At InterSystems, we’re immensely proud of our enduring supply chain partnerships. Through our Partner Programme, we have a network of over 1,200 trusted partners across the globe, some of whom we’ve had the pleasure of working with for several decades.
Our partnerships empower us to tackle critical data challenges head-on, providing solutions that evolve alongside our partners’ needs. Not only are we invested in the success of our partners, but we also know just how much value our supply chain partners offer us.
In this blog, Enzo Brienza, sales manager, InterSystems, talks us through the power of supply chain partnerships and the benefits that organisations stand to gain by partnering with InterSystems.
What benefits do supply chain organisations get by becoming an InterSystems partner?
One of the key benefits is that not only does the integration of InterSystems technology offer the opportunity for enriched product features and capabilities, but ultimately can lead to the development of scalable new products and services expanding the existing customer base. For example, we already have a footprint across the supply chain, logistics, pharmaceuticals, and fast-moving consumer goods sectors, and within major institutions like the NHS, so working with InterSystems allows supply chain partners to leverage those existing relationships and the processes we have in place.
When launching a new product to market, we already have the distribution mechanisms that will help our partners to deliver their supply chain solution. This kind of network would take start-ups, for example, many years to build.
Benefits for our partners will vary according to their size and the number of their people who have gone through certification and have experience in our technology. That gives different levels of access to our partner program and portal.
For me, learning services opportunities are a key benefit for our partners, but joint marketing also becomes more attainable, along with networking events and partner activities including personal and virtual events. A great example of this is our work with M-Tech - one of our long-standing partners and providers of ERP software application, AMO. As well as supporting M-Tech with the development of AMO, we have worked together on several co-branded marketing initiatives. This combination has helped M-Tech successfully execute its growth strategy and consistently deliver top-tier services to accelerate its clients' growth.
The thrust of this is to facilitate, not just use of our technology, but also the ways in which a supply chain partner can develop their business. We understand their business model and see how they can develop opportunities.
How can organisations improve their chances of being selected to partner with a business like InterSystems?
For very successful organisations, requests to partner are a regular occurrence, so to ensure business stands out among the competition you mustn’t just view a partner as a distribution channel.
Instead, you need to understand how that potential partner operates, their needs, and what value you might offer. It’s not enough to just have a good idea, you have to demonstrate the real value it will deliver to the partner and their customers. If you’re unable to do that, then your chances of moving forward with a partnership are very slim.
Having those points front of mind in your partnering strategy will help to build those relationships and give the partner a vested interest in taking the solution to their customer base. From my experience, this approach is what distinguishes the successful partnerships from those that don’t succeed or see low adoption.
What benefits does InterSystems get from its partnerships?
Historically, InterSystems always sold through a strong network based on our technology. That has been a very successful model and continues to be. Partners sell applications and we sell licences, and that provides us with revenue and enlarges the customer base. It’s all about extending reach.
Now we have a mixed model, selling platform solutions directly to end users in supply chain, healthcare, financial services, and more. They are delivering applications based on our technology and we also have partners providing services – some do both. Many of our supply chain partners are very service-led and provide assistance to people wanting to take advantage of our technology but who don’t have in-house expertise.
What is behind the most successful supply chain partnerships?
Our software gives supply chain businesses a competitive advantage. When delivering supply chain applications and solutions with InterSystems, they can build faster and more economically. What they build is more robust and requires less support.
This enables them to grow dramatically. We have a full range of partners, from large supply chain solution providers such as Principal Logistics Technologies, to very small start-ups with tech challenges they want to address with our platform.
That reduces the number of moving parts in their solution and allows them to be more agile, giving them a route to growth. Our platform works well at the very small end of requirements and continues to work well at scale.
Our work with UST Optum is just one example of a successful partnership. InterSystems Supply Chain Orchestrator is the optimisation engine behind UST Optum. By driving efficiencies at scale and speed, UST Optum is able to provide real time insights from vast amounts of disparate data to improve supply chain KPIs.
What is different about the support InterSystems provides?
The other thing that makes a big difference to partners is the support and assistance we provide, which is multi-faceted. The world-wide response centre is never closed, so people always get assistance, whenever they need it and whatever they need it for.
We get high ratings for the quality of our support and are providing the best service in the market, including bespoke engineering support. We have an excellent sales engineering team and part of their job is to work with existing partners and build long term relationships tackling tricky problems. We work with new prospects and customers on innovative solutions. Being able to fall back on those capabilities within InterSystems is why companies tend to stick with us – in some cases right from their inception.
Stability is what we bring – we are always there to provide support, rather than moving on to something else. This gives a lot of reassurance to people making technology decisions – knowing we will be there when they sign off a new contract.
People always come to us with new technical challenges for us to solve, and we enjoy tackling them, whether that is some new diagnostic technique or relieving an admin burden. Working to address these problems is always rewarding, especially when we see the benefits delivered to the end-user customers. And seeing it deliver benefits it’s what it’s all about for me.
If you’re interested in unlocking the potential of a partnership with InterSystems, get in touch here.