Beyond the Hype: How AI is Transforming Channel Strategies

Key Actionable Insights for Channel Leaders Embracing AI

  • Prioritize Education and Demystification: Start by creating roadmaps for your sales reps and partners to understand AI basics, use cases, and tools. This can boost productivity by 2x, as seen with predictive insights at HP and Trend Micro.
  • Leverage Predictive Analytics for Opportunity Identification: Use AI to analyze partner data, customer behaviors, and search patterns for joint account planning. Tools like Google’s Gemini models or custom chatbots can predict opportunities and personalize interactions.
  • Focus on Security and Quality Control: Implement safeguards against data poisoning and hallucinations in AI outputs. Always treat AI-generated content as a starting point, not the final product, and educate teams on ethical AI use.
  • Enhance Partner Portals with Generative AI: Integrate AI assistants for faster information retrieval, multilingual support, and personalized recommendations to improve partner enablement and reduce manual searches.
  • Drive Services Growth with AI: Encourage partners to offer AI-related services like workshops, managed security, and threat analysis, which are seeing significant growth in areas like cybersecurity.

These insights, drawn from a 2024 Channel Focus Virtual panel, remain highly relevant in 2025 as AI adoption accelerates in channel ecosystems. Implementing them can help you move beyond experimentation to production-scale impact.

Introduction to the Panel: Real Experts on AI in Channels

AI is no longer just buzz—it’s a practical tool reshaping strategies, partner relationships, and customer engagements. At the 2024 Channel Focus Virtual event hosted by Baptie & Company, a leading community for channel executives with over 14,000 members, a stellar panel dove into “Beyond the Hype: Actual Examples of Leveraging AI in Channel Ecosystems.”

Moderated by Rod Baptie, CEO of Baptie & Company, the discussion featured three industry heavyweights:

  • Louise McEvoy, VP US Channels at Trend Micro, a cybersecurity leader who’s passionate about empowering partners through data-driven insights.
  • Stephen Orban, VP of Migrations, ISVs, & Marketplace at Google Cloud, with a background in engineering and leadership at AWS and Bloomberg.
  • Mary Beth Walker, VP Channel Strategy and Enablement at HP, focused on sustainability, mentoring, and equipping tens of thousands of reps with AI knowledge.

The panel emphasized interactive, trusted environments under Chatham House Rules, allowing candid sharing. What emerged were concrete examples of AI in action, from predictive opportunity mapping to AI-powered assistants, all while addressing challenges like hype overload and security risks.

The Current State of AI in Channel Strategies

AI isn’t new—it’s been embedded in products for years under names like “analytics.” But as Louise McEvoy noted, it’s now everywhere, demanding focused strategies. At Trend Micro, AI drives predictive opportunities for joint account planning. By analyzing past and present data, they forecast customer buying patterns, anticipate competition, and provide partners with tailored account maps. This “value-added tool” helps partners see future trajectories, fostering collaborative growth in cybersecurity.

Stephen Orban highlighted Google Cloud’s multi-layered AI stack: chips (TPUs, GPUs from partners like Nvidia), models (Gemini and 130+ third-party options), tooling for data prep, and agent builders for applications. Their commitment to an open ecosystem ensures choice, with early use cases in coding assistance (e.g., GitLab integrating models for autocomplete and unit tests) and HR tools (e.g., UKG generating job descriptions).

Mary Beth Walker stressed demystifying AI for HP’s vast rep network. They’re developing education roadmaps to help reps discuss use cases, customer obstacles, and product roadmaps. Internally, projects like a sales virtual assistant are designed to extend benefits to partners, aiding decisions on chips and products amid rapid innovations.

These approaches show AI progressing from hype to core strategy, focusing on openness, education, and partner empowerment.

Practical Tools and Implementations

The panel shared hands-on examples of AI tools transforming channel operations.

Louise McEvoy discussed Trend Micro’s AI-enhanced partner portals and chatbots. By analyzing search behaviors, customer segments, and program tiers, AI proactively delivers insights—like next-level benefits or renewal predictions—in any language. This streamlines interactions for global partners, making portals “easy and friendly.” In cybersecurity, AI deciphers threats, distinguishing red alerts from minor issues, allowing efficient resource allocation.

Stephen Orban pointed to Google Cloud’s use of Gemini models in their Partner Advantage portal. Trained on private data, it answers queries like “What are my benefits this quarter?” without human intervention. For broader analysis, tools like Vertex AI help with partner data and account mapping, recommending models based on use cases (e.g., Anthropic or Llama).

Mary Beth Walker’s sales virtual assistant at HP uses natural language to fetch information, saving time and boosting productivity. It’s rolling out to partner reps, covering product knowledge and decision-making. She emphasized extending internal AI benefits—like prediction models for supply chains or spare parts—to reduce partner inventory burdens.

A audience question on tools for portal data analysis led Orban to recommend testing models for specific needs, while McEvoy highlighted multilingual chatbots’ effectiveness.

Challenges and Best Practices

AI’s promise comes with pitfalls. A partner concern: AI-generated communications feeling “splurged out.” Walker advised using AI as a starting point—e.g., CoPilot for meeting notes—then personalizing. Orban added that value trumps origin; for multimedia, Google uses watermarking to flag AI-generated images.

Security loomed large. McEvoy warned of “data poisoning” manipulating AI outputs, stressing “security in AI” alongside “AI in security.” Walker urged quality control and planning for gotchas. Orban differentiated regulated industries (e.g., finance, healthcare) needing assistants over direct advice, versus less sensitive areas like advertising.

On team upskilling, Walker described HP’s mix: company-wide training, AI “ambassadors” for sharing, and business-outcome education for coders. McEvoy and Orban echoed hands-on experience as key.

To free salespeople, AI aids opportunity focus. Orban cited propensity analysis for product upsell and content generation (e.g., Google Slides auto-creating pitches). Walker shared HP’s nine-quarter data showing 2x growth for partners using predictive insights. McEvoy emphasized services opportunities—workshops, managed services—driving partner growth in AI-threat landscapes.

Policing AI use? Education on concerns and ethical application, per Walker. For equipping channel account managers (CAMs), summarization of partner histories and propensity matching arms them for meetings, with relationships still paramount.

Future Outlook: Where AI Heads in the Next 12 Months

Looking ahead, the panel outlined ambitions.

Walker aims to perfect the sales assistant for reps, handle translation inefficiencies (HP uses 15 languages), and leverage predictions for sales growth amid rapid change.

Orban focuses on moving POCs to production, identifying common use cases for promotion, accelerating adoption.

McEvoy wants deeper channel partnerships, more AI-savvy partners for services, and widespread education on threats like deepfakes—urging pauses on urgent emails.

For resources, Orban recommended hands-on experimentation; McEvoy suggested Trend Micro whitepapers and videos; all stressed experiential learning.

Conclusion: Embracing AI for Channel Success

This Channel Focus panel cut through AI hype, offering tangible ways to integrate it into channel ecosystems. From predictive tools boosting growth to assistants enhancing productivity, the message is clear: start with education, focus on security, and extend benefits to partners.

Baptie & Company’s events, like the upcoming in-person Channel Focus in November 2024 (and ongoing virtuals), foster these discussions. As we hit 2025, AI’s role in channels will only grow—adopt these insights to stay ahead.