8x8, AT&T, Cisco, Other Vendors Update Partner Programs
A big UC/CX player says it's working more with VARs, and Comcast Business significantly restructured its channel program.
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Kaseya announced new initiatives to partners around the globe.
First Kaseya shared its TruPeer program with partners in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). TruPear helps partners professionalize their MSP practices.
The remote IT monitoring and management (RMM) software provider also announced a initiative around partners putting Kaseya in their branding.
"We're going to make it financially impossible for people not to be ‘Powered by Kaseya,'" CEO Fred Voccola said in an interview.
Read about the EMEA expansion and Powered by Kaseya initiative.
Egress is seeking to completely move its sales to indirect.
The U.K.-based email security vendor reported a 220% growth in partner-generated revenue. Sales moved from 15% channel to 80%.
In particular, the provider cited rapid pickup in MSP partner activity.
Christine Horton wrote about the changes at Egress.
Cybersecurity provider Centripetal formalized its partner program.
VAR and MSP partners can access sales incentives and sales support from the vendor, in addition to marketing resources and a partner portal.
The formalization also entails channel expansion into Europe, Centripetal executives said.
Edward Gately has the scoop.
Restructuring at Comcast Business impacted the MSO's channel program in mid-November.
The channel-focused marketing and sales operations teams at Comcast Business folded underneath larger "headquarters" organizations. Comcast Business stressed that those resources will still focus on channel partners, but with a different reporting structure.
Partners say the jury is still out on how the integration will impact them, after years of consistent partner program structure. According to Comcast Business, the change will help "accelerate enterprise sales" and help channel-focused employees move faster.
Read about the changes to the Comcast Business partner program.
Check Point Software Technologies reportedly simplified its onboarding process for channel partners.
That's according to new partner ecosystem leader Francisco Criado, who said Check Point added a pay-as-you-go model to keep partners from feeling pressured into long-term contracts.
"There are usually upfront commitments, pooled licensing, or subscription costs - we wanted to extend flexible consumption models like PAYG, which is rooted in (true) consumption, ensuring that customers only pay for what they use," he told Channel Futures.
Moshe Beauford wrote about the other channel updates Check Point made.
A unified channel program now exists for partners of Cloudli Communications and ConnectMeVoice.
Cloudli purchased the VoIP, UCaaS and CCaaS provider in 2022, and now their partner efforts have merged. The combined company said it has enhanced its sales and marketing support.
Cloudli works with both MSPs and resellers.
Analyst Anurag Agrawal weighed in on the story Moshe Beauford wrote.
A VMware channel leader said the vendor intends to increase customer lifecycle incentivizes as it seeks to makes its software more sticky.
UK and Ireland channel sales director Andy Corcoran said VMware partners have been embracing the lifecycle incentives the vendor rolled out last year. And he said those investments will increase as Broadcom vows to spend more money on the VMware channel.
Christine Horton wrote about what VMware is doing to incentivize lifecycle participation.
Flare changed its managed security service provider (MSSP) program.
The update establishes three main tiers. One for security assessments with Flare, another for general MSSP work and an "MSSP premium" category.
Flare provides something called continuous threat exposure management (CTEM).
Edward Gately wrote about Flare.
Cybersecurity provider Guardz made a "Growth Hub" platform available to MSPs to give them an assortment of tools.
In addition a cyber risk assessment prospecting tool and ROI reports, the Growth Hub connects partners to a potential referral commission. Gaurdz has also made available sales and marketing materials with the option for custom branding.
Edward Gately has the scoop.
Searchlight Cyber rolled out a new partner portal replete with dedicated resources.
The dark web intelligence provider said its updated program includes a streamlined deal registration process for VARs. It notes that established Searchlight VARs can tap into a discount program.
Read about Searchlight Cyber in the same story as Centripetal.
Cisco made what executives called its most significant incentive shift in more than a decade.
The IT giant merged three partner incentive programs into one, with a goal of rewarding new new logos, up-sell and cross-sell. One distributor said it has simplified the experience of partners who endeavor to journey alongside Cisco in its path to drive more software subscription revenue.
Read about those partner incentives, as well as reportedly channel-friendly incentives for internal Cisco sales.
AT&T's new channel marketing leader promised more consistency in the vendor's market development (MDF) program.
AT&T recently tapped Matt Hickey as head of partner marketing. That's a new position for the provider.
"Because marketing is such a critical function, we’ve elevated the leadership to a VP level and structured the team to provide both dedicated and cross-functional support for partners," said Sarita Rao, president of integrated and partner solutions at AT&T.
Hickey said the 2024 MDF refresh will see more "consistent program requirements, T&Cs, and timelines."
Read Channel Futures' story about Hickey and AT&T marketing.
Value added-resellers (VARs) are becoming a "pivotal part" of 8x8's channel program.
That observation came from Michael Quince, the vendor's North American channel sales leader. He said VARs and their professional services are creating stickier customers.
"Agents aren't going away. And we have plenty of them in our program, all of which we treasure — but we have seen the emergence of the traditional VAR in our program as well," Quince said.
Read more of Quince's comments.
Value added-resellers (VARs) are becoming a "pivotal part" of 8x8's channel program.
That observation came from Michael Quince, the vendor's North American channel sales leader. He said VARs and their professional services are creating stickier customers.
"Agents aren't going away. And we have plenty of them in our program, all of which we treasure — but we have seen the emergence of the traditional VAR in our program as well," Quince said.
Read more of Quince's comments.
Technology suppliers introduced new investments, priorities and even upheaval into their partner programs last month.
Many vendors in the worlds of IT, telecom and everything in between are making big pivots, and changes in their channel programs reflect those evolutions.
Take for instance, VMware's partner incentives for different points in the customer lifecycle, intended to bolster its shift to software and subscriptions. On a similar incentive theme, Cisco merged three reward programs to simplify the process for partners that are adopting recurring revenue models.
Channel Futures is also paying attention to the types of partners vendors are looking to attract. For instance, 8x8 – known for its presence in the technology advisor (agent) market – says it's seeing an uptick in business with value-added resellers (VARs).
Read our summary of channel program changes from November in the 13-image gallery.
Also, see October's biggest program updates if you missed them.
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