Training sessions for channel partners by vendors and solution providers help to realize the importance of partners and also empower them to work for the benefit of the business. Trained channel partners ensure that customers are a satisfied lot, because it is they who deploy the solutions and are the ones that customers rely on. Empowering partners therefore implies a greater confidence in selling a given solution.

Proper and regular training is also an extension to the sales team in the form of the channel. While training on the one hand empowers the channel, it can, on the other hand be used by the channel or the vendor to increase product and technology awareness among end customers.

However, it is important that the content of the training sessions be meaningful and pertinent to customers and partners. Otherwise training will be a waste of time and money for both. Trainers need to therefore understand their audience and then devise content to meet the requirements of these people.

Types of training programs
Training programs are divided into two categories. In one model, participants have to pay to attend the training, and are often given certifications at the end of it. In the other, training is given free of cost by the vendor or principal to partners. Experts believe that training sessions, which are paid for, most often get a far more serious audience. They feel that participation will be assured and the audience will pay full attention to all sessions.

However, when channel partners pay for their training, trainers need to make sure that the learners get some value addition, which will result in tangible return on investment because partners want to get the knowledge that will empower them to do better business. Unless people who receive the training are assured of this benefit, they would not be willing to pay.

When training is given free of cost, one has to chose the right kind of participants. The audience may include some people who are interested only in a particular technology, while some others may want more broad-based knowledge on various products. So it is imperative to understand the need of participants and invite them to the relevant program.

Training is imparted through sessions and seminars, which include power-point presentations and group discussions or via the Internet through webinars and product mailers. Many organizations also offer hands-on training for various products and technologies on site, to ensure that their partners are well equipped to answer various customer queries.

Channel speaks
Says Maqbool Hassan, VP and Head–IT, Infrastructure Solutions, Accel Frontline, Chennai, "Accel is a multi-vendor end-to-end IT solutions provider. Continuous technical training of our staff is imperative to our business. We encourage, facilitate and provide hands-on, intensive training to develop the technical skill-sets of our employees to effectively address the requirements of our customers. We have an exclusive cell devoted for this purpose, which schedules and imparts various programs to our engineers."

With every large systems integration project, Accel Frontline provides a training component as a value-add from its side to end-users who are trained in various technologies used. The solution provider has imparted many such training programs to corporate customers and believes that training is indeed a viable business opportunity for solution providers. It also has a separate Training Division called Accel IT Academy to address various technology-training requirements.

Training modules in organizations involve soft-skills, technical and process areas to aid in house skill up-gradation and technical modules to train customers on a project need basis. Staff members are also trained on managing IT services and processes that improve efficiency and communication in IT services.

Says Arobindu Basu, GM-Production & Service, Xenitis Infotech, Internal & Techno lab faculty, "Our training modules range from customer care, change in paradigm, future vision to PC fundamentals and best practices, network and security and trouble shooting practices Partners also get training from Intel, CA and Microsoft on products and are also eligible to get direct training from our faculty (same as internal training)."

According to Mr. Mahendra Lalwani, Director, TelExcell Information Systems Ltd., "We as a solution provider represent multiple technology companies in the country. Every principal company has different products and therefore at the very first level it is the principal company that trains certain select staff at its end. It is more like 'train the trainer program.' These trainers further impart the training to other staff and partners. At times, and with certain select companies, our staff has to qualify examinations and undergo certification programmes before they become eligible to impart the training. Training is an integral and essential part of the solution provision business, but not a direct business opportunity in our case. Unless we get trained on the product and solutions of principal companies, it is difficult for us to sell to our partners and customers."

Training and domain knowledge is important to understand and identify the business opportunities-which verticals they would find more acceptance and how are they deployed best so that they deliver optimum performance, says Mr. Lalwani, adding that, they receive training from principals on a very regular basis and percolate it further down the chain to their staff and partners. This helps to increase the Company's mind share among partners, who are more willing to do business with TelExcell owing to the higher recall value that training generates. "This distinguishes us as a value-added distributor (VAD), and we are able to provide prompt support, train the staff and partners, and educate prospective customers better and convert the leads into actual transactions more effectively," he adds.

Training: A business opportunity
Whatever method is employed and whoever is the target audience, vendors and have come to believe that training is a pre-requisite to ensure better business. They feel that when training is offered as a value-added service to the customer, there is no business opportunity, but if a paid model is adopted, then training could become a source of continuous revenue generation. According to Mr. Arun Xavier Biswas, GM - Technolab Pvt. Ltd., a Xenitis Group, "Training is an extremely viable business proposition and also an integral part of a total solution. If manpower is not trained on the required skill sets ensuring upgrades from time to time, the expected output would drop and optimum utility of manpower would not be realized. This would tell directly on the performance of the organization. In today's fast changing and competitive world, training ensures continuous upgrade of technology, a 'must factor' for adapting to the latest."

