Have you dabbled with IT infrastructure in AWS? Have you been through the process of AWS partnership? Does being an AWS partner add value? Amazon seeks partners that helps drive its business, goals, and value.

Today, we’re talking to Justin Brodley, the vice president of Cloud engineering at Ellie Mae. He has been through the AWS partnership process and shares his thoughts about it. He encourages you to find the right partner for your business!

Some of the highlights of the show include:

Different levels and types of AWS partnerships

Shakedown vs. opportunity method for new leads; lead generation expectations

Amazon’s improvements eroding business models

Partners trying to pivot, but not exclusive to AWS

Whether to invest in multi-Cloud

Amazon can’t scale its sales team to handle everybody; views partner program as an extension of its salesforce

Your company is important and you’re spending a lot of money, but Amazon may not care about you; partner market fills that gap and makes you feel important

Corporate prisoner’s dilemma: Your tech company offers something that Amazon doesn’t; but what about when Amazon does offer it?

Competitors’ horizontal move to become more diversified

Amazon expects partners to offer products and services that it cannot offer yet

If partners fail, Amazon decides to do it and do it better

Is Amazon’s best interest geared toward its partners or you and your customers?

Amazon needs to give incentives and support partners

Links:

Justin Brodley on Twitter

Brodley Group

Ellie Mae

Digital Ocean

AWS Partner Network

Lambda

API Gateway

AWS re:Invent

Salesforce

Azure

Rackspace