TD SYNNEX has released the North American results of its third-annual Direction of Technology report, revealing that channel partners in the region are leading the way in AI innovation while simultaneously investing in hardware and working together to drive growth.

"The North American results of this year's Direction of Technology report point toward collaboration as the cornerstone of success for us all," said Reyna Thompson, incoming president for North America, TD SYNNEX. "Nearly half of partners cited increasing competition and margin pressures as their top concern. As these challenges continue to evolve, it is more important than ever to forge relationships with trusted advisors who can help you navigate uncertainty and new opportunities. The report outlines this as the path forward for partners of the future who are poised to thrive by leveraging high-growth technologies and hardware solutions."

The findings show North American partners are leading their counterparts in other regions in delivering AI solutions, with 86% of respondents reporting successful AI deal closures in the past year compared to 77% globally. The rising importance of AI and other high-growth technologies is causing partners to adjust their offerings to better balance the scalable, reliable and secure solutions needed in a changing market.

Partners also emphasized the importance of hardware, with the percentage of partners who include hardware in their business mix doubling year over year, and 60% of respondents said they anticipate hardware resale to rise in the next three years.

Additional key findings from the North American results include:

• North America's AI business continues to accelerate, with more than a quarter of respondents identifying AI as a top revenue driver in 2024. While 14% of partners did report they closed no AI deals in 2024, only 3% expect the same outcome next year, indicating partners expect AI momentum to continue into 2025.
• Security, AI and networking are partners' most in-demand skills, reflecting the broader trend indicated by the global report. However, AI skills are slightly less important in North America compared to the global average (23% versus 27%), further showcasing North America's maturity in the AI market.
• Organic growth (44%) and channel engagement (42%) are the top two growth strategies identified by North American respondents. Collaboration within the channel will enable partners to face their toughest business challenges, which they identified as internal digital transformation (55%) and adapting to external factors like supply chain shifts and interest rates (54%).

This year's North American Direction of Technology supplement was unveiled at TD SYNNEX's CommunitySolv fall conference, Nov. 18-21 in Hollywood, Florida. To view the full report, visit https://ms.spr.ly/NADoT.

The third-annual Direction of Technology report is based on a survey of more than 1,000 technology resellers, systems integrators, service providers and managed service providers in more than 60 countries in global regions of North America, Europe, Latin America and the Carribean (LAC) and Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ). In addition to North America, results from LAC are available now, with regional reports for Europe and APJ to be published later this year.