https://www.channelfutures.com/wp-content/themes/channelfutures_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Technology Solutions Brokerages
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • Complete 2023 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2023 MSP 501 50-1
    • 2023 MSP 501 100-51
    • 2023 MSP 501 150-101
    • 2023 MSP 501 200-151
    • 2023 MSP 501 250-201
    • 2023 MSP 501 300-251
    • 2023 MSP 501 350-301
    • 2023 MSP 501 400-351
    • 2023 MSP 501 450-401
    • 2023 MSP 501 501-451
    • NextGen 101 Rankings
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • Channel Futures TV
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Channel Futures 20: Top Tech Providers
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Advertise
    • 2023 Editorial Calendar
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2023 MSP 501
    • 2023 NextGen 101
    • Channel Influencers
    • Circle of Excellence
    • DE&I 101
    • Technology Advisor 101 (TA 101)
    • Channel Leaders Lists
  • Events
    • Back
    • 2024 CP Expo Call for Speakers
    • Channel Futures Leadership Summit
    • MSP Summit
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • About Us
  • DE&I
Channel Futures
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Technology Solutions Brokerages
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • Complete 2023 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2023 MSP 501 50-1
    • 2023 MSP 501 100-51
    • 2023 MSP 501 150-101
    • 2023 MSP 501 200-151
    • 2023 MSP 501 250-201
    • 2023 MSP 501 300-251
    • 2023 MSP 501 350-301
    • 2023 MSP 501 400-351
    • 2023 MSP 501 450-401
    • 2023 MSP 501 501-451
    • NextGen 101 Rankings
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • Channel Futures TV
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Channel Futures 20: Top Tech Providers
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Advertise
    • 2023 Editorial Calendar
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2023 MSP 501
    • 2023 NextGen 101
    • Channel Influencers
    • Circle of Excellence
    • DE&I 101
    • Technology Advisor 101 (TA 101)
    • Channel Leaders Lists
  • Events
    • Back
    • 2024 CP Expo Call for Speakers
    • Channel Futures Leadership Summit
    • MSP Summit
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Partners Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • About Us
  • DE&I
    • Newsletter
  • REGISTER
  • MSPs
  • VARs / SIs
  • Agents
  • Cloud Service Providers
  • Channel Partners Events
 Channel Futures

Vertical Markets


Shutterstock

Internet of Things (IoT)

IoT Veteran Takes Lead of T-Mobile Channel Partner Program

  • Written by James Anderson
  • February 5, 2021
Pat Watkins is looking to drive collaboration in her new role.

T-Mobile just announced a new channel leader, who will further the company’s goal of driving a more collaborative and responsive partner program.

Pat Watkins, an accomplished veteran from the Sprint side, now works as vice president of channel and IoT sales for T-Mobile. T-Mobile wrapped its acquisition of Sprint last April.

Watkins, Pat_T-Mobile

T-Mobile’s Pat Watkins

Watkins said she and James Kirby, senior vice president of the T-Mobile for Business program, agreed about two months ago that the time was right for her to start leading T-Mobile’s channel partner community.

Watkins works under Kirby, who oversees both direct and indirect sales for the T-Mobile for Business program.

Kirby said last October that his team had drastically changed the commission structure to reduce friction between direct and indirect sales. T-Mobile doubled the quota and payout for both sides, giving them an incentive to involve the other side in deals. Watkins said she appreciates this approach.

“It provides a huge amount of synergies that I get to take advantage of,” she told Channel Partners. “What I’m really looking to do is to make this a more collaborative effort between the partner channel and our direct team.”

Key Objectives

Collaboration fits well with one of Watkins’ goals, which is to remove internal barriers and conflict. She also wants to simplify the partner program and ensure fair and competitive compensation.

“At the end of the day, it’s removing the friction in the selling process so there can be far more collaboration,” she said.

Channel Partners Virtual is back, March 2-4! Hear from T-Mobile’s Watkins and 75+ other top industry speakers on our virtual stage. Let our top-notch content help you boost your business in 2021. Register now!

Moreover, Watkins wants to drive a more communicative and responsive approach to the partner community. T-Mobile has launched a partner advisory committee to generate feedback that it can act upon quickly. For example, the carrier responded to requests for more solution engineering resources.

“We’re going to spend a lot more time with [partners], hearing from them. What’s working? What’s not working? And once we have that communication, we’re going to act fairly quickly on that,” Watkins said.

Background

Watkins worked at Sprint for 14 years, where she cut her teeth on the internet of things. She helped launch Sprint’s connected-vehicle business and later became Sprint’s head of IoT sales.

Watkins said she worked extensively with channel partners in her IoT leadership role. She claims her experience in IoT will help her team and partners navigate the “5G economy.” The speed and low latency of 5G will introduce countless new endpoints and create complexity.

