The Channel Surfers

The Channel Surfers - Episode 62 - "From Accounting to CRO - Neal Dooly's Channel Journey"

This episode of Channel Surfers features co-hosts John McCabe and Jeff Lennon in conversation with Neil Dooley, founder of Successful Selling Advisory and a data-driven fractional Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). The discussion is a candid and practical exploration of building and managing successful B2B SaaS revenue models, with a specific focus on sales forecasting, the role of fractional executives, and how to integrate a partner channel program into a company's core operations. The tone is conversational and professional, with Neil providing direct, experience-based insights from a CRO's perspective. Major Takeaways - Revenue is a Business-Wide Issue: Revenue challenges are not isolated to the sales department. A holistic view, integrating financial discipline with sales strategy, is crucial for sustainable growth. - Be Pragmatic and Start with an MVP: Don't wait for perfection. Build a lean, focused channel program and set realistic timelines. A nine-month timeline to see repeatable success is a reasonable expectation. - Data is Your Map: When a program is stuck, use data to diagnose the problem objectively. Metrics like Partner CAC vs. Direct CAC, win rates, and deal velocity can prove the channel's value and secure internal buy-in. - Integrate, Don't Isolate, the Channel: For a partner program to succeed, it must be treated as a core revenue function, fully aligned with CRO goals and equipped with the necessary resources and enablement. - AI is a Tool, Not a Replacement: Modern AI tools can offer sophisticated insights, but they cannot replace the human elements of trust, relationship-building, and expert advisory, which remain irreplaceable in sales. - The Power of a Hybrid Skill Set: Combining a deep understanding of finance with hands-on sales and channel experience provides a unique and powerful perspective for driving

The Channel Surfers - Episode 61 - "Agentic AI in the Partner Motion — Beyond Tools, Into Autonomous Action"

In this episode of "The Channel Surfers," hosts John McCabe and Jeff Lennon ride the fast-moving wave of "agentic AI" and its growing impact on the partner motion. With their signature conversational and insightful style, they explore the shift from AI that assists to AI that acts, helping listeners navigate what this change means for channel professionals without getting "crushed along the way." Key Discussion Points Defining Agentic AI The hosts begin by clarifying the distinction between the AI most people are familiar with and this new evolution. - Assistive AI: This is the AI that helps you do things faster, such as drafting emails, summarizing documents, or offering suggestions. It assists with tasks. - Agentic AI: This is a more autonomous form of AI designed to take action and execute entire workflows without constant human prompting. It can manage a schedule, evaluate deal registrations in a PRM, or run complex follow-up sequences. As John puts it, it's a shift from "AI assists to AI does or acts." How Agentic AI is Impacting the Partner Motion John and Jeff discuss how agentic AI is not about replacing people but about making them more efficient and effective, allowing them to do "more with less." - Repetitive Task Automation: Mundane but critical tasks like email sequencing for partner reps, organizing schedules, and managing digital files can be automated, freeing up channel managers to focus on strategy and relationships. - Enhanced Partner Management: AI can help expand the number of partners a single manager can effectively handle. Where a manager might have been capped at 5-7 focus partners, AI could enable them to effectively manage 12-15 by automating follow-through and ensuring consistent execution. - Persistent, Intelligent Follow-Up: Unlike humans who can be deterred by rejection, an AI agent will persistently follow up on leads or communications. Agentic AI can even augment and tweak its approach to remain effective without being overly pushy.

The Channel Surfers - Episode 60 - "A Founder's Guide to a 100% Channel Motion with Anders Norremo"

In this episode of "Channel Surfers," hosts John McCabe and Jeff Lennon are joined by Anders Noremo, founder of Third Party Trust (now acquired by Bitsight), to discuss his experience building a successful, 100% channel-focused sales model. In a candid, conversational discussion, Anders shares the strategic imperative and practical application of going all-in on channel, offering a masterclass in executive leadership. Speaking from his direct experience as a founder who built and sold his company, Anders shares the lessons he learned in leveraging partnerships to achieve explosive growth, contrasting it with the traditional direct sales approach. John, who worked with Anders, provides corroborating details and personal anecdotes. Key Discussion Points The Shift from Direct Sales to Channel Focus Anders recounts his early days as a founder in Chicago, where he started Third Party Trust to address the growing problem of third-party risk. Initially, he handled all sales himself and later struggled with hiring direct sellers. He found traditional SaaS sales tactics like cold calling and cold emailing to be inefficient, often starting potential relationships on a negative note. This frustration led him to seek alternative go-to-market strategies, which naturally guided him toward the channel. The Risks and Rewards of a Channel-First Model The group discusses the high-stakes decision to pivot to a 100% channel-focused business. - The Risk: Anders acknowledges that committing fully to a channel model involves significant risks, primarily the investment of time and focus. The biggest danger for a startup, where time is the most precious resource, is picking the wrong partner and wasting valuable months. Acknowledging John's point about risk, Anders adds that the move might not work, but the learnings from the attempt are invaluable. - The Reward: The rewards, however, can be immense. John emphasizes the principle of "you give, you get," explaining that being flexible and easy to work with builds trust and respect with partners, which in turn brings more deals. The "Unlock" Moments with Key Partners - Optiv: The turning point came around 2019 when Anders approached a major partner, Optiv. Instead of asking them to resell his product, he offered a novel proposition: he had customers who needed his solution as a managed service, and he wanted Optiv to be that managed service arm. While training the Optiv team, they were so impressed by the platform's ease of use and automation that they migrated all their existing accounts to his solution. This became his "big unlock" and created a powerful new sales angle: enabling Optiv's reps to sell their own company's managed service, powered by his technology. - GuidePoint: A similar "lucky" break occurred with GuidePoint. After a customer expressed a strong preference for Third Party Trust, a key player at GuidePoint reached out to Anders to resell the solution. To solidify the partnership and help GuidePoint stand up its own Third-Party Risk Management (TPRM) practice, Anders made a strategic move: he contracted GuidePoint to provide services for one of his own customers, effectively becoming GuidePoint's first customer for their new practice. He admits to "going negative" on this first deal, paying for it himself to prove his strategic, long-term commitment. Driving Adoption: The 100% Channel Mandate A pivotal moment was the decision to go 100% channel. Anders told his sales team they were no longer allowed to take deals direct; any direct deal would result in only 50% quota relief and 50% commission. - Initial Reaction: There was skepticism and concern from the sales team. - The Result: No deal ever went direct again. It forced a behavioral shift where reps became strategic. Since they had to use a partner, they chose partners who could bring them new deals and add real value. Within six months, strategic deal registrations from partners "went straight up to the right,"

