To master the channel model without prior experience, uSecure's team attended MSP-focused educational sessions at industry events, rather than just working the vendor booth. This immersion, combined with monitoring online communities like Reddit, provided deep, firsthand insight into partner pain points and desired vendor behaviors.

When trying to influence external partners, start with those most eager to collaborate. This 'coalition of the willing' builds momentum, helps set standards, and creates social pressure for larger, slower-moving players to join the initiative.

Lenovo strategically partners with Pax8, a software marketplace, attending their events not to sell hardware, but to engage with the MSP community where they are already active. This demonstrates an ecosystem-first approach focused on sharing best practices and building relationships beyond direct sales.

Faced with resource-heavy US competitors in the direct market, uSecure identified the Managed Service Provider (MSP) channel as an underserved green space. They executed a hard pivot, rebuilding their product and licensing specifically for MSPs, which created a key differentiator that fueled their growth.

uSecure initially underestimated how resource-constrained MSPs are. Their breakthrough came when they moved beyond simple PDF guides and built a white-labeled sales prospecting tool. This tool helped partners automatically build a data-driven business case for their own clients, proving uSecure understood their challenges and driving scale.

Traditional revenue tiers (Gold, Silver, Bronze) are vendor-centric. A more effective approach is to classify partners by their business model. For example, an MSSP needs predictable upfront costs to build a service, while a value-added reseller may prefer volume-based rebates. Tailoring your program to their model, not just their size, is key.

To truly meet partners where they are, align your internal team structure with your partner segmentation strategy. Create dedicated internal groups specializing in different partner types, such as one team for advisory MSSPs and another for high-volume resellers. This ensures partners interact with managers who deeply understand their specific business model and needs.

To successfully sell complex solutions like process automation and AI, resellers must first apply these principles internally. By re-engineering their own business to an MSP model, they gain the experience and credibility needed to guide clients through a similar journey, moving from vendor to trusted advisor.

Instead of letting a partner program evolve organically, start with a clear vision of the ideal channel based on board-level metrics. Actively build towards that future state, which includes strategically stopping activities that only service a legacy model.