Client Reference Business Objects OEM/ISV Engagement

A research project focused on the ‘sell with’ and ‘sell through’ relationships that drive adoption of Decision Support software through software development partners. We evaluated the programs of competitive vendors and carried out a program of partner interviewing worldwide.

bChannels services for Business Objects

Overall Objective

To benchmark the requirements and benefits of the Business Objects OEM/ISV program against six other vendor programs, three direct competitors and three complementary vendors. Focus on three key program components:

• Pricing, licensing, joint planning and co-marketing
• Technical enablement, integration and support
• Program requirements and benefits, partner status

To provide actionable recommendations, including an assessment of the impact of Open Source on the channel relationship.

Methodology

We interviewed 24 partners in Europe and North America, selected to represent the mix of OEM/ISV partners in the Business Objects channel. bChannels developed the ‘topic guide’ to drive the discussions, built a database of key interview targets and carried out the interviews over the course of three weeks. We exceeded our interview quota.

Analysis

Our analysis provided Business Objects with a side by side presentation of the target programs by component requirement and benefit. We also provided a deep dive on each program detailing its current status and providing partner feedback. We identified the strengths and weaknesses of the Business Objects OEM/ISV engagement.

Why this matters to Business Objects

The OEM/ISV channel is key to Business Objects as a large number of partners embed Business Objects leading Decision Support application into their own software applications. Our work helped Business Objects take appropriate steps to ensure that their OEM/ISV partner program continues to drive that relationship.