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Ecosystems, Channels, & Marketplaces

Winning with Channels, Marketplaces, and Next-Gen Partners

Vendors are increasingly adopting indirect go-to-market strategies and ecosystem partnerships to address economic pressures and growing IT complexity. As IT environments span multiple clouds and architectures, no single vendor can meet all customer needs, making partnerships essential. Key trends for 2024 include prioritizing top-performing partners, emphasizing partner competencies, and investing in new alliances like AWS and Salesforce. Cloud marketplaces are becoming critical routes to market, offering cost-effective access for ISVs, despite operational challenges. Meanwhile, large resellers are transforming into service integrators, reshaping business models, and targeting specialized firms, while legacy GSIs struggle with reinvention amid rising costs and legacy burdens.

When working on strategy, product, marketing, and sales initiatives, consider intelligence from our expert analysts – planned deliverables for 2025 include:

  • Analyst Insight (monthly) – an analyst report on critical issues facing partner leaders
  • Futurum Partner Advisory Board Insight (bi-annual)  – analyst report highlighting the key learnings from discussions with a select group of partner leaders
  • Chief Partner Officer Advisory Board Insight (bi-annual) – analyst report highlighting the key learnings from discussion with a select group of partner teams (from vendors)
  • Market Data (bi-annual) – market sizing & five-year forecast of key technology sectors by RTM
  • Partner Survey (annual) – a survey of IT partners assessing key issues they are facing and opportunities they are focused on
  • Inquiry Sessions (ongoing) – one-on-one time with our expert analysts to explore your challenges and opportunities

The Latest Insights On Ecosystems, Channels, & Marketplaces

Cisco Partner Summit 2025 Does Cisco have the Right End-to-End AI Story

Cisco Partner Summit 2025: Does Cisco have the Right End-to-End AI Story?

Alex Smith, Vice President at Futurum, shares his insights on Cisco’s bold strategy to own the AI-era infrastructure with the [...]
NetApp Insight 2025 Will AI Unlock New Growth for the Storage Market

NetApp Insight 2025: Will AI Unlock New Growth for the Storage Market?

Alex Smith, Vice President at The Futurum Group, shares highlights from NetApp Insight 2025: The debut of AFX and AI [...]
Momentum Shifts in the Tech Sector Q3 2025

Futurum Tech Vanguards 2025 Q3: The Established Resurge

Alex Smith, VP at Futurum, explores how established tech companies are resurging, detailing big tech performance and shifts in cloud [...]
Microsoft Reimagines Marketplace: A New Battleground for AI Agents?

Microsoft Reimagines Marketplace: A New Battleground for AI Agents?

Alex Smith, VP Ecosystems, Channels, and Marketplaces at Futurum, shares his insights on Microsoft's strategic move to unify AppSource and [...]

Xerox Q2 FY 2025 Results Show Stability as IT Solutions Revenue Surges

Alex Smith, VP & Practice Lead at Futurum, breaks down Xerox’s Q2 FY 2025 results, with IT Solutions revenue more [...]
Dell Tech World 2025 - Is it a Good Time to be in Hardware Again?

Dell Tech World 2025 – Is It a Good Time To Be in Hardware Again?

Alex Smith, Krista Case, and Olivier Blanchard from Futurum share their insights on the key themes and announcements from the [...]

The Latest NEWS

Hyperscaler Marketplace Spending Surges as Enterprises Shift Software Budgets
December 17, 2025

Hyperscaler Marketplace Spending Surges as Enterprises Shift Software Budgets

Alex Smith, Research Director at Futurum, shares insights from new research showing hyperscaler marketplace spending surpassing $21B in 2025 and accelerating toward $42B by 2029 as enterprises shift software procurement...
Are Partners Ready to Engineer the Next Wave of AI Data Center Disruption - Report Summary
November 21, 2025

Are Partners Ready to Engineer the Next Wave of AI Data Center Disruption? – Report Summary

Alex Smith, Analyst at Futurum, shares his insights on how channel partners must evolve beyond product resale to master complex engineering skills for the expanding AI data center market, including...
Is a Platform Ecosystem the Most Important Moat a Tech Company Can Have - Report Summary
September 4, 2025

Is a Platform Ecosystem the Most Important Moat a Tech Company Can Have? – Report Summary

Alex Smith, Analyst at Futurum, shares insights on how platform ecosystems have become the most critical competitive advantage for tech vendors, creating a powerful flywheel effect that drives innovation, market...
July 3, 2025

As Vendors Push More into Their AI Story, Can the Channel Keep Pace?

Alex Smith, VP Channels Research at Futurum, shares his insights on how partners are performing amid the industry transformation toward AI....
Partner Programs Remain Very Important to the Partner Ecosystem
June 26, 2025

Partner Programs Remain Very Important to the Partner Ecosystem

Alex Smith, VP Channels Research at Futurum, shares his insights on what partners are looking for in vendor partner programs....
AI Has Arrived in Partner Organizations: Those Without Will Be Left Behind - Report Summary
May 29, 2025

AI Has Arrived in Partner Organizations: Those Without Will Be Left Behind – Report Summary

Alex Smith, VP Channels Research at Futurum shares his insights on how partner organizations are deploying AI to drive efficiency in their operations and yield better overall partnering outcomes....

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