Content, Channel partner programs, IT distribution

Sandler Partners: Fast Growing Cloud, Telecom Distributor Partners with AT&T

Sandler Partners, a distributor of connectivity and cloud services, has partnered with AT&T (NYSE: T) as part of  the telecom company's new Alliance Program pilot.

The AT&T Alliance Program is designed to deliver stronger channel support and compensation, according to the company. In a release, Sandler Partner says its sales partner base will gain “enhanced earnings opportunities for selling AT&T business services nationwide,” as well as a new compensation structure.

While the details of how the compensation structure will change weren’t forthcoming, Sandler Partners says the program will make it easier for agents to work with AT&T by streamlining partner registration, enhancing access to the AT&T Solution Provider portal, and simplifying the rules-of-engagement process.

Sandler Partners: Meteoric Growth

Hermosa Beach, California-based Sandler Partners has seen rapid growth in the last few years. The company bills itself as “America’s Fastest Growing Distributor of Connectivity and Cloud Services,” and there are are some momentum metrics behind the claim.

The company acquired X4 Solutions almost exactly a year ago. That deal positioned the company as the second largest telecom and cloud services master agency in the nation, according to a release at the time. At the time, the combined company was projected to generate around $65 million revenue for the year as it served more than 4,000 sales partners in the West, Northwest, Southwest, and Midwest.

Even before that acquisition, the company was in growth mode -- having generated $40.2 million in revenue in 2015 and grown 130% in three years.

Sandler Partners, which was founded in 2003 and currently has 32 employees, is well connected with Level 3 Communications, the managed security, network, voice, and data services provider that was recently acquired by CenturyLink.

The Level 3-CenturyLink merger is still making its way through the regulatory approval process, but with four additional states giving the green light to the deal just today, the companies say they expect to see the merger approved by all government interests, according to Reuters. Given that, Sandler will likely be well-positioned when the deal closes on September 30th.

Partnering for Growth

The company’s founder Alan Sandler has a track record of growing companies in the telecom sector. He co-founded Justice Telecom in 1993, TelePacific in 1998, and is the CEO of acquisitionsandrenewals.com.

In addition to Level 3 and AT&T, the company boasts partnerships with SD-WAN provider Ecessa, VoIP providers Mitel and Broadvoice, cloud continuity company ZeroOutages, and more.