Technology service providers (TSPs) are signing up at a record pace with hyperscale cloud service providers (CSPs) like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud. Gartner predicts that “by 2023, 70% of net new cloud-related TSP opportunities will be driven by participation in hyperscale cloud provider partner ecosystems, up from 30% in 2020.”
Through partnerships, TSPs can avoid upfront investments and ongoing CapEx while acquiring bandwidth, speed and scale. CSP ecosystem interoperability allows TSPs to expand their offerings and reach new customers. But partnering requires considerable effort and technical expertise. Gartner research helps you understand what you need to know and do to be successful and maximize partnership value. The Gartner report also sheds light on how full engagement delivers the highest benefit.
“Gartner collected responses from 72 organizations that are participating in one or more of the hyperscale cloud provider partner programs. Sixty-seven percent were MSPs, 18% were global solution integrators and 8% each were consulting partners and technology partners. Sixty-two percent of the respondents participated in two or more programs. Thirty-five percent of the respondents’ primary market was North America, 31% Asia/Pacific, 16% Europe and 18% global.” Based on the findings, Gartner created a partnership framework consisting of four phases:
- Learn
- Engage
- Align
- Execute
Gartner also weighed in on program features, benefits and concerns. Eleven program features are rated based on how well they meet expectations. In the top spot? Quality and availability of technical documentation. The lowest ranked Aggregate Program feature: Visibility into Opportunity Pipeline, which 61% of respondents said was below expectation. In Perceived Program Benefits, Deal leads topped the list of nine benefits, followed by go-to-market assistance and certifications and Validations. Program concerns included effort to value and fairness in deal distribution.
As you incorporate the Gartner findings into your partnering strategy, also think about colocation and interconnection to increase speed to market and time to value. Certain colocation and interconnection capabilities smooth out your hybrid and multi-cloud experience:
- Easy onboarding with individualized portals that allow you to customize connectivity
- Ability to scale from a single cabinet to an entire data center in edge markets
- Direct access via a single port to all four of the major public cloud providers
- Inter-site connectivity that helps you reach new geographic regions
- Certified staff and facilities that help ensure cybersecurity compliance
