https://www.channelfutures.com/wp-content/themes/channelfutures_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • Analytics
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud
    • Data Centers
    • Desktop
    • IoT
    • Mobility
    • Networking
    • Open Source
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Virtualization
    • Voice/Connectivity
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Best Practices
    • Business Models
    • Channel 101
    • Channel Programs
    • Channel Research
    • Digital Transformation
    • Diversity & Inclusion
    • Leadership
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Specialty Practices
  • MSSP Insider
    • Back
    • Business of Security
    • Cloud and Edge
    • Endpoint
    • Network
    • People and Careers
    • Training and Policies
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • 2020 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2020 Hot 101 Rankings
    • 2020 MSP 501 Report
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Our Sponsors
    • From the Industry
    • Content Resources
    • COVID-19 Partner Help
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Reports
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • EMEA
  • Awards
    • Back
    • Excellence in Digital Services
    • 2020 MSP 501
    • Top Gun 51
  • Events
    • Back
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Evolution
    • Channel Evolution Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
  • Channel Mentor
    • Back
    • Channel Market Intelligence
    • Channel Educational Series
Channel Futures
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • Analytics
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud
    • Data Centers
    • Desktop
    • IoT
    • Mobility
    • Networking
    • Open Source
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Virtualization
    • Voice/Connectivity
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Best Practices
    • Business Models
    • Channel 101
    • Channel Programs
    • Channel Research
    • Digital Transformation
    • Diversity & Inclusion
    • Leadership
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Specialty Practices
  • MSSP Insider
    • Back
    • Business of Security
    • Cloud and Edge
    • Endpoint
    • Network
    • People and Careers
    • Training and Policies
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • 2020 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2020 Hot 101 Rankings
    • 2020 MSP 501 Report
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Our Sponsors
    • From the Industry
    • Content Resources
    • COVID-19 Partner Help
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Reports
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • EMEA
  • Awards
    • Back
    • Excellence in Digital Services
    • 2020 MSP 501
    • Top Gun 51
  • Events
    • Back
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Evolution
    • Channel Evolution Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
  • Channel Mentor
    • Back
    • Channel Market Intelligence
    • Channel Educational Series
    • Newsletter
  • REGISTER
  • MSPs
  • VARs / SIs
  • Digital Service Providers
  • Cloud Service Providers
  • CHANNEL PARTNERS ONLINE
 Channel Futures

Best Practices


Meet the Channel: Joe Santamorena, Bay Dynamics

  • Written by Kris Blackmon
  • February 28, 2017
This week we sat down with Joe Santamorena, VP of sales for the Americas at Bay Dynamics.

This week we sat down with Joe Santamorena, VP of sales for the Americas at Bay Dynamics. As Santamorena puts it, he’s been very fortunate in his career to build teams and go-to-market strategies where the channel has been what he calls a ‘force multiplier.’ “When you want to grab market share,” he says, “there's no better way to do it than by setting your strategy to build out your partner network.”

TVG: What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in your time in the channel?

Santamorena: Unfortunately, I've been around the industry for 35 years, so I've seen a lot happen over time. I think the biggest shift that I've seen over the last several years in the channel is it's shifting from reselling products skews to subscription services in the cloud.

The cloud is a major disruptor to any business. No vendor or partners have been able to slow this direction down. The channel community has had to make the same shifts as the manufacturers had to make. That's number one. I think the other big change that I've seen is the increase in the customer buying influences the partners now play in the sale cycle. They are trusted advisors and they play a huge influence in that customer.

I think the last place is the sheer number of players in the marketplace versus years ago. If you look back a few years ago, especially in cyberspace, there were two or three firewall companies, and today there's more than 20. Our partners, they don't have the staff to evaluate all these choices. There are so many players in the market. It's definitely challenging to keep up with that, and keep up with that degree of solutions for our channel partners. I'm sure it's a daunting task for them.

TVG: Are the days gone when you could be an effective channel partner without a solid understanding of cybersecurity?

Listen to Santamorena’s answer below

TVG: What are the most pressing areas of focus in terms of cybersecurity for the new administration?

Santamorena: Number one centers on personal information. Aligning to individuals right to protect their data. For us, all of our data is used throughout the free world, whether it's a retailer, whether it's our banking, and it's passed across an open network of the internet. I think data privacy from an individual perspective is number one for me.

I think the government is going to be challenged with other threats that we traditionally did not see. The threats to our power grids. There are things happening in the world of cyber that are almost to the point where it's, I wouldn't call it World War IV, or World War III, excuse me, but where governments are now leveraging cyber as a method of warfare. At what point does the government declare that it's an act of war where a cyber threat has unfolded. To me, I think that that's kind of going to be an issue that is going to have to be discussed amongst the government to day.

We've seen certain powerful officials already do that. From some international cyber events have occurred, and threatened other countries for that. That's a touchy subject, right. Is it really the government doing it? Is it rogue hackers within those nations attacking different countries. I think that that's something that's really going to be discussed across the government going forward. It's complicated issue quite honestly. It's not as cut and dry.

TVG: What about the channel gets you most excited?

Listen to Santamorena’s answer below

TVG: Let’s flip that question on its head. What gets you most frustrated about the channel?

