Partner Plus

Overview

Gain a competitive advantage by joining a partner program that gives you insider access to innovative technology, marketplaces, demand generation resources and more.

IBM Partner Plus is dedicated to helping you accelerate your time to market and drive revenue growth. With this program, new partners can be onboarded and ready to transact in just 48 hours.

Benefits

By joining IBM Partner Plus, you get access to:

Competitive incentives

Increase your earning potential by taking advantage of exclusive sales incentives when you transact and renew with IBM.

Simplified incentive structure, consistent between Power, Storage, TLS, Software On Prem, SaaS, IBM Cloud, Support Offerings and Subscription license
Real-time visibility into earnings and deal eligibility

Go-to-Market Support

Accelerate your business with enhanced demand generation resources, tools and funds powered by deeper levels of investment from IBM.

IBM’s marketing automation platform with 1:1 concierge support
Ready-to-execute Partner Marketing Kits
Co-marketing resources to accelerate your demand generation efforts

Training and Upskilling

Build your expertise with insider access to IBM Training and proficiency badges, at no cost to you.

Access on-demand and live environments to learn, build, demonstrate and promote the value of IBM technology
Work with an IBM Partner Technical Specialist to develop and strengthen your technical expertise and capacity

Partner with IBM

IBM Partner Plus is designed to help businesses like yours access leading technology to help you grow - whether you’re a startup or an established company.

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Build with IBM technology

Elevate your commercial solutions

Innovate and accelerate your business growth as an independent software vendor by building your solutions with AI and hybrid cloud technology.

Add AI functionality fast with IBM

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Sell IBM Technology

Shape the future of your business with innovation

Partner with IBM to solve complex problems with leading technology solutions and demand generation resources to create pull from the market.

Maximize your earning potential with IBM

Service IBM technology

Become your clients' trusted advisor

Leverage IBM technical and service solution support to deliver the latest technology to your clients.

Accelerate digital transformations with IBM

Transformative tech for modern challenges

This generative AI moment is a great time to determine if your existing partnerships align to help you innovate for tomorrow. As an IBM Partner, we put AI technology and expertise into your hands so that you can harness the power of watsonx, our multi-model, multi-modal enterprise AI solution and fuel your business’ growth.

Discover IBM watsonx for business partners

AI Productivity

Data for AI

Automation

Hybrid Cloud

An illustrated graphic shows a help desk employee wearing a headset with laptop beside them.

Scale productivity with AI agents and assistants

Build and deploy AI assistants and agents that understand and scale conversational AI across all channels and customer touchpoints, unlocks employee and work potential, and supports your sales teams in each stage of the sales cycle.

Work smarter with watsonx Orchestrate

Read the 2025 Buyer's Guide: IBM's AI agents and assistants

Partner stories

LTIMindtree, IBM Business Partner, is helping clients increase productivity, reduce staffing challenges and increase customer satisfaction with IBM watsonx Orchestrate—ultimately saving 50-60% of time to focus on other strategic priorities.

Habber Tec, IBM Business Partner, is leveraging IBM Business Automation Insights to help clients become more agile and have more flexibility in their workplace.

Intercompany, IBM Business Partner, is leveraging IBM hybrid cloud solutions to modernize their clients’ business, reduce bottlenecks, and automate core business operations—ultimately saving approx. $20,000 USD and automating tasks that would normally take 24 hours down to one minute.

Hanzo

Hanzo, IBM Business Partner, integrated watsonx.ai to provide enhanced and automated data analysis and culling that addresses the challenge of managing massive volumes of complex dynamic data for legal, HR, security and IT professionals.

Edsvärd Hållbarhet

Edsvärd Hållbarhet, IBM Business Partner, is using watsonx.data and watsonx.ai to enhance the health and safety for workers in complex working environments in the property management and construction industry.

EY, IBM Business Partner, is helping the company and their clients optimize recruiting and onboarding processes, while reducing downtimes with IBM watsonx.ai.

Not ready to join?

Watch our webinar to learn how you can gain competitive advantage with IBM Technology and unlock benefits to scale your business.

Watch the webinar

FAQs

Is IBM Partner Plus designed for small businesses or larger enterprises?

IBM Partner Plus is designed for businesses of all sizes—from small startups to large enterprises—looking to collaborate with IBM and leverage innovative technology.

What industries does IBM Partner Plus focus on? What type of organizations join IBM Partner Plus?

IBM Partner Plus supports a broad range of partners within the technology sector, including those in the Computer Services Industry, Managed Service Providers, Hardware Server Providers, IT Consulting firms and other.

What types of partnership are available?

IBM Partner Plus is designed to support a diverse range of partnerships, including those focused on selling, building, and servicing IBM technologies. The program offers an end-to-end journey for business partners to grow and scale their business through three main partnership types:

Sell: Sell partners focus on reselling IBM solutions to their clients. The more IBM-certified trainings you undertake and the more sales you make, the faster you’ll rise through the partnership tiers — so the more you learn, the more you earn. Each new tier will unlock greater levels of investment, support, and capabilities designed to bring your goals within reach.
Build: Build partners are generally Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and Managed Service Providers (MSPs). Partners can easily embed IBM technology to add capabilities or build a new commercial solution. Partners receive hands-on guidance from IBM experts to build and go-to-market faster.
Service: Service partners provide consulting and implementation services to clients. Advancement is determined by the number of proficiency badges earned by their team members and the scale of their revenue.

What resources will I get as an IBM Partner Plus member?

Competitive incentives. Best-in-class business investments and added sales incentives, co-marketing opportunities, and support to expand your client base
Insider access. All the technology, expertise, and educational resources IBMers get, along with the tools and resources needed to put you in control of your earnings
Go-to-market support. Enhanced demand generation resources, tools and funds powered by deeper levels of investment from IBM

Can IBM Partner Plus help me grow my revenue?

Yes, IBM Partner Plus includes performance-based incentives and tools designed to help partners increase revenue and close deals faster.

Are there certifications or training programs available for partners?

Yes, partners have insider access to IBM Training, which offers certifications, training courses, and workshops to help partners build their expertise and stay competitive.

What marketing support does IBM Partner Plus provide?

Partners can gain access to co-marketing funds, ready-to-execute partner marketing campaigns, and a marketing automation platform to accelerate your go-to-market strategy and drive demand.

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Can I collaborate directly with IBM experts?

Yes, IBM Partner Plus facilitates collaboration with IBM technical and sales experts to support your business and customers.

How do I become an IBM Partner Plus member?

You can apply online through the IBM Partner Plus website by completing the registration form.

Become a partner today

Do I need to sign a formal agreement to join?

Yes, you’ll need to sign a partnership agreement outlining the terms and conditions of your membership.

Can I join IBM Partner Plus if I’m already partnering with another company?

Yes, IBM Partner Plus allows businesses to collaborate with IBM even if they have existing partnerships with other technology providers.

What kind of support will I receive as an IBM Partner Plus member?

IBM Partner Plus Support helps partners succeed by providing fast, expert assistance across tools, access, and program-related needs. Partners can easily submit and manage support cases, access global help centers, and connect with IBM experts for personalized guidance.

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Is there onboarding assistance available for new members?

Yes, IBM offers onboarding resources, walkthroughs, and guides to help new partners get started once they join.

Where can I find training and certification resources?

Training and certification resources are available through the IBM partner portal, which you’ll gain access to upon joining. Most of the trainings and resources are available at no cost.