AWS re:Invent 2025 - Conversations with the Leaders Shaping the Future of Partnerships

Twelve conversations on the announcements, strategies, and partner trends at re:Invent. What leaders across AWS, Marketplace, services, and software are saying about AI, co-sell, and partnerships.

Dec 11, 2025

What an incredible week in Las Vegas.

AWS re:Invent once again delivered a remarkable mix of energy, innovation, and real partner momentum. From major AWS announcements to deep conversations with executives who are building, scaling, and redefining ecosystem strategy, the week was packed with insights that highlight where cloud, AI, Marketplace, and partner-led growth are headed.

Below is a quick recap and link to every interview I recorded during the week - each one offering a different perspective on what’s changing and what’s coming next for partner leaders.

(Includes links to the 8 interviews already published. Four more will be published over the coming days.)

Recorded ahead of re:Invent and released on announcement morning, Monday, Dec 1st, this interview with Matt Yanchyshyn focused on the major AWS Marketplace and Partner Services announcements shaping the upcoming year.

Matt walked through improvements designed to streamline procurement, accelerate transactions, and support ISVs building AI-enabled solutions on AWS. He discussed new capabilities intended to reduce friction for buyers and sellers, expand global reach, and help partners move from prototype to production faster.

A key takeaway was AWS’s increasing focus on simplicity and flexibility - giving partners more commercial options while helping customers access cloud software with far fewer barriers. The conversation set the tone for the week’s Marketplace momentum.

Mona Chadha shared her perspective on how AWS is evolving to meet partners in a rapidly shifting market shaped by AI, data gravity, and customer expectations. She discussed the acceleration of ISVs building on AWS and the increasing importance of co-innovation in landing and expanding enterprise relationships.

Much of the conversation focused on how AWS is helping partners deliver measurable customer outcomes faster - a recurring theme across re:Invent. Mona also highlighted the continued rise of Marketplace as a preferred buying channel and how AWS teams are aligning earlier with partners to simplify procurement and support broader GTM alignment.

Rohan Karmarkar offered a strategic lens on partner engagement at scale, digging into what AWS is seeing across global markets. He talked about how AI is reshaping business models for ISVs and GSIs, and why partners that lean into industry specialization are gaining a competitive edge.

The conversation also touched on modernization, cloud economics, and the ways AWS is helping partners build differentiated solutions with reusable assets and repeatable plays. Rohan emphasized that ecosystem success now depends on creating joint value propositions that compress time to outcome for customers.

Asher Mathew and I shot this conversation live at re:Invent on Tuesday morning sharing the energy, announcements, and emerging themes shaping the week.

Asher shared what he was hearing from Partner Leaders across the conference - from the excitement around AWS Marketplace enhancements to the accelerating shift toward AI-enabled co-sell motions. He talked about the rapid expansion of the partnering profession, how Catalyst 2025 is shaping up, and why partner leaders are becoming central to company strategy rather than support functions.

The conversation captured the momentum of the week and the sense that partnership roles are transforming faster than ever before.

Deepak Arora brought a GSI perspective grounded in large-scale digital transformation. He shared how Publicis Sapient is using AWS to help clients move from experimentation to operational impact with AI and data platforms.

A key theme was alignment - how GSIs and hyperscalers create value when strategy, delivery, and sales motions are tightly integrated. Deepak also reflected on the shift toward product-based engagements and reusable accelerators that speed transformation.

His insights underscores how partner-ecosystem collaboration is evolving from transactional to deeply co-architected.

Sanjay Bhakta offered a fascinating media-industry perspective. The following day, Sanjay would be joining Ruba Borno on the big stage for her keynote telling the Condé Nast journey with AWS.

In our conversation, Sanjay spoke about Condé Nast’s technology transformation, including the modernization of global platforms that power iconic brands. He discussed how AWS plays a role in scale, reliability, and data capabilities, particularly as the company builds more personalized, AI-driven digital experiences.

Sanjay also talked about how a media enterprise approaches innovation - balancing creativity, experimentation, and engineering excellence. For partner leaders, his lens was a reminder that ecosystem value extends well beyond traditional software and services.

There was some BIG NEWS in the partner tech world announced at re:Invent. Tackle has been a leader in the Cloud GTM space for many years, and last week, AppDirect and Tackle announced they’ll be merging with AppDirect acquiring.

