For the week ending April 17, CRN takes a look at the companies that brought their ‘A’ game to the channel including TD Synnex, Cisco, Fleet Device Management, Crush Security and Lumen.
The Week Ending April 17
Topping this week’s Five Companies that Came to Win list is distributor TD Synnex snagging more than 1,000 cloud-based Nvidia GPUs and making them available to the channel.
Also making the list is Cisco Systems for its decision to reinstate compute deal registration, reversing a Feb. 20 move that was widely criticized by Cisco channel partners.
Fleet Device Management wins kudos for launching its inaugural partner program and transitioning to a 100 percent channel model, putting partners at the center of its go-to-market strategy.
Solution provider startup Crush Security makes the list for exiting stealth with its ambitious goal to transform the way cybersecurity tools are evaluated and purchased. And Lumen scored in the personnel department with its hire of a new global channel chief.
TD Synnex Nabs Over 1,000 Nvidia GPUs For Channel In Nebius Cloud Deal
TD Synnex tops this week’s Came to Win list by reserving more than 1,000 high-end Nvidia GPUs in the cloud to help solution providers overcome supply constraints and get their customers moving on AI projects.
The U.S. distribution giant, which won Nvidia’s Distribution Partner of the Year award for the Americas last month, made the cloud commitment for AI computing clusters based on Nvidia’s B300 GPU with neocloud provider Nebius. TD Synnex announced the deal this week at its High-Growth Conference in Puerto Rico.
In an exclusive interview with CRN, TD Synnex officials Francisco Criado and Jack Donato said the Nebius partnership will help channel partners gain access to what has become a scarce resource due to high demand from AI-native companies.
TD Synnex expects the Nebius deal to benefit many of its strategic partners who otherwise “wouldn’t get the prioritization that they would need to gain access to the GPUs,” according to Donato, senior director AI and neocloud vendor solutions at TD Synnex.
The Fremont, Calif.-based distributor is accepting purchase orders for B300-based instances through Nebius now, with availability expected to begin in July. The agreement lasts for a year, and it gives TD Synnex the option for renewal.
Cisco Reinstates Compute Deal Registration; Partners Cheer Reversal
Cisco Systems wins applause this week for its decision to reinstate compute deal registration, effective April 15, in the wake of vociferous criticism from partners.
The reversal comes two months after Cisco shocked partners by eliminating compute deal registration on February 20 in the wake of rising memory prices.
Partners told CRN that Cisco realized the decision to eliminate compute deal registration had resulted in server competitors taking a bite out of longtime Cisco Unified Compute System accounts.
“It’s a smart move by Cisco,” said a top sales executive at a Cisco partner of the move to reinstate compute deal registration. “With the lack of deal registration, they saw deals switching over to other OEMs. It’s crazy that they made the decision to eliminate it in the first place.”
“Deal registration for Core Unified Computing is designed to reward your investment in Cisco and accelerate your ability to deliver value to customers,” said Cisco Senior Vice President of Global Partner Sales Tim Coogan in a note to Cisco partners sent on Tuesday afternoon. “With this update, you will once again receive the benefits of being provided discount differential, and you can confidently lead with Cisco on your compute deals.”
Fleet Launches Inaugural Partner Program As It Adopts A 100-Percent Channel Sales Model
Fleet Device Management wins kudos this week for launching its inaugural partner program today as the developer of open-source device management technology transitions to a 100-percent channel model and puts partners at the center of its go-to-market strategy.
With the new channel program, which provides tracks for reseller and service partners, every Fleet sales deal will flow through a partner, according to the company. The new program will provide partner training and certification, deal registration and other resources.
“Partner first. Every deal will have a partner on it,” said Fleet CEO and co-founder Mike McNeil in an exclusive interview with CRN.
Fleet, founded in 2020 and headquartered in San Francisco, develops its namesake mobile device management (MDM) platform that enables organizations to secure, manage and optimize mobile and desktop IT assets that run on MacOS, iOS, Windows, Linux, Android and ChromeOS. The Fleet system enables automated device configuration and deployment, for example, and provides centralized security and compliance capabilities.
The program’s reseller track is for partners who are approved to sell Fleet and are equipped with the resources and training to effectively position and co-sell the Fleet platform. Partners are eligible for public deal registration, dedicated support, market development and co-marketing funds, and what the company calls “strong upfront margins.”
The services partner track is for partners who go beyond resale to provide continued value, according to the vendor. They are fully enabled to sell Fleet and trained to provide implementation, deployment and managed services. The company said the services track is geared toward partners looking to build recurring revenue streams around Fleet deployments.
Crush Security Exits Stealth Seeking To become AI-Powered Trusted Advisor Of The Future
Crush Security, a solution provider startup founded by a team of former channel and security industry leaders, makes this week’s list with its ambitious goal to transform the way cybersecurity tools are evaluated and purchased by bringing AI-driven analysis into the process in a bigger way than ever before.
The startup exited stealth this week with its cybersecurity intelligence platform that has aggregated data on roughly 2,600 security tools. The startup has raised nearly $3 million in funding from individual investors, including from numerous CISOs who see massive value in the company’s novel approach, Crush Security CEO Joshua Jones told CRN.
Crucially, Crush Security is distinguishing its approach from that of a SaaS vendor or an online marketplace, by positioning itself instead as a solution provider with a software platform at the center, according to Jones.
Crush Security is seeking to play a pivotal role by providing customers with “additional data visibility to help you make a better, more-informed decision,” Jones said. Ultimately, “we are automating the VAR process. We are the first autonomous platform VAR right now.”
The roughly 2,600 cybersecurity products on the Crush platform have all been mapped by feature, function, use case, framework alignment and environmental fit, according to Jones. The goal is to allow customers to better prioritize purchases before making a buying decision, he said.
Lumen Taps Longtime Partner Champion Jim Ortbals As New Channel Chief
Lumen Technologies is bringing on industry channel champion Jim Ortbals as its new senior vice president of global partner solutions.
In his new role with Lumen, Ortbals will lead the company’s channel partner strategy and execution efforts as the telecom-turned-technology provider continues its company-wide transformation in favor of delivering enterprise — not consumer — services.
Ortbals specifically is being tasked with improving how Lumen engages partners, supports execution, and delivers outcomes across a key area of its commercial business, according to Monroe, La.-based Lumen.
Ortbals brings a wealth of experience with partners to the role, with more than 25 years spent growing global channel organizations. Most recently, Ortbals served as senior vice president of global partner ecosystems for cybersecurity company BeyondTrust since November 2024. Ortbals has also held a variety of channel and sales leadership roles at Cisco, VMware, Zscaler and Deep Instinct, among other tech companies.
In a big win for the company, Lumen in February revealed that it brought on longtime Cisco Systems veteran Jeff Sharritts as its executive vice president and chief revenue officer. Sharritts is leading Lumen’s commercial strategy, and Ortbals will report directly to Sharritts.
