Google Cloud Partner Head Colleen Kapase: ‘This Is Our Time’

GOOGLE CLOUD NEXT — Colleen Kapase’s energy and excitement around Google Cloud partner opportunities are palpable.

This week, Kapase attended Google Cloud Next for the first time — and as the newly installed vice president of channels and partner programs (she succeeded Bronwyn Hastings late last year).

Kapase, who has worked in the technology indirect channel since 2001, sees a shift in the sector that is bringing Google Cloud partners a slew of new chances to grow and thrive. Primarily, those opportunities stem from AI, an area where Google Cloud has focused for more than 10 years. Kapase discussed this with Channel Futures in March as she talked about why she joined Google Cloud.

“[W]hen I looked at the resources that Google Cloud can bring to bear, that was something I wanted to be a part of,” she said. “… It was more just seeing the opportunity in front of us and knowing the culture of Google from a diversity perspective, a partner-first mentality. I was all-in. But the AI piece was probably the inflection point for me.”

While AI seemed to come out of nowhere at the beginning of 2023, the reality is that most of the vendors launching it have put in extensive effort behind the scenes for some time. Google Cloud represents one of those companies, and its expertise is coming to fruition in a variety of ways. Consider the introduction this week of Google Vids as just one example. The new Workspace tool lets anyone create videos with features including preset voiceovers. Google Vids “helps you become a better storyteller with a rich, new medium,” Aparna Pappu, vice president and general manager of Google Workspace, said during the April 9 keynote session.

Related:Google Cloud Partner Program VP: AI ‘Probably the Inflection Point for Me’

But there's more that has Kapase fired up for opportunities with Google Cloud partners.

First up, Google Cloud this week announced its new Generative AI Services Specialization. This certification targets Google Cloud partners at a certain (high) level of technical proficiency. Achieving it will “unlock earlier access to Google-led gen AI projects, additional funding for gen AI assessment work, and increased access to AI resources, partner marketing funds, and more,” as Kevin Ichhpurani, corporate vice president of global partner ecosystem and channels, wrote in an April 9 blog. Find out in the slideshow above what Kapase has to say about the new curriculum.

In addition, Google Cloud partners received some welcome news around professional services this week. While some cloud providers compete against their channel partners in this arena, Google Cloud is not one of them. Following on its announcement last August, Google Cloud on Wednesday said its Delivery Navigator expertise now is generally available to services partners.

“Delivery Navigator, a combination of Google’s technology and implementation methodologies, started as an internal platform designed to help Google Cloud Consulting customers transform, create and innovate on Google Cloud,” Brad Little, vice president, global head of cloud professional services, explained in an April 10 blog. “After an initial private preview of the platform to our partner community last year, we are ready to open up Delivery Navigator to the rest of our qualifying partners that have at least one Partner Specialization.”

Kapase talks about that and more in our Q&A (note that we have lightly edited the transcript for clarity and length). Learn what Google Cloud partners will want to know.