• SIMPLIFY. EXPAND. GROW.

    SIMPLIFY. EXPAND. GROW.

    SMB. CORE MIDMARKET. UPPER MIDMARKET. ECOSYSTEM
    LEARN MORE
  • ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

    ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

    SMB & Midmarket Analytics & Artificial Intelligence Adoption
    LEARN MORE
  • IT SECURITY TRENDS

    IT SECURITY TRENDS

    SMB & Midmarket Security Adoption Trends
    LATEST RESEARCH
  • CHANNEL PARTNER RESEARCH

    CHANNEL PARTNER RESEARCH

    Channel Partner Trends
    LATEST RESEARCH
  • FEATURED INFOGRAPHIC

    FEATURED INFOGRAPHIC

    2024 Top 10 SMB Business Issues, IT Priorities, IT Challenges
    LEARN MORE
  • CHANNEL INFOGRAPHIC

    CHANNEL INFOGRAPHIC

    2024 Top 10 Partner Business Challenges
    LATEST RESEARCH
  • 2024 TOP 10 PREDICTIONS

    2024 TOP 10 PREDICTIONS

    SMB & Midmarket Predictions
    READ
  • 2024 TOP 10 PREDICTIONS

    2024 TOP 10 PREDICTIONS

    Channel Partner Predictions
    READ
  • CLOUD ADOPTION TRENDS

    CLOUD ADOPTION TRENDS

    SMB & Midmarket Cloud Adoption
    LATEST RESEARCH
  • FUTURE OF PARTNER ECOSYSTEM

    FUTURE OF PARTNER ECOSYSTEM

    Networked, Engaged, Extended, Hybrid
    DOWNLOAD NOW
  • BUYERS JOURNEY

    BUYERS JOURNEY

    Influence map & care-abouts
    LEARN MORE
  • DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

    DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

    Connected Business
    LEARN MORE
  • MANAGED SERVICES RESEARCH

    MANAGED SERVICES RESEARCH

    SMB & Midmarket Managed Services Adoption
    LEARN MORE
  • WHITE PAPER

    WHITE PAPER

    SMB Path to Digitalization
    DOWNLOAD

Techaisle Blog

Insightful research, flexible data, and deep analysis by a global SMB IT Market Research and Industry Analyst organization dedicated to tracking the Future of SMBs and Channels.
Anurag Agrawal

Top 10 Channel Predictions for 2022

techaisle channel partner 2022

The predictions rely on an extensive research initiative conducted throughout 2021 – the year in which the impact of the pandemic on economic activity and IT consumption was becoming more apparent. Leveraging a panel of over 250K partners, Techaisle surveys more than 5000 partners and has qualitative conversations with hundreds of partners. Techaisle's 2022 in Focus research series illuminates issues and requirements in the vast and complex partner ecosystem.

1. Cloud economics and cost optimization consulting will challenge channel
Cloud cost optimization and economics will be the top cloud consulting service demanded by customers, challenging partners (and their vendors) to provide transparency into cloud costs and ensure that customers receive the best available Ts& Cs. To deliver value to the customer, both partners and suppliers will need to define the current state of workloads and a forecast for the future state, adding value through the development and deployment of processes to support cost optimization and compliance/risk management.

2. MSPs will expand their portfolio to include cloud managed services
Cloud technology velocity will open new services opportunities. For example, as businesses will increase their reliance on cloud-managed services to align IT with business strategies, deep-pocketed, progressive MSPs will increase investment in staff training to grow their professional services revenue. As a result, the MSPs will focus on containers (Kubernetes), microservices, open-source, agile development, API management, hybrid cloud workload management, and security and compliance management.

3. The gap between the cloud "haves" and "have nots" will increase
Cloud vendors will invest in cloud channel leaders rather than in the channel as a whole which will accelerate the gap between leaders and laggards and stress the viability of channel firms left behind. As a result, the year will see a separation between channel partners that have the expertise to combine transformative and traditional business models and those that do not.

4. Vendor and partner equilibrium will be unstable
Vendors have been mitigating channel conflicts through "double bubble" compensation models, creating clear guidelines around where the vendor will sell direct and reducing competition between dissimilar channels. However, the complexity associated with cloud consulting and digital transformation adoption acceleration will have vendors questioning the role of partners. Channel partners will be present in several accounts coveted by direct sales teams – increasing vendor/channel conflict. Vendors will manage conflicts and will not eliminate them.

5. The cloud marketplace will be lots of smoke, but the fire is nearer
ISVs and channel partners will have a tough time finding each other and ultimately finding the end customer. Despite low barriers to entry, few will find immediate profitability. Both partners and marketplace operators will need to build and manage relationships, plug into sales and marketing programs, drive investment in the implementation and support for end-users, and fund all of this on a fraction of the monthly fee associated with each service sold. A high percent of end-users will be marketplace curious and not committed customers. It is not how enterprise customers purchase, as yet. Marketplaces will not kill the channel; instead, channel partners will be a vital link in the buyer's journey.

Research You Can Rely On | Analysis You Can Act Upon

Techaisle - TA