Channel Mechanics CEO, Kenneth Fox, discusses the delicate relationship between VARs, MSPs and Vendors with Channelnomics

A VARy delicate relationship: VARs, MSPs and Vendors

Channel Mechanics CEO, Kenneth Fox, firmly believes claims processes, delayed reimbursement and irrelevant offers all plague VARs, partnered with vendors using antiquated processes.

In a recent interview for Channelnomics, the business news, analysis and opinion site for the U.S. channel, Kenneth Fox gave his reaction to the Forrester report published earlier this year that reported how using spreadsheets to manage channel incentive programs leaves vendors vulnerable to partner miscommunication and non-participation, or worse still, mistakes resulting in expensive payout errors, once again highlighting the delicate relationship between VARs, MSPs and Vendors.

While this may not be a surprise to most people in the channel, it’s shocking just how many vendors still abide by this antiquated process. But what does all of this mean for VARs and channel partners broadly?

One of the key issues you may find yourself facing is a frustrating claims process. It goes without saying that when processes are manual, they take longer and are prone to human error. By using spreadsheets to manage incentive programs, the process is long and drawn out, and miscommunication is common.

For VARs, this translates into frustration when time is spent submitting a manual reimbursement claim, only to hear silence from a vendor. Or when you have to resubmit due to errors or find out that the price paid was not inclusive of all credits and rebates. Multiply this by each additional vendor the VAR is working with, and the frustration only escalates to highlight the relationship between VARs, MSPs and Vendors.