Channel Leaders
Cisco announced updates to its Cisco 360 partner program at its annual partner summit in Vancouver, including expanded recognition paths for advisors and developer partners, a 50% increase in rewards for annual contract value growth, double incentive rates on adopt for all use cases, and new partner value indexes. A distributor value index will be available in spring 2027. The program, introduced in January, replaces legacy frameworks with an outcome-based model for AI adoption. Cisco also added deal registration visibility and eligibility tracking to its partner experience platform. The update follows a year of AI-focused acquisitions and the general availability of Cisco IQ, which gives partners visibility into customer IT estates.
IFS unveiled plans for an AI marketplace at its annual IFS Unleashed conference in Orlando, enabling partners to create and sell industry-specific tools on the new IFS Intelligence platform. Partners get free access through December, with onboarding starting next month. The marketplace aims to help partners commercialize reusable AI products like skills, lenses, and automations. IFS has not set a launch date or disclosed commercial terms, and further details on its broader AI portfolio resale are expected by early 2027. The initiative comes as IFS reports an average 84% reduction in time and effort across about 15 or 16 implementation activities using AI, though overall project duration savings are not comparable.
Cato Networks updates its MSP partner program with the SMB FlexPool license pool and MSASE Dashboard, aiming to simplify service delivery for small and medium-sized businesses.
TCSP plans to launch the technology advisor certification program in the fourth quarter of this year, having completed a 30-person pilot and drafted a code of ethics. This move aims to address the aftermath of the FCC's ban on sales commissions for rural healthcare programs and to respond to the upcoming proposed rulemaking. Industry group GTIA also emphasizes that regulation is imminent and that proactive standard-setting is needed.
AWS partners are facing pressure from AI-driven pricing model changes. Allison Johnson, Director of the AWS Americas Technology Partner Team, stated that the software industry will not return to the era of five-year contracts, and consumption models and AI models will become mainstream. Traditional SaaS partners are shifting to outcome-based pricing, such as Zendesk charging per resolved ticket. AWS has also launched a business value realization program, providing funding to partners that demonstrate measurable customer outcomes.
Most brands launch promotions such as cashback and free gifts during the holiday season, yet struggle to accurately evaluate their effectiveness. This article argues that promotions should be viewed as infrastructure rather than mere campaigns, requiring governance, validation, and outcome measurement embedded from the design phase to prevent fraud, convert known customers, and truly drive business growth.
Auvik promoted Daniel Ochoa to Chief Revenue Officer, with his responsibilities including managing the partner ecosystem. Ochoa joined the company in June 2025, having previously spent nearly 12 years at SolarWinds and served as CRO at Automox. He plans to expand the partner network, focus on AI product sales, and grow markets in North America, Latin America, and EMEA. Company revenue grew 277% between 2021 and 2024, and this year it was named to the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 list.
At its annual partner summit, Telarus emphasized backend support optimization, leveraging the Telarus Hub platform and AI technology to improve efficiency while strengthening collaboration with partners to address competitors' challenges in backend services.
Verizon channel head Mark Tina announced his departure to join health insurer Humana as vice president of national partner sales and distribution. Tina spent 23 years at Verizon, leading the channel division for the past three years. His responsibilities will be assumed by Verizon's vice president of business sales, John Constantino.