Channel Allies of Impact: Meet the Inclusion & Belonging Difference Makers

As efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) in the business world grow more challenging and complicated, these channel community members are trudging onward.

Channel Futures' Channel Allies of Impact picks up where the DE&I 101 left off, recognizing the new environment leaders must navigate as they build inclusive spaces. Channel Futures is presenting this recognition in collaboration with Xposure Culture & Belonging Council. It focuses on individuals who are forming welcoming environments in the technology advisor (TA) and managed service provider (MSP) channels, as well as the larger indirect B2B technology sales ecosystem.

The use of the term "ally" suggests that individuals have committed to uplifting underrepresented communities, even if that doesn't result in industry clout. For some, the very effort can lead to negative professional consequences in an age where critics politicize DE&I to a weaponizing effect. Channel Futures' Channel Allies of Impact recognizes the seen and unseen efforts of 39 individuals.

"At Xposure, we believe that true progress comes when we uplift and create opportunities for everyone. The Channel Allies of Impact Award is more than just an accolade, it is the celebration of those who bravely champion inclusivity and opportunity in the channel," said Kelli Ballou-McMillan, director of global partners at Five9 and CEO and founder of Xposure. "We celebrate these individuals that remind us that inclusion for all is not just a goal; it is a necessity.

Related:2023 Channel Futures DE&I 101: Dedication, Determination and Drive

Five9's Kelli Ballou-McMillan

"The Channel Allies represent bravery, courage and advocacy as they do the work that is often overlooked, unfunded and shied away from," Ballou-McMillan added. "These allies are mentors, business owners, sponsors, successful entrepreneurs, technology thought leaders and marketers, and we are grateful to all them for their impact on building an industry to embrace culture and belonging so that we make room for growth, innovation and recruitment of the next generation of thought leaders."

View the slideshow above to learn about these honorees.

State of DE&I in the Channel

Many DE&I programs have suffered a loss of investment in recent years, especially in the tech sector. Although employee resource groups (ERG) enjoyed an uptick in executive sponsorship (often thanks to lawsuits and negative media attention toward major tech companies) during the Black Lives Matter movement of 2020, many of those initiatives have lost their support. Tech giants Microsoft, Google, Meta and Zoom notably made cuts to their DE&I teams and investments, and other vendors have more quietly shifted those functions back to HR departments.

Related:Register for This Fall's Canalys Forums in Miami, Berlin, Bali

The reasons are myriad. A study by Littler pointed to legal liability and litigation, reduced budgets and the recent Supreme Court decision on affirmative action. Other studies put those challenges firmly on the shoulders of senior leadership. A recent survey of channel partners by Canalys found that the biggest challenge came from "making the DEI business case clear to senior leadership." Another 17% said their biggest challenge was buy-in from top brass.

What might be behind senior leadership backing out of their support? One may consider the increased politicization and stigmatization of the acronym "DE&I." Some U.S. state governments have denied funds for DE&I programs. The backlash has led some DE&I groups to change their language around the topic.

Q. What is the biggest challenge you face when trying to promote DEI internally?

Source: Canalys Candafero Quick Poll

Mayka Rosales-Peterson, president of Alliance of Channel Women, said some vendors are continuing to support and expand their inclusion efforts, "while others may be more focused on short-term financial priorities." But business leaders need to think of the long-term impact of diversity, equity and inclusion, she said.

Alliance of Channel Women's Mayka Rosales-Peterson

"A commitment to DE&I not only fosters innovation by bringing diverse perspectives to the table but also strengthens relationships with a broader customer base. In the long run, organizations that prioritize inclusion are more likely to thrive in an increasingly competitive and diverse marketplace," Rosales-Peterson told Channel Futures.

But regardless of any progress certain groups are making, inclusion advocates in the channel say they are fighting discouragement. While the channel may look less white and male-dominated than it did 20 years ago, women and people of color remain minorities by a wide margin.

"As an Afro-Panamanian woman in the technology channel, it can be challenging not to see more diverse representation in many visible or leadership roles in the channel. Although progress is being made toward greater inclusion, the ongoing effort to drive meaningful change for those who are always raising the flag for change can be exhausting," Rosales-Peterson said. "It’s crucial that we continue to advocate for diversity, ensuring that different perspectives are included and all voices are valued in decision-making spaces."

Ballou-McMillan likened these efforts of inclusive spaces to the innovation companies are trying to achieve with technologies.

"Advocating for more inclusive spaces is not an attack on those who already have representation in this channel; rather, it’s a recognition of the immense value that diverse thought leaders bring to the table. When individuals from different backgrounds share their experiences and perspectives, they bring fresh ideas and creative solutions that might not otherwise surface," Ballou-McMillan said. "The CX technology we’re building, marketing and selling are collaborative tools meant to connect people, to improve interactions, and to innovate. Collaboration and Innovation in technology are two pillars that are in direct alignment with culture and belonging initiatives. If we viewed culture-and-belonging work like we do the tools we are building, we’d know to listen to the customer and when doing so, we’d be closer to solving the challenges they are having."

Widening the Channel

The insular nature of the channel can account for some of its homogenous demographics. In other words, the channel may remain an old boys' club due to the fact that very few people know about it. For decades the vast majority of partner business owners started their agencies after working in direct sales for telecommunications providers. In those jobs as direct reps, they stumbled onto the lesser-known, yet quite lucrative agent model and launched their own businesses.

And for decades, the channel remained an underground market — a shadow economy known by only a select few.

Optical Diversity Telecom's Ty Smith

"There just isn't really a lot of competition right now when it comes to channel manager roles, because a lot of people that should be going for these don't know that the channel exists," said Ty Smith, who has worked in channel support and now runs his own agency, Optical Diversity Telecom. "We have hundreds of thousands of B2B sales talent in the tech and telecom world that work under departments where they've never heard of channel sales. So they wouldn't even know to look for a partner management role, partner enablement role or channel business development role, because they wouldn't know what it is."

Smith said he encounters many people who work in areas adjacent to the channel but don't know about the opportunity to sell through the channel. That includes businesses that refer Microsoft to their clients but didn't know they could actually transact with Microsoft.

"If they lived in certain areas, certain cities, if they went to certain networking events, they would have found out," he said. "But why isn't it as common knowledge as the real estate industry? Most people in America are aware how the real estate industry works — that you can make money from facilitating a home deal."

Might a more diverse base of partners look to instill in vendors the business value of building diverse teams?

“The channel thrives when it reflects the diversity of its partners. By recruiting more women and people of color into leadership and partner roles, we can drive meaningful change across the industry. The more we diversify, the more we create opportunities for growth and innovation, which ultimately benefits everyone," Rosales-Peterson said.

Smith has been on the road promoting the channel to tech and business leaders. In his line of sight are the 500-600 minority-focused business chambers in the U.S.

"If we don't have partners that are inside of those ecosystems are talking to those businesses, then we could expect that a lot of those businesses are just going to order those services through direct sales," he said.

Smith says he sees interest from the technology services distributors (TSDs) to evangelize the advisor model to people outside the industry.

"They all seem like they all want to change this. And many of the partners want to change it because they want new talent for channel managers and customers that aren't aware of technology advisors. I think everyone wants to fix the issue. I think it's just figuring out how we're going to do it and applying the right resources and investments into actually doing it," he said. "Right now the channel is like the NBA in 1950. Once we can move the channel so it looks more like maybe the NBA of 1990 where you have very diverse talent, I think that's going to be a win-win for everybody."