Channel Surfing Blog: TCA Hosts Second Vendor Channel Chief Summit

The Technology Channel Association brought together thought leaders from various companies for its second exclusive vendor member Channel Chief Summit in Washington, D.C., held on Sept. 20, in conjunction with the Fall 2010 Channel Partners Conference & Expo.

Global Crossing, Level 3, XO, Intercall, Megapath, Quest, Salestream, Telnes Broadband and US Signal were all represented, as well as TCA board members who are committed to improving the quality and reputation of the indirect sales channel community.

Reflecting the rapid evolution of the indirect sales channel, the attendees generally discussed the industry’s current size and how the phrase “The Alternate Channel" is truly becoming simply “THE Channel," due to equipment distribution being roughly two-thirds indirect. The agent community’s desire to become more standardized and professional is reflected in the results of recent membership drives, which have led to the recruitment of 139 new agent members since July.

Among other important topics facing the telecom industry, the group discussed the impending launch of TCA’s Certified Telecommunications Professional (CTP) program, the first industry trade association-sponsored certification program designed specifically for indirect sales agents. TCA board members emphasized that vendor support would be a very powerful avenue for the program’s success. Vendors agreed that the certification would help ensure agents are selling “solutions" instead of just viewing a sale as a transaction.

Both carriers and agents will continue to work together on projects such as CTP to increase the level of professionalism in the industry overall.

The meeting also focused on ways to utilize TCA to provide unbiased training, and how members can update themselves on current trends such as cloud computing. The association will begin to reach out more to Value Added Resellers (VARs) and hopes as a result, TCA can be looked at as a way to leverage the gap between the IT and telecom industries.