“We are completely in the process of transformation with a renewed partner ecosystem”

What kind of opportunities does
India hold for href="http://www.dqweek.com/Adobe-plans-to-expand-its-channel-base">
Adobe's Indian channel partners as of now?

At a fundamental
level, Adobe is a 100% channel-driven company, and channel partners
are the heart and soul of our business. We don't do business
directly, as we run everything through our channels. To set down the
journey line for future, we have conducted the channel meets. In
terms of overall strategy, we are absolutely excited for the amount
of opportunities in India. If we look at verticals like media,
entertainment, video, broadcasters and post production, every
vertical is displaying growth. Like IT outsourcing, video outsourcing
is the latest trend in India and this is a very vital segment.

When we look at
the telecom sector, it has 800 mn subscribers and the trend of mobile
PCs is growing more and more. The data penetration is huge after 3G
has come, and the growth is immense in this sector. Moreover, apart
from the media, entertainment and telecom sectors, we also see huge
growth in the banking sector. The banking sector is trying to look at
offerings by which we can consolidate and increase efficiency and
bring down their cost and this is the area where Adobe banks. Fourth
segment we look for is the traditional IT segment, where lot of work
is yet to come in, as domestic IT market is becoming stronger.
Another area in which we see progression is the manufacturing sector,
and it has a large base to cater to. At last government and public
sector units, where we are totally 'gung ho' in this segment. So
to summarize, India is growing and we see massive opportunities here.
We see the growth of partner ecosystem along these opportunities.
Also to mention that we don't do a single dollar business outside
channels and it is 100% channel-driven. That is why our partners are
passionate towards Adobe.

Which areas would drive growth for
Adobe?

I think there are
3 key areas which would be the growth drivers. One is creative
segment across this country in any company. Second would be the small
business groups and third is the education segment where India is
poised to grow and we believe that it is the right move to invest in
this sector.

What is your channel strategy for
the near future?

In the next 3
years, we are aiming for 50% y-o-y growth. A third-generation program
named Adobe Partner Connection, has great engagement with our
partners and is based on the fundamental pillars of making a bigger
pie. We want our partners to invest and we would also invest in the
partners for growth. Investment is one of the pillars that would
drive growth for us. We have divided our partner program in
triangulated fashion and are looking at building volume layer where
partners transact with us and take up into tier-2 and tier-3 cities.
The second layer is how we build partners that get us certain volume
commitment of business over a period of time along with investments.
Right to the top of the layer, there are partners catering to
enterprise segments. In each layer, we are asking our partners to
invest a certain amount in us, and we are promising something in
return and building incentives in the form of attractive rebate
structure to drive channel beha vior within the partner program. We
are also asking part ners to look for specialized market segments for
more growth.

How is Adobe helping channel
partners to identify their segments?

What we are doing
as the part of the new program, is signing of a business. We have
regional partner account management structure in the country where we
have regional partners in the North, East,West and South regions, who
work with handful of partners to help frame business plan. Now these
are mutual business plans which identify the market potentials and
opportunities. We look at deeper long-term investment together.

The second thing
we look at is engagement model among customers, partners, and
ourselves. In some cases, we own a relationship with customers, we
lead and then our partners follow them, and most of the conditions
are applicable vice-versa. The third thing when we look at the market
structure is that do we have the requirement to fulfill the needs of
the market? We see the partner capability and then accordingly train
and certify them in technology to deliver value to customers.

Any plans to expand the channel
base?

I am happy with
existing channel base. We are looking to build a volume engine,
wherein through our distributors, we will reach out to more unmanaged
partners in tier-2 and -3 cities.

In the period of 4 months, what kind
of changes have you brought in Adobe?

At the fundamental
model, we made 3 changes. The first is go-to-market model, which was
driven initially by Business Unit Base model, but later chan ged to
triangulated structure. At top, we are looking at the largest
enterprises across verticals like media, entertainment, telecom,
banking and financial services, IT and ITeS, manufacturing, public
sectors and enterprises. We identify key engagements, where we have
direct presence in terms of serving those customers and large
partners serving these customers. Second, we are expanding the
strategic focus market. We initially had direct presence only in 4
cities, ie, Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai with pan- India
presence upto Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and Chandigarh. From there
we will spread out to more territories.

At the bottom of
the pyramid, it is the SMB and SOHO space, which is the heart of
business. There are more than 25 mn SMBs, who own a PC and if we can
sell 1 Photoshop license to all 25 mn SMBs, then I would be the
happiest individual in the company. To cater to this space, we have
specific 2 pronged strategies. One we have transformed the inside
sales engine, called Channel Sales Factor, where sales team work with
channel to serve the SMB market. So we do not serve this space
directly and make it channel focus engine. Second is that we are
trying to build a volume distribution strategy through our
distributors to reach out our customers in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

What is the one major challenge
ahead for Adobe?

We are completely
in the process of transformation with a renewed partner ecosystem and
this needs to be automated as there are lot of activities to happen.
It's not just a challenge but a huge task to be carried upon.