Lenovo Channel Chief Details Partner Plan for PCs, x86 Servers

Lenovo’s $2.1 billion deal to acquire IBM’s (IBM) x86 server business closed Oct. 1 and the Chinese PC maker isn’t wasting anytime assimilating its newly expanded channel network and product portfolio.

Chris Frey, Lenovo’s North America Commercial Channels vice president, outlined the vendor’s plan for melding the x86 server business into its existing PC-centric channel makeup, framing on a “strategic storyline that revolves around one Lenovo and one channel.”

One-ness is easy to say, but what’s it mean for Lenovo, which hasn’t swallowed an acquisition like this since 2005 when it bought IBM’s PC business? Frey, who came to Lenovo from IBM in 2006, said the principles are the same now as then.

“Starting October 1, we’re going to focus on one Lenovo as seen through eyes of our partner community—the current System x and PC model will become one coverage model,” Frey said.

“Our story is that we have a diverse product portfolio for channel partners to sell,” he said. “We believe if we have partners that want to sell PCs, they can sell PCs; if partners want to sell servers, they can sell servers; if they want to sell both, they can sell both.”

Straight from Frey, here’s Lenovo’s blueprint for its North American channel partners to sell PCs and x86 servers:

• One compensation plan for the North American channel organization. “We want one set of enablement programs—we won’t disrupt [current programs] out of the gate but by April 1, we will find program synergies to bring both PCs and System x offerings together under Lenovo principles,” he said.
• One partner set in which the channel determines what they want to sell. “We’re not big believers in creating partner silos,” he said. “We believe partners should determine their competencies so they can be who they want to be.”
• One distribution model. Lenovo plans to converge IBM’s System x distribution makeup with its own, ending up with a combined distributor lineup to handle the Lenovo ThinkServer, System x and PC portfolios. Tech Data (TECD), Ingram Micro (IM), Avnet (AVT), Arrow Electronics (ARW), D&H Distributing and Synnex (SNX) all are authorized for System x and Lenovo’s server line.
• One organization responsible for how program dollars are spent. “P&L and investments will be made under one roof,” Frey said.

On training, Frey said Lenovo will extend his Hand-to-Hand Combat program begun two years ago to create an independent channel, educating partners on Lenovo’s value proposition, why they should recommend the vendor’s products and providing them with the tools to convey those messages to customers.

Lenovo already has set an uber-aggressive $5 billion global sales target for year one with System x, which amounts to half of the entire segment’s Q2 2014 sales and about 12 percent of its worldwide annual run rate of $42 billion according to researcher IDC’s figures.

Frey declined to break out those sales goals for North America but said the vendor has “thoroughly assessed the market, where there are gaps and where we think there’s a significant opportunity in different partners of this segment for our business partners to play. We will recruit partners to do that,” he said.