CRN Exclusive: SADA Systems, Intelisys Putting Google Within Partners' Grasp
Solution provider SADA Systems Inc. is once again joining forces with master agent Intelisys to grant partners access to Google's complete suite of cloud solutions. With access to now sell both Microsoft's and Google's sought-after cloud services, Intelisys partners will have the market covered, the companies told CRN.
SADA Systems, a leading Microsoft Cloud Solution provider (CSP) and No. 385 on the CRN 2015 Solution Provider 500, partnered with Intelisys in September 2015 to open up Microsoft's cloud-based portfolio to the thousands of sales partners that make up Intelisys' channel. The Google announcement extends the partnership between Intelisys and SADA so partners will also have the opportunity to sell lucrative cloud-based business solutions from another cloud services heavyweight.
Microsoft and Google are fierce competitors in the cloud market. Access to both providers will arm partners with two solid solutions, regardless of which provider ends up winning the deal, said Andrew Pryfogle, senior vice president of cloud transformation for Petaluma, Calif.-based Intelisys.
"Some businesses are a natural fit for Office 365, and some customers have that unique DNA in which Google could be a good fit. We're really excited about adding Google to the mix because it really aligns perfectly with our partners' strategy to be trusted advisers in the marketplace, and now they'll have really robust solutions from two disruptive cloud providers," Pryfogle said.
Via the terms of the partnership, Intelisys sales partners can offer licensing, consultation, deployment and migration, training, and managed services for the Google for Work portfolio. The portfolio of business applications includes Google Maps for Work, Google Search and Google's cloud platform. These offerings come coupled with Google Premiere channel partner SADA's CloudServ premium managed services.
SADA has had great traction with Intelisys partners and has ramped up business very quickly around Microsoft, Pryfogle said. Intelisys and SADA believe there are a lot of opportunities around Google Apps, too.
Similar to how agent partners offer multiple cable Internet solutions, these partners like to offer customers more than one choice, said Tony Safoian, president and CEO of Los Angeles-based SADA Systems.
"It's not always going to be directly competitive with Microsoft, but it really is about providing best-of-breed cloud services and the best customer experience, regardless of the choice the customer makes," Safoian said.
SADA is offering educational sessions and training to get partners schooled on Google's products and services, and the provider is already winning deals around Google apps, Safoian said.
For example, one recent opportunity was a $100,000 Google maps deal brought in by a solution provider whose customer wanted to increase its Google Maps usage.
"Customers are actually getting to the point where they are trusting their partner with 75 to 80 percent of their IT spend. … These agents literally are the trusted adviser for almost everything customers want to acquire in the world of technology, so that's what makes having options extremely valuable," Safoian said.
Intelisys partners have been selling Microsoft cloud solutions -- including Office 365, Azure, Skype for Business (formally known as Lync), Dynamics CRM Online, Enterprise Mobility Suite (EMS), SharePoint and Yammer -- to their end customers since September 2015.
The expanded partnership between SADA and Intelisys will help Google infiltrate the business market. The channel hasn't had access to a recurring revenue model from Google before today, Intelisys' Pryfogle said.
"This partnership will create a residual compensation model for our partners. … They can build a really healthy practice around Google and make money doing it," he said.
But just as important as access is the layer of support that SADA will wrap around the Google experience, Pryfogle said. Neither Google nor Microsoft offers this kind of support for partners today, he said.
"Calling Google for support is really not an option," he said. "Having SADA's managed support around Microsoft and now around Google is the big difference for the channel."
Because Microsoft 365 is so widely used, the Microsoft opportunity might still be bigger than opportunities around Google for partners. However, Google is on the rise, Pryfogle said.
"It's a really unique opportunity for the channel," he said. "The utility of Google apps offers a big pond for [partners] to fish in."