We’ve all skilled these moments in life which might be each thrilling and daunting—like dropping your baby off at nursery college for the primary time or sending them off to college. every thing is about to vary. There’s delight, pleasure, and the sense that you just’re moving into one thing larger. However there’s additionally concern and nervousness—with questions of “Will every thing be okay?” and “Am I prepared for this?” These feelings are pure when moving into the unknown.
I’ll be dealing with a kind of moments myself when my son begins college subsequent week. And it struck me: proper now, Cisco and our companions are standing at an analogous second. The Cisco 360 Associate Program is greater than a program launch—it’s the start of a brand new period of partnership, profitability, and sturdy progress.
Why Now?
The market has shifted. Prospects aren’t shopping for expertise for expertise’s sake—they’re shopping for outcomes that transfer their companies ahead. Which means companions should be acknowledged not only for what they promote, however for the capabilities they convey, the outcomes they ship, and the experiences they create.
To not solely preserve however enhance relevance with our shared clients, we should proceed to develop—collectively. The outdated methods—check-the-box specializations, disconnected necessities—now not replicate the impression of immediately’s ecosystem. That’s why we reworked. The Cisco 360 Associate Program is a brand new manner of defining associate worth in a various ecosystem, leading to an outcome-driven method aligned to the One Cisco imaginative and prescient and powered by AI.
Profitability on the Core
Development and evolution are on the middle of the brand new program. The market calls for it, our clients count on it, and our ecosystem thrives on it. However the one sturdy how—the way in which we guarantee this evolution really lasts—is by centering our method, as we all the time have, on associate profitability.
As a result of none of this issues in the event you can’t have worthwhile progress. That’s why profitability stays on the middle of the brand new program.
We all know you’re keen—and generally anxious—about how profitability will translate. That’s precisely why we’ve been within the pre-qualification section since August: to provide you early visibility into how your investments present up within the Cisco 360 Associate Program. And it’s why we’re sharing updates now, 5 months forward of launch—so you could have readability and confidence to information your enterprise and reassure your groups.
As we speak, with VIP 46, we’re within the richest rebate interval ever rewarding companions for his or her funding in buyer must construct AI prepared datacenters, a future proof office and digital resilience —this last VIP isn’t an finish—it’s a starting. It’s the bridge to the Cisco Associate Incentive, launching alongside the brand new program in February 2026. The Cisco Associate Incentive simplifies incentives into one framework that rewards companions throughout Land, Undertake, Broaden, and Renew. We’re rising transparency, predictability, and pace—delivering rebates sooner than ever.
No different vendor is making this type of dedication to associate profitability and sturdy progress.
The Energy of Associate Capabilities
Technical energy has by no means been extra important—or extra seen. This 12 months alone, companions earned 236,000 Safety certificates by way of the Cisco Black Belt Academy—a 107% enhance 12 months over 12 months, and a 58% enhance throughout all portfolios. Safety has change into our fastest-growing structure, outpacing even networking.
That momentum is being supported by our $80M funding in Cisco U., accelerating the way you be taught, apply, and scale your experience. The extra succesful you change into, the extra confidence you encourage in clients—and the extra you’ll enhance your Associate Worth Index inside the new program.
This isn’t summary—it’s proof of the ecosystem’s energy in motion. Collectively, we’re elevating the bar.
The Energy of the Cisco Model
Model energy issues. Prospects need readability when choosing the proper associate, and so they belief the long-lasting Cisco title. Over 150,000 Cisco associate logos have been downloaded in recent times, underscoring the worth companions place on being visibly linked to Cisco.
That’s why we’re investing greater than ever within the Cisco associate model and emblem, with the total assist of our associate advertising workforce.
We additionally acknowledge that for a lot of of you, Gold has been greater than a designation—it’s been integral to the way you’ve finished enterprise for years. That delight is actual, and we honor it. However the actuality is the market has developed, and Gold alone can now not seize the total depth of your capabilities, experience, and worth to clients.
You might have all the time been greater than a designation. With Cisco Portfolio Associate and Cisco Most well-liked Portfolio Associate, we are able to now replicate your true energy—your energy, capabilities, and experience—in a manner clients can clearly perceive and belief.
We additionally know this modification carries emotion. Gold has a legacy we deeply respect, and we’re constructing on it—not erasing it. The Cisco associate model stays one of the highly effective differentiators within the trade. And with our developed designations, we’re making that energy even clearer, signaling to clients precisely the place you deliver deep technical experience, confirmed engagement, and powerful lifecycle practices.
And, for the primary time ever, we’ve additionally introduced clients alongside on this journey. Our new buyer advertising marketing campaign launched in April and has already delivered 42 million impressions—dramatically outperforming trade benchmarks. It’s a daring message to the market: Cisco companions are your best option for delivering outcomes.
The Energy of the Associate Expertise
Capabilities and model recognition solely go thus far with out the appropriate expertise behind them. That’s the place PXP, the Associate Expertise Platform, is available in. PXP is the entrance door for each Cisco associate, offering a linked, automated, real-time view of the place you land inside the new program.
Since Associate Summit final 12 months, energetic PXP customers have grown 52%, with 29% progress in net-new companions participating on the platform. It’s the place to see your Associate Worth Index, observe profitability, and align with Cisco’s technique. And as AI turns into the muse of associate and account workforce interactions, PXP will solely develop in significance.
Main Collectively—With Confidence
Transformation isn’t straightforward, and daring strikes invite questions. We all know the trade is watching carefully, and we all know you might be, too. You’re asking: “Will I’ve sufficient element to plan my profitability?” “Will I’ve the assets to make this shift?” “Does my enterprise mannequin align with the brand new method?” “Why change in any respect?”
These are honest questions—and precisely why we stay dedicated to continued transparency by way of pre-qualification and common updates. Our purpose is to switch uncertainty with readability, and to construct the boldness it’s essential to information your groups and your clients.
Similar to sending a toddler off to college, this second is each thrilling and daunting. There’s delight in how far we’ve come, pleasure for what lies forward, and the data that we’re moving into one thing larger. That’s precisely the place we’re with the Cisco 360 Associate Program.
The second is now. And collectively, we’ll flip this new starting into sturdy, worthwhile progress—for you, for Cisco, and for our clients.
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