“It’s going to be much more complicated than previous collaborations,” Watkins said. “That experience that I bring from IoT – be it the device, be it the solution, be it the network and partners you need to support it – those are all the things that I’ve been doing for a lot of years.”

Earnings

The carrier reported strong numbers for its 2020 fourth quarter. T-Mobile brought in $20.3 billion in revenue and $68.4 billion for the full year. The company raked in a year-long EBITDA of $24.6 billion. Executive vice president and chief marketing officer Matt Staneff credited the business unit for big wins in the education and public sectors.

Sievert, Mike_T-Mobile

T-Mobile’s Mike Sievert

T-Mobile also added 1.7 million net-new customers during the quarter, giving it 5.6 million net-new customers for the full year. In addition, more than 4 million Sprint customers have migrated onto the T-Mobile network.

Executives also praised their 5G rollout, touting what they call the “fastest, biggest and most available 5G network in America.”

“We’ve competed mostly on price in the past if we’re honest,” president and CEO Mike Sievert said on an earnings call. “And now we have a premium product that’s increasingly the catalyst for our wins.”

No doubt network strength will be at the heart of the conversations T-Mobile partners have with potential clients.

Tags: Agents IoT People on the Move Vertical Markets

Most Recent


  • Broadcom-VMware and China, Chinese hackers
    Chinese Hackers Hiding in Cisco Router Firmware, Target U.S., Japanese Companies
    The hackers target branch routers to connect to a corporate headquarters.
  • PC market stats
    Hot Data: What's Driving the U.S. PC Market
    It's a reversal of fortunes as Dell takes a tumble.
  • Disrupt, channel disruptors
    2023 MSP 501 Channel Disruptors: These Companies Are Shaking Things Up
    We used key data points to determine those partner businesses that are true industry disruptors.
  • Channel leader Del Real at Clio legal software firm
    Legal Tech Firm Clio Lands Former 8x8 Channel Leader
    She has plans for global expansion of the legal tech firm’s channel partner program.

One comment

  1. Avatar Cindy Brown January 27, 2022 @ 9:37 am
    Reply

    pat is amazing! killin it for the partners and delivering updates and changes for the better. the t-mobile program going to new levels guided by jsg leadership. her top guy paul spencer bringing smb chicago legends coast to coast on these mean channel streets. at&t is on notice! #wewontstop #5gforall

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

  • Cloud Certification
    CompTIA Updates Cloud+ Certification, Drops New AI Guide for Businesses
  • cybersecurity lock
    Telos Partners Get New CyberProtect Partner Program
  • Cloud security
    VMware Debuts Cloud Web Security on SASE Platform
  • Benefit, Plus Sign
    TBI, Avant Add New Cloud, Security Suppliers to Lineups

Upcoming Events

View all

Channel Futures Leadership Summit

October 30, 2023 - November 2, 2023

Channel Partners Conference & Expo

March 11, 2024 - March 14, 2024

Channel Futures Leadership Summit 2024

September 17, 2024 - September 19, 2024

Galleries

View all

ScanSource CEO Mike Baur ‘Not in a Hurry’ to Find New Intelisys Leaders

September 28, 2023

2023 Channel Futures DE&I 101: Dedication, Determination and Drive

September 28, 2023

Ingram Micro One Expo Hall: AWS, Veeam, T-Mobile, More

September 28, 2023

Industry Perspectives

View all

Partners Balance Multicloud Opportunity, Complexity

September 25, 2023

Why Conversational AI Matters for Your Customers and How It Can Boost Your Revenue

September 15, 2023

The 5 Ds that Lead to Unplanned Business Sales

September 13, 2023

Webinars

View all

MSP 501: Leadership in Cybersecurity

October 19, 2023

DE&I: Find the Balance that Works for You

September 7, 2023

Above and Beyond with the NextGen 101ers

August 30, 2023

White Papers

View all

6 UCaaS Reseller Challenges and How Real World Businesses Solved Them

February 1, 2023

Frost Radar: North American UCaaS Market, 2022

February 1, 2023

The Complete Guide to White-Label UCaaS for Reseller Success

February 1, 2023

Channel Futures TV

View all

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 129: ZLH Enterprises

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 128: Channel Partner Strategies Intelligence Service

August 25, 2023

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 127: Expereo, Movie Night Returns

August 18, 2023

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 126: ARG

July 28, 2023

MSP 501

The industry's largest and most comprehensive partner awards program.

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.

Galleries

Educational slide shows and images from live events.

Media Kit And Advertising

Want to reach our audience? Access our media kit.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • Channel Partners Events
  • Telecoms.com
  • MSP 501
  • Black Hat
  • IoT World Today
  • Omdia

WORKING WITH US

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter

FOLLOW Channel Futures ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 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