Re: SWMA question

[Jim Oberholtzer <midrangel@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

It is still the customers responsibility to keep up the maintenance on 
the software, and the BPs responsibility to assist in any way.  Clearly 
the BP failed to make some money here but it is still the customer that 
has the responsibility.

It's not IBM's fight.  Call who you will at IBM, their policy has been 
in place for many years and they have enforced it.

You can argue, and I'll agree there is an argument to be made, that 
IBM's business systems should be better at picking these situations up.  
However in the past, every time IBM has started doing it, the partners 
that make big money selling renewals throw conniption fits.  IBM can't 
win on this one so they just sit it out.

Jim Oberholtzer
Chief Technical Architect
Agile Technology Architects


On 7/2/2012 5:05 PM, Paul Nelson wrote:
> <<the customer who ignored the invoice>>
>
> Reread the first post. The customer did not get the renewal notice.
>
> Paul Nelson
> Cell 708-670-6978
> Office 512-392-2577
> nelsonp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx
> [mailto:midrange-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Jim Oberholtzer
> Sent: Monday, July 02, 2012 4:59 PM
> To: Midrange Systems Technical Discussion
> Subject: Re: SWMA question
>
> Paul:
>
> IBM has no part in this game, IBM's policies on this have been standard
> and constant for some time.  99% of the customers that get those
> invoices from a BP do exactly what yours did, ignore it.  It's up to the
> partner to have a sales function that makes sure the customer re-ups the
> maintenance not IBM.  While I was with one of the largest partners, we
> had a special sales person that did nothing but update SWMA contracts
> and Passport Advantage contracts.  She had by far and away the largest
> margins of all the sales functions of the company.
>
> You want to know who to be angry with, the customer who ignored the
> invoice and the partner that did bother to follow up on his biggest
> margin item, SWMA renewals.
>
> Pay the stupid penalty and don't forget next time.
>
> Jim Oberholtzer
> Chief Technical Architect
> Agile Technology Architects
>
>
> On 7/2/2012 4:26 PM, Paul Nelson wrote:
> > >  List,
> > >
> > >  Do any of you know the person at IBM who deals with business partner
> > >  relationships? I have a customer whose hardware and software maintenance
> > >  agreements expired last winter.
> > >
> > >  I just learned about it when I tried to order their V7 upgrade. I tracked
> > >  down a clerk at the BP, who told me that she had emailed a renewal notice
> a
> > >  month or so before the expiration date, but hadn't heard back from the
> > >  customer.
> > >
> > >  She told me the person to whom she had emailed the invoice, but got real
> > >  quiet when I told her that guy had been gone for almost a year prior to
> her
> > >  email. She got even quieter when I asked if she had bothered with a
> > >  follow-up phone call.
> > >
> > >  She just sent me a copy of the quote for setting up an new agreement, and
> > >  the penalty is 116% of the agreement amount!
> > >
> > >  What's wrong with this picture?
> > >
> > >  Paul Nelson
> > >  Cell 708-670-6978
> > >  Office 512-392-2577
> > >  nelsonp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > >
> > >
> > >  --