RIVIERA MAYA, MEXICO – It’s been a year since Avaya outlined a major shift in its Avaya Connect partner program, a change that will see it transfer from its traditional stance of rewarding partners for the volume of Avaya product they sell to the value and expertise they provide.

While the announcements haven’t been as loud as last year’s stake in the ground, I found out by sitting down with global channel chief Jeremy Butt here at the company’s Americas International Partner Conference, that these is still a lot of developments going on. To name two: At the start of this month, Avaya started making customer satisfaction ratings a mandatory part of partner evaluations, and the company has made a subtle but important switch to how partners get access to marketing funds.

And a bigger change is on the way, as Butt said Avaya is piloting a program that will significantly simplify its partner pricing model.

Check out the video after the jump for full details straight from Butt.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHvq0b2Nusg

In the coming days, we’ll also be featuring part two of this video interview, in which Butt shares the top priorities towards which he’s pointing partners. Also, we chat with Avaya Canada chief Ross Pellizzari about the company’s Canadian business and opportunities.