CenturyLink Channel Chief Wants 'Larger, Strategic' Deals for Partners

The CenturyLink indirect channel is now led by Ed Morche, who promises bigger partner deals in the months ahead.

Last month, Lisa Miller left her role as CenturyLink’s president of wholesale, indirect and SME. Morche, CenturyLink’s president of North America enterprise and public sector, has taken over leadership duties for the indirect organization.

His role now includes leading the CenturyLink indirect channel sales organization, in addition to North America enterprise and public sector. Garrett Gee remains CenturyLink‘s channel chief.

CenturyLink’s Ed Morche

Morche was with Level 3 Communications for 16 years before CenturyLink acquired it 2017.

In a Q&A with Channel Partners, Morche talks about what’s ahead for the CenturyLink indirect channel.

Channel Partners: What are your goals for leading the indirect sales organization? Are there going to be changes coming?

Ed Morche: We are here for our partners. CenturyLink has a long commitment to the indirect channel, which spans more than 25 years — and we have been unwavering. Our commitment will not change. Our partners remain critical, trusted advisers. The CenturyLink Channel Partner Program will stay under the leadership of Garrett Gee, senior vice president of indirect sales. We have a great team, and they have my full confidence and trust.

We listen to our partners. [And] we know our efforts to make it easy to do business together are so important. Every day we work to simplify our partner and customer experience, including more automation and faster delivery of the products people need. We also understand our partners’ need for comprehensive sales support, access to more training and more powerful marketing resources to drive amazing outcomes. And we are delivering those tools.

CP: Will you leading the indirect sales organization, as well as North America enterprise and public sector, create new opportunities for CenturyLink partners? If so, how?

EM: This new approach will give us a more direct line of sight to the larger strategic deals that we can drive in tandem. Garrett has done an expert job bringing together the partner programs during our integration and driving real transformation. He, along with this team, has deep and wide expertise, and we will continue to leverage that in our strategy. I see tremendous opportunity for our partners with having the enterprise and indirect organizations supported by the same leadership. My focus is ensuring we are all well positioned for mutual growth, success and stability into the future.

CP: What’s at the top of your to-do list in this expanded role?

EM: The team’s goal is to work hard to provide our partners with a solid platform to grow from. That includes standardizing and streamlining our process and experience for partners. Also, we are always focused on simplification of our solutions, including more digital enablement tools and easier self-service capabilities. Our emphasis is firmly on customer success. We want to make sure our partners and their customers have the tools and technology solutions to meet their goals.

CP: How will your previous experience come into play in leading the indirect sales organization?

EM: I have worked across a variety of sales channels, including the federal sector. That experience allows me to take a wide and deep look at all the interdependencies that can drive continued growth. And in these roles, I worked hand in hand with our partner community to solve customer challenges and create compelling solutions. The addition of the indirect channel to my scope is a great fit. Our partners can help drive true transformation for our mutual customers.

CP: What sort of feedback have you received from CenturyLink’s partners? Is there much of an adjustment for them?

EM: Feedback from the partner community has been positive and is an open conversation, as it always is. Moving forward with the consistent leadership of Garrett and his team instills a lot of confidence. The indirect channel is a top priority at CenturyLink and our partners have always been, and will continue to be, vital to our business.

CP: What do you hope to have accomplished a year from now in this expanded role?

EM: Our goal is to help our partner community succeed with our portfolio of solutions, global network reach and unparalleled support. Whether that opportunity is in North American or in another region of the world, we have a dedicated support structure to help. Together we are going to build the things that matter.