Cleondris, a privately held Swiss software company specialising in data protection and recovery solutions for NetApp' ONTAP systems, is looking to expand its European channel partner network, with a primary focus on Germany.
The company, which has been a partner of hybrid cloud specialists NetApp for over a decade since its establishment in 2006, aims to onboard at least three major partners in the coming year as part of its strategic growth plan.
“We want to bring in around three ‘big’ partners because it takes resources to get to know these people, to do the sessions, and to help them,” said CEO Christian Plattner (pictured) at the 57th IT Press Tour in Istanbul, Turkey, last week.
“We’re not logo collectors. For us, it’s about working with partners who understand our product and can truly help the customer.
“We need partners who come to us and say, ‘We have the whole project ready, and we just need a final check.’ This type of partner is much more interesting to us.”
With a team of around 10 employees in Switzerland, the company works with fewer than 20 partners across Europe, including two key partners in the UK.
Its key partners in Germany include ProAct, Computer Center, SVA, and Advanced Unibytes, all of whom are highly experienced with NetApp systems.
“We focus on the ‘big four’ partners in Germany because they know what they are doing with the customer,” Plattner explained.
One of Cleondris' most significant partnerships is with ProAct, a European implementation partner with a strong presence in Germany.
Plattner emphasised that the company’s growth strategy revolves around expanding within ProAct’s network, starting in Germany and moving into Northern Europe.
"We want to grow inside ProAct and expand from there. This is our strategy to go into northern Europe," he concluded.
