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Concur strikes global-first cloud agreement with NEXTGEN

Cloud-based travel vendor links up with local distributor
John Walters - Group CEO, NEXTGEN

John Walters - Group CEO, NEXTGEN

Concur has struck a global-first agreement with NEXTGEN in Australia, with the cloud-based travel vendor offer its spend management platform to end-users via the distributor’s partner ecosystem.

In widening the reach of Concur’s travel and expense management services, the deal represents the first distribution partnership for the software-as-a-service (SaaS) player across the world.

Specifically, the partnership allows NEXTGEN partners to leverage the vendor’s referral model, added to offerings through a simplified entry partnering model.

“Our partners will get the benefits of working with low-risk products which have a short implementation process,” NEXTGEN group CEO John Walters said.

“The referral process reflects a changing marketplace and is a win-win situation where partners can get paid for finding opportunities  and Concur will do the initial product implementation.

“There are no hard costs for partners, everything is bottom line and there is the opportunity to deliver additional services.”

According to Walters, the Concur platforms represents an “easy entry” into the cloud for customers, providing a pathway to migrate other workloads such as enterprise resource planning (ERP).

As a result, Walters said the distributor’s partner ecosystem will be “well-placed” to provide other cloud solutions and services to customers on top, with the vendor ERP agnostic across the market.

“The sales cycle for Concur is fast; it’s about 50 days, and the implementation is usually complete within four to six weeks,” Concur business development director Murray Warner added.

“This means it’s a quick win for the partner and the customer. They can both receive an immediate return and tangible benefits.

“Consequently, customers begin to trust the partner and are more likely to consider working with them on future projects including ERP implementations.”

Operating as an SAP company, Warner said Concur’s sales referral program is also complemented with a services program that offers partners the ability to help customers with implementations.

Partners can sign up to become a Customer Success Partner, which is designed to provide insider knowledge and training specific to the Concur Implementation process.

“The best thing about the relationship is the low cost of entry,” Warner added. “Partners simply need to pass the lead to Concur, and we close the deal and manage the implementation while the partner receives referral payments for up to two years.

“Partnering with a recognised distributor like NEXTGEN will also position us well for growth moving forward.”