Blue Coat introduces professional services partner programme

Blue Coat Systems (Nasdaq: BCSI), has unwrapped a new programme to help its channel partners deliver professional and consulting services.

The BlueTouch Professional Services Partner (BTPSP) Program supplements the BlueTouch Support Partner Program by providing additional tools, certification and training to assist partners in developing consultative relationships with their customers.

The two-level programme allows certified channel partners to provide a variety of professional services, including network design; installation and configuration of Blue Coat products; testing and migration from staging to production-ready environments; migration and upgrades; and management and monitoring. Additionally, certified partners can participate as subcontractors to Blue Coat in professional services engagements that it manages. The BTPSP Program is part of the Blue Coat Channel Advantage Program and is available to all Premium and Elite partners. 

Says Andrew Lev, group senior vice president marketing, alliances and channels at Blue Coat partner Integralis: “With this programme, we are complementing our trusted advisor services with a valuable consultative approach that allows us to share our expertise and ensure our customers’ networks are optimised to best serve their business requirements.”
Levels
The BTPSP Program provides two levels of partner certifications: BlueTouch Professional Services Partner and Master BlueTouch Professional Services Partner. Additionally, the programme offers individual certifications in the key Application Delivery Networking specialisations of visibility, acceleration and security. Certified BlueTouch Professional Services Consultants must be certified in the acceleration specialisation and at least one other. Certified BlueTouch Professional Services ADN Architects must be certified in all three specialisations and have proven lab experience with Blue Coat products.

“Blue Coat has created an offering that enables partners to increase service attach rates and margins while building more strategic relationships with their customers,” says Jim Harold, VP of worldwide channel sales at Blue Coat Systems. “Empowering our partners to sell and support Blue Coat deployments is the cornerstone of the Channel Advantage Program. By aligning our partner skills with customer requirements everyone wins.”