Azlan and EMC form strategic partnership to drive cloud services business with MSPs

• Leading distributor for managed services providers and global leader in IT-as-a-service will work together to enable business transformation for service providers across Europe
• Canalys says partnership aligns closely with direction of channel development and demonstrates EMC’s commitment to indirect model for cloud services

Basingstoke, 13 April 2015 – Azlan, the leading distribution partner for managed services providers and EMC, have formed a unique partnership that will give MSPs across EMEA the opportunity to take advantage of EMC’s industry-leading enterprise cloud services.

EMC is a global leader in enabling businesses and service providers to transform their operations and deliver IT as a service. This new business relationship will see Azlan working with EMC to identify, recruit and enable additional partners for EMC’s cloud-based solutions. The full EMC technology portfolio will be available to Azlan’s MSP partners, enabling them to deliver EMC Powered services These include EMC’s Backup as a Service (BaaS), messaging and collaboration, multi-tenant file storage, converged infrastructure and DR as a Service (DRaaS) offerings.

As well as focused training and technical support to MSPs working towards their accreditation as EMC Powered Cloud Service Providers, Azlan will provide active lead generation for partners through its dedicated MSP portal. Service providers will also be able to manage their EMC accreditation through the website and keep their business profile up to date, ensuring they maximise their potential opportunities. In addition, Azlan will offer EMC partners assigned sales and marketing support and executive sponsorship, working with them to create tailored EMC Growth Plans.

Joel Chimoindes, European Cloud Services Director at Azlan, stated: “EMC is providing a whole range of solutions that enable MSPs to embrace important opportunities and continue the transformation of their business to a services-based model. This is a strategically important business relationship for Azlan. One that significantly strengthens and extends our value proposition to MSPs and provides our partners with a unique opportunity to differentiate their business and to benefit from the high esteem and respect that EMC solutions command in the enterprise market.”

Philippe Fosse, Vice President Europe Channels at EMC, commented: “This innovative business relationship combines EMC’s best of breed cloud service offerings with Azlan’s unrivalled experience to deliver a quick and powerful route-to-market for managed service providers across Europe. The initiative will deliver rapid growth to partners looking to differentiate their business models with EMC’s leading hybrid cloud and data centre solutions, whilst providing a new approach for EMC Powered Cloud Service Providers to support our own growth ambitions. Our relationship once again demonstrates the strength of EMC’s commitment to developing key channel initiatives and we look forward to working with Azlan on what promises to be a very rewarding project.”

Alastair Edwards, Principal Analyst at Canalys, said: “This is a critical time for the channel, as resellers adapt their business models in response to growing customer demand for hybrid IT. At the same time, new types of MSP partner are starting to emerge. Distributors have always played a central role between vendors and channel partners, and that will remain true for new IT consumption models. Azlan’s ability to help partners develop a portfolio of IT-as-a-service offerings, expand their managed services capabilities, as well as provide training, lead generation and sales support, aligns closely with the direction we see the channel taking. And by working with Azlan to bring these services to market, EMC is also demonstrating its commitment to an indirect channel model for its cloud services.”

Chimoindes believes there are good opportunities with EMC for new service providers in the market. “Enterprises are embracing managed services and the hybrid cloud with real enthusiasm. EMC is one of the best-known and most trusted names in this market and it has an excellent set of solutions that meet the most pressing needs of organisations today. By engaging on the Azlan MSP Partner Programme and becoming an EMC partner, new services providers have an excellent opportunity to gain kudos and credibility in the market.”

Azlan is the leading distributor for MSPs in the European region. It has a dedicated team that provides expert technical pre-sales and active business development support. Azlan works closely with MSPs to understand their requirements and business objectives and to design solutions that meet current and future needs.

In addition, Azlan prides itself on delivering the best training available to MSPs in Europe. It offers partners the opportunity to see all vendor products in action at its business solution centres or via remote demonstrations. MSPs can also make use of Tech Data’s StreamOne platform to provide fully integrated sales and billing, making it simple for them to swiftly and accurately compile invoices for their customers at the end of each month.

Azlan MSP partners are also invited to cloud briefing and update sessions throughout the year. These exclusive events provide an insight into current trends and developments and the opportunity to engage and interact with Azlan’s team and vendor partners.

More information on Azlan’s successful MSP Partner Programme is available www.azlanmsp.com. This provides MSPs with access to a wide range of resources, including pre-sales technical advice, online training, advanced demonstration facilities and commercial and financial support.

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About Azlan
Azlan, the Enterprise Division of Tech Data Corporation, is a leading value-added distributor of networking, communications, midrange and enterprise servers, storage, software and unified communications solutions. For more information see www.azlan.com. Tech Data Corporation is one of the world’s largest distributors of technology products, services and solutions. Its advanced logistics capabilities and value added services enable 115,000 resellers to efficiently and cost effectively support the diverse technology needs of end users in more than 100 countries. Tech Data generated $26.8 billion in net sales for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2014. It is ranked No. 111 on the Fortune 500® and one of Fortune’s “World’s Most Admired Companies.”  To learn more, visit www.techdata.com, or follow on Facebook and Twitter.

For more information please contact:
Joel Chimoindes
European Cloud Services Director
Telephone: + 44 (0) 7850 312042
Web: www.azlanmsp.com