Can You Buy Loyalty?

In some ways, you can think of Hewlett-Packard’s latest evolution of its PartnerOne program as a bold attempt to cure attention deficit disorder.

HEATHER CLANCY Can be reached via e-mail at hclancy@cmp.com.

It makes all sorts of sense for HP to do this, and it’s been telegraphing such a change for months. Frankly speaking, its channel is huge, as is its product portfolio, and this will indeed reward those that are most “loyal,” or that proactively devote time to leading with HP products. HP’s channel ranks will certainly shrink, though, which is convenient for IBM and Lenovo, both of which are recruiting right now.

I can’t help but draw a correlation between HP’s strategy and that of Autodesk, a company I’ve watched for many years. I was stunned to learn recently that almost 90 percent of the design software company’s resellers consider themselves exclusive. I should point out, in fairness, that Autodesk’s reseller ranks have shrunk dramatically in the past two years, making its remaining resellers more focused. In addition, the company’s market-share position is formidable, enabling Autodesk to more easily push through programs. But for these resellers, loyalty comes down to a single thing: They can focus better on what’s best for their customers from implementation to training to process consulting. And, yes, they can now make more money by doing so.

As these changes take place, I can’t help but be reminded that there is so much more to loyalty than financial rewards.

Can your loyalty be bought? HEATHER CLANCY, Editor at CRN, welcomes your comments at hclancy@cmp.com.

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