ServiceNow to focus on partner-led models in certain markets in APAC

“We are also looking at the model where we see certain segments that are really still a white space for us,” says Myia Ross, GVP, APAC Partnerships & Channels, at ServiceNow.

For ServiceNow, the APAC region remains an important growth market for the tech company. With customers in the region prefer to adopt tech through the channel, ServiceNow is also ensuring they are well prepared to support customers by having the right partners in the region.

This is one of the reasons why Myia Ross, GVP, APAC Partnerships & Channels, at ServiceNow was brought into the team earlier this year. Ross will be responsible for growing the partner ecosystem in the region, including enabling the expansion into markets where there are immediate opportunities.

Specifically, ServiceNow is launching a partner-led model in certain markets. This is very new for the vendor, which has typically engaged directly with customers. As such, what’s key to the approach in this region is to have a segmentation map. And for Ross, when it comes to a partner-led model for ServiceNow, it's not just about looking at the market.

“We are also looking at the model where we see certain segments that are really still a white space for us. That way we can see a lot of customers in that space, like the semiconductor industry in Taiwan, for example. To cater to that customer, we will need to make sure we find the partners that are fitted in that market,” she explained.

Meanwhile, Michael Park, ServiceNow’s SVP of Global Partnerships and Channels, shared that ServiceNow has five routes to market, each route having different economic shifts that are occurring because of AI. While the vendor also has some direct approach to customers, Park added that ServiceNow is now focused on enabling partners to make that transformation to deliver higher value to the customer in a systematic way.

“For those partners that want to take the journey with us, we're giving them all the tools, the programs, and the skill set to manage that transition for themselves while they help accelerate the outcome for the customer,” he said.

Five routes to market

According to Park, the five routes to market for ServiceNow include consulting and implementation, working with service providers, a reseller model, partnership with hyperscalers, and the build parters.

“Consulting and implementation is the typical route. With service providers, its the transformation of managed services from mostly human-driven to human intelligence and AI. The reseller model is very important here in Asia because we can't accelerate our TAM expansion fast enough just by building our own direct motion. We need to have partners with us along the journey to reach. And then we have the hyperscalers that represent a fundamental shift in how technology is being consumed. And lastly, we have the build partners, which are the people that ISVs that are building on the ServiceNow platform,” he explained.

For Park, each of these five routes are uniquely transformations of the business model within themselves. When it comes to ServiceNow and the platform delivering value to the end customer, these routes will combine based on the customer's needs in different ways.

“For example, if there's a customer that is a big Azure shop, we might work with them to actually bring the ServiceNow environment when they upgrade to run on the Azure environment to use the burndown credits of Azure. While we do that, we might be bringing in an ISV in that modernization effort to replace something or bring a new capability in. Or we might be working with a system integrator to actually do that migration for us,” he said.

As Park puts it, the important thing for ServiceNow is to set the strategy in measurable terms for each of the five routes to market. This will define the performance expectations of each route to market to provide the programs, the incentives, and the tools to help those partners in that transition.