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


Zero One: Can the Channel Pivot to Digital Business in the Cloud?

  • Written by Tom Kaneshige
  • February 8, 2017
The rise of the line-of-business exec as the new shot-caller has tossed tech into a frenzy of motley cloud services. Can the channel pivot to the brave new world of LOBs, digital business and the cloud?

The rise of the line-of-business executive (LOB) as the new shot-caller has tossed tech into a frenzy of motley cloud services. Random suppliers join the fray at any moment in the buying cycle. Long-time partners become competitors overnight. And strangers hastily jump into bed together. Everyone wants to woo a new tech buyer consumed with business outcomes, not tech infrastructure.

Heavyweights Avnet, Amazon, Oracle and Microsoft, for instance, have built new-fangled cloud marketplaces just for them. New independent software vendors (ISVs) arrive on the scene daily wanting to plug their business apps into the cloud ecosystem. Original equipment manufacturers march toward full-consumption models that make it easier for LOBs to sign on the proverbial dotted line.

Can the channel pivot to the brave new world of LOBs, digital business and the cloud?

Value-added resellers face a daunting makeover, from pushing technology products to selling cloud-based business solutions. Tim Fitzgerald, vice president of digital transformation at Avnet Technology Solutions, believes resellers must create a separate, dedicated business model to make this shift.

“If we sit with [traditional reseller] ownership and they’re like, ‘Yeah, if my sales guys find a deal, we’ll be able to sell it,’ then we take our pail and shovel and go home,” said Fitzgerald, speaking at Channel Visionaries in San Jose, Calif., last month. “They’re the most dangerous partners in the ecosystem. They’re not willing to make the bet to be successful. They’ll continue to get smoked by partners that are deeply committed to the as-a-service business.”

Related: Digital Business Transformation: A Channel Story

Even if a channel company wants to get in the cloud game, this doesn’t mean it can carry the ball. Amazon Web Services (AWS), for instance, has channel certification programs with increasingly stringent requirements. AWS demands potential partners bring something different to the party. In return, channel partners reap the benefits of giving customers a full experience with AWS, from selling to managing and billing.

“We had a lot of hard conversations in the early days with really large, interesting resellers that vendors in the past would be thrilled to have approach them,” Dorothy Copeland, general manager of the global partner ecosystem at AWS, said at Channel Visionaries. “We’d say, ‘You don’t have any certified resources, and I don’t understand your value-add.’”

AWS only wants partners that can help customers achieve good outcomes in their cloud journey. Customers need help identifying apps that should be moved to the cloud, migrating and managing those apps, and, critically, what new apps to consider. AWS partners need to train their technical teams in various competencies, such as big data, mobile and Internet of Things, as well as vertical markets.

“We got really focused on training our partners and making sure they had AWS certifications and had built out interesting practices and expertise in different areas,” Copeland said. “With infrastructure as a service, the sky’s the limit in terms of the kinds of workloads customers are running.”

But none of this is easy. For example, managed service providers (MSPs) with lots of experience in on-premise infrastructure will need to build a portfolio of new cloud-based skills in automation, migration, devops and security. AWS’s MSP channel program has more than 80 requirements and a validation audit to ensure the customer will receive a good experience.

Despite rigorous vetting, AWS boasts tens of thousands of channel partners – more than 10,000 joined last year – with some 60 percent coming from outside the United States. In 2016, AWS revenue flowing through the channel more than doubled, Copeland said, and internal studies show channel partners to be highly profitable.

“Those that have built out really technical managed services or consulting services on top of AWS, in addition to reselling, are the ones gaining a lot more profit,” Copeland said.

Nevertheless, AWS launched its own managed services in December, causing confusion and angst among MSPs concerned they’ll be competing with AWS. AWS Managed Services is reportedly aimed at Fortune 1000 and Global 2000 companies, leaving the small-to-midsized market for channel partners. Will this change down the road? Either way, MSPs better be looking for ways to move up the value-add chain.

It’s another sign of muddy relationships and strange alliances. AWS itself isn’t immune, either. In the last 18 months, AWS has begun working with former competitors, most notably VMware and Rackspace.

“Keep in mind, your arch enemy today, you might be in a room with them next year talking about how you can partner,” Copeland said.

Tom Kaneshige writes the Zero One blog covering digital transformation, big data, AI, marketing tech and the Internet of Things for line-of-business executives. He is based in Silicon Valley. You can reach him at [email protected].

 

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

Related


  • 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.
  • Disaster Recovery
    Disaster Recovery Planning Includes Ensuring That Data Can Be Recovered
    Here’s how to ensure that your disaster recovery solution will work when it matters.
  • Technical Know-How
    Companies Seek IT Security Resellers with Technical Know-How
    Providers can offer managed services to fill customers' cyber-defense needs.

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

  • Partners Share Their 2021 Goals—and Plans for Achieving Them
  • Industry Experts Laud Biden Proposal for Increased Federal Cybersecurity Spending
  • Why Partners Should Prioritize AI in 2021
  • SolarWinds Hackers Hit Malwarebytes, But Impact Limited to Internal Email

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