NEWS
Salesforce announces new $50 million SI
Trailblazer Fund from Salesforce Ventures
Salesforce, a global leader
in CRM, has announced
a new $50 million fund
from Salesforce Ventures,
the company’s corporate
investment group. The new SI
(system integrator) Trailblazer
Fund will be dedicated to
the next-generation of cloud
consulting firms, enabling them
to accelerate their growth
and drive greater customer
success. In conjunction with
the fund, Salesforce is also
launching a new SI Trailblazer
Alliance Initiative to provide
portfolio companies with
resources and training to build
out their service capabilities for
the future.
The new $50 million SI
Trailblazer Fund will provide
John Somorjai, EVP of Corporate Development and Salesforce
Ventures, Salesforce. Image: Eric Millette.
the next generation of cloud
consulting companies with
the capital required to build and scale
assistance in developing Salesforce solutions
their Salesforce services capabilities for
(including Fullforce and Lightning Bolt),
the future, and empower customers to
portfolio companies are empowered to
transform their businesses with Salesforce.
deliver successful implementations, creating
Launching in parallel with the SI
thriving businesses.
Trailblazer Fund is the new SI Trailblazer
“Consulting firms play a pivotal role in
Alliance Initiative, which will provide SI
the Salesforce ecosystem, implementing
Trailblazer portfolio companies with access
Salesforce solutions that meet the needs
to a wide-range of concierge resources,
of customers of all sizes, industries and
training and tools including:
geographies,” said John Somorjai, EVP of
Accelerated onboarding experience:
Corporate Development and Salesforce
With guided interactive training through
Ventures, Salesforce. “This new fund will
Trailhead, priority access to boot camps
foster the next-generation of SIs and
and workshops and a Partner Onboarding
supercharge the growth of the
Specialist, consulting partners can join the
Salesforce ecosystem.”
Salesforce Partner Programme and get
“Growing customer demand for
ramped up quickly.
Salesforce has created a critical need for
Marketing and sales mentorship:
more Salesforce-trained consulting partners
Portfolio consulting companies can learn
as part of the thriving ‘Salesforce Economy,’”
marketing best practices with courses
said Tyler Prince, EVP of Worldwide
delivered by Salesforce experts; utilise a
Alliances and Go-to-Market Innovation,
Partner Marketing Specialist to build custom
Salesforce. “The new SI Trailblazer Fund
marketing plans; and access Marketing
and SI Trailblazer Alliance Initiative will help
Development Funds (MDF).
fuel our consulting partner ecosystem and
Implementation guidance: With
empower the next generation of high-
mentoring from tenured partners and
growth cloud consultancies.”
8
Malwarebytes breaks
the mould with EMEA
channel programme
Malwarebytes, an advanced malware
prevention and remediation solution, has
launched its inaugural channel programme
for partners across EMEA. The programme
has been designed to be simple and
easy to join, and focuses on driving deal
registrations with a commitment from
Malwarebytes to help its partners close
business opportunities quickly and easily.
This – coupled with Malwarebytes’ strong
pedigree in product development and the
potential for partners to realise significant
margins – is shaking up the traditional
approach to partnering.
Where traditional channel schemes
reward – and penalise – partners based on
revenue, Malwarebytes is incentivising its
reseller and distributor network based on
the exposure and opportunity reach they
provide for the security company. Partners
can attain gold and platinum levels based
on numbers of deal registrations rather
than revenue, certification programmes, or
complex points-based programmes.
Over the last few years, headline-
grabbing online security incidents have
escalated in both severity and regularity. The
potential implications of a security breach
are severe and can range from damaged
business reputation through to company
devaluation. As the average cost of a data
breach increases, information security is
now a board-level issue. As a result, there
is a huge market opportunity for channel
organisations. By providing support and
positive incentives, Malwarebytes is offering
the reseller community the tools they need
to reap the benefits.
Anthony O’Mara, EMEA Vice President,
Malwarebytes said: “Vendors often make
partners jump through far too many hoops,
wanting arbitrary criteria to be met, often
dictating to resellers how to run their
business. . . . We want our channel to feel
part of a mutually beneficial partnership
where both parties are invested in driving
growth together.”
Register at www.malwarebytes.com/
partners/reseller_application/
ssue 08
NTELLIGENT TECH CHANNELS