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Okta, launched in 2008, has unveiled its first partner programs, aimed at accelerating the growth of the company’s cloud-based identity and access management platform and extending its partner network. The expanded partner ecosystem will help the enterprise-grade identity management service company increase its network of preintegrated applications, and develop and implement new offerings.
“Our vision as a company is to deliver a future-proof identity platform that securely connects any combination of applications, users and devices,” Frederic Kerrest, chief operating officer of the San Francisco-based company, said in a statement. “Our ability to achieve that vision depends on the quantity and quality of those connections, and the ability to implement our solutions with the ease, scale, and customization that our customers require. Okta’s partner ecosystem has been and will continue to be essential in driving these efforts forward.”
As a big part of Okta’s growth strategy, the company’s two new partner programs—Okta Solution Providers and Okta Technology Alliances—were developed for specific partners in its network, which include referral partners, resellers, system integrators (SIs) and independent software vendors (ISVs). Although the company previously worked with partners, including Box, Softchoice and ServiceNow, the “official” partner programs are designed to provide them with key benefits and rewards.
The Okta Solution Providers Program applies to all referral partners, approved resellers and system integrators. This program is designed to help customers “adopt, implement and customize the Okta service through trusted technology advisors.” Approved and certified partners under this program will benefit from discounts and rebates, technical and field enablement, funding for joint marketing initiatives, joint account planning, and executive sponsorship.
One strategic partner includes Softchoice, which is both a customer and a certified solution provider. “In an age when data and applications can be accessed across multiple devices and environments, enterprise identity management has become absolutely essential for ensuring security and a seamless end-user experience,” Dave MacDonald, CEO of Softchoice, of Toronto, said in a statement. “Through Okta we’re giving our clients a single, secure point of entry to any combination of applications, while centralizing administration for IT. Okta will continue to be core to our business as we help organizations reshape the way they approach technology and unleash the potential of the cloud.”
The Okta Technology Alliances (OTA) Program covers all ISVs in the Okta Application Network (OAN), including Salesforce.com, Workday, Box and ServiceNow. Under the OTA program, partners have access to more than 2,500 applications, which they deliver to customers as prebuilt integrations from any combination of applications.