In this episode of Collab Convo, Jo Dunkley is joined by Kevin Richards, Head of Partnerships UKI at Atos.
Kevin shares his perspective on how partnerships are evolving in the AI era, why traditional partner management models are struggling to keep pace, and what organisations need to do differently to create measurable commercial impact.
Drawing on experience across sales, marketing and partnerships, he explains why alignment, openness and relationships are still at the heart of successful ecosystems, even as technology rapidly changes around them.
We explore four key ideas that sit at the heart of modern partnerships:
1️⃣ Why partnership models need to evolve [03:13]
How AI, cloud and emerging ecosystems are reshaping the technology landscape, and why traditional partner management approaches are no longer enough.
2️⃣ Revenue enablement and organisational alignment [06:32]
Why partnerships, marketing, propositions and go-to-market teams need to operate as one connected growth engine rather than separate functions.
3️⃣ Choosing the right partners to invest in [10:52]
How Kevin evaluates strategic fit, openness and shared goals, and why transparency and collaboration are essential for partnerships to succeed.
4️⃣ Why relationships still matter in the AI era [18:27]
Why long-term success still comes down to trust, workshops, conversations and building strong human relationships across organisations.
We also discuss ecosystems, proposition development, customer outcomes, and why the future belongs to organisations that can bring multiple partners together around shared goals.
Thanks to Kevin for joining the show and sharing his perspective.
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👤 Follow the speakers
Jo Dunkley https://www.linkedin.com/in/jo-dunkley/
Kevin Richards https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinrichards7/
🌐 About Coterie
Coterie is a partner marketing specialist focused on helping organisations turn partnerships into a genuine growth driver.
We work with global technology companies, including vendors, resellers, distributors, systems integrators and MSPs, to build more effective partner strategies, combining insight, structure and practical execution. Alongside this, Coterie Connect brings together a community of partner marketers to share ideas, learn from each other and raise the standard of the discipline.
Through advisory, programmes and events, our focus is simple: helping partner marketing deliver measurable commercial impact, not just activity.
🎵 Music credit: BombinSound via Pixabay
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