Educational Sessions Schedule

Click on any of the title boxes to reveal the details. And check back soon for updates and added panelists

Tuesday, November 14

Complimentary lunch & refreshments served in foyer outside of Redbird Meeting Rooms

Location: Meeting Room Dove G&H

Selling Security for Dummies

Partners don’t have to become security experts to make money in security

There’s no denying that selling cybersecurity can be complicated, only compounded by the need to build confidence within a prospect. The good news is that partners can still make money in security without becoming a certified expert. Identifying opportunities, knowing what to ask and look for – those are the real meat and potatoes for a partner looking to help their customers with their security needs. Our panel will provide color and examples into how partners uncover opportunity and deliver value to their customers without a certification.

Moderator: Peter Radizeski; President of RAD-INFO, Inc.

Panelists: Adam Burke, Vice President Sales & Partnerships, Quest Technology Management

Hilary Gadda, Head of National Partner Management, Coro

Chris Burney, Southwest Channel Director, Sandler Partners

Jennifer Bleam, Cybersecurity Sherpa, MSP Sales Revolution

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

Two-Part Session: Reseller Requirements MSPs Need to Know (Part 1)

The benefits of “owning the customer” versus partnering with a carrier that, in the end, “owns the customer” are pretty clear. In today’s world of managed infrastructures, MSP and VAR partners that are new to selling telecom can easily become a type of virtual carrier (at least from the technology and operations side of the business). But this doesn’t mean stepping into the world of white label business communications and data services resale can be taken lightly, for even the smallest of the small must contend with the quagmire of complex regulatory and tax compliance duties of a service provider.

Moderator: Tom Forte, President, Red Jacket Solutions, LLC

Panelists: Jonathan Marashlian, Managing Partner, Marashlian& Donahue

Robert Dumas, Owner & CEO, TaxConnex

Location: Meeting Room Redbird L

Accelerating the Channel Supply Chain –Part 1: Identify the Deficiencies

Two-part session on the digital transformation of indirect channels

A panel of representatives from the CVx expo hall’s Acceleration Avenue will come together to discuss and expose the breakdowns and deficiencies that must be solved in order to complete the digital transformation of the channel supply chain. These experts from up and down the supply chain will identify the pain points that must be addressed to accelerate sales, as well as the types of interactions, integrations, next-gen PRM, and marketplaces that are necessary for future success.  This session includes the participants ability to offer input regarding supply chain pain points and topics of discussion for panelists to respond to in the “Part 2” session held the following day.

Moderator: Rick Beckers, President, XaaS1

Location: Meeting Room Dove G&H

Still $$ to Be Made in UCaaS

The rush to go remote accelerated the adoption of UCaaS at speeds rarely if ever seen in the history of business communications and network services. And with it went much of the addressable market. But while the hype and hope around UCaaS may have diminished since pre-lockdown days, there is still plenty of money to be made selling UCaaS. This session will uncover and breakdown where and how to find it and tips for closing the deal.

Moderator: Peter Radizeski, president of RAD-INFO, Inc.

Panelists: Eric Hammare, Vice President of Sales, NHC

Nasser Jabakhanji, Managing Director, Experteers

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

Two-Part Session: Reseller Requirements MSPs Need to Know (Part 2)

Part two of this training seminar will cover the regulatory, tax and billing requirement boxes channel partners need to make sure are checked off when considering a transition from sales agency to carrier. Topic-expert panelists will discuss the differences between selling telecom and selling software, hardware and professional services, as well as the burdens and risks decision makers need to know.

Moderator:Jonathan Marashlian, Managing Partner, Marashlian& Donahue

Panelists: Robert Dumas, Owner & CEO, TaxConnex

Tom Forte, President, Red Jacket Solutions, LLC

Jeff Lytle, Founder & President, Sandy Beaches Software

Brent Reeves, Chief Revenue Officer, Ceretax

Location: Meeting Room Redbird L

IoT Touches Everything: Driving Deeper into Tech Stack Dollars

IoT is about a lot more than cents-per-device and basic connectivity. Many deployments also require storage, backhaul, security, secondary lines, analytics and monitoring, among others. Our panel of IoT experts will discuss the solution opportunities that come with an IoT network and how it can drive partners deeper into the customer stack.

Moderators: Martin Vilaboy, editor-in-chief, ChannelVision Magazine

Panelists: Vince Bradley, CEO, Abundant IoT

David Wright, Founder & CEO, Disruptive Innovations

Michael Cohen, Principal Software Engineer, Unified Office

Location: Meeting Room Dove G&H

Performance, Pricing & Service – Know the Alternative to ‘Big Cloud’

Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) – often referred to as “Big Cloud” – dominate the cloud services space with widespread brand awareness and massive marketing budgets. But the growth and success of “Big Cloud” often has come at the expense of its small- and medium-sized clients. In this session, attendees will learn about the thousands of smaller but equally capable “Alternative Cloud” providers, and the advantages that can be gained working with “Alternative Cloud” providers across performance, price, ease-of-use, service and flexibility.  

