Cloudera Channel Program to Help ‘Invest in Each Other’s Success’

Cloudera this week officially announced that Gary Green has joined the company as vice president of strategic partnerships, to lead the Cloudera channel program.. He came to the cloud data analytics company earlier this year from bare metal automation vendor Packet. Green has served in his new role since March.

Cloudera’s Gary Green

Green’s history with the indirect channel dates back to the beginning of his sales career. That’s when he worked as an account executive for Mentor Graphics and Synopsys. He says he learned early on that teaming with partners results in greater reach and success. Green’s interaction with the channel ramped up in 2002 when he joined VMware as employee No. 103, and vice president of strategic alliances. Green developed VMware’s global partner strategy.

Now, Green has taken charge of Cloudera’s global partnership program. In this edited Q&A with Channel Futures, he discusses his approach to the channel and what partners can expect, particularly as Cloudera prepares to release the private version of its data platform.

Channel Futures: What is your philosophy about the partner channel and its place in tech sales?

Gary Green: There is a saying that no man is an island. It is, I believe, the same for tech vendors and B2B sales. No matter how big the opportunity is in the marketplace, a company like Cloudera needs a very strong partnering strategy to scale and grow sustainably. That some of the biggest tech companies in the world have accelerated their growth through the channel is no accident.

But I really believe that a partnering strategy is one that’s based in intrinsic value; one plus one doesn’t equal two, it equals three: It’s a “better together” solution. The benefit has to be mutual; you’ve got to invest in each other’s success, be willing to collaborate with and learn from one another. We are not the only company out there that the channel has the opportunity to partner with; therefore, we’ve got to ensure we’re helping our partners and their customers tackle their most strategic business challenges. I believe that Cloudera Connect program enables that today and we will continue to invest and evolve to ensure that it does so tomorrow.

CF: What changes to the Cloudera channel program can partners expect with you in charge?

GG: The foundation was there before I came on board; we’ve always had a strong partner ecosystem. It simply needed to be strengthened and focused for continual evolution. That’s why at the end of last year, we did a complete revamp of the Cloudera channel program to make it a truly world-class program — Cloudera Connect. This enhanced program with new cloud reselling models, market development funds and solution competencies connects Cloudera partners to new business opportunities and accelerates adoption of the Cloudera Data Platform (CDP).

We have a diverse partner network, full of VARs, ISVs, SIs, hardware vendors, cloud partners and more. Our program as it stands now ensures that all of these partners have what they need, enabling …