Oracle hopes to grow its cloud partner network by a factor of 10, aggressively targeting channel partners and integrators with a new cloud programme, enticing business away from competitors.
The company is expanding its cloud business rapidly, bringing new line of business applications to the cloud and seeking partners with niche capabilities to establish footholds in a broader customer base.
At the same time, Oracle is launching initiatives targeting existing competitors like Amazon, in some cases simply by undercutting costs in basic services like cloud storage. The company is under return fire: Amazon has launched database products aimed squarely at Oracle's core business.
Across EMEA, the company wants to grow its partner network from around 11 000 members, to more than 10 times that, said David Callaghan, EMEA director of alliances and channels, at the Oracle OpenWorld conference in San Francisco.
"We're seeing triple-digit growth. In the last quarter alone, Oracle's cloud resale programme has grown year-over-year more than 122%. To sustain that we need to reach new partners and customers."
Oracle will target specialised partners, either in vertical markets or with skills in specific application lines such as HR, finance or CRM.
With an ever-expanding suite of enterprise applications in the Oracle portfolio, it is no longer practical for a small number of broad-based partners to encompass the entire suite, Callaghan acknowledges.
Point solutions can establish beach-heads within new customers, from where other partners can follow a "land and expand" strategy.
The Oracle Partner Network will be expanded to encourage partners to share expertise and identify mutual opportunities. At the same time, new partners will be allowed to join without any membership fees, allowing them to resell Oracle's cloud solutions, and access marketing and training resources.
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