

As hardware sales--Avnet's traditional cash cow--see slowing growth, the distributor is looking to new sources of revenue, and mobility solutions from partners like Symbol, Intermec and Hand Held Products help fill the bill. "Combined with software and professional services, we feel the time is absolutely right to launch substantial investment and focus in this area," said Douglass.

Convergence and automation in vertical markets like manufacturing and distribution are expanding the ways in which end-users can deploy mobile technology, yet setting up systems still requires the helping hand of a systems integrator, and Avnet is positioning itself to be its partners' one-stop-shop for mobility solutions. "The partners are extremely excited about this capability because it takes them into new, fresh streams of revenue both on application and professional services," said Douglass. "The market today is not really short on VARs. There's lots of VARs in the market today, but what they'll tell you is that they don't have enough good quality end-user opportunities."

In addition to passing on qualified leads and offering technical education, Avnet is helping its partners configure, design, integrate and test mobility solutions, including software loading and custom system modifications and upgrades.