What is the role of the channel in the cloud computing market? Find out when the summit kicks off on November 7, 2011.
THINKstrategies, the†Cloud Computing Showplace,†and Rising Tide Media have announced the inaugural Cloud Channel Summit, an event focused on the emerging channel opportunities in the cloud computing market. The conference will take place on Monday, November 7, 2011 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, Calif.
The Cloud Channel Summit will bring together more than 200 senior executives from leading cloud vendors and channel companies to define the role of the channel in the cloud and provide best practices for creating successful partnerships that lead to profitable business models for both cloud vendors and their channel counterparts. The event will enable cloud vendors to increase awareness about their channel programs, while providing channel companies with information that will help them reinvent their role, bring value to cloud vendors, and ultimately, profit from the cloud instead of being disrupted by it.
Stephen Cho, director of channels and business development at†Google Enterprise, will set the tone for the summit with an opening keynote entitled “Making Rain in the Channel: New Opportunities in Cloud Computing.”Cho, an instrumental figure in building Google’s channel strategy and partner ecosystem, will identify new channel opportunities in the cloud, examine how new and existing channel organizations can best position themselves to take advantage of these opportunities, and illustrate how channel companies can build profitable business models in the rapidly evolving cloud market. The conference agenda will also include topics such as real-world cloud success stories, selling and supporting cloud services, and leveraging PaaS/IaaS alternatives to meet unique customer needs.
†”There is a common misperception that the role of the channel will diminish as cloud computing grows, when in fact, the exact opposite is true,” says Jeffrey M. Kaplan, founder and managing director of THINKstrategies.”If the cloud computing market is to thrive, cloud vendors cannot go it alone. They will need channel partners who can enhance their solutions, customize their capabilities and improve customer service by addressing the unique requirements of specific market segments.”
For more information on the Cloud Channel Summit and to get updates on the event’s latest speakers, partners, and sponsors, visit http://cloudchannelsummit.com/ or follow the event on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/cloudchannel11.
