Monogamy Now Outdated in the Channel

There is no longer “one throat to choke” when it comes to working with a channel partner. In fact, medium-size companies are reporting they work on average with seven partners.

“This is different from a single throat to choke. This is different from the trusted advisor that we’ve been hearing about for years. There are different partners doing different things of value for that customer,” said McBain.

This movement is being driven by tech purchasing by non-IT leaders. In terms of SaaS products such as Salesforce, ServiceNow and Marketo, 75% of those deals happen outside of IT.

“Line-of-business leaders are making those decisions. The head of marketing in many companies spends more money on technology than the head of technology. That’s a different kind of partner type that’s in there servicing that model.”

This means a partner’s ability to be successful now hinges on working with others, rather than competing.