SYNNEX, Verizon Detail MOBILITYSolv Partnership
Distributor SYNNEX Corp. on Thursday went live with its new alliance with Verizon Enterprise Solutions.
The companies first announced their partnership in April, when SYNNEX introduced MOBILITYSolv, but kept the details under wraps until now. MOBILITYSolv, which falls under the SYNNEX Global Mobility Solutions unit, helps resellers capture all of an organization’s business, and includes services such as M2M, security and optimization. And now, SYNNEX partners have access to Verizon’s infrastructure and “unprecedented brand name,” said Adnon Dow, vice president of SYNNEX’s Global Mobility Solutions group.
Through Verizon specifically, VARs now may sell network services, advanced communications, cloud, applications, mobility and M2M. Examples include FiOS, Ethernet, MPLS, voice and Virtual Communications Express.
Verizon’s services through MOBILITYSolv are open to all SYNNEX partners, but those VARs will need to work with both companies to make sure they’re a fit. Verizon and SYNNEX will do this in part through a series of regional seminars and through one-on-one talks. Overall, if partners are interested in developing a services-led business, or already specialize in core competencies such as infrastructure, mobility and WLAN, or target vertical markets, this is a prime opportunity for them, Dow said.
Verizon further will put qualified SYNNEX partners through its free certification program so they understand what they’re selling and how to sell it.
Being able to sell Verizon’s services will create multiple opportunities for VARs, said Janet Schijns, vice 
For one, adding fixed, mobile, cloud- and premises-based solutions to their portfolios makes them even more indispensable to their customers. In other words, as the “board room table” conversation changes from one of lowering costs to solving business problems, SYNNEX partners get to become and remain part of that discussion because they now can offer the full gamut of products and services, Schijns said.
In fact, VARs will grow even more as “engineer generalists,” as Schijns put it. For instance, a dozen years ago, partners were focused on connecting customers to networks. Ten years before that, they were concerned with helping clients communicate.
“Now it’s, ‘I’ll figure out what you want to solve, the answers you’re looking for,” Schijns said. “This is going to become the generalist engineer who says, ‘Tell me what you’re trying to do and then I’ll engineer it. This is where SYNNEX is really going to help us.”
MOBILITYSolv-Verizon capabilities also will further help resellers expand into the mid-market, said Schijns.
Finally, teaming with Verizon also will allow SYNNEX VARs to develop a recurring revenue compensation model. IT partners know they need to move away from the fading up-front payment model, but are at pains to do so. Dow said SYNNEX is getting around that problem by helping VARs to attach annuity-generating services to hardware sales, such as by supplying 3G or 4G Verizon connections with routers. That way, both up-front and recurring revenue come with the deal. For its part, Verizon even is offering some up-front options.
The assistance with traditional up-front payment should help SYNNEX address some of the biggest hesitations partners are expressing. Dow said some resellers are doubtful about selling voice. It’s the lowest hanging fruit, he said, but many resellers fear VoIP will hurt their moves/add/changes business, where they can charge something like $150 per hour. However, as soon as they understand how quickly VoIP installs, the associated margins, and that they still sell the routers and switches, plus they’re providing service with the Verizon name behind it, “they’re ecstatic,” he said.
SYNNEX is a Gold member of the recently overhauled Verizon Partner Program. Benefits of that status include access to Verizon’s training and certification program, market resources and development funds, sales and technical support, and the Partner Relationship Management Portal.
