Partner FAQs
Sage Partner Information System

We are excited about the launch of our new business management system (also known as "Atlas") that will integrate our sales, marketing, and support systems with our accounting, reporting, and other back-office systems to provide a common platform across Sage North America. This will allow us to better serve our partners and customers and provide a consistent experience across products, business units, and geographies.

The next milestone of this project will come with the launch of our systems that support the following products. Our internal systems, the Customer Portal, and the Sage Partner Information System go live on October 31, 2011.

In addition to the new look, feel, and functionality of our Customer Portal and the Sage Partner Information System, you will also see changes in forms, processes, and policies. The following FAQs are designed to help our partners with answers to commonly asked questions regarding this project:

Q. Why is PRO changing?

A. PRO is changing as a result of our new internal business management system (also known as "Atlas"). Upon completion of this project, partners will have access to their information for all North America product lines from one central location. As a result, this will unify your experience with Sage.

Q. Who does it affect and when is it happening?

A . Eventually, all Sage North America channel partners and customers will be included in the new Sage Partner Information System. This process is occurring across the different product lines at different times. The rollout of our new system for Sage Abra HRMS, Sage FAS, Sage TimeSheet, and Sage Analytics is scheduled for October 31, 2011. The new Customer Portal and Sage Partner Information System are also scheduled to go live on October 31.

Q. How will the change in the Sage Partner Information System impact me?

A . Your organization will be assigned a new 10-digit Sage-wide partner ID number. There will also be changes to how you access the knowledgebase and product resources, search for information, and retrieve reports. Some functionality will be new for your organization. For those product lines where a reseller of record relationship is established between the partner organization and customers, partners will have the ability to view customer information  as well as customer activity in reports available on the Reporting Center of the Sage Partner Information System.

Q. How will I learn to use the new Sage Partner Information System?

A. Training sessions on the new Sage Partner Information System will be available in late October on Sage University. The sessions will be available as Anytime Learning for your convenience. The training courses will be announced in October when available. Please note that training will be required in order to get access to the Sage Partner Information System since training will help ensure the best possible experience with the new Sage Partner Information System and Knowledgebase functionality.

Q. What is happening to the current partner sites?

A. The PRO sites will remain in place with static content from October 31, 2011 through December 31, 2011. On December 31, 2011, old URLs will re-direct to the new system and the old partner sites will no longer be maintained. Relevant existing content will be available on the new system and new information will be posted as it becomes available.

Q. What amount of customer data is converting to the new system?

A. Sage will only transition customers who have been active in the last three years for Sage Abra HRMS, Sage FAS, Sage TimeSheet, and Sage Analytics. Active is defined as having a transaction with Sage within the previous three years.

Q. What happens to customers who are not transitioned?

A. Sage employees will continue to have access to all customer records that are not transitioned into our new system.

Q. Why is browser support restricted to Internet Explorer for Sage Partner Information System access?

A. Browser support is limited to Internet Explorer as some system functionality will not be available through other browsers.

Q. How is security to the Sage Partner Information System being managed?

A. Within the Sage Partner Information System there are three levels of security:

• CP Manager - full access, administrative rights, access to the Reporting Center
• CP Employee with Buy/Sell - full access, no administrative rights, no access to the Reporting Center
• CP Employee - full access, no administrative rights, no access to the Reporting Center, must enter customer ID to access customer data (if applicable)

The highest level of security is assigned the role of CP Manager, and is given administrative rights over all other users and their access of the Sage Partner Information System who have gained access through required training. Upon go-live, the primary contact for each partner account will be given the role of CP Manager upon completion of specific Anytime Learning training courses. Portal roles and security will be covered in detail during the training sessions and announcements.

Q. What is the difference between a general request and a support request?

A. General requests and support requests will be covered in detail during our Sage Partner Information System training classes.

• A general request is a non-technical type of inquiry directed to Sage. For example, you might inquire about billing or make a request to change account information. General requests are automatically routed to the appropriate department and function within Sage based on the product line and type of request. Please note that general requests will not be available immediately at rollout but will be available in the near future.
• A support request is a technical inquiry on the product. A support ticket can only be completed if the partner or customer has a valid support plan.

Q. Can I submit a support or general request online?

A. Yes. You will now be able to submit support and general questions through the new Sage Partner Information System or, as always, contact us by phone.

Q. How do I access the Sage knowledgebase?

A. You can still access the Sage knowledgebase online for any of your self -service needs. You will find the link in the new Sage Partner Information System and can learn more about using the Sage knowledgebase during our Sage Partner Information System training.

Q. Will I be able to manage and register leads?

A . Yes. The new Sage Partner Information System will allow you to enter sales opportunities you are working on. It will also be where Sage generated leads are assigned to partners, if applicable.

Q. Will I still be able to access product resources and price lists?

A . Yes. Product resources for the supported versions of products will be moved to the new Sage Partner Information System along with resources needed to support upgrades from products. Price lists will also be among the resources moving to the new Sage Partner Information System.

Q. Will channel partners be able to order products through the Sage Partner Information System?

A. No. There will be no change in the order submission process for channel partners. Orders from channel partners should continue to be placed with Sales using existing processes.  

Q. Will I be able to access tier information?

A. No. Tier information will not be available on the Sage Partner Information System. Please contact your Sage representative for this information. 

For additional information, please contact your Sage representative.