02
Sat, Nov
2 New Articles

IBM Expands VIP Program to Include Power Systems, Blades, and Storage

Channel News
Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

IBM has announced an expanded initiative focused on helping small and medium-sized clients gain faster access to integrated business solutions that are easier to buy, implement and manage. IBM says the new program aims to expand its market presence in the $50 billion systems and storage SMB marketplace.

IBM's Vertical Industry Program (VIP) addresses key IT requirements for SMBs--the ability to quickly implement integrated business solutions that deliver a fast return on their investment. Core to the IBM VIP Program, IBM has identified sub-industry growth markets that represent a significant business opportunity for IBM systems and storage solutions. This includes local labor unions, wholesalers of specialty products, and even tools manufacturers and auto dealerships. While clients in these industries recognize the value of IT, they prefer to focus on their core business rather than challenges in integrating IT systems.

Originally launched as a test pilot partner ecosystem for selling AIX applications in 2006, VIP then became the cornerstone channel program for the IBM System i in 2007. Building on this success and increased market demand, IBM is announcing an expansion of the program to support a broader range of IBM hardware and software platforms including IBM Power Systems, BladeCenter, and System Storage.

Now, with more than 750 specialized business partners delivering pre-integrated business solutions for more than 160 sub-industries, VIP is a global program, spanning 40 countries. Today, VIP supports an extensive array of applications for Business Partners and customers, and is expected to grow even more in coming months, the company said.

As a result, IBM Business Partners can take advantage of co-marketing activities, sales, support, and stronger connections with other IBM Business Partners that specialize in the same industry. IBM Business Partners are able to team with other Partners within their local area and vertical sub-industry to gain the benefits of complementary solutions and locally based skills. Clients, therefore, are able to gain faster access to integrated business and IT solutions that are easy to implement, competitively priced, and optimized on IBM technology, the company says.

The requirements of mid-sized companies are unique. While they need to be as sophisticated as enterprise companies, they are limited by smaller IT staff and less IT integration capabilities. IBM helps meet the needs of these mid-sized clients by providing integrated solutions tailored for their industry and offered by local business partners. Today, more than 75 percent of IBM Business Partners are partnering with other business partners to deliver integrated solutions.

"IBM is committed to delivering innovative products and IT delivery capabilities to mid-sized clients. We've done extensive research into this market segment, and as a result, we are bringing incredible value and flexibility to IBM partners and customers," said Mark Shearer, vice president of Marketing and Offerings for IBM Business Systems Division.

As a program that helps IBM Business Partners focus on specific customer needs within a vertical market, VIP promotes solutions that address an industry's unique requirements. As IBM continues to deliver focused industry solutions along with an IT investment that's protected over the long term, these networks of partners across independent software vendors (ISVs), systems integrators (SIs), resellers, and consultants have become increasingly important. Across the globe, VIP partners are seeing successes. Following are a few examples:

·       Australian IBM Business Partner, SEMD Business Solutions, enhanced its business pipeline by more than 80 percent by integrating its Dealerpac software with IBM platforms and co-marketing into specialized industry segments like automotive and farm machinery sales and chemical distribution. "Over the course of two decades, we haven't seen a single compelling reason to use any other platform than IBM Systems," said Stephen Gough, managing director of SEMD. With the introduction of VIP, SEMD has grown its business across those sub-industries beyond expectations, and has helped to grow its customers' businesses, as well. Harley City, a Harley Davidson dealership in Melbourne, Australia, has tripled its growth with SEMD and VIP while keeping administration costs to exactly the same level. "Harley City has been able to maintain a competitive edge against the larger motorcycle chains in the local area. Without VIP, and without reliable, simple, cost-effective systems to maintain, we would not have been able to keep that edge," said David Reidie, CEO of Harley City.

