agiles
To grow business and generate new revenue, Microsoft® Gold
Certified Partner agiles wanted to establish its own international
reseller channel. To do so, the company began with its line-ofbusiness
solution, agilesWorkflow, which helps partners eliminate
the need for time-consuming custom development or integration
work required to provide workflow solutions to customers or extend
their own solutions. To accelerate the success of its new channel,
agiles engaged Microsoft and other partners for their knowledge
and support, and achieved the Certified for Microsoft Dynamics®
NAV logo for its solution to build trust in its brand. Over the course
of a year, agiles has built 35 new reseller relationships, reaching
nearly 60 customers and increasing company revenue by 25
percent.
Business Need
Since its founding in 1989, Microsoft® Gold Certified Partner agiles has developed three
add-in solutions for Microsoft Dynamics® NAV. These include the industry-specific solutions agilesFruit and agilesTrade, which serve the needs of international food and nonfood traders who have a complex supply chain for importing those products to the European community, and agilesWorkflow, which extends Microsoft Dynamics NAV with fully integrated workflow functionality. Based in Hamburg, Germany, agiles has traditionally served its local market with its consulting and implementation expertise. Company leaders at agiles, however,
understood that they could grow the business by broadening this customer base and
making their solutions available worldwide. To do so, company leaders made the
strategic decision to establish an international reseller channel by still providing consulting and implementation locally, but now relying on other partners to drive the success of the agiles solutions in markets outside of Germany. Says Christian Sega, CEO of agiles, “We
identified, based on the projects we had done in the local market, that there was a need for
workflow functionality. After market research and strategic meetings with other partners
who work internationally, we identified the sales potential of opening a new distribution
channel worldwide.”
Solution
As it set out to build its reseller channel, agiles determined that its line-of-business
solution, agilesWorkflow, would appeal to the broadest number of Microsoft Dynamics NAV
partners that could use the solution to extend their own industry-specific solution offerings.
Further, because the solution is fully integrated with Microsoft Dynamics NAV,
agilesWorkflow would help these partners reduce the costs of deployment by eliminating the need to perform integration work with a third-party workflow solution during customer engagements or develop their own solution from the ground up.
Overview of agilesWorkflow
A lightweight and easy-to-deploy solution, agilesWorkflow helps increase the effectiveness and efficiency of business processes by simplifying and automating routine processes and all associated tasks. Fully integrated with Microsoft Dynamics NAV, agilesWorkflow provides prioritized task lists with an associated workflow. When task status changes, agilesWorkflow can send email notifications to employees and teams through Microsoft Office Outlook®. Tasks in agilesWorkflow can be shared through task lists in Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server, enabling companies to extend the functionality to business partners and customers, and across their supply chains.
Gaining Certification
To help establish traction with potential resellers who might not be familiar with agiles or its solutions, agiles submitted agilesWorkflow for certification through the Certified for Microsoft Dynamics program.
Gaining certification, which requires rigorous testing and review by Microsoft, helps build confidence in the solution, demonstrating to partners and customers, that the solution met the requirements of a demanding review process. Says Mandy Dore, Director of International Partnering of agiles,
“TheCertified for Microsoft Dynamics NAV logo lets our partners and their customers know that we are serious about the solution. Microsoft tested our software, checked our documentation, and reviewed 10 customer references to ensure that our solution was
solid. It gives both partners and their customers confidence to know that Microsoft
approves and supports our solution.”
In addition, the Certified for Microsoft Dynamics NAV logo helps agiles differentiate
agilesWorkflow from competing solutions and carries a range of marketing benefits. For
example, the certification secures agilesWorkflow a priority listing in the
Microsoft Dynamics Solution Finder, inclusion in a catalog distributed to partners worldwide,
and featured placement on a partner-topartner Web site that markets on certified
solutions. The company can also display the Certified for Microsoft Dynamics NAV logo on
its own collateral as a stamp of approval for its workflow solution.
Vidyadhar Gandikota (VG), President and Chief Architect of One Business Solutions—a
reseller of agilesWorkflow—
agilesWorkflow is Certified for Microsoft Dynamics means that the product is of a high
quality and that standards are in place,” he says. “It has proper manuals and online help,
and the code is good, which means that upgrades are easier and customizations on
top of the product are as simple as making them on top of Microsoft Dynamics NAV
itself.” VG also finds that the benefits of certification extend to his customers as well. “Customers can get the true value of the solution, because of the manuals and online help,” he says. “They are empowered to train themselves and support the solution, which is
important as their staff may change over time.”
By offering agilesWorkflow, One Business Solutions now has a formal workflow offering
in place, and over the course of one year, has provided the solution to three customers
totaling around 300 seats.
Turning to Guidance from the Experts
Before bringing agilesWorkflow to international markets, agiles consulted with other Microsoft Gold Certified Partners to establish best practices around building a reseller channel. Says Dore, “We met with partners that we already knew had been successful in establishing a reseller channel to learn as much as we could about their experience.”
The company also engaged with Microsoft, attending a two-day workshop hosted by the York Group, which discussed how to build an international business and set up a partner
network. Following early partner interest in agilesWorkflow, Dore fielded frequent questions regarding the solution’s readiness for Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009. Through a Microsoft ISV beta program for Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009, agiles developers received the objects and guidance needed to upgrade agilesWorkflow for Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009 and ensure that the agiles solution was fully compatible with the most recent version of Microsoft Dynamics NAV before it was released. Since then, agilesWorkflow has received the updated certification for Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009.
Reaching Out to Resellers
Dore has found conferences revolving around
Microsoft Dynamics to be the most effective means for establishing agiles’s international
reseller channel. Over the last year, the company has attended Convergence®
Partner Days in Switzerland and Sweden, and Directions—a partner-hosted conference
exclusive to companies focused on Microsoft Dynamics NAV.
Says Dore, “Conferences are the best way to meet with partners and build our reseller
channel. We can hold a session, present our solution, and build the initial relationship.”
Dore notes that conferences provide over 50 percent of the business for agiles. In fact,
after a Directions conference in Atlanta, Georgia, three new partners signed up to be
resellers immediately after a one-hour presentation.
More: www.agilesworkflow.com
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