Since training does not involve raw material or production cost, the margin of profit is always high and can be rated as the biggest benefit from business point of view. It is a catalyst to a total solution and a 'must factor' to adapt to latest technology trends, feels Mr. Biswas who says, "Training contributes to a substantial part of an organization's operation cost. High budgets are maintained for such purpose. If an in-house training facility can be established, much of the cost can be reduced. Making it an independent profit center with the training facility available to the masses would make it a highly profitable opportunity."

Mr. Biswas also believes that as latest technology trends are emerging, the need for training manpower in an organization and adapting to the new technologies will be critical. The cost of quality training is therefore always high and hence training can become a continuous revenue stream for the solution provider community.

Agreeing with Mr. Biswas is Mr. Suresh Menon, HR head, Frontier Business Systems, Bangalore who says, "Training is definitely a viable business opportunity. Customers today look at value added services from the SP community. A solution provider who can deliver value added service apart from the routine sales and service deliverables stands tall among others."

Mr. Menon believes that there is and will be a huge market for SP's who can provide sales, service and value added business solutions and training, all under one roof. Therefore training can become a good revenue stream provided there is continuous improvement and innovation in the training offered, because it has to be relevant to customers and their IT environment.

Training, according to Mr. Nitin Shah, MD Allied Digital, Mumbai, falls into two categories. One, where training is offered as a form of learning, and becomes an essential component for the growth of the organization. This is applicable to training offered to employees to enhance their core capabilities. When training on the other hand, is offered to outsiders, it serves as a profit center to the organizations since the people who come for training, pay for it. This form of training can become a source of learning and in the bargain serve as a source for revenue generation.

"When one looks at training as a profit center, one must keep in mind the need to recruit the right kind of qualified trainers, update the syllabus regularly and also offer courses that would be in keeping with the business needs. Only then will the people who attend the training benefit from it," Mr. Shah indicates. Management becomes very critical if one looks to establishing separate training institutes, because they need to be networked very well with each other so that those coming for training get maximum benefit and the organizations realizes maximum benefits form the exercise.

Agreeing on the need for efficient management is Mr. Prabhakhar Kini, Chairman and Managing Director, Kinfotech Pvt Ltd, Bangalore who says that most people who come to acquire training believe that it is free of cost. With a mind set like that, training would not become a profitable option for a solution provider feels Mr. Kini who has since put on hold his ideas to start a training school for partners and customers in Bangalore. "A paid model is the best way out if one is looking to training as a business option. Offering training as a value-added service cannot ensure any revenue generation for the solution providers," he says.

For Delhi-based, Silicon Comnet imparting training has proved to be a continued source of revenue. The company has been catering to training since its inception in 1999 and Silicon Comnet has been making regular and constant profits to the tune of Rs.1.5 crores. Commenting on the same, Harsh Marwah, CEO of the Company says, "We wanted to contribute to the skill sets of people along with carving out a path through which we could generate more funds. We offer training modules for our staff as well as customers. Our training programmes are basically segregated into 3-4 parts, which are pre and post sales related training and is a mix of technical and commercial aspects, product specific training, support training, network and telecom related training, operating systems training, security etc. Silicon Comnet runs different training modules, which are classified as the retail model catering to the corporate, corporate level training sponsored by the corporate which is basic for their staff as well as clients. The beneficiaries from the training are peer partners, competitors, large system integrators and students.

Training: A value add for customers
While training serves as source of revenue for many solution providers, many organizations offer training free of cost to their partners and customers. For these people who do training for the customer as a value add and not to generate revenue, training is not a profit generation option. These solution providers believe it is sensible to start offering training as a value added service to the customers. The focus here, they say should be more oriented towards the needs of the specific companies. Since training is part of customer awareness and comfort guarantee to the end user, these organizations also offer courses to put customers in a position to take best advantage of their resources. If the deployment levels are large enough, it makes perfect sense to train the customers, but when it comes to smaller order values and different locations, it is better addressed through partners, and the staff at the next level, directly, they say.

Deeming training as one of the best options for solution providers to retain their distinct identity in this competitive world, Col. Balwinder, Director, Targus Technologies, feels that imparting product and solutions related directives to the clients can affect the progress of a partner. "Although we come in the hierarchy where we supply material to the end customer, one can't survive unless we extend value added options. We proffer training to our customers under three distinct heads - software related training, hardware related training and solutions training modules. During the course of time we have realized that just offering best pricing to the customer is not enough to engage him for an extended duration, but today's purchaser want something else to institute comfort level with his supplier. Here training holds a central position; it is a relation building exercise adopted by most solution providers in addition to being a revenue generation practice," he says adding that Targus extends value to their clients by guiding them on the technology they are going to utilize in carrying out their chores. Targus also provides training to a nucleus of its customers. The Company has an in house training facility from where training is imparted to its staff as well as prospective buyers.

Subbalakshmi BM in Bangalore, with inputs from Anjali Choudhury in Delhi, Piyali Guha in Kolkata and S Gopikrishna in Chennai.

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