·       Sanmarco Informatica Spa is an Italian VIP partner that has achieved over 2,000 customer installations working with IBM and is now growing globally. The company's Galileo Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions are designed for the manufacturing, wine, food, building, fashion, furnishing, wood flooring, and commercial sectors. Through VIP, Sanmarco has implemented an improved marketing strategy and delivered to customers a simplified, centralized solution on IBM Systems. "Last year, working with IBM and VIP, we doubled our business," said Michele Romano, marketing manager, Sanmarco Informatica. "Our applications' high level of security combined with the industry-leading features of IBM systems make an ideal solution for automating processes and services, especially in manufacturing companies with international operations." Sanmarco customer Zonin wine makers runs 11 wine estates covering more than 3,700 acres in Northern Italy. Francisco Zonin, vice president, says, "Working with IBM and Sanmarco through VIP, we have been able to analyze the sale of every single bottle of wine to determine how best to optimize our sales and marketing strategy as we move forward. This has given us a considerable advantage in the competitive wine market and has helped us run a successful business, from the vineyard to the glass."

·       Xperia Solutions is an Allentown, Pennsylvania-based enterprise apparel solutions provider and IBM VIP partner, offering solutions and services that help their customers plan and manage their production and sourcing operations, supply chain activities and customer service business practices. Through VIP, Xperia has been able to offer integrated solutions that propel their customers' businesses forward. "Xperia's apparel specific-industry-solutions focus and the integrated nature of VIP allow us to address key critical business challenges facing companies in today's apparel marketplace," said Gene Bonett, president and CEO of Xperia. One of Xperia's customers, Modern Shoe Company, an importer and wholesaler of women's fashion footwear, has enjoyed a phenomenal growth curve since its inception in early 2006. Without adding a single employee to its cast of nine, Modern Shoe's business has increased more than 250 percent in the past year to become more than a $50 million business. "With IBM systems, and services from Xperia, we've been able to streamline our business processes and utilize applications designed specifically for the apparel industry," said Roger Monks, COO of Modern Shoe. "We've grown our business to unprecedented levels and the combination of Xperia and IBM provides us with a stable platform to support and continue this growth in the coming months and years."

About IBM
For more about IBM, visit http://www.ibm.com/.

IBM is a leading global hybrid cloud and AI, and business services provider, helping clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Nearly 3,000 government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM's hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently, and securely. IBM's breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and business services deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM's legendary commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity, and service.

For more information, visit: www.ibm.com.

BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS

LATEST COMMENTS

Support MC Press Online

$

Book Reviews

Resource Center

  • SB Profound WC 5536 Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application. You can find Part 1 here. In Part 2 of our free Node.js Webinar Series, Brian May teaches you the different tooling options available for writing code, debugging, and using Git for version control. Brian will briefly discuss the different tools available, and demonstrate his preferred setup for Node development on IBM i or any platform. Attend this webinar to learn:

  • SB Profound WP 5539More than ever, there is a demand for IT to deliver innovation. Your IBM i has been an essential part of your business operations for years. However, your organization may struggle to maintain the current system and implement new projects. The thousands of customers we've worked with and surveyed state that expectations regarding the digital footprint and vision of the company are not aligned with the current IT environment.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT Generic IBM announced the E1080 servers using the latest Power10 processor in September 2021. The most powerful processor from IBM to date, Power10 is designed to handle the demands of doing business in today’s high-tech atmosphere, including running cloud applications, supporting big data, and managing AI workloads. But what does Power10 mean for your data center? In this recorded webinar, IBMers Dan Sundt and Dylan Boday join IBM Power Champion Tom Huntington for a discussion on why Power10 technology is the right strategic investment if you run IBM i, AIX, or Linux. In this action-packed hour, Tom will share trends from the IBM i and AIX user communities while Dan and Dylan dive into the tech specs for key hardware, including:

