Reseller Training, what is a reasonable level of service to expect?

[.chad]

we currently have a contract with our reseller for training through out the year at their training sessions - i dont believe it covers custom / in-house training. I have routinely checked their website for up-to-date training information, and since the release of 2008 i have seen 3 dates for training, and they are all 3 or more hours away. they have local offices, and at least 3 offices with in an hours drive of here. when i last spoke with our sales rep, just before the 2008 roll out, he said dates would be updated soon, and those few dates aside, i have really not seen anything for 2007 or 2008 (ADT / ACA) training. am i expecting too much from them by looking for training that is a reasonable distance away and at semi regular intervals?

[CADDmanVA]

we currently have a contract with our reseller for training through out the year at their training sessions - i dont believe it covers custom / in-house training. I have routinely checked their website for up-to-date training information, and since the release of 2008 i have seen 3 dates for training, and they are all 3 or more hours away. they have local offices, and at least 3 offices with in an hours drive of here. when i last spoke with our sales rep, just before the 2008 roll out, he said dates would be updated soon, and those few dates aside, i have really not seen anything for 2007 or 2008 (ADT / ACA) training. am i expecting too much from them by looking for training that is a reasonable distance away and at semi regular intervals?

Depends. Was it part of the basic contract or a premium? (Yes I read the first line.) My point is most resellers don't care what their obligations are in the basic contract, and will only cater to those with premium upgrade BS contracts.

[CGM]

we currently have a contract with our reseller for training through out the year at their training sessions - i dont believe it covers custom / in-house training. I have routinely checked their website for up-to-date training information, and since the release of 2008 i have seen 3 dates for training, and they are all 3 or more hours away. they have local offices, and at least 3 offices with in an hours drive of here. when i last spoke with our sales rep, just before the 2008 roll out, he said dates would be updated soon, and those few dates aside, i have really not seen anything for 2007 or 2008 (ADT / ACA) training. am i expecting too much from them by looking for training that is a reasonable distance away and at semi regular intervals?

Hello Chad,
I would phone their office, to express your concerns.

Sale reps are notorious for double talk (imho), by which I mean he tells you one thing, and talks a different story when he goes to the head office. In both discussions the absent party is portrayed as unreasonable/negligent or whatever...
I say cut out the middleman, that way you will know exactly where you stand.

I am sure you can iron out a training program which suits both you and the reseller.

[Misteracad]

Yes, definitely call them and express your concerns. These days every reseller is under pressure from ADSK to go the extra mile for customers and user groups. Having worked for 3 different resellers in the Philadelphia area (each one larger than the other), as well as running a LUG, I can vouch from experience on both sides of the fence. In this region at least, if one reseller doesn't meet your expectations, there are at least 2-3 others waiting in line for your biz. If a simple phone call doesn't get the results you are looking for, start shopping around for another reseller. There is no allegiance to poor customer service! I can only wonder---have you considered switching to a larger reseller that has better coverage (multiple offices) for your area and/or more frequent and up-to-date training classes available? Another suggestion...ask for references!

[.chad]

it is an additional contract that allows us to take any of the training offered over the course of a year at a set rate - theoretically saving loads of money if we take more than 2 classes. coverage isnt the issue, there are several branches within an hour's drive its that there is no current training being offered.

[robert.1.hall72202]

They should be offering training courses. It could be that they are not receiving enough interest. It wouldn't be beneficial for them to teach a course that had 1 or 2 people attending. I would call them and ask for a personal training session. Be prepared to send your entire team.

[Brian Myers]

Another tactic that sometimes works is requesting a public course on a certain program/feature of interest. If they know you are interested they'll likely schedule the course and also advertise for it to bring in other companies/individuals that would also be interested. In the end they get a happy customer, keep their trainers busy/networking, and have the potential to bring in extra revenue too. Just don't expect them to "drop everything" to set it up on your schedule, it would likely be setup several weeks down the road to fit into schedules and to promote it. It's a common practice with many resellers.