7 Channel People Making Waves at Upstack, Google Cloud, Gradient MSP, More
This week we write about the partners navigating the $2 billion SD-WAN market revenue.
March 18, 2022
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The Channel Partners Conference & Expo is quickly approaching, and readers are interested in learning more. That’s why our seventh most-read story is about a CP Expo session where leaders discuss the state of private equity for MSPs. Colin Knox, founder and CEO of Gradient MSP, made waves this week for breaking down the acquisition landscape for MSPs.
“It’s a race to market share — acquiring as many end-customers as possible through the acquisition of as many quality MSPs as possible. This is a land grab strategy — to land, expand, retain. While there are tens of thousands of potential tuck-in acquisitions, they are hard to find and even harder to qualify. So, when one is, it can often turn into a rapid bidding war and highly competitive process to acquire them.”
Read more from Allison Francis’ interview.
Sometimes you must be the bearer of bad news. Sachin Gupta, vice president and general manager at Google Cloud Infrastructure, made waves this week for publicly telling customers that there would be price changes at Google Cloud, with some caveats.
“The impact of the pricing changes depends on customers’ use cases and usage. While some customers may see an increase in their bills, we’re also introducing new options for some services to better align with usage, which could lower some customers’ bills. In fact, many customers will be able to adapt their portfolios and usage to decrease costs. We’re working directly with customers to help them understand which changes may impact them.”
To read more about these price changes, read Kelly Teal’s piece here.
Cisco is doubling down to drive partner-delivered managed services because they’re the fastest growing route-to-market (RTM) opportunity.
Alexandra Zagury is Cisco’s VP of managed services and as-a-service sales. She made waves this week for highlighting RTM. Zagury said the 45% RTM for managed services compares with the overall business which “oscillates” between 20% and 30%.
“That is tremendous,” Zagury said. “When you look at this route-to-market opportunity, it’s also very key to the shift to as-a-service, because the best way to deliver an outcome right now is through a managed service. But as soon as you start adding the consumption model, as soon as you start adding the cloud-like delivery experience, you’re suddenly delivering a managed service as a service.”
Read Jeff Schwartz’s article to learn more about Meraki business being a key driver of Cisco’s managed services.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is planning to expand its operations abroad, spending more than $2.3 billion in the next two years building and operating data centers in the United Kingdom.
AWS is making the investment to meet the growing needs of its customers and to help strengthen the U.K.’s digital infrastructure.
Darren Hardman is vice president and general manager of AWS in the U.K. and Ireland. He made the week for his optimism about AWS’s contribution to the U.K. economy.
“Looking ahead, we know that the U.K. remains full of opportunity. And we continue to be excited by the potential to continue supporting our customers, partners and citizens across the U.K. over the years to come.”
Learn how U.K. organizations heavily use AWS.
The SD-WAN market revenue surpassed $2 billion last year, reaching its highest level. How do partners find business success in this growing market?
Robert DeVita, founder and CEO of Mejeticks, made waves this week for explaining how his partner firm focuses on a smaller handful of vendors. Moreover, DeVita differentiates between the technology provider and the service provider whose offerings Mejetick sells.
“We attempt to pick the underlying SD-WAN technology first, then go to market for MSPs to support it,” DeVita told Channel Futures. “Segmenting the decision process through this process allows you to get the best SD-WAN technology and the MSP. It also allows the customer to more clearly view best of breed vendors without confusing the process.”
Read the article to learn about how more customers and partners want to wrap security around SD-WAN solutions.
It’s a major overhaul. The Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) will rebrand as the Microsoft Cloud Partner Program and go into effect in October. Microsoft is doing away with gold and silver partner designations. Instead, the company will identify partners as base, solution and expert partners, based on their specializations and expertise.
Microsoft’s channel chief, Rodney Clark, made waves this week for reassuring partners. He emphasized that Microsoft is not taking away any benefits away from the MPN program that it is revamping. Microsoft is increasing its investments in partners by 25%, according to Clark.
To learn more about Microsoft’s partner benefits, read the article here.
Normally Upstack makes news for its acquisitions. However, this week our No.1 most-read article involved the technology advisory sales agency signing an agreement with a new data center provider. Wyoming Hyperscale White Box has agreed to a strategic partnership that makes Upstack its exclusive channel sales partner.
The deal marks a new agreement Upstack has signed directly with a vendor.
James Caulfield, partner and managing director at Upstack, made waves this week for being part of the vanguard.
“Simply put, Wyoming Hyperscale’s approach to data centers hasn’t been done before,” Caulfield said. “The amount of computing power in a smaller footprint is simply amazing. We’re excited to introduce customers to the data center of the future – today – while also benefiting the environment and helping businesses execute against their corporate ESG initiatives.”
Learn how Wyoming Hyperscale is the most advanced sustainable data center in the United States.
Normally Upstack makes news for its acquisitions. However, this week our No.1 most-read article involved the technology advisory sales agency signing an agreement with a new data center provider. Wyoming Hyperscale White Box has agreed to a strategic partnership that makes Upstack its exclusive channel sales partner.
The deal marks a new agreement Upstack has signed directly with a vendor.
James Caulfield, partner and managing director at Upstack, made waves this week for being part of the vanguard.
“Simply put, Wyoming Hyperscale’s approach to data centers hasn’t been done before,” Caulfield said. “The amount of computing power in a smaller footprint is simply amazing. We’re excited to introduce customers to the data center of the future – today – while also benefiting the environment and helping businesses execute against their corporate ESG initiatives.”
Learn how Wyoming Hyperscale is the most advanced sustainable data center in the United States.
Our weekly Channel People Making Waves counts down the top stories of the past seven days. We highlight the individuals behind the stories, this week featuring Upstack, Google Cloud, Gradient MSP and more.
One of the companies we’ve profiled has disrupted its partner program. Although changes don’t go into effect until October, partners can expect a new kind of identification system. Don’t worry, the company’s channel chief has spent time this week reassuring its partners. It’s why he made waves this week.
AWS is planning to expand its operations across the pond. According to the experts, there’s great opportunity to grow the U.K.’s digital infrastructure. Learn how much AWS is spending on the push by clicking on the slideshow above.
Finally, MSPs have experienced an influx of private equity during the pandemic. This money has supported a countless number of acquisitions in the industry. We feature one expert, the founder and CEO of an MSP, who helps readers navigate this world of M&A.
Also, don’t forget to catch last week’s roundup which you can find here.
Want to contact the author directly about this story? Have ideas for a follow-up article? Email Claudia Adrien or connect with her on LinkedIn. |
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