SoftwareOne integrates Crayon channel business across APAC

SoftwareOne has completed the integration of Crayon's channel business across the Asia-Pacific region under the SoftwareOne brand, combining the two organisations' partner networks, vendor relationships and technology capabilities into a single channel operation.

The combined business covers software asset management, cloud, cybersecurity, data and AI, and managed and technical services. SoftwareOne said partners will retain their existing customer relationships and continue working with the same local teams, while gaining access to a broader pool of specialist resources.

For ANZ partners, the integration adds capacity across solution architects, security and vendor specialists, bid support, practice development and technical expertise - resources the company said can be drawn into opportunities where partners need capability they don't hold themselves.

SoftwareOne said its services model supports delivery to, through and with partners, including white-label delivery under a partner's own brand and collaborative delivery on larger or more complex engagements. The company said the model is designed to complement a partner's business, with the partner retaining ownership of the customer relationship.

The integration also expands access to SoftwareOne's Partner Connections programme, which links resellers with specialist delivery partners for opportunities that may be difficult to pursue independently, and its ISV Innovation Hub, which supports partners commercialising their own intellectual property through vendor marketplaces and development support.

Partners will also have access to Cloud-iQ, SoftwareOne's platform for managing cloud and software subscriptions, covering subscription management, automated billing, usage intelligence and business insights.

“Crayon and SoftwareOne have both built strong partner relationships and deep technology capabilities across the region. By bringing those strengths together, we can offer partners greater breadth services opportunities, while retaining the local expertise and relationships that make the channel work,"  said Varun Paliwal, president of APAC at SoftwareOne.

“For us, the measure of success is not simply the scale of the combined business. It is whether we can create more services opportunities for our partners, help them respond to their customers and support them as they grow. That is what this combination is ultimately about.”

“The most important thing is that the combination creates more possibilities for our partners. We can bring more expertise into their opportunities, more services into their portfolio and more connections into their ecosystem," said Vikas Bhonsle, head of channel for APAC at SoftwareOne.

“If our partners are able to grow, win new opportunities and deliver more value to their customers, then the combination is doing what we intended it to do.”

SoftwareOne operates in more than 70 countries with around 12,000 staff and relationships across more than 7,500 software vendors through its global marketplace.