This interview features Jon Mooney, Executive Leader of AWS Marketplace ANZ, conducted by Aisling Curley, Head of Partnerships at Think & Grow. The discussion provides a comprehensive overview of AWS Marketplace strategies and insights into building successful global partnerships.
Could you briefly share your background and how you came to your current position?
I've always been in the technology and software space. I started in the UK, and my first role after university was at a small software company. From there, I moved into the telco space with T-Mobile and later Telstra when I relocated to Australia.
I eventually was a founder at a startup, a software technology platform, which we grew and scaled across Australia, North America, and the UK and had a successful exit to Digital Turbine around 2016. Throughout my career, I've worked at the intersection of technology and commerce, focusing on building and scaling technology products with customers.
After the exit from Digital turbine, I sought new opportunities and, having always worked with AWS in my previous roles, I was approached for a strategic partnership role. This role focused on helping local software companies grow using AWS and expanding into other markets. I did that for two years, running programs, particularly around expanding to North America, and leveraging AWS's scale mechanisms.
Subsequently, I transitioned to managing AWS Marketplace, using it as a scale mechanism. My background in running a two-sided marketplace was a good fit. My focus remains on helping partners use AWS Marketplace to grow and scale, leveraging the platform and technology to aid in their growth.
Can you set the scene a bit about AWS Marketplace and how it is utilized by partners? Are there different use cases for how partners transact and go to market using the marketplace?
Yes, we see different use cases. For example, often startups adopt AWS Marketplace as their preferred way to transact globally as it gives immediate scale and reduces the complexity by handling things like local currency, tax and invoicing.
On the other hand, we have more traditional software organizations that use AWS Marketplace for their cloud technologies and integrate them to deploy straight into a customer's AWS environment.
So, the use of AWS Marketplace varies depending on what is right for each organization
Do you see any particular size or type of business that excels on AWS Marketplace, or does success depend more on their understanding and knowledge of how to best utilize the marketplace and its capabilities?
Size doesn't matter. We see a whole range of businesses excelling on AWS Marketplace. The most important thing is that partners understand how they're going to use it and integrate it into their overall business strategy. It's not just something that's bolted onto the side.
Key factors include whether it fits into their overall business strategy if their sales teams are aligned properly, if they know which customers they want to target, and if their team is enabled to transact effectively. When all of that is in place, the size of the business doesn't matter.
When it comes to partners activating on AWS Marketplace, is there a particular route they should follow to be successful? Should the business be fully committed to using the marketplace, or are there different ways to use it effectively?
Partners need to be fully committed, but that doesn't mean they have to sell everything through the marketplace. Successful sellers typically exhibit certain characteristics:
- Leadership Buy-In: The leadership team must be on board with the strategy.
- Clear Strategy: Define who you are selling to through the marketplace, which products you are offering, and what your pricing model is.
- Integration: Ensure that this strategy is integrated into the rest of your business.
It doesn't have to encompass everything, but as long as there's a clear plan and the teams understand it, the approach will be effective.
I found it interesting to learn more about your background and your role in strategic partnerships at AWS. When you were in that role, what did you consider when building out partnerships? What key qualities did you look for in partners?
The first thing I always consider is whether the partnership makes sense. Many people want to partner with AWS, but sometimes it's not the right fit. For instance, if you're a software company targeting accountants and your customers aren't familiar with AWS, it might not align well. So, honesty about fit is crucial from the start.
Once we establish a good fit, the next step is to define what the partnership will look like. This often involves a build phase where we prepare—securing executive support, aligning teams, and assigning dedicated resources to manage the partnership. Only then can we move into execution, where both parties can expect meaningful results.
Identifying these phases and progressing through them methodically was a key lesson from that role—ensuring that partnerships are founded on solid groundwork rather than rushing into activities prematurely.
And it's crucial to do that discovery upfront, to understand where value can be gained and given back, and then activate it internally. How did you ensure that the partner relationship continued to make sense for the business long term, and avoid the 'set and forget' scenario where things stall after initial agreement?
