Cisco’s AI Channel Playbook: Cassie Roach on Partner Enablement and Infrastructure Innovation, Podcast

"AI is a once-in-a-generation opportunity — and Cisco is making it real for partners." — Cassie Roach, Global VP, Cloud and AI Infrastructure Partner Sales, Cisco

At Cisco Live 2025 in San Diego, Technology Reseller News publisher Doug Green spoke with Cassie Roach, Cisco’s Global Vice President of Cloud and AI Infrastructure Partner Sales, about the company’s bold steps to transform AI hype into tangible partner opportunity.

With major announcements around AI infrastructure, including AI Pods, Nexus HyperFabric, and GPU-intensive servers, Cisco is positioning itself not just as a networking leader — but as the channel’s go-to platform for AI-ready data centers.

Key Cisco AI Updates for Partners:

• AI-Ready Infrastructure Specialization: A new certification that helps partners align with customer POCs, scale faster, and prove ROI.
• Black Belt Training & Partner Tools: Designed to educate, equip, and incentivize partner sellers with co-selling platforms, growth planning, and layered rewards.
• Marketing Velocity Central: Cisco-branded campaign kits and industry-specific go-to-market resources for partners.
• AI Pods: Modular infrastructure for training, fine-tuning, and inferencing workloads — with “small, medium, and large” sizing for pilot-to-production journeys.

“We’re creating an easy button for partners — even in a complex AI environment,” Roach explained.

Cisco’s approach focuses on frictionless engagement — empowering partners with everything from vertical use-case blueprints to hands-on support for opportunity identification through PXP Growth Finder.

Roach emphasized that success depends on enabling partners at every level — not just executives or system integrators — but also frontline sellers, who now have access to tools that simplify the AI value proposition and drive sales.

She also highlighted how AI is being securely embedded across Cisco’s portfolio — from infrastructure to Webex Collaboration and end-to-end security, allowing customers to move from pilots to production with confidence.

“This isn’t just about AI,” Roach said. “It’s about unlocking the entire Cisco portfolio — in a way that creates real stickiness, real customer outcomes, and real partner growth.”

To explore Cisco’s partner programs and AI infrastructure resources, visit cisco.com, or log into the partner portal via Sales Connect.