Meet the Chiefs: Jack Kudale, SnapLogic
This week, Jack Kudale, SnapLogic's SVP of Worldwide Operations, opens up about how he sees the role of the channel chief evolving, his biggest frustration and what gets him most excited about the channel.
![Meet the Chiefs: Jack Kudale, SnapLogic Meet the Chiefs: Jack Kudale, SnapLogic](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt10e444bce2d36aa8/blt58293a03f4f28867/652465f9f45c05aea10f351e/Handshake_Abstract_Thinkstock_0_0.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
Jack Kudale came to SnapLogic from CA Technologies, where he led the company’s global expansion in enterprise DevOps and cloud services, overseeing the acquisitions of sales and execution for Wily Technology, iTKO, NolioSoft, Concord Communications, Aprisma, NetQoS and Cybermation.
Over his 20 year career in enterprise software, Jack has built a successful track record in hyper-growth strategies, global sales execution and entry into new verticals and markets. He joined SnapLogic last year as SVP of Global Field Operations.
Number of channel partners: 65
Age of partner program: 1 year
Percentage of revenue driven through channel: our goal is to achieve at least 20% of revenue through our indirect and direct channel programs in the coming years
What gets me most excited is the attention SnapLogic is receiving from our channel partners – big and small. We have regional consultancies bringing us into their accounts and delivering hybrid cloud application and big data integration best practices with our platform and we have global systems integrators including SnapLogic in their digital transformation practices for CIOs and CTOs at Fortune 500 companies.
What can be frustrating for our channel team is the initial investment it takes to develop a channel program. That said, after 12 months of work proving out the strengths and benefits of our platform, we are already seeing success with deployments with HCL, Tech Mahindra and others and activity is now ramping quickly.
I would implement expanded geographic coverage to help support the global partners locally. We recently announced the SnapLogic Partner Connect Program in support of the channel ecosystem we’ve built. Already in 2016, we have trained 300 consultants and received strong interest. To support our training and certification program, architect support, commercial models, etc. we know we’ll need to add strong staff across geographies to scale quickly.
I personally believe that the ‘channel chief as a digital enabler’ will be the catalyst for digital transformation. This means that the next generation of channel chiefs will ultimately have sales, marketing and operational pre-requisite to help build partner ecosystems in support of this new direction.
“Efforts are appreciated, but results are required.” I don’t remember who said it, but I live by it every day and the people who work with me do as well.
The best piece of advice I can give is to learn from your partners every day. My second piece of advice is to look for leading indicators of digital transformation in an account – is there a culture of and desire for change? Is there new executive leadership? Are they taking new products or services to market? Is their market consolidation or increased competition? Sticking with the same old same old tools and technology ensure that you’re not relevant in the new economy.
This is a tough question, but we have learned a few things along our way. Most important, be patient – building out a partner program takes investment, time and resources. But if you have the right team, technology and timing, it’s an investment that will pay off.
This is a tough question, but we have learned a few things along our way. Most important, be patient – building out a partner program takes investment, time and resources. But if you have the right team, technology and timing, it’s an investment that will pay off.
What is Meet the Chiefs?
Meet the Chiefs shines the spotlight on the channel’s head honchos and offers an opportunity to learn a little bit about the person's real thoughts on the state of the channel. Click on each photo to learn more about the channel chief you’re viewing.
Want to be included in an upcoming Meet the Chiefs? Send an email to The VAR Guy Editor-in-Chief Kris Blackmon at [email protected] for more information.
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