Microsoft’s New Channel Chief Discusses His Seven Key Priorities
After 10 weeks in his new job, Rodney Clark is preparing to meet the partner community.
June 18, 2021
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We’ve seen our customers become increasingly digital, not only with their solutions, but in their hiring. They are hiring more application developers today than they ever have, and so our partners have to actually come in with much more of a focused technical agenda in how they service and support and build with our customers.
You hear a lot about our investments in industry at Microsoft and that is the way that our customers make decisions. To the extent that I can marry that technical capability with the industry, that opportunity becomes important for us, and a priority for me specifically.
We have what we call inbound and outbound engagement. That means partners bringing customer opportunities to Microsoft, and Microsoft sellers engaging and pulling in Microsoft partners into specific customer opportunities. That’s an area of feedback that we get from partners that we can do better. And it’s a focus of mine to simplify what that relationship looks like. And ultimately, that includes the things that we can do from channel incentives to seller compensation and to make sure that those things are aligned.
In this accelerated digital age, we’re asking partners to increase their level of technical capability, to focus and match our customer intensity, we also have to ensure that there’s profitability for our ecosystem. And we’ve done a lot of things to ensure that from the incentives that we are accelerating and growing year over year, to the investments in skilling.
This focuses on how we are delivering customer value on Microsoft cloud innovations and how we’re directing and supporting our partners across that innovation stack. That includes Azure, edge devices, mixed reality with new technologies like Mesh, leveraging GitHub and industry clouds
Having an opportunity to enhance and accelerate our engagement opportunities, looking at ultimately how we ramp up digital engagement.
We are really focused on security and trust and empowering organizations through this notion of zero trust. And that’s a cornerstone for us around building, developing and creating a scenario where environments are secure. And as part of the trust theme, that extends to the channel on inclusive economic opportunities by building more diversity into the ecosystem and driving tech innovations that deliver on sustainability initiatives.
We are really focused on security and trust and empowering organizations through this notion of zero trust. And that’s a cornerstone for us around building, developing and creating a scenario where environments are secure. And as part of the trust theme, that extends to the channel on inclusive economic opportunities by building more diversity into the ecosystem and driving tech innovations that deliver on sustainability initiatives.
Microsoft’s Rodney Clark
Microsoft’s new global channel chief Rodney Clark is gearing up to introduce himself to the partner community next month. Clark, who took the reins from longtime channel chief Gavriella Schuster on April 1, will articulate new expectations from partners.
Clark, a 23-year company veteran who previously led mixed reality and IoT solutions sales, has maintained a low profile during his first 10 weeks as channel chief. All of that will change when partners get to hear him at annual Microsoft Inspire partner event on July 14-15. For the second year, Microsoft Inspire will take place as a virtual conference.
At Microsoft Inspire, Clark will share his vision for the future of the channel and partner engagement. In an interview with Channel Partners, he discussed his seven key priorities. Click through the gallery above to find out what they are.
And come back next week for a Q&A with Clark in which he shares his views on a number of topics.
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