Ingram Micro Becomes First Distributor Authorized to Teach Digital Signage Certified Expert Training

SANTA ANA, CA--(Marketwired - Sep 9, 2013) -  Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM), the world's largest wholesale technology distributor and a global leader in IT supply-chain, mobile device lifecycle services and logistics solutions, today announced a new Digital Signage Certified Expert (DSCE) training program designed for its channel partners throughout North America.

Available through Ingram Micro's ProAV / Digital Signage business unit (BU), the new certification and training program is being facilitated by leading ProAV trainers and educators from Brawn Consulting, as well as Ingram Micro's technology solutions engineer and DSCE certified instructor Tom Jones. The training program was recently previewed by more than 100 channel partners at Ingram Micro's recent 2013 ProAV / Digital Signage Solutions Partner Invitational.

"Ingram Micro's new DSCE certification and training program is comprehensive and extremely valuable for channel partners who are serious about digital signage and want to extend their portfolio and services to include these high-margin solutions," says Jay McCutcheon, chief engineer at South Central AV: an Independent Affiliate of Mood and inaugural advisory board member to Ingram Micro's ProAV / Digital Signage BU. "It is detailed programs like these, along with the cross-over portfolio and partner enablement resources offered by Ingram Micro, that set it apart and keep us loyal."

Ingram Micro's new DSCE training courses are one-day and offered in-person or online for added convenience. The course curriculum runs the gamut, covering educational tracks, such as how to prospect and identify the right digital signage solutions, how to measure and demonstrate the return on investment and business value of digital signage, how to master the fundamentals of digital signage system design and how to market, sell and price digital signage solutions.

"Ingram Micro is the first certified technology distributor trained and approved to teach this course and that gives our channel partners a distinct advantage when it comes to marketing, selling and supporting ProAV and digital signage solutions," says Kevin Prewett, senior director of Ingram Micro's Pro AV / Digital Signage BU. "With Brawn Consulting's guidance and our in-house digital signage expertise, we've developed a best-in-class training program that will help our channel partners clearly differentiate their services and deliver greater value to their customers." 

Adding strength to the new Ingram Micro DSCE program is the ProAV / Digital Signage BU's experienced and dedicated technical support staff and inside and field sales teams, as well as its marketing, vendor management and category management professionals.

"The service potential surrounding ProAV and digital signage solutions is explosive for channel partners who are willing to step up their game and learn more about what the market needs and how best to service it," concludes Prewett. "We're enabling our channel partners to grow their business by expanding their focus on digital signage solutions and making the training, support and education they need readily accessible to them through our dedicated business unit."

For more information on DSCE training, contact the Ingram Micro ProAV / Digital Signage sales team at 800.456.8000 x 77607, www.ingrammicro.com/proavinfo or proav@ingrammicro.com, or your Ingram Micro sales representative.

More information about Ingram Micro is available at www.ingrammicro.com and http://ingrammicroinc.wordpress.com.

To learn, see and hear more about Ingram Micro online, follow the company on Facebook at www.facebook.com/IngramMicro; Twitter at www.twitter.com/IngramMicroInc; and YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/ingrammicroinc.

About the Digital Signage Experts Group
The mission of the Digital Signage Experts Group (DSEG) is to advance the level of professionalism within the digital signage community by establishing Certification standards and providing impartial, agnostic, and vendor neutral professional education. Under the direction of an advisory board of recognized industry experts, and in cooperation with manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, designers, integrators, and network operators, DSEG works within the signage industries as well as with the creative community and end users to provide professional development courses that advance best practices for the digital signage industry. Certification courses include Digital Signage Certified Expert (DSCE), Digital Signage Network Expert (DSNE), Digital Signage Display Expert (DSDE), and Digital Content and Media Expert (DCME). For information: http://www.dseg.org.

About Ingram Micro Inc.
 Ingram Micro is the world's largest wholesale technology distributor and a global leader in IT supply-chain, mobile device lifecycle services and logistics solutions. As a vital link in the technology value chain, Ingram Micro creates sales and profitability opportunities for vendors and resellers through unique marketing programs, outsourced logistics and mobile solutions, technical support, financial services and product aggregation and distribution. The company is the only global broad-based IT distributor, serving approximately 160 countries on six continents with the world's most comprehensive portfolio of IT products and services. Visit www.ingrammicro.com.