AI growth depends on expanding partner capabilities, not just partner numbers, says Redington’s Sridhar S

With AI still at an early stage across its channel ecosystem, the distributor is investing in partner capability, regional enablement and shared technical expertise to broaden participation beyond a small group of specialist partners.

Cloud and cybersecurity have already established sizeable partner ecosystems at Redington, but AI remains in its early stages. The distributor today works with around 2,500 partners actively transacting in cloud solutions and over 2,600 partners selling cybersecurity in India. By comparison, fewer than 100 partners are actively participating in AI.

Speaking to CRN India, Sridhar S, president, Software Solutions Group (SSG), Redington Limited, said the company's priority is not simply increasing the number of partners selling AI, but preparing a much larger section of its ecosystem with the skills, confidence and services capabilities needed to participate as customer adoption expands.

"AI is still in the early stages of adoption, and today we have fewer than 100 partners actively participating in this segment," Sridhar said.

At the same time, he noted that many partners are already working with their existing customers to build AI solution consumption, creating what he described as a "constantly expanding base" of AI opportunities.

"Our focus is on helping more partners build the skills, confidence and capabilities needed to participate in these opportunities," he said, adding that the company expects the number of partners transacting in next-generation technologies to expand during FY27, supported by its services-led portfolio.

The positioning reflects that AI adoption across the channel will depend less on onboarding large numbers of new partners and more on helping existing partners evolve their capabilities as enterprise demand matures.

Regional enablement becomes central to partner expansion

Rather than concentrating enablement efforts in the larger metropolitan markets, Redington is extending cloud, AI and cybersecurity programmes deeper into Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, where many partners continue to build their technology practices.

Sridhar pointed to the company's recent "Lead with Cloud" initiative with AWS as one example of that strategy. The programme covered over 15 cities and focused on driving cloud adoption among partners and SMBs outside the major metropolitan markets.

According to him, the initiative was designed not only to increase cloud adoption but also to expose partners to emerging technologies while helping them prepare for changing customer requirements.

Alongside these roadshows, Redington has expanded investments in field sales and pre-sales resources while strengthening its inside sales organisation to support partners building capabilities around cloud, AI and cybersecurity.

The company has also introduced its Cloud, Infrastructure, Software and Security (CISS) Services organisation, providing partners with pre-sales and post-sales support, implementation, execution and monitoring capabilities.

These investments are complemented by capability-building programmes through Redington Academy, which continues to work with partners and technology vendors to strengthen technical skills across the ecosystem.

Taken together, the initiatives reflect Redington's effort to move partner conversations beyond traditional infrastructure sales towards higher-value cloud, software and AI engagements.

Preparing regional partners for emerging AI opportunities

While large AI infrastructure projects, including GPU deployments and data centre build-outs, are often associated with large national system integrators, Sridhar believes regional partners also have opportunities to participate as AI adoption broadens across enterprises and SMBs.

He pointed to the "Lead with Cloud" programme as one example of how Redington is introducing regional partners to generative AI solutions, cloud infrastructure and cloud adoption opportunities.

The initiative also focused on helping partners support SMB customers beginning their cloud journeys, while preparing them to participate in broader AI-led technology conversations as customer demand evolves.

Although the company did not suggest regional partners would compete directly for the largest AI infrastructure projects, the strategy indicates that Redington sees meaningful opportunities for a wider cross-section of its ecosystem as AI consumption expands beyond early adopters.

Rather than limiting advanced technologies to a small group of specialist partners, the distributor is investing in broader ecosystem readiness so more partners can participate over time.

Building a broader technology ecosystem

The company's longer-term strategy also challenges the idea that advanced technologies will inevitably concentrate business among only the largest channel organisations.

According to Sridhar, large global and national partners remain important, but they cannot address every customer requirement, particularly across smaller cities and towns where regional partners continue to maintain stronger customer relationships and local market expertise.

Instead of encouraging consolidation, Redington is building what it describes as a federated services model through its CISS organisation.

The approach allows partners to access shared technical expertise and implementation capabilities that may otherwise be difficult for smaller organisations to build independently.

According to Sridhar, the objective is to create an environment where partners of different sizes can continue participating in cloud, software, AI and cybersecurity opportunities without each partner having to invest individually across every technical capability.

"Our objective is to create an environment where multiple categories of partners can engage and thrive," he said.

Through this federated approach, partners, including those operating in smaller cities, can access the resources required to position, deploy and manage advanced technologies while building new revenue opportunities.

For Redington, the next phase of AI ecosystem growth will therefore depend not only on expanding the number of partners participating in the market, but also on ensuring a much broader section of the channel has the capabilities needed to support customers as AI adoption matures.