Channel Edge

Our channel is shifting faster than ever before and it’s up to all of us to ensure we keep a finger on the pulse of what partners, alliances, and influencers are focused on going into 2022. Our SVP, Global Channel Chief, Steven Kellam, SVP of TMT Practice, Claudio Ayub and 360insights new SVP of Marketing, Heather K. Margolis join together in a Channel Edge special episode to review the key themes of the Channel Focus North America 2021 event. Watch this episode to understand the emerging themes that will help shape the landscape of the channel in 2022, such as: * Engaging Influencers * The emergence and dominance of the 'Marketplace' * Partner assisted sales, marketing, and attribution

Channel Partners need to get better at marketing and demand generation. Regardless of the specific role designed for them to fulfill, partners need to take ownership and then execute on these critical tasks. But, how do you make that happen in today's frenzied channel environments? How do you amplify partner skills and accelerate the marketing and demand gen process? Some may suggest incentives, rewards, MDF, and maybe all of them combined. Channel Incentives are a powerful part of the marketing and demand generation process and the right mix of tools should be leveraged at the right time, to the right people in the right ways. Please join me and Marc Monday, VP Global Strategic Partnerships at Sage, as we discuss building both a marketing assessment and a marketing engagement program. The good news is that Marc has done this with thousands of partners, and we break it down into 5 steps (and some are not easy). However, that is what creates a competitive advantage when done well.

While channel incentive automation and partner engagement are critical factors in achieving partner success, one of the less discussed keys for many channel partners is access to capital. Channel partners are facing many new challenges in the COVID world, from digital marketing to sales enablement, so the last thing they need is lack of capital to manage their businesses. Please join me while I talk to Kiley Kunkler, Vendor Origination Lead at Wells Fargo, and discuss how the right bank can make a big difference in helping vendors grow channel sales and deepen partner relationships.

So how do you build your channel? How do you scale channel programs? What role do incentive and MDF play? How do you prioritize? How do you successfully grow and manage your channel business as your revenue, partner community and internal headcount expand? In short, what works when you have to take channel from zero to sixty really, really fast? Seems practical and strategic at the same time and that is not always easy. Please join us as we discuss this topic with Darren Bibby, former Vice President Partner Strategy and Programs at DocuSign. Darren share not only his philosophy for success, but he also lays out the  5 key steps that made it happen for DocuSign..

Admittedly, the first time I heard the term "Ecosystem Orchestration," I wasn't sure what to think. I questioned its meaning as it relates to the channel. However, I quickly realized that "Ecosystem Orchestration" is an incredibly accurate description of the synergistic management of today’s complex ecosystems. No one can argue that channel ecosystems are becoming broader, more complex and extremely sophisticated. As the channel evolves in this way, participants in the channel are continuously questioning how do you get the most out of them. How do you take multiple partners, resellers, service providers and influencers and seamlessly manage them - all with the customer at the center? How can you orchestrate success? Please join us as we discuss this topic with James Hodgkinson, CEO of Webinfinity, a global leader in Ecosystem Orchestration. Listen in as James talks about why Ecosystem Orchestration is the key to successfully managing not just partners, alliances and applications outside of the organization, but all the parts of an organization's internal ecosystems as well.