(3 September 2007 3:10 pm)

MUMBAI: BT has received the Cisco Multinational certification in the Asia Pacific region. The certification recognises BT's expertise to sell, deploy and support Cisco integrated solutions across multiple countries/territories – including China, India, Singapore and Hong Kong – in Asia Pacific.

The designation demonstrates that BT has met rigorous standards for networking competency, service and support and customer satisfaction. It entails the setup of specialized labs and the training of more than 70 BT employees in the region.

According to an official release, in total BT spent around $2.5 million on the programme wherein all its efforts were put in place to better serve BT customers in Asia Pacific and to support BT's growth potential in the region.

BT's general manager of portfolio and partnerships Nathan Bell said, "The Cisco Multinational certification demonstrates that we have a strong pool of highly trained engineers and consultants, and it also enhances our IT portfolio capabilities in the region. As BT transitions from a telco into a global software-driven services company, talented and properly trained people are a critical resource, and this certification is a timely step."

Cisco Asia Pacific channels and operations director Mike Allen said, "We are very pleased that BT has decided to undertake this region-wide Cisco certification. They are one of the first global carriers to undergo such a large scale certification in Asia Pacific, and we will continue to work closely with them."

Other certification requirements include meeting customer satisfaction targets for each Asia Pacific country; having highly certified engineers per country/territory on advanced specializations in unified communications, wireless LAN and security; and passing a thorough Cisco audit process.