Understanding Ecosystems And The Trifurcating Partner Channel

We are in the middle of a major transformation of how companies go to market — in fact, 76% of business leaders agree that current business models will be unrecognizable in the next five years. Given structural changes in our economy, new buying journeys, and emerging technologies, most firms are now considering ecosystems as the key ingredient to success over the next 10 years. Ecosystems are different from traditional indirect channels in that they are untethered to the financial transaction and focused more on intrafirm value creation, access and attachment to external networks, and partner innovation. These are the core skills of alliances professionals and, when combined with marketing attribution skills for additional partner types such as affinity, affiliates, advocates, ambassadors, and influencers, will make up the future leadership of ecosystem organizations. Join Jay McBain from Forrester as he unpacks these future trends, and walk away with actionable advice on the trifurcating channel, how to build an ecosystem and measure it, and, most importantly, how to lead.

Key takeaways:

• Understand the changes affecting channels, partnerships, and alliances.
• Learn about new, nontransacting partners and how to find and recruit them.
• Gain actionable intelligence on the trifurcating channel and how programs will need to evolve.
• Define and develop your own ecosystem and understand who the key players and superconnectors are in your target market.
• Understand the impact of marketplaces and what it means for your channel.

Target audience level: all levels

Vendors mentioned: Amazon Web Services, Google, IBM, Microsoft, and Salesforce.