Artificial Intelligence (AI) and high-growth technologies took the spotlight during the recent TD Synnex Inspire conference. The distributor, now the biggest in the world as a result of Tech Data’s merger with Synnex in 2021, is focusing on helping channel companies build AI solutions for all verticals.
TD Synnex wants to help drive outcomes for partners, said Lisa McGarvey, vice president, data, AI and IoT solutions. McGarvey’s group is working with cloud vendors, ISVs and hardware providers to develop and integrate data, AI and IoT solutions, covering everything from sensors and cameras at the edge, to data center and cloud applications, to the analytics systems that process all the data.
Calhoun McKinney
“We’re looking at all those aspects so that we can really help our resellers bring solutions to their customers because we know that building solutions is lengthy and complex,” she said. “So we’re doing all of that work for them and helping them to augment their skills and aggregate those solutions.”
AI is one of several high-growth areas around which the distributor is providing resources to help partners grow their businesses. “We spend a lot of our time investing resources on how to enable partners so that they can navigate all the complexities of these different technologies out there and drive more profitability opportunities,” said Calhoun McKinney, senior director, product business management.
AI Opportunities for MSPs
McGarvey said TD Synnex has a team of experts providing consultative services to MSPs looking to build up their AI business. “We’ve built assets and enablement to support our MSPs so that that when they’re asking where they can play with an AI, we’re sitting down and having a consultative conversation to support them.”
Lisa McGarvey
Most MSPs do business in the SMB market, where McGarvey says interest in AI is booming. Currently, it’s a $116 billion opportunity in North America, she said. SMBs are looking to invest in a whole range of AI technologies, including selling Computer Vision systems for physical security and generative AI applications.
In August, TD Synnex launched Destination AI, an aggregation of AI services and resources to help partners become more competitive in the space. “It’s about enablement, leveraging our resources, leveraging the content and the training that we’ve built, leveraging things like workshops or webinars that we have to help support partners,” McGarvey said.
Joe Pittillo
2024 Outlook
While AI is a major growth focus for 2024, TD Synnex executives also discussed other market opportunities. Cybersecurity remains a high-growth area, observed Joe Pittillo, senior vice president, services and engineering. “Our security services business grew over 300% last year,” he said.
However, cybersecurity continues to present a major challenge: a persistent talent shortage makes it difficult to fill vacancies all along the chain, from the vendors of security solutions to resellers to the end-user companies looking to build security teams.
TD Synnex is working to develop cybersecurity skills with its Tech Scholars Program, which mentors high school seniors and college students. The program, Pittillo says, helps participants “understand the ropes, understand the channel, and then we bring them on board full time afterwards.”
Bob Stegner
Another area of growth for the coming year is endpoint solutions, said Bob Stegner, senior vice president of marketing, North America. It will be driven by a return to the office, he said.
“A lot of companies will start getting people back more in the office, at least partially. It’s never going to be five days a week,” Stegner noted. But while in the office, employees will need workstations. Workers will need one for the office and one for home, he said.
As for an overall market outlook, Stegner expects more stability in the coming year. “You can see some of the markets stabilizing. It’s not going to go down, and it’s not going to drastically go up.”
