Oracle Sales Execs Explain New Channel Vision

Oracle spent much of the time this week at its OpenWorld trade show hyping its grid and database technologies and discussing its recent acquisition spree with the media, analysts and conference attendees.

But the company also devoted considerable resources to explaining its new vision to the channel. Oracle's relationship with partners has historically run hot and cold, but the recent takeover of Peoplesoft/JD Edwards and its planned acquisition of Siebel Systems will only work with the full commitment and support of resellers, solution providers and the like; Oracle officials are eager to show off their understanding of this changing dynamic.

Rauline Ochs, group vice president for Oracle's North American alliances and channels, says the newly added companies will give Oracle an incredibly broad portfolio.

"We now offer more opportunity for partners than any software vendor in the industry," she says.

During the show, Ochs led a panel discussion with a group of Oracle vice presidents from all areas of their sales organizations. The panelists offered suggestions on how the channel can work more effectively with the company.

Ted Bereswill, who runs a $700 million business as senior vice president for North American technology, says the channel is crucial to his division's continued growth.

"Frankly, we need more partners," he says. "We ran about one-third of our business through partners last year, and this year we drew funds from our own internal budget to bring in more channel managers."

The new acquisitions have meant that Oracle will have more of a vertical market focus than it has in the past.

"Our vertical strategy has completely changed from last year to this year," says Randy Runk, senior vice president for North American strategic accounts. "Before we were all about ERP and back-office applications, but our acquisition strategy has changed our relationship with many customers. We're no longer just a back-office supplier; we're now a strategic partner."

Area vice president for North American applications Mike Arntz says that adding more partners will be the best way for Oracle to stave off challenges from its top competitor.

"It's becoming a two-horse race between us and SAP, and we're both trying to get more leverage on competitive deals," he says. "We want to get partners engaged earlier in the process to take advantage of your assets better than we have in the past."

The executives say that they've been requiring their direct sales teams to engage with partners on all their accounts, in some cases creating virtual mentoring programs in which partners accompany sales reps on customer calls. This process is especially helpful as Oracle begins a strong push into the SMB space.

"When we go to market at the regional level or around vertical sectors, we need the partners' help because they speak the customers' language," Arntz says.

Ochs has presided over an impressive transformation of a company that once was almost hostile to the channel, and she says partners can help themselves by engaging more aggressively with their Oracle reps.

"Make sure you get to your channel manager on each team, because that's your point of entry and where you'll find your voice with the company," she says.