Now that the dust has settled from CompTIA ChannelCon 2018, we took a minute to reflect on the biggest takeaways from the conference. It was a whirlwind of booth-side networking, forward-looking panels, drone raffles, and industry mixers, but after it was all over the Agiloft team distilled down the top five takeaways from ChannelCon 2018.
1. Channel momentum
Our Partner Relations team hit the ground running at ChannelCon, heading into the conference with 67 percent channel sales growth so far in 2018. That momentum continued at the conference, when news broke that Agiloft just initiated a partnership with South-Africa-based Timmut Connect, extending the Agiloft Partner Program to six continents. This forward momentum enabled great conversations with potential partners and others interested in Agiloft, which will likely be a source of valuable leads and prospects for years to come.
Listen to Brandon Wright, director of partner relations at Agiloft, talk about why our partners have been so successful the last few years in this podcast by Telecom Reseller or by watching the video below, which was also featured in the Top 10 Picks of ChannelCon 2018 by e-ChannelNews.
Agiloft’s Brandon Wright speaks to e-ChannelNews.
2. Meeting new people
“It was very rewarding to meet with potential partners, learn more custom requirements their customers are looking for and being able to share with them how Agiloft can help them deliver those custom requirements in a way that provides value to the customer and higher margins to our partners,” said MaryJane Skjellerup, partner development associate at Agiloft.
Brandon Wright and Jezreel Berdecia, VP of business development at eliteBco
“It was great to spend time with Jez from eliteBco, not just getting a chance to learn and share insights about Agiloft, but also just getting to spend some time having fun together and getting to know each other as colleagues in this exciting industry,” said Skjellerup.
3. Inspiring speakers
Aside from the networking, one of the best things about ChannelCon 2018 was the inspiration provided by the many keynote speakers and panelists.
One highlight was listening to CompTIA Member of the Year Victor Johnson (pictured) tell his story on the value of hope. After overcoming poverty, sustaining serious injuries while on active duty service, and being medically retired from the military, Johnson used his opportunities with the Wounded Warrior Project to learn computer maintenance and find work in IT. A few years later, he started his own IT business and eventually created a training and consulting firm dedicated to mentoring and diversifying businesses. It was an inspiring story and Johnson’s definition of hope will certainly be remembered by everyone at the event.
4. Diversity
One key theme from ChannelCon 2018 was diversity in tech, and it was a key takeaway because diversity is so relevant and essential for success in business. Throughout the conference, CompTIA staff encouraged everyone to stop by to share their stories in their social media booth, using the tag #MyTechStory. It was nice to give a platform to people that maybe wouldn’t be visible otherwise and to hear about the many backgrounds of people in the industry.
There were also forums administered by the CompTIA Advancing Women in Technology and diversity themed discussions on the schedule, including a “Winning the future through diversity and inclusion” panel discussion. These sent strong messages to attendees on the importance of equality and diversity in tech, and it was good to see the efforts on the part of CompTIA to help facilitate much-needed change in the industry.
5. Automation is everywhere
ChannelCon is all about using emerging technology to advance business, and at nearly every booth and event, people were talking about the impacts of automation. Whether the panel discussions addressed the state of tech support, operational efficiency, or building a workforce designed for growth, automation was a heavy component and has become an underlying fact of life for modern business. The main takeaway was that automation is quickly being adopted everywhere and organizations must automate if they want to keep pace.
Agiloft uses automation to streamline the most complex business processes, and with our code-free platform we are able to do it at a fraction of the time or cost of other systems. With pre-built, fully configurable solutions for contract management, business process management, IT service management, service desk, and more, Agiloft could give your business the automation it needs to compete.
Click here to learn more about our agile business software.
