Businesses around the world rely on an extensive network of partnerships to deliver quality customer experiences—and it’s no different here at Cloudera. Cloudera is building a robust partner ecosystem to meet the unique needs of its customers, working to provide exceptional and fulfilling experiences that help make Cloudera a leader in the multi-cloud data platform space.
With nearly 20 years of marketing experience, Lan Chu is no stranger to collaborating across teams to build strong, robust marketing programs. Having worked across marketing teams from companies in food delivery to software development, Lan understands the importance of partner success to support positive customer outcomes. Lan exemplifies the importance of creative marketing, innovative solutions, and building trust across Cloudera’s extensive and essential partner ecosystem.
To delve deeper into the importance of partnerships, we spoke with Lan about her experience as a senior partner marketing leader at Cloudera.
What makes strong partnerships so vital? How do they impact the work happening at Cloudera?
A partner ecosystem isn’t just a nice addition; it’s a fundamental requirement in today’s market. I’m in lockstep with our partners daily, ensuring we all have the plans to succeed. Collaborating closely with strategic partners allows Cloudera to offer comprehensive solutions that meet diverse customer needs and drive growth. By aligning efforts and objectives with partners, Cloudera ensures coordinated sales, marketing, and product development efforts, resulting in more successful customer outcomes and enabling us to deliver outcomes and objectives that allow us and our partners to grow.
Partnerships are not just about mutual support; they are the catalyst of innovation at Cloudera. They open doors to new ideas, technologies, and market trends, propelling the development of cutting-edge solutions. This collaborative approach empowers us to outpace the competition, deliver solutions that truly meet our customers’ needs, and maintain our leadership position in the industry. The potential of partnerships to fuel innovation is limitless, and it’s a journey we’re excited to embark on with our partners.
What excites you about working with Cloudera’s partner ecosystem?
I thrive on challenges and I’m empowered in partner marketing to develop new strategies to deliver optimal results. It’s all about aligning diverse stakeholders to move in the same direction, gaining buy-in, and delivering results that benefit everyone involved. Working in partner marketing aligns with my passion for technology and startups, offering opportunities for autonomy, innovation, and rapid learning and growth.
While it can be daunting, especially as I focus on multi-partner motions throughout the year, it’s ultimately about serving the customer. They want to see the full solution offering, not just individual parts. By bringing together various partners, we provide comprehensive solutions that address specific use cases and modernize data architecture. Collaborating with partners to create value for our customers and drive success for all parties involved is exciting.
What is the best way to build a strategic partner marketing program?
Building a strategic partner marketing program begins with identifying those key partners and exploring similarities in the market. By the nature of my role, I find myself collaborating with teams across Cloudera to support partner and channel initiatives.
Despite the challenge of balancing partnerships with major cloud providers, it’s essential for us to acknowledge the reality of customers operating in a hybrid cloud environment. Discussions in our partner work often revolve around understanding customer needs and creating interconnected solutions. For instance, in a recent project focused on generative AI (GenAI), I engaged with cloud providers and hardware vendors to develop a fully integrated program which included a 3 part webinar series addressing the pivotal points of GenAI. This series emphasized the tools and resources needed for success in the GenAI space and showcased Cloudera’s expertise through customer success stories.
While the journey may be challenging, my background, particularly within the high-tech sector, has equipped me with the tools to navigate complex partnerships and drive impactful marketing initiatives.
A lot of time and effort goes into these partnerships. How does our partner marketing strategy help Cloudera succeed as a business?
In my experience, partner marketing programs are indispensable for a business’s success because they are inherently customer-centric. Customers expect a rich ecosystem of solutions, and partnering with other companies allows businesses to meet those demands effectively.
When hyperscalers, hardware vendors, or other technology companies partner with us, it’s because they see value for themselves and their customers. Every partnership is mutually beneficial, with both parties focused on delivering value to their respective customer bases. This customer-centric approach aligns perfectly with our growth themes, which revolve around AI, hybrid solutions, and modern data architecture. Partners are crucial in supporting these themes, enabling us to effectively deliver comprehensive solutions that address customer needs. Without our partners, achieving true hybridity, enabling AI capabilities, or modernizing data architecture would be challenging. Therefore, viewing everything through the lens of partnership underscores the nature of our business, with partners playing a vital role in helping us deliver value to our customers.
To help us fuel the best business outcomes at Cloudera, we are committed to building a rich and robust partner ecosystem, and we’re committed to helping our partners unlock the potential of Cloudera’s enterprise data cloud. The Cloudera Partner Network provides a direct path to benefits, including enablement, marketing, adaptable selling models, technology certifications, and solution competencies that customers trust.
Learn more about partnering with Cloudera here.