TD Synnex: Certifications a Top 5 Trend for Partners

TD SYNNEX INSPIRE — TD Synnex has revealed the specific training, expertise and skills that channel partners will need for the future. It comes via the distribution giant's latest Direction of Technology report.

The unveiling of the third annual report on Wednesday coincides with the start of TD Synnex's Inspire conference in Greenville, South Carolina. The report includes data from more than 1,000 technology resellers, systems integrators, service providers and MSPs that TD Synnex surveyed across the world.

TD Synnex's Patrick Zammit

“For the third straight year, the Direction of Technology report provides a clear picture both of the current state of the technology market and areas where businesses say they plan to invest the most,” said Patrick Zammit, CEO of TD Synnex. “This year, we’re seeing much more detail on how partners are embracing the power of AI and cloud technologies while making technology more adaptable to the needs of their customers. At the same time, they are balancing the need for robust security and regulatory compliance across all industries.”

Direction of Technology Report's 5 Trends

The survey identified five global trends that are influencing the IT market in 2024.

The first is the need for ingenuity and flexibility. More than one-half of respondents said that certifications are integral to their success in the marketplace. They also reported that they're relying on flexible spending solutions to meet the needs of their customer base.

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Innovation is also a major factor in the industry, the report claims. Channel partners reported growing pressure from clients to implement high-growth technologies into their product lines. This includes significant investments into technologies like security and hardware.

Security remains a major profit driver in the channel, respondents claim, while networking, endpoint devices, AI and hyperscale infrastructure rounded out their revenue drivers.

Partners are driving nearly three-quarters of IT spend in 2024, according to the survey. This sort of collaboration appears key to success, the report claims.

Finally is the importance of abiding by local regulations. MSPs and their customers are facing increasing pressure to abide by regulations around climate and human rights. That's why abiding by environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards is one of the top challenges facing their business in the next two years. Nearly half (46%) of respondents said that they plan to offer DE&I metrics and certifications as a solution in the next two years.

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TD Synnex will use the data from the Direction of Technology report to help form how it helps its customers.

TD Synnex's Jessica McDowell

"Where the [Direction of Technology] data helps TD Synnex the most coming out of the report is in how we build our enablement tracks for our partners," Jessica McDowell, SVP of business development and security strategy, told Channel Futures. "We have a number of certification courses by which we enable partners, and we really depend on what the partners tell us that they need to build. We build it from these reports based on where partners say that that they need the most help, and where they want to double down their efforts, and where they feel they have the largest skills gap."

TD Synnex decided to go forward with Inspire despite the significant damage in Greenville from Hurricane Helene. The company has made donations to local support groups in South Carolina and Florida, and is doing all it can to get staff out of Florida before Hurricane Milton lands early Thursday morning.

The distributor announced on Sept. 3 that president of North America Peter Larocque would step down from his role, replaced by Reyna Thompson. Look for that transition to happen next month.

The distributor also acquired Brazil-based cloud solutions provider IPSense as part of an effort to expand in South America.

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