Yeah, I think once you've gone through that building phase and established that it makes sense, defining the partnership's objectives becomes crucial. Identifying joint objectives and selecting the right metrics to measure progress are essential. Continuous tracking and analysis are key to ensuring ongoing alignment.
It's important to be adaptable as well. Often, initial objectives and goals may need realignment based on how things unfold, especially in technology where innovation can quickly change dynamics. Being flexible and adjusting plans accordingly is vital to maintaining the relevance and effectiveness of the partnership over time.
Have you noticed any changes in how partnerships are evolving? Do you see businesses increasingly adopting a partner-led approach, or do you think the approach has remained relatively unchanged over time?
In the technology space, I've definitely seen changes. More businesses are looking to partner as a strategy for scaling, especially globally. Partnerships are increasingly viewed as a means to align with others who can facilitate that growth. Cloud technology, for example, offers scalable solutions across global markets, making it a key component in this evolution.
What challenges do you see businesses facing when scaling partnerships globally? For example, if a partnership begins in Australia and one partner has a presence in the US, have you observed any common challenges? How do businesses typically overcome these challenges when expanding their partnerships into new markets?
There are several challenges I often see with that. One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is underestimating the complexities of scaling into a new market. They might think sending a founder or a single person to establish a presence is sufficient for expansion, which can lead to misunderstandings with shareholders or investors who expect immediate results. In reality, this initial phase is more about testing and validating market viability.
I made this mistake myself in my own business initially, facing scrutiny from shareholders and the board about revenue expectations during the testing phase. Organizations often fail to invest enough resources into new market growth, expecting partnerships alone to accelerate their expansion. It's crucial to understand that expansion costs more and takes longer than anticipated.
Another common challenge arises once they start acquiring initial customers in the new market—scaling becomes a new hurdle that requires additional investment and strategic adjustments. It's essential to be prepared for these challenges and approach expansion with realistic expectations and adequate resources.
You mentioned the importance of tracking ongoing metrics to ensure the success of partnerships. It seems challenging to track certain data points in partnerships compared to sales, which are more transactional and easier to measure. Partnerships tend to be more long-term. Have you found effective ways to demonstrate the value of partnerships to executives, considering these challenges? Was having a champion in the C-suite crucial for this?
Yeah, absolutely. Having a champion in the C-suite is crucial—they need to ensure someone is allocated responsibility for partnerships with clear goals, rather than treating it as a side task which often leads to failure. When it comes to metrics, I focus on both leading and lagging indicators. Leading metrics show initial progress while lagging metrics take time to develop. By presenting both together, you can effectively communicate performance to the C-suite, ensuring they understand the longer-term perspective.
Bringing it back to the marketplace conversation, are there any trends you see or anticipate in the broader marketplace landscape? Do you think marketplaces will see increased utilization across business sectors, not just within AWS, for partnerships and go-to-market strategies?
Definitely. The growth of Cloud Marketplaces is significant, indicating a trend towards using marketplaces to scale and simplify and speed up transacting. This trend is likely to continue as procurement teams are looking for ways to manage the increasing volume of software they need to procure. Organizations are recognizing the importance of integrating marketplaces into their processes to streamline transactions effectively.
Are there any trends you're noticing in diverse partnerships within the realm of AI? Are businesses actively seeking partnerships to stay innovative and ahead of the curve in AI? Do you see collaborations forming between those with AI expertise and those without, or do you think such partnerships will naturally evolve as AI becomes more commonplace?
We observe this frequently. Businesses are engaging with AI in various ways—either through partnerships with AWS or by collaborating with other AI experts to advance their initiatives. They're also exploring internal AI developments. This multi-layered approach is evident across many customers, particularly in the software sector, as they integrate AI into their operations.
What are the common challenges partners face when trying to establish themselves on AWS Marketplace? How can these challenges be overcome, and what advice would you give to businesses to help them avoid these pitfalls?
I think it comes back to a key challenge you mentioned earlier. Many partners express interest in joining the AWS Marketplace without a clear understanding of why or how it fits into their business strategy. Listing a product on the marketplace is straightforward—it's not a difficult process. However, there's often an assumption that simply listing will lead to immediate sales, which isn't true. Success requires integrating it into your overall go-to-market strategy and business processes.
