Why Is Bob Stegner Smiling? (Answer: Big Synnex Win)
Synnex (NYSE: SNX), the IT distributor, made a strategic bet on open source software partners back in 2009. The initial effort didn’t pay big dividends. But fast forward four years, and Synnex Senior VP Bob Stegner is all smiles. The reason: his company was just named Red Hat‘s (NYSE: RHT) commercial distributor of the year for North America. Here’s the back story.
Stegner, Red Hat North America Channel VP Roger Egan, and their respective teams have been working on open source distribution strategies for at least four years. One of the big first efforts was the Open Source Channel Alliance (OSCA). The idea was to promote open source applications and platforms — ERP, CRM, email, collaboration, operating systems, etc. — through the Synnex partner ecosystem.
Great concept. The VAR Guy was a big believer. But the OSCA never really took off. Among the reasons: Many of the open source companies lacked channel expertise. And certain open source software niches were too fragmented with far too many tiny players.
Still, Synnex and Red Hat continued their mutual dance. And that dance seems to be really hitting its stride. Roughly 65 percent of Red Hat’s bookings now involve channel partners. And Synnex is Red Hat’s North America distributor of the year. The VAR Guy doesn’t have exact numbers but you can safely conclude a healthy slice of Red Hat’s revenues come from Synnex’s partner base.
As The VAR Guy pointed out, somewhere Stegner is smiling. The likely bet: He’s in San Diego, Calif., at the Red Hat North America Partner Conference to accept that distributor honor.
