CA Technologies boosts Aussie drive with channel hire

CA Technologies is continuing its assault on the A/NZ market with two new channel-focused hires across the region.

The company has appointed former Oracle and HP channel exec Trevor Rogers to the newly created position of channel account director for Australia.

Rogers was in charge of Oracle’s Fusion channel relationships, and prior to that managed HP’s software channel partnerships.

CA has also appointed Lourens Strydom as channel account director for New Zealand, replacing former channel executive Cory Grant.

Strydom and Rogers report to CA’s sales director Klasie Holtzhausen.

Today's announcement marks CA's second wave of channel hirings in a year. Last year, CA added two experienced executives to its channel ranks, snatching Robert Watson and Beth Ryan from IBM.

Locally, CA has moved aggressively to improve its channel-friendly image in the past year, expanding its partnership with Westcon for distribution of its enterprise solutions in Australia.

CA also kicked off its new, simplified partner program in a bid to improve its relationship with the channel, through which around 40 percent of its revenue currently flows, later bringing it to Australia.

The software vendor replaced the gold, silver and platinum tiers of its partner program with 'advanced' and 'premier' levels, in response to partners who called for a simplified and more defined structure.

It also overhauled its MyCA Partner Portal to include upgraded sales tools, training and marketing support. The updated program includes new technical support and resources, online forums and communities, marketing tools and resources, and sales and education benefits.

CA said financial incentives, including marketing and business development funds, had been improved but declined to disclose details.

At last year’s CA World conference in Las Vegas, CA CEO Bill McCracken said the channel would form an important part of the company’s plan to snatch a larger portion of the cloud market.

"We're doing this because of the transition that's happening in those midmarket accounts with respect to cloud and SaaS. It's a big, open opportunity for us and there's significant demand for our products there," he said.

“And because those mid-market customers are largely serviced by solution providers, systems integrators and, increasingly, managed service providers, the channel plays a major role in CA's strategy.”