The biggest challenge I see is ensuring that partners align their marketplace presence with their broader business activities. Sometimes, there's also a need to refine the business model to ensure it aligns effectively with how customers buy and integrate solutions. These challenges are usually straightforward to address once they're identified and approached strategically.
Can you share an example of a customer who successfully scaled into a new market using AWS Marketplace? What were the key lessons learned from their experience that stood out to you?
There's an example of a local Australian startup that comes to mind. They had a strong alignment with an AWS product, which made their partnership a natural fit from the beginning. They decided to use AWS Marketplace to transact 100% of a specific product, fully committing to the platform. This approach allowed them to scale globally right from the start, despite being a small company. They leveraged the marketplace for handling local legal, tax, and invoicing complexities, which was crucial for managing multiple markets seamlessly.
Internally, they integrated marketplace processes into their sales team's operations, ensuring everyone understood how to transact and support customers effectively. As they achieved success in the marketplace, they also focused on building deeper partnerships with AWS to further accelerate their growth. This example illustrates how even small businesses can effectively leverage AWS Marketplace to scale their global presence.
That's insightful. Do you see smaller businesses using the marketplace to engage with enterprise businesses? Does it simplify the process by bypassing procurement, or do you think there are still significant considerations behind the scenes that need to be addressed?
It reduces the complexity because smaller businesses can bypass some of the onboarding steps typical in larger organizations. While there are still contracts and negotiations involved, they can transact more quickly without the lengthy onboarding processes seen in larger enterprises. We see this frequently with smaller organizations.
What are the goals for your team and what you're working on over the next 12 to 24 months for AWS Marketplace? I understand if you can't provide specific details, but I'm interested in the broader direction.
More broadly, our focus now is on scaling the product across our customer base and internal teams. It's a rapidly growing product, and ensuring everyone understands how to use it, both customers and internal stakeholders is key. Although it's been around for over 10 years, the last three to four years have seen significant growth, especially with the ability to negotiate custom agreements. Our current efforts are centered on expanding the catalog, and providing more choices as customer expectations grow. We're enhancing functionality to serve both buyers and sellers effectively.
I've noticed there are joint offers on AWS Marketplace between partners. Do you think this trend will continue? Is it challenging for partners to determine the best joint offers for the marketplace? Does the ease of creating joint offers vary by partner type, such as tech partners versus consulting partners?
We are seeing more and more combined solutions that help our customers get access to software and solutions quickly. We call it the power of 3 bringing together AWS, Consulting Partners and Software solutions. We want to streamline the ability to bundle services together and create joint offers more seamlessly. Additionally, as we scale, we're focused on integrating AWS Marketplace into our buyers' and sellers' existing processes so there is as little friction as possible in making a transaction.
How do you perceive partnerships evolving broadly within businesses? Are there any trends or changes you foresee in the next 5 to 10 years?
Yeah, I see a growing need and a lot of effort going into simplifying the partnering experience, especially for larger organizations like AWS. It's about making engagement easier and more self-service wherever possible. That's a big focus. Another trend is the collaboration of multiple organizations in partnerships. For instance, initiatives like Gen AI involve bringing multiple parties together in three or four-way partnerships, which is becoming more common.
What has been the most rewarding aspect of your current role, or even looking back at previous roles? Also, could you share one piece of advice for aspiring partner leaders?
Yeah, the most rewarding aspect for me is seeing the tangible results that come out of partnerships. One example that stands out is during the COVID-19 pandemic when we partnered with a software company in the health sector. Within a few weeks, we helped them develop a telehealth solution to support their customers in getting access to important medical appointments online. Seeing how partnerships can directly impact and help others in such critical times is truly rewarding.
About advice, I think it's important to consider the type of organization you want to work with and what you aim to achieve. Having a passion for delivering results, especially when it involves improving outcomes for end customers, is crucial. Whether it's a specific industry or a particular aspect of technology, having that passion and alignment with your goals can be incredibly rewarding in partnerships. It's about finding meaning in what you do and making a real impact with the partners and organizations you engage with.
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