In this episode of our AnalystANGLE series, I’m joined by my colleague and fellow analyst, Bob Laliberte for a conversation about Cisco’s annual Partner Summit event held in LA this past week.
For starters, it’s clear that Cisco is leaning into its strengths in network and infrastructure management while adapting to the unique demands of AI workloads. The company’s news coming out of partner summit includes significantly expanding its data center portfolio, and the introduction of AI-focused servers and preconfigured AI PODS. This is significant as 89% of IT pros report they intend to deploy AI workloads in the next couple of years, but only 14% report having AI-ready infrastructure.
Cisco Partner Summit 2024 Highlights — watch the full episode here
In addition to these moves, Cisco also announced a significant overhaul of its partner program with its Cisco 360 Partner Program. I wrote about this last week and it represents what I think is a watershed moment in Cisco’s channel strategy, representing a very significant overhaul of its partner ecosystem. Shifting away from volume-based metrics to customer outcomes and lifetime value and positioning partners to capture more recurring revenue while building deeper relationships is a big shift. In addition, Cisco announced an investment of $80M for partner enablement, with $20 million dedicated to “ladder up” training events and $60M for preferred partners delivering some attractive and comprehensive benefits, including Cisco U subscriptions.
Cisco also announced Cybersecurity Associate training that is available immediately, demonstrating Cisco’s commitment to addressing urgent market needs on the cyber front.
The company also announced an extended 15-month transition period which we are fans of, showing that Cisco has learned from past industry program transitions that often left partners scrambling to adapt. This measured approach, running through February 2026, gives partners adequate time to evolve their business models and develop new capabilities while protecting their existing investments in certifications and lifecycle practices.
This is significant, as according to Cisco’s own AI Readiness Index, while 89% of IT professionals plan to deploy AI workloads within the next two years, only 14% of organizations report having AI-ready infrastructure. This gap presents a substantial market opportunity, especially considering McKinsey’s projection that generative AI could add up to $4.4 trillion annually to global economic output.
Cisco’s Plug-and-Play AI Solutions Designed to Accelerate AI Adoption
In news from Cisco Partner Summit, we also saw the introduction of plug-and-play AI PODS, or preconfigured infrastructure stacks, intended to help solve one of enterprise AI’s biggest challenges, deployment complexity. These AI PODS should Cisco partners more easily sell and deploy AI infrastructure, which of course is the goal.
Cisco also expanded its USC portfolio with the rollout of its UCS C885A M8 Server, dedicated AI server and compute system, built on NVIDIAs HGX platform and targeting the high end market for AI training and inference workloads.
This “networking first” perspective, the integration of NVIDIA AI Enterprise software and Cisco’s Intersight management platform are all about a focus on operational simplicity, which is what customers desperately seek.
The server is expected to ship by year-end and the AI PODS available for order in November – watching to see what traction Cisco and partners get here will be the real test.
Cisco 360 Partner Program
I wrote about the Cisco 360 Partner Program in depth last week and it represents what I think is a watershed moment in Cisco’s channel strategy, and it’s a very significant overhaul of its partner ecosystem. Shifting away from volume-based metrics to customer outcomes and lifetime value — positioning partners to capture more recurring revenue while building deeper relationships is a strategic move on the partner enablement front. With 90% of Cisco sales coming from the partner ecosystem, and revamping a program that hasn’t seen significant changes in many years is a smart move.
Timing here is key given the skills gap in the tech sector, with 92% of IT roles expected to transform due to AI and a global shortage of 4.6 million cybersecurity pros. Moreover, Cisco’s research shows that 39% of organizations surveyed in the 2024 Cisco AI Readiness Index acknowledge their staff needs significant training on planned AI technologies.
More tellingly, the Cisco Global AI Partners Study reveals that while over 25% of partners expect more than 75% of their revenues to come from AI within 4-5 years, they face major obstacles in technological deployment experience (62%) and systems knowledge (56%). Their customers face similar challenges with AI talent gaps, with a whopping 70% reportedly lacking a general understanding of AI tools and technology.
All in all, Cisco has brought to bear a well-thought-out and much-needed evolution of its channel strategy. By emphasizing value creation, making investments in partner capabilities, and simplifying the structure of the program, this framework should server partners and customers well.
See more of my coverage here:
The Cisco 360 Partner Program: A Strategic Evolution for the AI Era
Autonomous AI Agents: Microsoft’s Bold Vision: an AI OS for Enterprises
