Datto says it's ramping up MSP investments under Kaseya ownership
Its VP of business development EMEA sat down with CRN to discuss how the vendor is supporting its MSPs a year after being bought by Kaseya for $6.2bn
Datto owner Kaseya recently unveiled a fresh look for its global partner programme, including a more than 300 per cent rise in resources.
The updated programme comes a year after Datto was bought out by rival Kaseya in a $6.2bn acquisition.
Channel reaction to efforts to merge the two vendor's MSP strategies has been mixed since then.
Datto founder Austin McChord claimed Kaseya was 'snuffing the flame' of managed services.
Then there was a raucous town hall in July shortly after the buyout closed when Kaseya CEO Fred Voccola ruffled some feathers among the incoming Datto staff head count.
However, Kaseya and Datto are now on the charm offensive, together.
The Kaseya + Datto Global Partner Programme now consists of a tiered system with partners moving up depending on their annual spend - Silver ($1K), Gold ($25K), Platinum ($100K) and Blue Diamond ($250K).
Kaseya CEO Fred Voccola first revealed plans for this triple-digit increase in resources during September's DattoCon 2022.
Speaking with CRN on what this 300 per cent looks like, Datto VP of business development EMEA, Greg Jones outlined how the vendor is supporting partners to grow.
Kaseya and Datto - what is new?
"We've doubled the amount of marketing development funds. That went from about 1.5 million to three million we invest now," Jones said.
"And we've expanded the team massively. We now have 60 people in our MSP enablement department, which is all about helping our partners grow.
"We've never had more staff than we've had in the past in MSP enablement. We had around three or four staff on the Datto side of the fence and we've now got 60 people."
What are MSPs struggling with?
Gaining a large slice of the managed service provider market allows Datto to grow its global reach to support small businesses, Jones said, explaining the vendor's ramped up investments.
To this end the group is focused on helping its MSPs overcome their current business challenges.
One of these obstacles, which the expanded partner programme addresses, revolves around sales and marketing, which Jones described as a "big struggle" for MSPs.
"Many MSP businesses out there started with a technical person that was in a role and they just evolved into their own business or become an MSP.
"A lot of them are very good technically or as business leaders, but a lot of them will tell you they really struggle with sales and marketing.
"For any business to succeed you always need sales and marketing in your engine.
"Our focus has always been around how do we help partners with sales and marketing because they struggle with that the most."