Networking News
8x8 Channel Chief: ‘The Jig Is Up’ On UCaaS Competitors Relying On Tech Partnerships
Gina Narcisi
The technology partnerships that competing vendors rely on to serve up complete UCaaS solutions end in divorce, said 8x8’s SVP and Channel Chief John DeLozier, who talks about how the company is growing and “keeping the hammer down” on UCaaS.
What has UCaaS sales growth been like recently for 8x8 and its partners?
Channel bookings grew 64 percent year-over-year and ironically, 64 percent of all new bookings is coming from the channel. When I started, that was about 32 percent, so you can see just in two and a half years all the growth that we’ve experienced, which has been phenomenal. Eight out of ten deals went through the channel last quarter, and if I could have found the other two, I would have tagged partners because I’m partner-obsessed.
I’m very excited about the growth and we’re going to keep the hammer down. What’s hot and what’s in our sweet spot is combo deals. That is what we are seeing over and over. The days of the straight UCaaS deals for us are still there, but we are seeing more relevant deals come through in the combo format. It’s a UC deals with contact center, or UC deal with video, or messaging. Our sweet spot has become that combo, which makes sense, because we have the platform to do it.
