After taking over as chief executive officer of Google Cloud Platform near the end of 2018, Thomas Kurian has followed a game plan honed during his previous 22-year career at Oracle Corp. He has increased the sales team and acquired new companies, including analytics firm Looker Data Sciences Inc., data migration provider Alooma Inc. and mainframe company Cornerstone Technology B.V.

Yet one of the most significant moves was GCP’s renewed focus on building a robust channel partner network.

“One of the most important changes that Thomas has personally been driving is converting us to a more partner-led business,” said Will Grannis (pictured), managing director of Office of the Chief Technology Officer at Google Cloud. “We’ve seen a nearly 200% year-over-year increase in partner influenced revenue, and a 13X year-over-year increase in new customers won by partners. That’s the kind of engine that builds a real hyper-scale business.”

Grannis spoke with John Furrier, host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed the integration of GCP’s product strategy with partners, how recent customer deals have contributed to the firm’s success, a focus on key vertical markets, and support for the global community during a time of crisis.

Data analytics for customers

A prime example of how GCP’s partnership strategy is making an impact can be seen in its recent announcement involving Splunk Inc. On May 5, the two organizations announced a partnership to help customers leverage data analytics for information-technology security and drive data insights.

Splunk Cloud will be integrated across GCP and include integration with Anthos, GCP’s application management platform. As the two firms’ customers increasingly turn toward data-driven, cloud-native solutions, the partnership is designed to answer that call.

“This is a partnership that goes deep across go-to-market, product, and sell,” Grannis said. “It’s a really great matchup because customers see that by platforming on Google Cloud, not only do they get highly performing infrastructure, but they also get the opportunity to leverage data analytics tools, machine learning, and artificial intelligence that can help them provide enhanced services.”

Anthos plays an important role in GCP’s evolving partnership strategy as well. The open application platform is a key part of GCP’s hybrid solutions portfolio.

In February, GCP and the technology consultancy firm SADA Systems announced a new multi-year $500 million agreement that will launch new services and solutions around Anthos. A portion of SADA’s newly announced partnership will also be to bring Google Cloud AI to contact center customers.

“We’ve never before seen this level of attention to the partner attach motion play out in the market, in the field, and in every geography,” said SADA Systems CEO Tony Safoian, during an interview last month.

Long-term deals

In GCP’s view, longer term, more financially significant customer deals are partnerships as well. Recent customer wins include Activision Blizzard Inc., Lloyds Banking Group, Lufthansa AG, Vodaphone Group plc, and Major League Baseball. Deals over $50 million more than doubled in 2019 over the prior year.

“Look at some of these deals we’ve been announcing,” Grannis said. “These are 10-year or five-year strategic partnerships that go across the canvas of all of Google. This is about adding that really deep connection to our customers and partners and letting that connection manifest the things we have to do as a product company to best support them over a long period of time.”

That long-term support comes with an important focus for GCP. Under Kurian, the business now has six priority vertical areas: retail, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, media, and the public sector.

By focusing on these six verticals, GCP has dedicated its partner ecosystem, acquisitions, and go-to-market strategy to solving defined customer needs.

“How can we make sure we have solutions tailored to very specific problems that customers are trying to solve?” Grannis asked. “As a result of being very focused in those areas, we can make more targeted investments. We can use Looker to help with a Commonwealth Care Alliance nonprofit that monitors patient systems and risk factors.”

In the middle of a pandemic, GCP has taken a number of actions to help the global community. These have included the application of AI to sift through 59,000 science articles on the virus, supporting Google Meet for remote learning and work, and deploying a recently graduated firm from GCP’s startup program to assist healthcare providers.

“Everybody is rallying together to think about this world differently,” Grannis said. “The greater the crisis the more open-minded people become and the more creative people get. This is a moment where what we do really well is very important for the world.”

Here’s the complete video interview, one of many CUBE Conversations from SiliconANGLE and theCUBE:

Photo: SiliconANGLE