Deep Dive
来自我们记者的行业洞察
The math CFOs are using to dismiss tech advisors doesn’t add up
A study by JSG Channel Consulting found that the technology advisor model has 25% lower customer acquisition costs for enterprise clients compared to direct sales, with longer client retention and lower churn rates. However, most CFOs still consider this channel more costly based on one-sided calculations. Industry leaders urge finance teams to comprehensively assess channel value.
Why resellers want in on the agent business
As the telecom and AI markets become increasingly complex, traditional distributor models face challenges. Companies such as World Wide Technology and Technologent are establishing agent businesses, partnering with technical service distributors on a commission basis to serve customers more flexibly and expand their market reach.
Partners are flooded with cybersecurity vendor tools
At the RSA Conference 2026 held last week, mainstream cybersecurity vendors launched a dense array of new products, but channel partners responded coolly. Affected by tool proliferation, rising costs, and reduced vendor support, some MSPs and MSSPs are reassessing their vendor portfolios, and some are even attempting to use AI coding tools to develop their own MDR, EDR, and XDR capabilities. Meanwhile, the boundary between MSPs and MSSPs is increasingly blurred due to changing customer demands.
MSPs face an AI choice: build, buy or wait for PSAs to catch up
Professional Services Automation (PSA) platforms aim to shift the center of gravity of AI development in the MSP industry toward themselves. MSPs are facing the choice of building in-house, trying startup SaaS, or relying on existing PSA platforms. With pressure and risks coexisting, the decision is imminent.
Salesforce makes fast frenemies with its CCaaS partners
Salesforce released Agentforce Contact Center on March 10, 2026, claiming it is the only unified platform that natively integrates contact center, CRM, and virtual AI agents. Analysts view this move as a strategic shift by Salesforce from an integration-first approach to native in-house development, while also triggering competitive responses from CCaaS partners such as Genesys, RingCentral, Vonage, and NiCE.
Investors see insurance brokerages as a model for tech advisor consolidation
Private equity investors are learning from the insurance brokerage industry to drive consolidation in the tech advisory (TA) sector. Insurance brokerage and TA are highly similar in asset-light models and recurring commission income, but the insurance market is decades ahead in maturity. Investors need to be patient while also noting differences in product stability, channel roles, and client management between the two.
How Microsoft, partners are tackling ‘huge, huge task’ of making security software safer
Microsoft is collaborating with multiple security vendors to advance the Windows Resiliency Initiative, which aims to refactor how third-party security software operates within the Windows kernel to reduce the risk of global IT outages similar to the CrowdStrike incident in 2024. The project is still in its early stages, involving API redesign, feature migration, and performance trade-offs, and is expected to take several years.
Workday Broadens Channel Ecosystem, Opening New Opportunities for Partners
Workday is actively expanding its channel ecosystem by acquiring AI companies, launching data cloud, and establishing collaborations with Microsoft and others, creating more business opportunities for partners. Partners expect these initiatives to drive revenue growth in consulting and systems integration, and to foster the development of innovative solutions based on the Workday platform.