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Splunk Partner Portal evolves to boost channel partner experience
Splunk continues to invest in the channel with a revised partner portal, which provides visibility into the deal registration process, educational materials and other new features.
Big data software company Splunk Inc. has furthered its investments in its channel strategy with a redesigned partner portal.
The revamped Splunk Partner Portal, which launches today, adds features based on partner feedback for a more modern user experience, according to the company. For example, Splunk partners will find a streamlined deal registration process and a new dashboard that displays the statuses of their deals. The partner portal also offers an updated marketing campaign center and set of learning and development materials, such as a detailed onboarding plan.
At the SplunkLive! event in New York City on Tuesday, Splunk's area vice president of global partner program and operations, Brooke Cunningham, told SearchITChannel that channel partners have become increasingly integral to the company's growth strategy.
"We have been on a partner journey as an organization. With our CEO, Doug Merritt, [the Splunk partner ecosystem] has taken a leading position in our strategy as a company overall," Cunningham said.
She noted that Splunk has an active partner base of about 750 companies, which includes resellers, distribution partners and managed services providers. Splunk partners mainly focus on security and IT operations, she said, adding that internet of things and analytics are emerging areas partners are beginning to pursue. "We are starting to see new use cases pop up there, and I see that as nascent and a great opportunity for our partners if they are looking to expand," she said.
The company in March unveiled enhancements to the Splunk Partner+ program. The redesigned Splunk Partner Portal is a continuation of those channel outreach efforts, Cunningham said. "One major component of [the] day-to-day partner experience is typically your partner portal. ... We had a partner portal for a number of years, but it was not delivering at the level we needed it to for our partners."
In the second half of Splunk's fiscal year, which ends Jan. 31, the Splunk Partner Portal will introduce more visibility into data for distribution partners, as well as a "more robust, automated partner business-planning functionality that will be composed within the partner portal," she said. Additionally, Splunk is rebooting its partner locator to make it easier for Splunk partners to update their company profiles.