  • Magic MarkTRY the one package that solves all your document design and printing challenges on all your platforms. Produce bar code labels, electronic forms, ad hoc reports, and RFID tags – without programming! MarkMagic is the only document design and print solution that combines report writing, WYSIWYG label and forms design, and conditional printing in one integrated product. Make sure your data survives when catastrophe hits. Request your trial now!  Request Now.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericForms of ransomware has been around for over 30 years, and with more and more organizations suffering attacks each year, it continues to endure. What has made ransomware such a durable threat and what is the best way to combat it? In order to prevent ransomware, organizations must first understand how it works.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericIT security is a top priority for businesses around the world, but most IBM i pros don’t know where to begin—and most cybersecurity experts don’t know IBM i. In this session, Robin Tatam explores the business impact of lax IBM i security, the top vulnerabilities putting IBM i at risk, and the steps you can take to protect your organization. If you’re looking to avoid unexpected downtime or corrupted data, you don’t want to miss this session.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericCan you trust all of your users all of the time? A typical end user receives 16 malicious emails each month, but only 17 percent of these phishing campaigns are reported to IT. Once an attack is underway, most organizations won’t discover the breach until six months later. A staggering amount of damage can occur in that time. Despite these risks, 93 percent of organizations are leaving their IBM i systems vulnerable to cybercrime. In this on-demand webinar, IBM i security experts Robin Tatam and Sandi Moore will reveal:

  • FORTRA Disaster protection is vital to every business. Yet, it often consists of patched together procedures that are prone to error. From automatic backups to data encryption to media management, Robot automates the routine (yet often complex) tasks of iSeries backup and recovery, saving you time and money and making the process safer and more reliable. Automate your backups with the Robot Backup and Recovery Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAManaging messages on your IBM i can be more than a full-time job if you have to do it manually. Messages need a response and resources must be monitored—often over multiple systems and across platforms. How can you be sure you won’t miss important system events? Automate your message center with the Robot Message Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAThe thought of printing, distributing, and storing iSeries reports manually may reduce you to tears. Paper and labor costs associated with report generation can spiral out of control. Mountains of paper threaten to swamp your files. Robot automates report bursting, distribution, bundling, and archiving, and offers secure, selective online report viewing. Manage your reports with the Robot Report Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAFor over 30 years, Robot has been a leader in systems management for IBM i. With batch job creation and scheduling at its core, the Robot Job Scheduling Solution reduces the opportunity for human error and helps you maintain service levels, automating even the biggest, most complex runbooks. Manage your job schedule with the Robot Job Scheduling Solution. Key features include:

  • LANSA Business users want new applications now. Market and regulatory pressures require faster application updates and delivery into production. Your IBM i developers may be approaching retirement, and you see no sure way to fill their positions with experienced developers. In addition, you may be caught between maintaining your existing applications and the uncertainty of moving to something new.

  • LANSAWhen it comes to creating your business applications, there are hundreds of coding platforms and programming languages to choose from. These options range from very complex traditional programming languages to Low-Code platforms where sometimes no traditional coding experience is needed. Download our whitepaper, The Power of Writing Code in a Low-Code Solution, and:

  • LANSASupply Chain is becoming increasingly complex and unpredictable. From raw materials for manufacturing to food supply chains, the journey from source to production to delivery to consumers is marred with inefficiencies, manual processes, shortages, recalls, counterfeits, and scandals. In this webinar, we discuss how:

  • The MC Resource Centers bring you the widest selection of white papers, trial software, and on-demand webcasts for you to choose from. >> Review the list of White Papers, Trial Software or On-Demand Webcast at the MC Press Resource Center. >> Add the items to yru Cart and complet he checkout process and submit

  • Profound Logic Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application.

  • SB Profound WC 5536Join us for this hour-long webcast that will explore:

  • Fortra IT managers hoping to find new IBM i talent are discovering that the pool of experienced RPG programmers and operators or administrators with intimate knowledge of the operating system and the applications that run on it is small. This begs the question: How will you manage the platform that supports such a big part of your business? This guide offers strategies and software suggestions to help you plan IT staffing and resources and smooth the transition after your AS/400 talent retires. Read on to learn: