NetApp’s Partner Sphere program status report – SiliconANGLE

Partnerships are a core component of the technology space. For NetApp Inc., that ethos has spawned an expansive ecosystem for added value delivery in its native data management solutions domain.

With other allied companies in tow, what ideas does NetApp have on integrations and ecosystem interplay for the future?

“It starts from listening to our partners to co-selling with them, helping deliver customer success and then making sure that we have the programs to support them from an enablement standpoint — making sure that we are helping them build the certification levels that they need, the solution competencies to make them the best of the best out there to support NetApp and our customers,” said Jenni Flinders (pictured), senior vice president of the worldwide partner organization at NetApp.

Flinders spoke with theCUBE Research analysts Rebecca Knight and Rob Strechay at the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed NetApp enabling partner outcomes with initiatives such as the Partner Sphere program and strategic alliances. (* Disclosure below.)

The Partner Sphere program discussed

NetApp’s Partner Sphere program aims to help partners differentiate themselves by offering comprehensive services and support. Launched a year ago, the program has already garnered positive feedback from both the industry and NetApp’s partners, according to Flinders.

“[Partners can] take our amazing product portfolio, wrapped around with the services and all other offerings that we have, to bring to market solutions that can help them deliver customer outcomes and to help them be successful as well,” she said. “The partner program allows us to really interact with our partners based on their business models and how they want to interact with NetApp — so it’s been a beautiful program.”

Not limited to traditional go-to-market partners, resellers and distributors, the program also spans strategic alliances with industry players, such as Nvidia Corp. Approximately 86% of NetApp’s business is conducted through its partners, underscoring the program’s critical role in the company’s revenue model, Flinders added.

“Our partnerships stretch across different business models,” she said. “Nvidia [is a] strategic partner for us. Lenovo [is a] strategic partner for us. We have so many that are co-engineering with us, co-solutioning and co-selling. Together, we just bring beautiful stuff to the market for our customers.”

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE Research’s coverage of the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event: 

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event. Neither NetApp Inc., the sponsor of theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE