The Canadian version of Sage Marketplace launches with over 35 validated apps, some of which are larger players, some of which are Canadian companies, and with VAR partners as well as ISVs being encouraged to submit their solutions.
Nancy Tichbon, Managing Director, Sage Canada
Business software vendor Sage has launched the Sage Business Cloud Marketplace in Canada, a specifically Canadian version of the Business Cloud Marketplaces they rolled out in the U.S. and U.K geos earlier this year.
The Sage Business Cloud comes to Canada considerably later than on the U.S. side of the border, where the offering debuted at the beginning of February.
“I wanted to make sure when we set this up and the curtains opened that we had exactly what we wanted in Canada,” said Nancy Tichbon, Managing Director, Sage Canada. “It was about taking that time to ensure this wasn’t just a marketplace. It is an extensive network of the right ISV partners. Our vision with the Sage Marketplace to bring curated solutions designed to work with our products and deepen, and extend the power of the Sage Business Cloud. For us, it truly is a storefront, We have verified them – and certified them. It’s not just a listing site. You can go in with Sage and browse, demo, order and activate all in one place.”
Sage’s Canadian operation – like the regional teams in Sage’s other geos – had a significant role in determining the timing of the launch in Canada, as well as its content.
“We drive a strategy globally from our Partner Center of Excellence, but it is owned by teams in the specific geos, who know what’s needed in the geographies,” said Jeff Chancellor, Vice President Ecosystem Success & Communities at Sage. “We have over 177 apps available globally, with each region having their own instance of the marketplace. As a region wants to expand them, its as simple as launching them through their regional market. Each region is able to curate the list, and we work hand in hand together.”
In Canada there are 37 apps on the Marketplace at launch. Some of these partners are global and others are local.
“We get the chance to add a specific app or not,” Tichbon indicated. “There may be a more local third party we want to integrate with instead.”
“They can also go in the other direction,” Chancellor added. “If, for example, a great partner in Canada wants to build to the global instances, they could have access to all of them if they wanted.”
The app inventory is a mix of larger companies like Auto Entry and Receipt Bank, and additional Sage products they have acquired or built out on their own, in addition to Sage Canada chosen and curated apps. Two of the Canadian ISVs in the Canada marketplace are True Sky, a business budgeting, planning and forecasting solution, and Credit Hound, automated collections management software that instantly shows customers what is owed and when to follow up on outstanding debts.
“Credit Hound expands us into Accounts Receivable,” Tichbon said. “We have been Accounts Payable.”
All of the apps on the marketplace undergo a rigorous review, with a security process which is standardized across the globe.
“The approval process starts by asking what additional functionality the customer needs to accelerate their business,” Tichbon indicated. “We then go through a very detailed ISV approval process, and every single one goes through a full security review.”
The Sage Marketplace also provides a path to the cloud for non-native ISVs.
Jeff Chancellor, Vice President Ecosystem Success & Communities at Sage
“We didn’t want to leave anybody behind,” Chancellor said. “Even with a non-native cloud ISV, we make it seamless for the customer and the ISV to interact even though they may not be fully connected. We also provide them with ability to engage with the marketplace in a way they can move to subscription billing through our marketplace. It makes it easier for the ISV to take their IP into the cloud at scale.”
Channel partners are invited to bring their unique products into the Marketplace as well.
“It is terribly important for our traditional VAR partners to start developing IP, if they haven’t already done so,” Chancellor indicated. “They take their professional services in to deploy our products, but the Marketplace is a place for them to partner more deeply, and to go more deeply into verticals with their IP. They can work with other partners to develop IP into their core product. We see this as central to building communities.”
“For our partners, it’s about extending the power of our product to create competitive advantage, bringing together the full ecosystem of what we can do,” Tichbon said.
Going forward, Tichbon indicated that Sage has an aspiration goal of adding 100 ISVs from a global perspective.
“That number is driven by a targeted list at a global level,” Chancellor said. “These are companies we want to build a relationship with. Our product teams have identified some very specific ISVs and developers they want to build relationships with, and local leaders like Nancy have their own designs on bringing in local companies.”
“It’s more about bringing on best of breed,” Tichbon stated. “We will bring in ISVs into our ecosystem that meet customers’ needs and hunt that way and grow these relationships. We aren’t just bringing in people to hit a numbers goal.
“We are super excited about the possibilities in the future with Sage Marketplace in Canada,” Tichbon concluded. “This is a platform which will play a major part in driving our success.”