I reached out to Tackle CEO, John Jahnke and was excited to have the opportunity to chat with John and AppDirect CRO, Emanuel “Bert” Bertolin about the announcement.

We discussed the changing landscape for cloud commerce, the evolving role of hyperscaler marketplaces, and how the acquisition of Tackle by AppDirect is shaping a more connected purchasing and selling experience for software companies.

John and Bert also explored what customers want - simplified buying, consolidated spend, and integrated workflows - and how the combined capabilities of both companies support ISVs and channel partners navigating multi-cloud commerce. It was a rare chance to hear both sides reflect on the future of cloud sales.

What a great opportunity to talk with a CEO who totally “gets” the value of partnerships. And in Dynatrace’s case, that includes being a driving force in growing ARR by 2X from $1B to $2B in the last four years.

Rick shared a CEO’s view on the intersection of AI, cloud modernization, and the partner ecosystem. Dynatrace has long been a leader in observability, and Rick discussed how AI is accelerating the shift from reactive monitoring to proactive, automated intelligence across entire cloud environments.

He reflected on customer expectations, how Dynatrace partners with hyperscalers to drive platform adoption, and why trusted relationships still matter in a landscape increasingly shaped by automation. The interview also touched on the importance of simplicity - helping customers realize value faster and with less friction.

Jessica’s story resonates deeply with partner leaders in the cloud GTM space.

Before founding Skematic, she spent nine years at CrowdStrike and led the AWS partnership - a partnership that has now transacted over $2B on AWS Marketplace and become a blueprint for AWS co-sell and marketplace success.

Jessica shares the lessons learned about building a scalable co-sell engine, aligning field teams, and creating repeatable motions that accelerate growth.

Jessica also reflects on why she built Skematic and how AI can streamline deal orchestration for partner and sales teams. Her experience makes this conversation especially valuable for anyone building marketplace, co-sell, or partner-led revenue strategies - and wanting to learn from the incredible Crowdstrike success story.

Chandos brings a data-driven, customer-centric perspective on partnership strategy. She speaks about how Epsilon helps global brands leverage data to create personalized experiences at scale and how partnerships play a central role in delivering these outcomes.

The conversation touched on co-innovation, industry solutions, and how Epsilon collaborates with cloud providers to align GTM and drive measurable revenue impact. Chandos emphasized the increasing need for clarity in partner roles, value exchange, and data-sharing models - topics top of mind for many ecosystem leaders.

Pankaj Kumar – VP, Kyndryl

As a leader at Kyndryl, Pankaj brings a large-scale GSI services perspective to the conversation, highlighting how Kyndryl is helping some of the world’s biggest enterprises modernize legacy environments while adopting cloud and AI at speed.

He discussed how Kyndryl partners closely with AWS to bridge the complexity gap that many customers face - migrating critical workloads, securing hybrid environments, and operationalizing AI in real production settings. A core theme was trust: enterprises rely on Kyndryl and AWS together to reduce risk during transformation. Pankaj also emphasized the growing importance of co-innovation, reusable solution frameworks, and repeatable services that create measurable outcomes for customers navigating long-term modernization journeys.

(To be published soon…)

Masooma Naqvi – VP of Digital Services, HP

Masooma shares insights into how a major global technology brand like HP approaches digital transformation, services modernization, and customer experience at scale.

She shared how HP is evolving its digital services portfolio, how AI is improving operational efficiency and customer outcomes, and how partners contribute to accelerating transformation across industries.

Masooma also discussed organizational alignment - how large enterprises integrate product, services, and ecosystem motions to create more holistic value. Her perspective highlighted the importance of collaboration across multiple layers of the value chain.

(To be published soon…)

My Closing Video from AWS re:Invent

What an incredible week at AWS re:Invent!

With 88,000 attending in Vegas, the energy was off the charts - and the announcements from AWS and AWS Marketplace will shape partner strategies for months to come.

The generosity of leaders who sat down to share their insights made this one of the most memorable events I’ve covered.

Each guest offered a unique lens on where cloud, AI, Marketplace, and partner-led growth are headed, and I’m grateful to everyone for taking the time during such a busy week.

So much insight packed into a few days.

Huge thanks to Allison Bishop, Matt Yanchyshyn and the entire AWS Communications team for making this possible and helping coordinate a fantastic lineup of guests.

Already looking forward to next year.

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