Moderator: Ian McClarty, President, phoenixNAP

Panelists: Rick Mancinelli, Founder and CEO, C3 Complete

Jeffrey Gregor, General Manager, OVHcloud US

Dean Jordan, Co-Founder & President, MorugaIT

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

Saving Your Customers from SaaS Sprawl

It’s more than likely that the employees of your customers are using a variety of SaaS subscriptions on a daily basis. It’s almost as likely those customers are overspending on and underutilizing their SaaS subscriptions.  All of which leaves your clients facing budget gaps, potential security concerns, waste and redundancies. At the core of this sprawl issue is a lack of visibility into company SaaS activity and centralized management. Our panel of experts will discuss why offering SaaS expense management may be more important to your customers than selling SaaS subscriptions, as well as how and where to seize the opportunities and reinforce your role as the trusted advisor.

Moderator: Warren Reyburn;senior vice president, Technology Division, SIB Fixed Cost Reduction, LLC

Panelists: Sam Valme, Senior Director, Channel Experience at AvePoint

Location: Meeting Room Redbird L

TBD

Location: Meeting Room Dove G&H

Keynote Conversation with Tim Basa: Recharge Channel Sales in 2024

Channel sales luminary and acclaimed sales trainer, Tim Basa, VP of sales and marketing for Telarus, brings his dynamic and entertaining speaking style to the CVx main stage for a fast-paced, tactic-laden Keynote Conversation that is sure to be a can’t miss for anyone who sells or manages a sales team. This high-energy session will be jampacked with modern, time-tested, practical strategies proven to help attract prospects rather than chase them down and persuasion techniques to advance confidently, master time management and improve your marketing message for maximum results. Get ready to buckle in and discover specific actions you can take to immediately advance record-setting sales results.

Wednesday, November 15

Complimentary breakfast & coffee served in foyer outside of Redbird Meeting Rooms

Location: Room Dove G&H

SD-WAN on the Street

Well past both its ‘inflated peak of expectations’ and the ‘trough of disillusionment,’ SD-WAN is ascending into Gartner’s ‘plateau of productivity.’ Of course, along the way, not all the hype came true, but the opportunities and customer outcomes are becoming clearer and still growing. Our panel of SD-WAN experts will relate the sales stories of selling SD-WAN for customer success.

Moderator: Peter Radizeski; president of RAD-INFO, Inc.

Panelists: Jason Swann, Channel Director, NHC

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

Monetizing Voice and SMS Compliance in the Digital Age

As digital communications rapidly evolve, organizations are increasingly relying on voice and SMS as critical tools for their operations. However, the complexities of regulatory compliance and identity verification have become daunting obstacles. In this presentation, we unveil an innovative solution: Identity and Compliance as a Service (ICaaS), tailored specifically for voice and SMS compliance. Join us as we navigate the labyrinth of identity verification and compliance, demonstrating how your customers can leverage this powerful knowledge to meet today’s challenges and seize tomorrow’s opportunities.

Presenter: Noah Rafalko; CEO, TSG Global

Location: Meeting Room Redbird L

Accelerating the Channel Supply Chain– Part 2: Discover the Solutions

Two-part session on the digital transformation of indirect channels

Our panel of supply chain experts representing Acceleration Avenue reconvenes its discussion on the digital transformation of the supply chain with insight and advice on how the deficiencies of the legacy supply chain (see ‘Part 1: Identifying the Deficiencies’) can be solved using existing, on-the-horizon and road-mapped platforms and solutions.  Audience input from “Part 1” will have been analyzed. Our panelists will provide responses and recommendations to those inputs during this session.

Moderator: Rick Beckers, President, XaaS1

Location: Meeting Room Dove G&H

Your Customers Need Your AI Advice: Early Steps to Selling AI

Chances are your customers and prospects are considering where investment in AI-enabled technologies can reap the most return. And in most cases, they still have lots to figure out. As with previous “emerging” technologies, the AI infusion provides channel partners an opportunity to reinforce their role as trusted advisor and/or provider. Our expert AI panel will provide channel partners with strategies and solutions that help prospects discover where AI can address their issues, provide impactful outcomes and deliver healthy ROIs.

