Find vendors you love and engage with them.
I joined my first partner advisory council (PAC) back in 2018 with Dropbox when we were only two people. While I’m not sure whether Dropbox knew how small we were, we had enough sales (and opinions) to have our partner account manager take notice. That changed everything for me and Advisory Solutions.
Some of the most rewarding experiences have been helping shape channel strategy and provide input on product development for our vendors and on behalf of other partners in the ecosystem.
After two years on the Dropbox PAC, I’ve had the pleasure of serving on a PAC for OneLogin for two years, and I am currently a member of the PACs for Jamf MSP and the Apple Consultants Network.
The dedication of those teams – particularly Patrick Watkins (Jamf), Kristen Chambers (Jamf), Omar Elshamy (Apple) and Brian Lattanzio (Apple) – is infectious. Their willingness to take input from the community is a model for others.
Special mention also goes to Helene Kidary over at OnSIP who had the first channel that Advisory Solutions ever joined. While there was no PAC, she promotes the hell out of her channel partners. Our relationship with OnSIP, dating back to 2018, gave me my first insight into what it meant to have a true champion.
And If I’m being honest, all that attention also makes you feel important, which is a massive motivator for any small business owner or their team.
