McCrosson’s influence also is apparent in the company’s recently updated product portfolio and redefined partner program. For starters, SolEx’s new five-stage, continuous-cycle partner enablement model wasn’t developed necessarily to attract “agents to sell services,” said McCrosson. Rather, the company is more interested in partnering with “agent business owners” seeking to grow and expand their sales agencies. Innovation within compensation programs and commissioning, for example, has long been a hallmark of McCrosson’s career and in turn, SolEx’s “partner-only” sales model includes business-friendly features such as customized invoicing, creative commission and buy-rate structures, no revenue commitments and select commission-advance options designed to help partners develop or expand an operation. The ongoing impetus toward maintaining a forward-thinking, nextgen product portfolio is evidenced by the recent addition of the AT&T security suite. Rounding out SolEx’s three-pillar solutions portfolio (which includes Data Networking, and Voice & Collaboration), the security offering powered by AT&T, one of SolEx’s many long-term best-of-breed business vendors, includes the full gamut of cyber-protection: strategy and risk services, network security services, endpoint security and identity services, and threat detection and response. Considering the vastness and complexity of IT security – and the limited experience and budgets partners and their end users might have to implement it – SolEx offers specific consultative services and engineering resources to help businesses understand their security posture, develop or validate their strategies and ultimately implement the necessary steps to safeguard a business. For partners that are new to the cybersecurity business, they can rest assured, this is far from SolEx’s first experience at introducing agencies to a new or emerging sector. The multi-generational company has spent nearly three decades navigating numerous disruptive technologies, understanding various regulatory regimes and evaluating the countless pioneering providers that have shaken up the business communications landscape. More recently, the company has laid claim to national industry awards for its channel manager excellence, including Mike McCrosson and David Luther, and the legacy continues with Tom McCrosson Jr., who has been instrumental as financial controller, managing agents and vendors, and setting compensation plans. Throughout it all, the focus has remained on assimilating solid, innovative products into partners’ portfolios, consequentially helping them develop something more than just the reselling of widgets. Looking back on a road that ran straight through the Wild Wests days of VoIP, broadband and the cloud, McCrosson and the leadership at SolEx have certainly learned the importance (and benefits) of forward-thinking. History tells us that at least one thing does not change. Channel partners, says McCrosson, must continue to adapt and evolve, and SolEx remains committed to the evolutionary path with its channel partners in the same passionate way it has done for more than 30 years. o For more information about the SolEx partner program, contact the company at partner@solexp.com or 800-411-3611. 43 SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2022 | CHANNELV ISION
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