Qualex Consulting Services joins new SAS reseller program 5 September, 2006 By Liam Lahey

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According to Al Cordoba, vice president of software sales for Qualex, Qualex has observed particularly strong growth in the mid-market. SMB customers are demanding complete BI platforms with strong analytics.

"Qualex CS and SAS bring two fundamental strengths: Qualex CS' proven ability in deploying SAS solutions and SAS' reliable business intelligence software," he said. "By combining our unique strengths, SAS and Qualex CS will accelerate the delivery of unified solutions, providing our SMB customers a higher-quality user experience with greater support and lower total cost of ownership. That's where we can make a real difference."

SAS traditionally preferred the direct sales route versus the channel. The company is said to be offering VARs not only initial product license sales but also a recurring revenue stream via maintenance renewals. Thus a partner could receive 25 per cent of the renewal fee each year on deals they land.

Rob Enderle, principal analyst for the San Jose, Calif.-based Enderle Group, said when you want to move into an established channel you need to offer steep incentives to get around the pre-existing relationships.

"Channel partners traditionally, and for good reason, suspect anyone who has avoided the channel when they enter because they are seen as competitors and not good partners," he said. "It depends on how well SAS does to overcome this natural distrust. I expect SAS is big enough to create concerns with the other BI vendors and some may follow their lead while others, knowing the risks of channel conflict, will choose to take a wait-and-see stance to make sure the outcome is positive."

In the end, Enderle continued, the SAS-Qualex news demonstrates how incredibly important the channel is becoming again and this importance is driving an increasing number of vendors who need to reduce their cost of sales to use it.

Meanwhile, as a SAS reseller Qualex will promote and sell the SAS Enterprise Intelligence Platform, which includes data integration, business intelligence and analytics. Qualex will also bring to market its significant experience in the SAS Marketing Automation solution. SAS will train and certify Qualex sales staff and provide ongoing technical support to ensure an ideal customer experience, from pre-sales to implementation and beyond.

"SAS and Qualex will reach thousands of new customers in the SMB market to bring business intelligence to this underserved market space," Cordoba said. "SAS has recognized that SMB customers are different than the large size customers. SAS continues leading the BI market by addressing SMB customer needs in terms of functionality, pricing and support through its trusted partner network."

In addition, the two companies will engage in targeted marketing activities to drive greater awareness of SAS software in the Qualex CS' core markets.

"Qualex has been a leading SAS software solutions services company for years and we're pleased they've expanded their relationship with us by joining our reseller program," said Jack Duncan, director of channel sales at SAS, in a statement. "With Qualex as a SAS reseller, our customers will not only benefit from a comprehensive technology package that includes software and services, but also have comfort in knowing that they are covered all the way from pre-sales through implementation, customer support and maintenance."

Qualex has provided services to Fortune 500 clients in the financial services, insurance, telecommunications, energy, pharmaceutical, manufacturing, retail, health care, and government agencies for more than 13 years.