Most technology advisors and consultants have heard the warnings. They must transition from transactional approaches to consultative tactics in order to have future sales success. This shift, however, is not just about whether or not an advisory or MSP will close a deal or upsell an existing customer. Due to business technology’s increasing complexity, as well as its expanded connection to revenue growth and overall business operations, the relationship between customer and provider is fundamentally changing. And those who fail to make the transition will not only miss out on new deals, but they also will bleed current customers, new research suggests. Worst of all, they might not even see the churn coming. The traditional rules of engagement in which an MSP or advisor scopes the technical work, delivers against that statement of work and bills by milestone or by the hour still describe a large chunk of the work being delivered. But customers increasingly expect partners to share accountability for business outcomes, not only for the completion of a defined technical scope, said a recent market study by AWS. “They want partners who think like owners of their business: partners who proactively identify ways to optimize impact, suggest innovative paths and stay invested in their success long after implementation is complete,” the study argued. According to AWS surveys, 80 percent of customers interviewed reported moving toward value-based, outcometied commercial models and away from time-and-materials and milestone-based contracts. Customers described screening partners out of consideration when customer success capabilities were absent from the proposal. “Proposals that did not include value mapping, change management and outcome tracking did not advance to pricing discussions,” said AWS analysts. Again, the transition is about more than accepted proposals and winning bids. It’s also having a major impact on customer retention. According to surveys by Corsica Technologies, organizations are not simply evaluating providers based on whether they solve tickets, maintain uptime or keep a stable relationship. They increasingly are asking more strategic questions and considering By Martin Vilaboy Satisfaction and switching can coexist within changing customer expectations The MORPHING PARTNER MODEL 32 CHANNELVISION | FALL 2026
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