News and Awards
First Distribution
News
Some of the latest developments
regarding the distributor.
First Distribution Helps Customers
Embrace the Cloud Though Microsoft
Cloud Solution Provider Programme
The Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider Programme
allows First Distribution to provide direct billing, sell
combined offers and services, as well as directly
provision, manage and support Microsoft
cloud offerings.
irst Distribution, South Africa’s leading distributor
for datacenter, enterprise and cloud solutions,
today announced being awarded entry into the
Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) Programme. The programme is designed to strengthen customer relationships and expand cloud sales opportunities by enabling partners to provide direct billing, sell
combined offers and services, as well as directly provision,
manage and support products and services.
F
Starting today, First Distribution owns the complete customer lifecycle, allowing it to easily sell Office 365 and Windows
Intune subscriptions and helping customers take advantage
of cloud services by owning the entire billing process and
directly managing support.
“First Distribution has been cognisant of the impact of
cloud for some time now, and of the growing industry trend
towards cloud-based platforms and applications. This
resulted in the formation of First for Cloud, Africa’s original
cloud services brokerage, in 2014 as a subsidiary of First
Distribution” said Kevin Derman, First Distribution’s General
Manager for Cloud and Hosting.
“We are seeing a continual and growing interest in cloud
technologies, and being awarded entry into the Cloud
Solution Provider programme allows us to build stronger
relationships with our partners, and provide them with the
best cloud solutions to propel their businesses” he added.
“To meet the growing demand of our cloud-based solutions,
we’re thrilled to expand the capabilities for cloud partners
under the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider Program,” said
Phil Sorgen, corporate vice president, Worldwide Partner
Group at Microsoft Corp. “ By joining the Microsoft Cloud
Solution Provider Programme, partners will deepen customer relationships and expand business opportunities in
the cloud.”
First Distribution has a proven set of cloud capabilities,
which now forms a core part of its business operations.
Not only has it created the First for Cloud cloud services
brokerage as stated above, but its Cloud and Hosted
Solutions division is a multiple-award winner, having most
recently won the Microsoft Cloud Solution Reseller (CSR)
SPLA Distributor award in October last year - an area of
business in which the distributor has specialised for over a
decade.
It has shown a deep understanding of client hosting business, vendor licensing agreements, license configuration,
reporting and ensuring SAM compliancy of its business
partners, whilst developing industry-first cloud enablement
initiatives such as its current Cloud Catalyst Programme created to enable business partner transition to cloud-based
business operations.
First Distribution is constantly seeking to expand its cloud
initiatives, making the opportunity to become a 2-Tier Distributor of Microsofts’s Cloud Solution Provider programme,
and bring further added value to business partners’ operations, one not to be missed.
For more information on Microsoft CSPP, please contact Kevin Derman on (011) 540 2640 or kevin.derman@
firstdistribution.co.za.
04 | www.firstdistribution.co.za