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Microsoft's overall partner satisfaction rating of 75.5 topped Hewlett-Packard's 74.3 by 1.2 points. IBM Tivoli was third with 73.1, and CA trailed with 68.4. Pumping up the overall rating was Microsoft's performance in the technical areas, where it led runner-up HP by 2 points. On the criteria of price/performance, scalability and diagnostic tools, Microsoft was untouchable. The Redmond, Wash.-based company tied for first with HP in product reliability and with IBM in multivendor support. Microsoft Operations Manager and manageability of its server platforms have been vastly improved over the past couple of years, said Tracy Butler, president of Acropolis Technology Group, an MSP and solution provider in Wood River, Ill. He added that he was a convert who used to sharply criticize Microsoft's systems and network management technology. On channel program criteria, solution providers gave Microsoft a big 4.2-point lead in the area of reducing channel conflict, as well as high marks for keeping solution providers informed and for the consistency of its programs over time. "I have two words for Microsoft's quality as a channel partner: Margo Day," Butler said. Day, vice president of the U.S. Partner Group at Microsoft, has been the architect of Microsoft's strong U.S. channel program, he said. Still, Microsoft slipped out of first place in the areas of vendor support, ROI, service revenue, and margins and rebates. But it is tough to compare the vendors on these criteria, said Rob Pennoyer, lead consultant at GG Group, a New York-based solution provider and MSP, because Microsoft is in a class by itself when it comes to managing the networks of small-business customers who may not be able to afford IBM Tivoli or HP OpenView. "I just don't think there is a fair comparison there," he said.  |
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