CISCO PARTNER SUMMIT, LAS VEGAS - April 15, 2003 - Delivering on its commitment to help drive channel partner productivity, profitability and ROI (return on investment), Cisco Systems, the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, today unveiled Cisco Partner View, a new productivity portal designed to change the way Cisco and its channel partners collaborate. Cisco Partner View serves as a channel partner's single-source for personalized channel application data and related Cisco information. Channel partners can quickly and easily gain access to critical partner specific information such as business planning, customer satisfaction, certification and specialization status, channel announcements, and e-learning helping them make more informed business decisions.
"We are constantly surveying our channel partners to see what we can do better to make them more successful. One of the biggest productivity issues facing our channel partners today is the inability to quickly and easily find information on our Web site," said Kevin MacRitchie, vice president, Worldwide Channels Operations at Cisco Systems. "Cisco Partner View is designed to help partners build sustainable success by helping them increase productivity and maintain a competitive advantage."
Personalized and Interactive Information, In One Location
In addition to bringing together multiple channels tools, applications, and content into one simple and convenient location, the portal's information is interactive, allowing channel partners to easily access the underlying tools and applications to view detailed information or edit data. The data is then updated in the relevant modules in Cisco Partner View.
There are three different ways that channel partners see information in the portal; personalized for the individual, personalized at the partner-level, and public views. Individuals see information specific to their Cisco.com ID, partner-level information is specific to the individual's partner company, and public views provide general information for all users who log into the portal.
"Cisco Partner View provides us with a single location to gain access to critical business information and delivers that personalized information directly to us," said Teresa Weipert, vice president, Global Infrastructure Services Alliances, Unisys Corporation. "The information accessible through Cisco Partner View allows us to take actionable measures to increase our real-time awareness of our customer's issues."
Certification & Specialization, Partner Development & E-Learning, Customer SatisfactionCisco Partner View provides channel partners with real time, detailed information about their company's Certification and Specialization status, tracks applications in progress and provides a summary of the partner's certified individuals. In addition to providing partners with detail specific information, the portal notifies and proactively alerts partners of their upcoming certification and specialization expiration dates.
The portal also provides partners with direct links to Cisco's Partner E-Learning Connection (PEC) website and delivers personalized information from the Partner Access On-Line (PAL) tool. Through the PAL modules in Cisco Partner View, partners are able to track end customer and partner satisfaction ratings and gain access to important support metrics, all in a single location, saving partners time and effort.
Lastly, Cisco Partner View also provides partners with access to the latest announcements and information regarding Cisco Channel programs, promotions, etc. There is also a Partner Help Online section, which provides partners with answers to any channels related questions.
"PartnerView will help us proactively manage key facets of our relationship with Cisco," said Jay O'Callaghan, vice president, Network Solutions at Avenet Enterprise Solutions. "We are encouraged that Cisco has listened to us and responded with a high-quality information management tool that helps us focus on development and customer satisfaction."
Helping Partners Manage Their Business
The Cisco Partner View portal provides partners with a business planning section where partners can gain access to and work on their business plans created through the Cisco Partner Business Planning tool. Announced last year, the partner business planning tool is designed to help partners and Cisco Channel account managers (CAMs) effectively target business opportunities and collaborate on a plan to capture those opportunities, while tracking progress toward executing the plan. By moving the Partner Business Planning tool into the Cisco Partner View portal, Cisco continues to formalize the business planning process between partners and the Cisco channel account team.
"As a Gold Certified Cisco Partner with IP Specializations, it is important that we maintain a close and productive relationship with Cisco as we continue to execute on our business plan and advance our position as a leader in the market," said John Charters, Chief Executive Officer at Expanets. "Cisco recognizes the value we bring as a business partner and continually works to support our sales efforts. Cisco Partner View is an effective portal and we look forward to the next phase that will bring real-time analysis of business critical data. This will help us to identify key target market opportunities faster which will increase our competitive advantage."
Availability
Currently over 50 partner companies have been developing and piloting Cisco Partner View for almost one year. Cisco Gold and Silver Certified partners can begin accessing the new portal in May 2003. Cisco Premier Certified partners will gain access in August 2003. To gain access to the site partners must have a current Cisco.com ID. For those partners interested in learning more about the Partner View portal go to www.ciscopartnerview.com.
