Changing Channels

AI is eroding the work MSPs have long used to prove their value, and customers want something the industry has never fully delivered: a forward-looking plan. In this episode of Changing Channels, Larry Walsh talks with Chris Day, author of MSP to MVP, about why the book felt urgent now, how SMB expectations have shifted from reactive service to strategic guidance, and what it takes to become the “most valuable partner” your customers call first. They discuss why only a small share of MSPs are ready for the transition, how vendors’ sales-based measures clash with outcome-based value, what happens to the top-end customers of MSPs that don’t adapt, and how the model may evolve toward advisory-led, systems-integrator-style businesses. Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X: https://x.com/channelnomics About Larry Walsh: Larry Walsh is the founder and chief analyst of Channelnomics. https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/ About Chris Day: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cbday/ About ScalePad: https://www.scalepad.com/ Order MSP to MVP: https://link.amazon/B0fBUYeZ8 © 2112 Enterprises LLC

Vendors readily admit they need partners to cover the total addressable market and service their mutual customers. However, they often don't know what actually motivates partners, how they operate, their economic needs, or their expectations of vendors. Scott Goree, a veteran channel leader, discovered the misalignment when he left the vendor world to run vendor relationships for a large security reseller. Now, as the recently appointed channel chief at Delinea, Goree is applying what he learned about being a partner to his channel program and management team. In this episode of Changing Channels, Goree joins Larry Walsh to discuss partner motivations, the economics of services, earning and losing loyalty, and how vendors can break through at a partner with hundreds of vendors on its line card. What Goree learned is applicable to all channel chiefs and their teams. Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli About Larry Walsh: Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/ About Scott Goree: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottgoree About Delinea: www.delinea.com © 2112 Enterprises LLC

As monday.com expands beyond project management into CRM, service, development, and AI, its channel strategy is evolving with it. Partners are taking on broader roles in consulting, implementation, specialization, and helping customers turn AI into business outcomes. Sarit Chalamish, head of strategic emerging partnerships at Monday.com, joins Larry Walsh on Changing Channels to discuss how monday.com is evolving its partner ecosystem to support its next stage of growth.   Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/channelnomics   About Larry Walsh: Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/   About Sarit Chalamish: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarit-chalamish-28177/   About monday.com: www.monday.com   © 2112 Enterprises LLC

The technology market is shifting from transactional sales toward recurring, consumption-based, and platform models, forcing vendors and partners to pay far more attention to what happens after the deal closes. In this episode of Changing Channels, GoTo channel chief Mike Day joins Larry Walsh to discuss how customer experience, retention, vertical specialization, and outcome-based engagement are reshaping channel strategy. Day explains why partners must become more involved throughout the customer lifecycle, how GoTo is building deeper vertical practices such as automotive, and why partner economics increasingly depend on helping customers recognize and sustain value rather than simply winning the initial transaction. Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/channelnomics About Larry Walsh: Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/ About Mike Day: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-day-209a2610/ About GoTo: https://www.goto.com © 2112 Enterprises LLC

Technology distribution is evolving from transactional product fulfillment into a broader role centered on lifecycle support, multivendor integration, services, and ecosystem orchestration. In this episode of Changing Channels, Larry Walsh speaks with Frank Vitagliano, CEO of the Global Technology Distribution Council, about the Channelnomics-GTDC report The Evolving Role of Distribution and what it reveals about distribution’s growing importance to vendor go-to-market strategies. They discuss why vendors can significantly improve their probability of success by working through distribution, how distributors create value through scale and cost avoidance, and why AI, cybersecurity, cloud services, professional services, and increasingly complex customer requirements are making distributors more essential to vendors and solution providers alike. Topics include: The current state of global technology distribution Why distribution is shifting from transactions to lifecycle support How distributors improve vendors' probability of go-to-market success Why vendors continue to question distribution ROI The difference between distribution cost and distribution value How distributors create cost avoidance for vendors Distribution's role in multivendor integration and ecosystem orchestration Why AI deployment, governance, security, and data readiness create new opportunities How distribution supports MSPs and solution providers with capabilities they cannot economically build themselves The growing importance of software, services, and professional services Why distributors are becoming more integrated with vendors and solution providers What technology distribution could look like five years from now Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/channelnomics About Larry Walsh: Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/ About Frank Vitagliano: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-vitagliano-31170856/ Global Technology Distribution Council: https://www.gtdc.org/   The Evolving Role of Distribution: The global report and regional editions covering North America, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific are available through GTDC. Download Here: https://gtdc.org/resource/the-evolving-role-of-distribution/

