Intel Global Channel Chief Has Message For Partners: ‘We’re Here For You’

“The big piece with our customers and partners is the ‘go-to-market’ motion—utilizing the Intel brand and co-selling together. And we’ll be working that model through our authorized distributors, through our resellers and through our Intel Partner Alliance program and providing support through Intel’s Global Customer Support Engine,” Intel’s John Kalvin tells CRN.

Intel global channel chief John Kalvin acknowledges the challenges facing the company as it steers through choppy economic waters, but he wants one thing to be perfectly clear: Intel’s commitment to channel partners will remain intact.

“The big message is: We’re here for you,” Kalvin said in an exclusive interview with CRN.

That message will likely be welcome for channel partners as it comes during tough headlines about decreasing sales and major workforce reductions at the company. Intel’s latest earnings showed a 59 percent year-over-year net income drop. And the company has begun a massive cost-cutting effort that will include a substantial workforce reduction and slashing up to $10 billion through 2025.

Kalvin, vice president and general manager, global partners and support, said despite the changes and challenges, the company remains “laser-focused” on its effort to build a more resilient supply chain while producing competitive products.

“As we think about fulfilling our purpose to create world-changing technology to improve the lives of every person on the planet, all of those products and technologies go to market through the partner ecosystem,” Kalvin said. “We have a lot of long-term conviction about the business that we’re in, and the business that our partners and customers are in… Businesses are looking for all kinds of data to run their business more efficiently and deliver new services and experiences. And all of that digital technology, all of that data runs on the semiconductor. So we feel good about the long-term outlook for the business.”
Pointing to Intel’s multibillion-dollar investments in fab building in the U.S. and Europe, Kalvin said, “it costs a lot of money to go and do these things… then the economic headwinds enter that every business and everyone is facing.

“This is causing us to just put an intensifying focus on cost reduction and efficiency as any well-run business would do. So we can continue to invest in our long-term strategy. But unfortunately, there are some business unit- and function-specific workforce reductions and it’s not something we take lightly. Anytime we have an impact on our Intel family members, it’s not something that we take lightly. And there are some reductions in sales and marketing—what does that mean for customers and partners? I think for some customers, there will be no change. But some customers might see some adjustments in the way that we engage them. But meeting the needs of our customers and partners is really important to us as a company.”

Kalvin said his team’s focus would be to continue to lean into its “go-to-market” strategy—especially as Intel’s much-anticipated Sapphire Rapids products begin hitting the marketplace in 2023.

Intel’s ‘Get-to-Market, Go-to-Market’ Strategies

Intel’s foundry building and new focus on its internal foundry business will continue to be a driver for future growth, Kalvin said. As competitor AMD and others make aggressive moves to wrest market share from Intel, Kalvin said the company’s investment in onshore chip production will prove to be a big advantage.

“What I hear from our customers pretty consistently and from our partners is that they want to secure long-time supply for semiconductors. They know that their business is predicated on digital and digital runs on semiconductors. This is absolutely part of our long-term strategy and the investments that we’re making to expand our factory capcity and build this globally resilient supply chain. … I think that weighs heavily into our partners’ consideration of who they want to partner with.”

Economic headwinds aside, Kalvin plans on forging ahead with its channel strategy and gain traction for ecosystem partners.

“We want to engage with customers and partners as they’re going through the design process—we call that the ‘get-to-market,’ whether that’s a solution that they’re building or a system that they’re building, we want to engage with them through that journey. And the big piece with our customers and partners is the ‘go-to-market’ motion—utilizing the Intel brand and co-selling together. And we’ll be working that model through our authorized distributors, through our resellers and through our Intel Partner Alliance program and providing support through Intel’s Global Customer Support Engine,” Kalvin said.