Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM) today welcomed hundreds of channel partners to its 2013 Spring SMB Invitational in Hollywood, Fla. Anchored by Ingram Micro’s U.S. SMB Alliance (SMBA) partner community and SMB Business Unit, the bi-annual event focuses on educating, inspiring and enabling channel partners serving the small to midsize business (SMB) market. Follow event activity on Twitter @IM_SMB and #SpringSMBI, or register online to participate in the event virtually.
“SMBs are among the top consumers and early adopters of technology, which is why they represent a sales goldmine for channel partners who know how to put IT to work,” says Kirk Robinson, senior vice president, Commercial Markets Division and Global Accounts, Ingram Micro. “As an indispensable business partner to the IT channel, one of our top priorities is partner enablement. We invest in a number of areas and wear multiple hats so that our channel partners can leverage the power of Ingram Micro and capitalize on the market’s full sales and services potential.”
Over the past 18 months, Ingram Micro has continued to invest in and enhance its SMB resources, which include the SMBA partner community and Ingram Micro’s SMB website (www.im-smb.com), as well as a highly skilled team of dedicated credit analysts, marketing professionals, business development managers, cloud services experts and field-based technical solution engineers. Last year, the distributor introduced its SMB 500, an annual ranking of Ingram Micro’s fastest growing, SMB-focused channel partners, and expanded its portfolio to make it easier for SMB partners to cross-sell products and solutions from other Ingram Micro subsidiaries including AVAD and Ingram Micro Consumer Electronics (IMCE).
The distributor’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed. Earlier this year, readers of ChannelPro-SMB recognized Ingram Micro and its SMB business unit for having the “Best Partner Program.” The 2013 award was presented to Ingram Micro’s SMB team in response to its exemplary efforts around partner enablement and demonstrated expertise within SMB sales. In 2012, Ingram Micro also earned top honors in four distribution categories in the ChannelPro-SMB 2012 Readers’ Choice Awards including Best Cloud/MSP Service Offering, Best Financing Options, Best Sales Support and Best Training Programs.
“If a channel partner is looking to fast-track his or her business for success in SMB, then Ingram Micro is the business partner of choice,” says Jamie Ferullo, co-host of the SMB Invitational and director of SMB sales, Ingram Micro U.S. “Our SMB business unit, SMBA partner community and SMB Invitational are a business-building trifecta that channel partners cannot get anywhere else.”
Throughout the SMB Invitational, attendees will engage face-to-face with peers, technology manufacturers and Ingram Micro associates, as well as hear from several IT channel executives, industry thought leaders and business influencers including motivational speaker Mike Abrashoff, who is a former Navy Commander and author of “It’s Your Ship,” a best-selling book on management strategies. The event’s title sponsors include Brother, Cisco, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft, Microsoft OEM, Ricoh, Sharp, Symantec and VMware.