Artificial intelligence is compelling managed service providers to rethink where value is created, shifting the opportunity from resale and token margins to advisory services, implementation, optimization, lifecycle management, and measurable business outcomes. As customers look for partners that can turn AI ambition into practical systems, the MSP market is likely to split between providers with deep expertise and those left supporting yesterday’s model. Duane Barnes, president of RapidScale, joins Channelnomics’ Larry Walsh on Changing Channels to discuss how AI is reshaping managed services. Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/channelnomics   About Larry Walsh: Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/   About Duane Barnes: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/duanebarnes/   About RapidScale: https://rapidscale.com/   © 2112 Enterprises LLC

Hyperscaler marketplaces are rapidly becoming a preferred way for enterprises to buy technology, creating new opportunities for vendors and partners alike. But success requires far more than simply listing products online. New Relic recently surpassed $1 billion in sales through AWS Marketplace, demonstrating what's possible with the right strategy. On this episode of Changing Channels, Larry Walsh speaks with Shannon Batson, Global Director of Cloud Sales at New Relic, about building a successful hyperscaler marketplace business and the lessons learned along the way. Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! • Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ • LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli • X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/channelnomics About Larry Walsh: • Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/ About Shannon Baston: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannonbbatson/ About New Relic: https://newrelic.com/ © 2112 Enterprises LLC

Technology buyers are demanding business outcomes, AI readiness, and measurable value — not just products. To meet those expectations, Lenovo is evolving its channel strategy through Lenovo 360, emphasizing services, lifecycle value, technical enablement, and outcome-based selling. In this episode of Changing Channels, Wade McFarland, Vice President of North America Channel at Lenovo, joins Larry Walsh to discuss how Lenovo is helping partners grow profitability, attach more services, accelerate AI adoption, simplify engagement, and deliver stronger customer outcomes. Topics include: • Outcome-based selling and customer success • Lenovo 360 partner program updates • AI-driven opportunities for channel partners • Services-led growth and recurring revenue • Partner profitability and lifecycle services • Technical enablement and skills development • Financing, consumption models, and customer value • Simplifying channel engagement Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/channelnomics About Larry Walsh: Bio: https://www.channelnomics.com/about LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/ About Wade McFarland: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wade-mcfarland-9017037/ About Lenovo 360: https://www.lenovopartnerhub.com/ © 2112 Enterprises LLC #Lenovo #Lenovo360 #ChannelPartners #ITChannel #ChannelSales #PartnerPrograms #OutcomeBasedSelling #AI #ManagedServices #CustomerSuccess #ChannelStrategy #TechnologyPartners  

The managed services market is entering a new phase as MSPs confront rising operational complexity, mounting tool sprawl, margin pressure, and increasing customer demands for automation and efficiency. Platform consolidation, workflow orchestration, and AI-driven operations are reshaping how MSPs scale and compete, while vendors race to position themselves as the operational backbone of modern service providers. ConnectWise CEO Manny Rivelo joins Channelnomics’ Larry Walsh on Changing Channels to discuss the company’s ASIO platform strategy, the evolution of the MSP business model, the role of ecosystem integration, and how automation and data-driven operations are redefining the future of managed services.     Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli X (formerly Twitter): / channelnomics   About Larry Walsh: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lmwalsh2112/     About Manny Rivelo LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mannyrivelo/   About ConnectWise LinkedIn: www.connectwise.com   Changing Channels is a production of Channelnomics, a brand of 2112 Enterprises LLC   Follow @Channelnomics to stay current on the latest #research, #bestpractices, and #resources. At @Channelnomics — the voice of thought leadership — we define #channel trends, chart new #GTM strategies, and #partner with industry leaders to champion #diversity in the channel.    © 2112 Enterprises LLC

The backup and disaster recovery market has long been viewed as mature and saturated, yet shifting economics, evolving cyber threats, and partner fatigue are creating an opening for disruption. New infrastructure capabilities, changing MSP expectations, and rising concerns around vendor “extraction” models are redefining what partners demand from their technology providers – including BCDR. Slide, the new MSP-centric backup vendor, aims to shake up the staid segment with new products, innovations, and commitment to partner collaboration. Co-founders Austin McChord and Michael Fass join Channelnomics’ Larry Walsh on Changing Channels to discuss the ascent of Slide. Follow us, Like us, and Subscribe! • Channelnomics: https://channelnomics.com/ • LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2NC6Vli • X (formerly Twitter):   / channelnomics   About Larry Walsh: • LinkedIn:   / lmwalsh2112   • X (formerly Twitter):   / lmwalsh_cn   About Austin McChord • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mcchord/ About Michael Fass • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-fass-6a224111/ About Slide • LinkedIn: www.slide.tech Changing Channels is a production of Channelnomics, a brand of 2112 Enterprises LLC Follow @Channelnomics to stay current on the latest #research, #bestpractices, and #resources. At @Channelnomics — the voice of thought leadership — we define #channel trends, chart new #GTM strategies, and #partner with industry leaders to champion #diversity in the channel.  © 2112 Enterprises LLC