Posts are in descending order, with the last post at the top.
10:24 – And that’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed our very first live blog coverage of any event! Let us know what you think, and if you’d like ChannelPro to do more live coverage in the future. Don’t forget to like ChannelPro on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
10:22 – Attendees get a chance to pick up an X1 Carbon, Tiny, ThinkPad Yoga, or SA120 Bundle at 50% off. See, next time you need to be here in person!
10:20 – Lenovo’s Daryle Ward addresses questions on IBM’s acquistion and product positioning.
10:16 – In short, IBM plus Lenovo = 9 Billion dollar x86 opportunity! Wow, that’s a lot of zeroes. Intel must be pretty stoked about it, too.
10:13 – What does the IBM acquisition mean to ThinkServer. No disruption to lifecycle for ThinkServer and IBM x86 portfolio through 2016. All IBM x86 product lines coming, including System x, Flex System, BladeCenter, and System Networking. Plus, 41 facilities in total including R&D and manufacturing.
10:12 – On the software front, Lenovo wants to fit in rather than force customers to change everything. “Cohesive management for simple deployment and use.”
10:08 – A much broader portfolio coming to the server space for Lenovo to “Attack the Rack.” Upcoming Intel refresh sparking lots of opportunity for the channel. Lenovo tower products will be refreshed, hoping to move up in 2-socket towers. New 650 series ThinkServer rack products coming that Daryle says “will offer capabilities Dell and HP won’t have.” Plus, great perforance options with less feature trimmings for “unbeatable value.”
10:06 – PSA: Don’t forget to like ChannelPro on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
10:03 – Lenovo’s Daryle Ward up next to talk Enterprise. First tidbit, Lenovo has doubled its server business in North America over the past year, and is now #1 in 1P tower. Lenovo EMC NAS business up 44%.
9:57 – Quick overview of the new ThinkPad Tablet 10: 1900×1200 screen, 64-bit Quad Core Bay Trail Atom, Digitizer, up to 4GB RAM, lots of security options, and accessories like the new quickshot cover (admittely very cool!). No more Bluetooth Ultrabook keyboard, and a really nice desktop dock option.
9:55 – Lenovo announces the new ThinkPad Tablet 10. We’ve got initial hands-on impressions, specs, and lots of photos in our coverage here.
9:51 – Bhatia just showed off how tough the ThinkPad Yoga is by tossing it on the floor from 5 feet up. Don’t worry, it didn’t phase it.
9:50 – Lenovo Announces ThinkStation P300. See our coverage here.
9:48 – 20 Years of Innovation!
9:45 – On design and innovation, when Lenovo came out with the 2013 line, the company spoke with over 900 customers in 9 countries. The result was thinner bezels, less distracting colors, and (unfortunately) that new customers don’t understand what the TrackPoint nub is for.
9:40 – Bhatia is highlighting the polarization happening in the PC industry amongst the compitition as companies like Sony sell off their PC businesses; reports indicate that Dell’s future isn’t in PC. Bhatia is bullish that the PC market is strong.
9:37 – Dilip Bhatia, the new Emporer of ThinkPad, coming to the stage.
9:33 – Rolling out the Combat Kits
9:29 – “The desktop is not dead. We’re setting records in desktop every day,” says Chris as he holds up a M93p Tiny PC (which is admittedly a pretty awesome SFF desktop).
9:27 – “Simple, Predictable, Consistent, Profitable.” You got to give Lenovo credit for sticking to this mantra over the past several years.
9:23 – FY14/15 Battle Plan: RM, Retail, SMB+, and Channel Management. The latter includes channel conflict and engagement policies, as well as inventory management – both important as the number of partners continues to grow.
9:20 – From 1 to 3 different Combat Kits. The PC kit has been refreshed (which 2,000 customers took advantage of), and now you can get a combat kit around ThinkServer (RD540 and T440) and Education (X140e, x131e, and M93p Tiny PC).
9:18 – We mentioned this yesterday on Twitter and Facebook, but Lenovo’s 60-day partner credit has moved the cap up to $500k. “If you can use someone else’s money for free, you should!”
9:15 – What’s coming up for Lenovo. Growth – rep spiffs, volume delegation, SMB partner Advantage. Acquisition – New customer bonus, Beat comp buckets, server conversion.
9:14 – Lenovo’s channel has been outgrowing the market for 16 consecutive quarters. They’ve put up a bunch of busy charts, but what they’re trying to say is that Lenovo’s channel is† knocking it out of the park.
9:09 – What’s the independent channel? They feel, training makes your sellers confident to pitch Lenovo and get the sales motion rolling faster. Faster means better sales velocity, and ultimately higher partner profitability.
9:06 – Up now, Chris Frey – VP North America Channel Sales and SMB+. His focus of discussion: Creating an Independent Channel.
9:03 – HAHAHAHA! Chris Frey and Sammy venture to the remote K-12 system.
8:59 – Chris Frey is coming up, and his follow up to the Hand-To-Hand Combat vid is reving up. It’s got a survivor feel at the moment.
8:55 – Jay’s wrapping up. The big question is being asked, “What do the IBM and Motorola acquisitions mean for partners as they talk Lenovo with customers?” They’re not answering it, besides saying “opportunity and growth.” They’re in a rough spot though, given that everything is still awaiting regulatory approvals Lenovo simply can’t say much.
8:53 – Jay Parker wants Lenovo to be a household name. “I think we’re where Nike was before the first Air Jordan, like where Google was before they became a great search company.”
8:48 – Improving customer experience is the number one focus at Lenovo right now. Things like moving their customer call center to their main campus in Raleigh, NC are examples of that commitment to service. They’re also moving all the consumer brand service on-site, too, not just the channel and Think level support.
8:43 – Lenovo’s adding 10,000 employees worldwide, 5,000+ of those will be in North America
8:42 – Interested tidbit: thanks to China, the number 1 downloaded app store is actually Lenovo’s.
8:39 – Lenovo NA CEO Jay Parker talking about the strategic rationale behind the upcoming purchases of IBM’s server business and Motorola’s handset division. In short, they want to play in NA NOW. On IBM, they already have a growing server biz, but they want IBMs expertise at the high end and talent. On Motorola, they get a respected brand, skilled R&D, and engineering.
From the data center to the pants pocket, they’ll be one of the few companies that have huge plays in server, storage, PC, and Mobile.
8:36 – Lenovo surpasses Apple.
8:33 – Lenovo brand awareness in consumer and SMB is up 67% in the past 2 years. That’s actually huge when you really think about it. Education shipments up 30%, Revenue growth up 28% YTD.
8:31 – Lenovo is #1 in PC globally, #2 in PC + Tablet, #3 in smart connected devices. 50,000,00 smartphones sold last year worldwide.
Sold in NA: 0, but that’s going to change.
8:29 – Think Ashton Kutcher was simply a Lenovo model? They actually hired him to help with the Yoga Lanch and branding!
8:23- Sammy Kinlaw brings up some big stats. 35% growth in SMB; 3,200 new partners; 1,200 new T2 Activation.
8:19 AM – The keynote kicks off with DJ Dilemma getting the whole house on their feet. Up next is Lenovo’s Sammy Kinlaw
