Cisco is binning its prized Gold partner status in what it is positioning as its biggest partner programme overhaul in nearly 30 years.
Unveiled at this week’s Cisco Partner Summit 2024 in Los Angeles, its new Cisco 360 programme will go live on 1 February 2026.
Here we round up five things partners need to know…
1. Biggest change for 30 years
Designed to “recognise the diverse ways partners add value to customers”, Cisco 360 is being billed by the networking giant as “the most significant evolution” of its partner programme in nearly three decades.
It comes as Cisco continues to push further beyond its hardware roots and into software, cybersecurity and AI. Some 51% of its $53.8bn top line was generated by subscription revenues in its latest year (including the contribution of recent acquisition Splunk).
Cisco 360 is therefore designed to reward partners on lifecycle and managed services, skills investment, customer base expansion, and engagement across the customer journey and partner ecosystem, it said.
“It is inclusive of all the different ways partners contribute value to our customers – whether they are influencing customer choice and/or transacting resellers, distributors, ISVs, system integrators, managed service providers, consultants, or others,” it stated.
2. Getting rid of Gold
So revered by its top partners including Computacenter, Cisco Gold status is being axed under Cisco 360.
The new framework will have two designations, in the form of Cisco Partner and Cisco Preferred Partner.
They will replace the current Gold, Premier and Select levels as of 1 February 2026, with partners able to earn Cisco Partner and S for Security, Networking, Collaboration, Cloud & AI, and Observability.
It comes after Microsoft binned its precious-metals based partner designations following its move to its new AI Cloud Partner Programme.
3. Specialist shift
Cisco’s new programme will continue to shift from traditional architecture Specialisations to solutions-based Specialisations, the vendor emphasised.
On that note, it yesterday announced its first specialisation based on AI – the Cisco AI-Ready Infrastructure Solution Specialisation. It is designed to “position partners as experts in delivering AI-ready infrastructure, security, and observability solutions and services to customers throughout their AI adoption journey”.
4. 15-month ramp
Cisco stressed it will guide partners through a 15-month transition period leading up to the programme’s launch in February 2026.
To ensure a “smooth transition”, Cisco will extend all partner anniversary dates for roles, levels and customer experience specialisations to 1 February 2026, with “no action needed if partners with to maintain their current status”.
“Whether through lifecycle practices, technical capabilities, or managed services, partners can drive profitable growth with our new value-based programme. With a 15-month transition, partners have time to prepare and maximise their potential in Cisco 360 Partner Program,” said Rodney Clark, Senior Vice President of Partnerships and Small and Medium Business at Cisco.
5. $80m injection
Cisco also unveiled an $80m skills investment which it said will help its partners compete in the market.
Some $60m of that will support qualified partners with benefits including all-access Cisco U. subscriptions for skill development and certification. The remainder will be used to fund quarterly training events for all partners.
