NEW DELHI: Microsoft Corporation India has launched the Microsoft Business Benefits Program for its channel partners. Said Ananth Lazarus, Head (SMB & Channel), Microsoft Corporation India, "Microsoft's vision is to empower, engage and excite the channel to sell end-to-end solutions to customers. We believe in equal partnerships, ensuring a non-biased approach in selecting our partners, empowering them with skills transfer and hands-on product training to move up the value chain to engage with customers at every level and feel excited to enhance their skill sets at any given point to offer value-added services."

He added, "The Microsoft Business Benefits program in this respect is a key element of Microsoft's channel strategy of offering invincible value to the channel community." The program, which started this March, would last till June 30, 2003 has been launched in six cities--Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and New Delhi. It aims to reach out to 600 channel partners in the first phase. Under the program, the eligible channel partners can redeem the reward points for the various benefits offered by Microsoft.

Elaborating on the scheme, Lazarus said, "The benefits have been divided into four sections--Business Builder, which will help channel partners build their business; Profit Builder, which will help partners build profits by covering business expenses; Team Builder, which is to help the channel partner disburse the incentives in the teams or individual performers; and Customer Excitement."

He added, "Our goal in designing the benefits for this program is to offer marketing, training, technical and other support to add to our partners' success. Each will have different needs, and priorities do change the flexibility in Business Benefits always allows the partner to make choices with his company's opportunities and challenges in mind."