Cisco partners still have ample time to improve their index ratings before the launch of 360, its UK partner leader stressed following yesterday’s big profitability reveal.
The networking giant has finally given partners access to an ‘estimator’ enabling them to model profitability under the new partner programme, which goes live on 25 January 2026.
First unveiled in October 2024, Cisco 360 is being positioned as the $57bn-revenue, Nasdaq-listed outfit’s biggest partner programme overhaul in nearly 30 years.
Co-designed with partners, the new regime aims to reward partners on lifecycle and managed services, skills investment, customer base expansion, and engagement across the customer journey and partner ecosystem.
“Show me the money”
Talking to IT Channel Oxygen, Joachim Mason, Managing Director of Partner Sales at Cisco UK&I, characterised the launch of the estimator as a “significant moment” in 360’s pre-launch preparations.
“This is when we start to fill in some more of the gaps in terms of, I guess, ‘show me the money’,” he said.
“It’s a significant moment, albeit we’ve been signposting different elements of what goes to make up the Partner Value Indices.
“There’s a high-water mark in the Partner Value Index ratings – if they reach that level prior to February, that investment is protected for 18 months. Anyone who still has a bit of runway to get to the rating they’re looking for, that’s really what we’ve been working on for the majority of [the last 12 months].
“If they have any concerns about what the estimator is telling them, there’s still time to put that right.
“But I will say this: when we look at those ratings and look across our UK and Ireland landscape, we’re feeling happy about where that community of partners is in the chosen areas they want to concentrate on.”
“It allows partners another layer of identity”
The value of the overall 360 rebate pot will at least match that of the current regime, Mason said.
“The headline is we are spending the same, if not more, on our global partner programme,” he said.
“I think when any large vendor comes out with a change of programme, there can be suspicions that it’s a cost-saving exercise. It is absolutely not.
“It’s about moving those incentive dollars around so that they’re in the right place to drive those aspects of what we’re looking for.”
Under the new programme, partners must hit certain Partner Value Index ratings to become ‘Preferred’ or ‘Accredited’ across seven different areas of Cisco’s portfolio.
360’s launch will spell the end of Cisco’s historic Gold badge, which has arguably been the standard-bearer for all vendor accreditations over the last three decades (as explored here by Computacenter CEO Mike Norris).
“The Gold partner status has been a real mainstay in the industry,” Mason agreed.
“What I think 360 also allows is just another layer of identity. It makes it a bit clearer as to what that partner is best at.
“If one of those top Gold partners reaches Preferred status across every single part of our portfolio, I feel that’s a stronger identity of what their capabilities are.”
“It’s unlocked a degree of ambition”
What traits will determine whether partners are more or less profitable under the new regime?
Partners focused on building customer success practices and managed services will be among the winners, alongside those offering lifecycle services, Mason indicated.
“Even taking the 360 side of it away, the risk for any partner who is simply being transactional, or relevant to a customer in a one-off moment, is you end up being marginalised and commoditised,” he said.
“What we as Cisco are trying to do, and what our customers want us to do, is stay relevant to them, stay engaged and stay focused on them realising the benefits from the investments they’re making.
“We want to have an ongoing multi-year relationship with them.
“Everything we do is in lock step with our partners. 360 is such an important aspect of making sure we can incentivise their capabilities in the right way.”
While it may disproportionately hit European partners, Cisco’s decision to withdraw its Services Partner Programme (CSPP) is in line with 360’s overall ethos, Mason said.
“[CSPP] is a fairly long-standing service rebate programme, which, when you look ahead to what we actually need, we needed to incentivise different things,” he said.
“It needs to be around adoption; it needs to be around lifecycle. So that is really what we’re doing.”
Partners’ sentiment around the programme has improved as they’ve gradually increased their scores, Mason said.
“I’ve sat in meetings where I’ve heard [partners] talk really positively about what [360] does. It’s unlocked a degree of ambition to say, ‘right, we’re here now and we know we can get there, and that’s going to be better for us on multiple levels’.”
“Our partners have come with us”
Cisco has made much of the fact 360 is “designed by partners, for partners”.
Has this approach worked?
“Yes, unequivocally,” Mason responded.
“There’s literally been thousands upon thousands of hours of feedback, different forums, advisory boards, one-to-one sessions and one-to-many sessions.
“We’ve been getting their real-world feedback and have incorporated different changes off the back of that.
“I’m not going to sit here and say, as of 25 January, a major vendor will launch a new global programme and it will be absolutely perfect. But it’s made much, much better by the way we’ve failed fast…. we incorporate something, we learn something, we test it with our partners. Does it work? If it doesn’t, what do we tweak?
“I would be much more concerned if we’d locked ourselves away in a room somewhere in HQ, done a grand reveal and given our partners a month to react. That just wouldn’t have worked.
“We absolutely recognise this has been a big transition that we’re three-quarters of the way through.
“But our partners have come with us.
“Yes, there’s some detail we need to work through – and the estimator is another step in that process. But we’re comfortable with that.”
Alastair Edwards, Chief Analyst at analyst Omdia, characterised 360 as “one of the biggest changes in partnering economics for Cisco in the last 20 years”, adding that it is “designed to reward partners much more effectively as they deliver across Land, Adopt, Expand and Renew motions, while elevating those with the deepest skills across Cisco’s portfolio”.
“This has not been an easy transition for many partners – and has involved a significant effort over the last 12 months to re-engineer operations to align with the new programme,” he told IT Channel Oxygen.
“But most recognise the need to move beyond just transacting deals to delivering customer value across the entire lifecycle.
“However, one of the biggest frustrations for partners so far has been a lack of visibility into their earning potential under 360. So the launch of the profitability estimator is a critical step.
“Now partners should have greater clarity into their future profitability and how this compares with the previous program. Cisco has promised that partners can earn the same or more in 360 – they can now put that claim to the test. But the reality is this money is unlikely to be spread in the same way as in the past – with new winners and losers from the new programme.”
Doug Woodburn is editor of IT Channel Oxygen
