Pulsant’s partner strategy is built on a simple principle: collaboration grows the market for everyone. Rather than competing with managed service providers, Pulsant has stepped back from that role to focus on its core strength: providing secure, high-performance digital infrastructure, and supporting its partners to build successful businesses on top of it. This approach is best summed up by the company’s partner leader, Wendy Shearer, who says Pulsant’s goal is to help partners “make a bigger cake rather than fight over a slice”.
With more than 800 clients across 14 interconnected data centres, Pulsant is one of the UK’s largest and most connected digital infrastructure providers. In 2021, the company shifted gears when its investors, private equity house Antin, made it clear they wanted Pulsant to focus on digital infrastructure and step back from offering a wide range of services. This paved the way for a new partner strategy focused on building a collaborative ecosystem where everyone benefits.
Building a Collaborative Ecosystem
Under the leadership of Wendy Shearer, a former Trustmarque and Computacenter executive, Pulsant launched its new partner programme last year. The initiative already has more than 100 partners and continues to grow. With a dedicated team in place to support partners, Shearer states she built the programme from the ground up to be different by design. Unlike traditional channel programmes that reward partners for reselling products, it enables partners to build services on Pulsant’s infrastructure and, more importantly, collaborate with each other to expand their respective markets.
“We’re not looking for people to resell colocation,” Shearer explained. “We want them to build interesting products and services on our digital infrastructure”. By working closely with its partners, Pulsant can support their growth and introduce them to clients or other partners who need their services, helping everyone to thrive.
The company’s focused approach to infrastructure also frees up its partners to do what they do best. “Our role is to stand up the data centres, connect them with a low-latency fabric, and provide the private cloud capability,” Shearer said. “Then partners can build all the goodness on top”.
Collaboration in Action: The Nine23 Example
A “brilliant example” of this collaborative model is UK sovereign, high-assurance MSP Nine23. As a niche business specialising in the high-assurance space, Pulsant can introduce them to other partners in its data centres, encouraging new collaborations without direct competition. Pulsant’s regional ecosystem approach allows new relationships to flourish by simply opening the door and stepping back. Shearer’s goal is to drive long term partner growth by spending time understanding where partners are going and working with them to build an environment to succeed. That’s where the Pulsant partner strategy truly differs to other traditional programmes as the team are invested in supporting every partner to develop and grow.
Connectivity is key
Central to this strategy is Pulsant’s PlatformEDGE infrastructure, which connects all 14 of its regional data centres via a low-latency network Edge fabric. This platform gives partners nationwide access to colocation, connectivity, and cloud from a single, high-performance platform. The network allows partners to connect securely with each other, whether they are in a data centre in Edinburgh or across the country in Milton Keynes.
Pulsant’s recent expansion into Birmingham and Fareham, following a deal with SCC, has extended its reach into key economic hubs that have been traditionally underserved. This move helps “democratise the opportunity” by building the digital economy in different regions across the UK. By providing the infrastructure, Pulsant frees partners from having to invest in heavy infrastructure themselves, allowing them to “just plug in and prosper”.
Connected Data Centers as Engines of Growth
Shearer likens Pulsant’s connected data centres to a neighbourhood or apartment blocks for technology. They are secure, connected buildings where a diverse mix of businesses lives side by side. While many of these businesses may not even know their neighbours, the real opportunity arrives when they start to interact and collaborate.
Shearer believes this is what makes Pulsant unique. “For me,” she says, “our connected data centres are true engines of growth”. By creating secure connections within and between data centres, partners can work together to seize bigger opportunities.
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This article was produced in association with Pulsant and is classified as partner content. What is partner content? See more here.
