Avaya and Vice President Ken Archer Honored by CMP’s VARBusiness Magazine for Outstanding Channel Programs and Leadership

Avaya and Vice President Ken Archer Honored by CMP’s VARBusiness Magazine for Outstanding Channel Programs and Leadership

Avaya awarded “Five-Star Partner” certification by publication; Archer named to VARBusiness Top Channel Executives list

For Immediate Release: 21-Mar-2007

BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Avaya, Inc. (NYSE:AV), a leading global provider of business communications applications, software and services, today announced that both the company and North American Channel Vice President, Ken Archer have been recognized by CMP’s VARBusiness magazine for outstanding channel programs, partnership and leadership in North America.

Avaya has been certified as a “Five-Star Partner” by the publication, acknowledging its commitment and strength of its programs for IT integrators, resellers and consultants. In addition, Archer has been named to its prestigious group of Top 60 Channel Executives. This is the second consecutive year VARBusiness has recognized both Avaya and Archer for channel leadership.

The “Five-Star Partner Program Guide” ranking is provided to companies with the most significant impact on the reseller community through programs and sales leadership with resellers. Of the 250+ vendor-program entries reviewed for the past year, only 60 companies received the coveted five-star rating in the magazine’s 13th annual Partner Programs Guide survey. The guide appears in the March 19, 2007, issue of VARBusiness.

The “VARBusiness Top Channel Executives” list is based on information from IT analyst data, market share and accumulated knowledge about the executive and his or her company. As vice president of North American Channels, Archer is responsible for channel sales, programs, strategy and development.

“We applaud vendors like Avaya for demonstrating best practices and for the leadership roles they have achieved within the IT distribution channel,” says VARBusiness Editor Lawrence M. Walsh.

Avaya’s channel programs are encompassed by the Avaya Global Partner Program framework. The framework includes partners that design, develop, distribute and service solutions using Avaya’s industry-leading business communications applications and provide extended value to customers. Part of the framework, the Avaya BusinessPartner program includes more than 1300 distributors, resellers and solution providers in North America. The Avaya AlliancePartner program also received the VARBusiness “Five-Star Partner” ranking in its first year of formal operation.

“A strong channel is critical to Avaya’s success, and we’re proud of the progress we’ve made under Ken’s leadership in developing strategic programs and integrating partners more deeply into our sales planning and execution,” said Kevin Cook, vice president, North America Region, Avaya. “Through 2007, we will build on that success with focused efforts in recruiting, training, and marketing programs that support Avaya’s transition to a software-driven, communications applications company. Our goal is to help ensure our partners are well-positioned to become trusted advisors for our customers, to grow their respective businesses, and augment the value of Avaya solutions.”