Monday Morning Impact – September 16
CompTIA: Organizations Struggle to Balance New AI Tools and Human Talent
Achieving productive coexistence between human workers and artificial intelligence (AI) is among the biggest obstacles organizations face in expanding their use of AI, according to a survey-based whitepaper published by CompTIA, a suburban Chicago-based industry association.
“Finding the best balance between their employees and new AI tools is front and center for many companies,” said Seth Robinson, vice president, industry research at CompTIA. “There seems to be genuine interest in making their workforce more efficient through strategic AI applications and targeted upskilling.”
The majority of businesses surveyed expect to invest in existing technology tools—such as customer relationship management, business productivity suites and HR systems—that have AI embedded to provide new features.
“These tools are already integral parts of corporate workflow, and AI will become a powerful new part of a complex solution stack,” Robinson explained. “In this scenario, a company will likely require a low degree of AI expertise across its entire workforce and a high degree of AI expertise in a few select areas.”
CompTIA has created an AI Framework that identifies key areas where skills-building will be more important as AI is adopted throughout the technology stack. The framework predicts that cybersecurity professionals will be augmented with AI/ML capabilities to effectively secure their networks. It also projects that auto coding, where human engagement with AI/ML coding programs, will grow. In addition, tech-adjacent staff working with AI will likely need to understand industry specific best practices for prompting AI/ML. System operations (SysOps), in business process automation, robotic process automation and other areas, will be enhanced by AI/ML.
Challenges related to the cost of AI implementation will also be affected by the implementation strategy a company follows. In the CompTIA survey, 45% of firms cited the cost of infrastructure to enable AI as a challenge.
Cybersecurity and privacy concerns are also pressing, with 45% of companies ranking it high on the list of challenges. This may be an indicator of lessons learned when many firms leapt into new technology architectures or applications without fully considering the cybersecurity implications.
In constructing its “Building AI Strategy” whitepaper, CompTIA surveyed 521 technology industry professionals on their insights and views on AI in initial stages of adoption.
Channel Impact®
Channel partners can help to foster the development of necessary skills that will be closely linked to an organization’s business plans and AI implementation approaches.
Check Point Software Unveils New MSSP Portal for Partners
Check Point has unveiled a new portal designed for both managed security service providers (MSSPs) and distributors.
Among the highlights, the new portal is intended to simplify the onboarding of partners—a process that previously took as long as a week and now takes only two minutes, according to the company. The portal also integrates MSSPs into the Check Point Infinity platform, which is seen as a significant achievement in the company’s MSSP program.
Other enhancements include simplified deployment of endpoint, email, mobile, SASE, and cloud services as well as flexible billing options.
“Our new portal is here to make life easier for our valued partners, enhancing efficiency and driving business growth,” said Francisco Criado, VP of Check Point’s Global Partner Ecosystem Organization. “We are deeply committed to our partner ecosystem, and this portal stands as a testament to our dedication, serving as a powerful ally in the fight against cybersecurity threats.”
Check Point leverages AI to enhance cyber security efficiency and accuracy through its Infinity platform, which includes cloud-delivered technologies consisting of Check Point Harmony to secure the workspace, Check Point CloudGuard to secure the cloud, Check Point Quantum to secure the network, and Check Point Infinity Core Services for collaborative security operations and services.
Channel Impact®
MSSPs and channel partners often face challenges with efficiently scaling their services, managing multiple customers across disparate security solutions, ensuring compliance with evolving industry regulations, and balancing operational costs with profitability. This platform is intended to address these needs and simplify service delivery.
Arrow Electronics and Citrix Sign Distribution Agreement for North America and EMEA
Arrow Electronics and Citrix have announced a strategic distribution agreement in which the distributor will assume responsibility for sales, marketing and technical support for all service provider channel partners consuming fewer than 2,000 Citrix licenses across North America and Europe.
“Arrow is committed to exploring new models of engagement within the channel,” said Eric Nowak, president of Arrow’s global enterprise computing solutions business. “Building on our experience and past success with Citrix, whose solutions are trusted by thousands of organizations worldwide, we are perfectly positioned to take responsibility for supporting this key segment,”
Ethan Fitzsimons, vice president and head of global channels for Citrix, said, “Citrix is committed to building an improved channel-centric approach designed for growth and scaling our business globally. Citrix will continue to focus on and invest in product development, engineering, and support of the suite of solutions available to all our channel partners and work closely with Arrow to support and deliver these solutions to channel partners and their customers.”
This new model is designed to provide service provider channel partners previously managed under Citrix’s service provider programs with greater enablement, flexibility and support in how they consume and manage their Citrix licenses.
For channel partners not directly impacted by this change, Citrix intends to invest more deeply and in a more focused manner in their joint go-to-market strategies.
The strategic arrangement will commence on Oct. 1, 2024.
Channel Impact®
This long-term collaboration is expected to foster greater partner-specific investment and align with Citrix’s goal of creating a robust, channel-focused strategy.
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