Moderator: Martin Vilaboy, editor-in-chief, ChannelVision Magazine

Panelists: Matt Whitmer, CRO and SVP of Sales and Marketing, Mosaicx

David Wright, Founder & CEO, Disruptive Innovations

Darren Prine, Chief Business Development Officer, Cloud Tech Gurus  

Olen Scott, Head of Channels, Nextiva

Michael Cohen, Principal Software Engineer, Unified Office

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

Crushin’ It with … SASE

The increasing complexity, diversity and dispersion of corporate network endpoints precipitate a clear need for SASE networking, and the vast amount of sales opportunity surrounding SASE is still be realized. By 2025, Gartner expects at least 60 percent of enterprises will have explicit strategies and timelines for SASE adoption encompassing users, branches and edge access, up from the 10 percent that had it in the works in 2020. This panel of experts onpartner-delivered SASE solutions will break down the current opportunities for partners looking to capitalize on the shift to SASE anddive into the details of how, where and whychannel partners are ‘Crushin’ It with SASE.’

Moderator: Dan Maier, Chief Marketing Officer, Versa Networks

Panelists: Matt Hiles, Chief Operating Officer, Mosaic NetworX, LLC

Mason Miles, Executive Vice President of Sales, CommandLink

Kelly Rein, Senior Director of Product Management, Claro Enterprise Solutions

Location: Meeting Room Redbird L

Real-World Cloud Repatriation

After years of rapidly shifting resources to the cloud, organizations are realizing that they may have made some mistakes. Big cloud, it turns out, is not the best fit for every use case and application and often comes with downsides in terms of cost, performance, security and availability. The upshot has been an accelerating trend toward workloads being repatriated from the cloud back to on-premises systems or other alternative deployments such as colocation, bare metal and private/hybrid cloud. Through actual use cases and partner experiences with cloud repatriation deals, the session will offer insight into the growing opportunities, help partners identify markets and prospects and understand the sales process of cloud and data repatriation.

Presenter: Dany Bouchedid, Founder & CEO, COLOTRAQ

Location: Meeting Room Dove G&H

Crushin’ It with … Wireless Business Internet

Business internet is taking over corporate WANs, and the current and increasing speeds and reliability of LTE& 5G have made wireless access a compelling solution for more secondary and primary line scenarios. The relative ease and quickness of deployment make wireless business internet particularly interesting for home-based and remote workers on the edge. Our panel of partner sales organizations that are “Crushin’ it with wireless business internet” will share their first-hand insights into creating and developing a lucrative wireless internet customer base.

Moderator:  Martin Vilaboy, editor-in-chief, ChannelVision Magazine

Panelists: Glen Nelson, Partner, Vice President – Marketing & Business Development, NHC

Toby Forman, CEO, SmartCIC

Don Douglas, President & CEO, Liquid Networx

Neil Farquharson, Sales Engineering and Marketing Director, ConectUS Wireless

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

The FTC Safeguards Rule: An Executive Guide

This summer, the FTC enacted a significant set of changes to the original Safeguards Rule. Given continuous technological advancement and an equally evolving threat landscape, the new requirements are much more rigorous. The surprise is that the new rule significantly broadens the definition of “Financial Institution” and thereby the organization types to which the rule applies. Under these new rules, you or your customers may be beholden to strict compliance standards — ranging from the designation of a Qualified Individual to the complexities of maintaining and testing a comprehensive Incident Response plan – and failure to comply could be costly. Join us to learn what the new Safeguards Rule means to you and your clients and gain help outlining a strategy to maintain compliance.

Presenter: Rick Mancinelli, CEO, C3 Complete

Location: Meeting Room Redbird L

Unified communications can frighten customers who fear the dreaded “rip and replace” of their existing infrastructure. Technology executives should not think about cloud as a destination but as an enabler to wrap communications around their entire business. The new definition for R.I.P. is Repurpose, Integrate and Pivot. Attend this session to learn how progressive organizations are repurposing existing infrastructures, integrating communications capabilities and pivoting from a one-size-fits-all UCaaS model to a solution that is tailored to an organization’s business model.

Presenter: Kathy Mazza, Head of Channel Sales, Ooma

Location: Meeting Room Dove I

Earning Your Unfair Share: MSP Revenue Tactics

Whether you’re an established MSP seeking to boost revenue or an aspiring entrepreneur looking to enter the market, this live training session will offer invaluable insights, expert guidance and a chance to learn from real-world, success stories. For those looking to unlock the secrets of success in the Managed Service Provider (MSP) industry, this session promises to unveil cutting-edge strategies and tactics that go beyond the ordinary, providing attendees with a competitive edge in a rapidly evolving field. Join us for an immersive experience that will empower you to seize your share of the MSP market in extraordinary ways.

Presenter: Ira Feuerstein, Manager, Channel Strategy, Telesystem