The Channel Surfers - Episode 59 - "Partner-Sourced Pipeline: Myth vs. Reality"

Partner-sourced attribution is one of the most debated and least trustworthy metrics in the channel. This episode builds the clean three-bucket model — sourced, influenced, accelerated — and gives you a way to get sales leadership to agree on it.

The Channel Surfers - Episode 58 - "From Ecosystems to AI with David Levine"

In this week's episode of "Channel Surfers," John McCabe and Jeff Lennon are joined by guest David "Dave" Levine, a technical sales executive, cybersecurity expert, and author of the new book, "Navigating the AI Wave." The wide-ranging discussion flows from the evolution of the IT channel and cybersecurity to the transformative impact of Artificial Intelligence on the workforce, demystifying common fears and offering practical advice. David, a long-time friend and former colleague of John's, is introduced as a "master of cyber" and a key voice in understanding the current tech landscape. Key Discussion Points The Evolving Tech Channel: From Linear to Ecosystem David Levine explains his history in the IT channel, which began with technical enablement. He emphasizes that the channel is the crucial path for manufacturers to reach customers, and his role has always been to translate complex technology into clear business value. The conversation highlights the shift from a linear channel model to a complex "ecosystem." In this new paradigm, trusted partners with deep technical expertise, especially in cybersecurity, are succeeding. A key point is that the security perimeter has moved from the network to identity, particularly with cloud migration, making a holistic understanding of identity critical for partners to deliver real value. AI in the SOC: Augmentation, Not Replacement The discussion pivots to the role of AI in the Security Operations Center (SOC), a central theme in David's book. - "Gap Filler" for Alert Fatigue: David views AI-driven SOC automation not as a replacement for humans but as a powerful "gap filler." He notes that SOC analysts suffer from high turnover and "alert fatigue," only managing to review 8-10% of incoming alerts. - Automating Tier 1: AI is perfectly suited to handle the high-volume, low-level Tier 1 tasks of processing alerts, filtering noise, and escalating only critical incidents. This frees up human analysts for more valuable Tier 2 and Tier 3 work where critical thinking is essential. - The "Human in the Loop": David stresses that while AI processes data incredibly fast, it cannot yet think like a human. A major concern is the risk of over-permissioning AI agents. He warns against a "set it and forget it" approach, emphasizing that humans must oversee AI operations to prevent it from becoming a hindrance. - Proactive Training: Likening cybersecurity preparedness to a golfer practicing for the Masters, David advocates for using AI-automated "tabletop exercises." These simulations allow security teams to practice and refine their response plans, ensuring they are prepared when a real incident occurs. AI in the Workplace: Role Transformation, Not Annihilation The conversation expands to AI's broader impact on the job market, addressing common fears. - AI for Routine Tasks: David's central thesis is that AI is here to handle routine, repetitive tasks, while humans are needed for context, judgment, and strategic thinking. He draws parallels to past technological shifts, like when human "computers" at NASA began overseeing IBM machines or when ATMs transformed, but did not eliminate, the role of bank tellers. - "AI Washing" Layoffs: John raises the issue of recent mass layoffs attributed to AI. David introduces the term "AI washing," suggesting companies are using AI as a convenient justification for pre-planned cost-cutting. He argues that current AI productivity gains (around 12-15%) are too modest to justify replacing tens of thousands of jobs. The group agrees that human elements in sales, customer service, and development remain irreplaceable because AI lacks genuine understanding, emotion, and creativity. - Consolidation of Roles: The biggest misconception is "AI is coming for my job." The speakers clarify that while specific tasks are being automated, roles are consolidating and becoming more strategic. AI handles the "what," while humans handle