Santamorena: I mentioned earlier 1300 players in this market, so partners are bombarded with vendors like ourselves. What's frustrating is trying to get their mindshare. I'd say that's probably one of the biggest challenges that we have today. As a startup it's different. The challenges for a us are much different. You're creating a market, you're generating demand…If I took a large competitor in firewall market, I'm sure our partners know exactly how to go to market with that. For us, we're trying to create a market right now and create the demand. Let's be realistic to our channel partners. We're just learning how to do that. We're going to have to train and enable them to understand how to do that as successful as we are.

At the end of the day, I have to try and help our resellers and partners understand how to go out and tell the story around value and risk and how to position it effectively to a very senior executive across the company. ‘Trusted advisor’ channel partners have those relationships. Some of the ones who have sold point solutions may have sold down the stack a little bit. For me, it's trying to find the right partner that can deliver a very elevated message and solution at a CISO level. Again, I think we have a lot of capable partners out there that can do that, but you have to find the right ones that have build a business that is a trust advisor type of business.

 

 

Tags: Cloud Service Providers Digital Service Providers MSPs VARs/SIs Best Practices

Related


  • Growth depiction
    UK Channel Expects Big Growth in 2021, Cybersecurity a Big Driver
    Many partners view COVID-19 delays as one of the least important challenges they face.
  • Assessment
    CompTIA Rolls Out New Tech Vendor Assessment Tool
    Vendors may be overestimating their own channel readiness.
  • Vendors: How Do You Measure a Partner Relationship?
    Vendors still struggle to gain a genuine insight into their partners’ needs. So what can they do?
  • New challenges and opportunities_many path options
    The Top IT Challenges Executives Will Face in 2021
    Obstacles include bridging the IT skills gap, managing remote workers and managing migration to the cloud.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your Channel Futures account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • New Year Means Time to Make Room for New IT Training
  • Looking Ahead: How to Pave the Road to Business Recovery
  • Partners Share Their 2021 Goals—and Plans for Achieving Them
  • Industry Experts Laud Biden Proposal for Increased Federal Cybersecurity Spending

Galleries

View all

Channel Partners Virtual 2021 Is the Hottest Ticket in Town

February 26, 2021

Industry Perspectives

View all

The “Roaring 20s” Are Coming

February 25, 2021

Three Ways MSPs Can Improve Supply Chain Security

February 24, 2021

SASE: The Key to Mitigating Business Transformation Risk

February 22, 2021

Webinars

View all

A Partner’s Perspective on Channel Success in 2021

March 17, 2021

XDR and Why it Matters to MSPs

March 24, 2021

Top Security Trends Impacting Technology Security Providers In 2021

March 25, 2021

White Papers

View all

Ready To Add Cutting Edge IoT Solutions To Your Portfolio?

  • 1
February 25, 2021

What Is The Value Of Distribution For The Internet Of Things?

February 25, 2021

The Internet of Things (IoT): Where do You Begin?

  • 1
February 25, 2021

Upcoming Events

View all

Channel Partners Virtual

March 2, 2021 - March 4, 2021

Channel Partners Conference & Expo

November 1, 2021 - November 4, 2021

Videos and Fastchats

View all

FASTCHAT: How SOAR Eliminates Security Challenges and Elevates Service Provider Revenues

January 6, 2021

Happy Holidays from Channel Partners & Channel Futures!

December 21, 2020

FASTCHAT: How Old, Unpatched Technologies Are Creating New Security Threats for MSPs and Their Customers

December 3, 2020

Twitter

ChannelFutures

Amazon WorkSpaces @awscloud DaaS client will be available on @IGEL_Technology virtual endpoint client OS.… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@VMware cutting more workers in California as part of ongoing #workforcerebalancing. #layoffs… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

#CPVirtual is March 2-4. It’s the hottest ticket in town — any town, since it’s 100% online — so make sure you have… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@datto, @ThreatLocker partner to streamline #MSP secure business operations. dlvr.it/RtYvJK https://t.co/nKGnwbblNO

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

Infographic: Why Partner with Sierra Wireless and GetWireless? dlvr.it/RtYh1m https://t.co/KcBFzXIx7l

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

Infographic: The Sierra Wireless Essential Series dlvr.it/RtYgxv https://t.co/CatxbRHzXr

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

#Threatprotection is no small matter for #MSSPs. Find out what vendors say you have to do this year to protect your… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

February 26, 2021
ChannelFutures

Cloud strategies and cybersecurity are key, and #COVID19 will have more impact than #Brexit on U.K. channel, says… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

February 26, 2021

MSSP Insider

Newsletters and Updates

Sign up for The Channel Report, Channel Futures Update, MSP 501 Newsletter and more.

Live Channel Events

Get the latest information on the next industry-leading Channel Partners event.

Channel Partners Online

Want more? Find more channel news and analysis on our sister site, Channel Partners.

Media Kit And Advertising

Want to reach our audience? Access our media kit

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • Channel Partners Online
  • Channel Partners Events
  • MSP 501
  • MSSP Insider
  • IoT World Today
  • Webhostingtalk

WORKING WITH US

  • Contact
  • About us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter

FOLLOW Channel Futures ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2021 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X