The Quiet Evolution in TSD Relationships: What Partners Are Feeling
For years, TSDs built their businesses on courtship. They worked hard to win over subagents and technology advisors by positioning themselves as partners, advocates, and supporters. The group that would stand beside you, not above you. They differentiated themselves through relationships, responsiveness, and a promise to help you grow your business, not push their priorities. […]
The Hardest Part of Being a Supplier Side Channel Manager
People talk a lot about what it takes to be a great supplier side channel manager; responsiveness, product knowledge, partner relationships, internal navigation, and the ability to juggle a dozen priorities at once. But there’s one part of the job that rarely gets discussed, even though it’s the hardest and most emotionally draining aspect of […]
The Hardest Part of the Channel No One Talks About
The channel is one of the best opportunities in business. We’ve established that. It’s created careers, wealth, community, and stability for people who were willing to bet on themselves. But there’s a part of this ecosystem that rarely gets talked about, and it’s the part that quietly breaks people if they’re not prepared for it. […]
The Skills That Don’t Get Talked About. But Matter Most in the Channel
The channel loves to celebrate the loud skills; the big wins, the big logos, the big quarters. But if you’ve been around long enough, you know that the people who build real, lasting businesses in this ecosystem aren’t the ones with the flashiest presentations or the most polished pitches. They’re the ones with the quiet […]
The Economics Everyone Thinks They Understand (But Don’t)
If there’s one topic in the channel that gets talked about constantly, and understood rarely; it’s the economics. Everyone has an opinion. Everyone has a theory. Everyone has a story about a deal, a commission, a SPIFF, or a payout. But here’s the truth:Most people understand the numbers. Very few understand the economics. And those […]
The Difference Between a Channel Leader and a Channel Operator
The channel has no shortage of people in leadership roles. Titles are everywhere. Business cards are impressive. LinkedIn headlines are polished. But if you’ve been in this ecosystem long enough, you learn something quickly: There’s a big difference between someone who leads the channel and someone who simply operates within it. Operators keep the machine […]
The Channel: A Legacy Worth Protecting
There are a lot of great places to build a career in business, but the channel is different. It’s special. It’s one of the few ecosystems where opportunity, community, and upward mobility collide in a way that genuinely changes lives. I’ve said this for years — back when I was a Channel Manager and still […]