Image Gallery: Alliance Partners Tech+Connect
It was a week of sales training in San Antonio.
A select group of partners came to San Antonio to learn about sales.
The Alliance Partners hosted its first Tech+Connect conference, Nov. 6-8, for 150 partners. The theme of the conference was “selling next-gen solutions,” which include SD-WAN, cloud, security and unified communications as a service (UCaaS). Each of the suppliers gave a speech on the main stage in lieu of participating in an expo hall.
Scroll through the gallery below to see who attended the event.
Tim Basa
The president of Telegration served as emcee for the three-day event. Basa kept keynote speeches and supplier presentations lively with hearty intros and Q&A sessions. Basa worked for Telegration from 1997 to 2005 and moved to BullsEye Telecom before returning to Telegration earlier this year.
The president of Telegration served as emcee for the three-day event. Basa kept keynote speeches and supplier presentations lively with hearty intros and Q&A sessions. Basa worked for Telegration from 1997 to 2005 and moved to BullsEye Telecom before returning to Telegration earlier this year.
Stu Kolinsky
Kolinsky, the vice president of sales for IPFone, delivered the afternoon keynote that opened the conference on Monday. Kolinsky presented a list of advice and strategies for salespeople. He also shared eight of the most irritating responses a salesperson can get from a prospective client, including, "I just found out my nephew sells these same services."
Read some of Kolinsky's comments in our event recap.
Kolinsky, the vice president of sales for IPFone, delivered the afternoon keynote that opened the conference on Monday. Kolinsky presented a list of advice and strategies for salespeople. He also shared eight of the most irritating responses a salesperson can get from a prospective client, including, "I just found out my nephew sells these same services."
Read some of Kolinsky's comments in our event recap.
Partners
The audience, consisting mainly of select sales partners, stayed engaged for three days of presentations. They used the event's mobile app to assign ratings and ask questions of the keynote presenters — and gave a standing ovation to start Tech+Connect.
The audience, consisting mainly of select sales partners, stayed engaged for three days of presentations. They used the event's mobile app to assign ratings and ask questions of the keynote presenters — and gave a standing ovation to start Tech+Connect.
Selling
Many partners ventured outside in between presentations to feel the fresh air of San Antonio and make phone calls. The conference emphasized that sales is not a 9-to-5 job, but rather a flexible one that is focused on meeting goals rather than filling out time sheets.
Many partners ventured outside in between presentations to feel the fresh air of San Antonio and make phone calls. The conference emphasized that sales is not a 9-to-5 job, but rather a flexible one that is focused on meeting goals rather than filling out time sheets.
SimpleWAN
Erik Knight, chief executive officer of Phoenix-based SimpleWAN, outlined his company's SD-WAN offering and explained many of the misconceptions that surround the technology. Bigleaf Networks, CenturyLink, Tata Communications and Comcast Business also presented their SD-WAN solutions.
Read the recap of Knight's talk.
Erik Knight, chief executive officer of Phoenix-based SimpleWAN, outlined his company's SD-WAN offering and explained many of the misconceptions that surround the technology. Bigleaf Networks, CenturyLink, Tata Communications and Comcast Business also presented their SD-WAN solutions.
Read the recap of Knight's talk.
Welcome Reception
Partners and suppliers consumed tacos, prime rib, grilled cheese sandwiches and dessert at the welcome reception Monday night. The Alliance Partners hosted the entire event at the La Cantera Resort in San Antonio.
Partners and suppliers consumed tacos, prime rib, grilled cheese sandwiches and dessert at the welcome reception Monday night. The Alliance Partners hosted the entire event at the La Cantera Resort in San Antonio.
PGi
Lori Potts, senior director of partner sales; Tony Wrubel, regional vice president of sales; and Don Felman, director of partner sales, took the stage to speak on behalf of PGi on Tuesday morning during the "Selling Cloud Compute" round of vendor presentations. PGi, like many other vendors, did role-playing on stage to simulate how a partner should interact with a customer.
Lori Potts, senior director of partner sales; Tony Wrubel, regional vice president of sales; and Don Felman, director of partner sales, took the stage to speak on behalf of PGi on Tuesday morning during the "Selling Cloud Compute" round of vendor presentations. PGi, like many other vendors, did role-playing on stage to simulate how a partner should interact with a customer.
Cyxtera
Tina Gravel (left), senior vice president of global channels for Cyxtera, sang a song about her company alongside some of her colleagues. Cyxtera launched a partner program in September.
Watch our video interview with Gravel.
Tina Gravel (left), senior vice president of global channels for Cyxtera, sang a song about her company alongside some of her colleagues. Cyxtera launched a partner program in September.
Watch our video interview with Gravel.
Attendees
The Alliance Partners organization said 150 partners attended the conference on an invite-only basis. The content of the event mainly featured sales training, with an emphasis on SD-WAN, cloud, security and UCaaS.
The Alliance Partners organization said 150 partners attended the conference on an invite-only basis. The content of the event mainly featured sales training, with an emphasis on SD-WAN, cloud, security and UCaaS.
Dine-Around
Partners attended a progressive dine-around Tuesday night. The dinner provided the opportunity to eat with multiple providers in an intimate setting.
Partners attended a progressive dine-around Tuesday night. The dinner provided the opportunity to eat with multiple providers in an intimate setting.
