Ecosystems of another kind : A welcome - or reintroduction - to the IBM Partner Ecosystem

As a kid, my ideas about ecosystems were shaped less by a love of technology and more by my fascination with the acclaimed documentary series of British naturalist Sir David Attenborough - "Life on Earth”. In fact, such was my interest it almost led me into a very different career journey (but more of that for another time and place).?Today it is with no less excitement that I get to wake up every day to work, alongside fellow IBMers across EMEA,?to build a very different kind of ecosystem than Sir David so engagingly brought into our living rooms !?

Today’s IBM and our technology ecosystem of partners are working together to help the world - one company, one business transformation at a time - grow by creating innovative solutions leveraging market leading Automation, Data & Security technology built upon the Hybrid Cloud.?

What does that ecosystem look like ? Perhaps a contrast to the past is helpful here.?A traditional term to describe technology partnerships is the "channel" -?a fair choice of word when the relationship between a technology vendor, partner and client was one dimensional, linear and- to a large extent - one directional. I simply don't think that term works anymore.?

Driven by the enormous opportunity to leverage digital technology for business transformation and a radically different customer experience, the technology ecosystems of today must - by design - be more networked and fluid. They will be an agile mix, where solution providers, technology companies,?industry players or platform companies and clients work together. The interplay between firms will change dependent on the specific challenge at hand, and by necessity be underpinned & enabled by secure, open, innovative and resilient technologies.?Whether building, reselling or integrating technology as part of a broader technology project, the depth of technical skills required by clients will increase. Recognising these dynamics we continue to evolve how we support our ecosystem.?

Whether it is our new Partner Portal - making it easier to do business with us -?or our team of Brand Partner Specialists - working with partners to create and progress new opportunities to grow across our technology portfolio - or our Partner Technology Specialist team - who work directly with a partner's technical team to create new solutions - and most of all our industry leading technology, we are committed to building an ecosystem that partners love to work with and that clients can trust in.?

If you are already an IBM partner - thank you for the business that we do together.?I acknowledge the experience you have working with us is not always perfect, we know there are areas in which we can and will improve?- and we are committed to making continuous progress here.?If you are new to IBM or thinking about becoming a partner then I believe there is no better time in our history to work with us.?

Whilst Sir David might not be the first person you think of when discussing technology he would certainly agree that?whether we are talking about the world of nature or technology -?the purpose of that ecosystem is the same: to grow sustainably through continuous co-creation. That's exactly the kind of ecosystem we are building with hundred of partners across all the countries in EMEA - centred on technology and transformation. Be part of that movement and let's create together.