Vince Menzione

Founder of Cloud Wave Partners LLC

I help technology leaders thrive in this era of rapid, tectonic change—mastering Microsoft, AWS, and Google partnerships to drive growth, innovation, and impact.

From scaling startups to leading $4.6B at Microsoft, I’ve learned one truth: success is built on meaningful connections—between people, ideas, and opportunities - trust is always a key ingredients.

Raised in a close-knit Italian family in New Jersey, my upbringing shaped my leadership principles. My grandfather arrived in the U.S. with only $20 in his pocket and built multiple sustainable businesses through grit and determination.

My dad fought in WWII and taught me that integrity and trust were omnipotent. These teachings were  the foundation upon which I built lasting success.

In college, I sold goods at flea markets and created a successful business organizing watch parties— creating opportunities by connecting people. After college, that drive took me to the front lines of wireless computing, where I helped scale a startup from $6M to $125M and led it to a successful public exit.

At General Dynamics, I turned around a struggling division, driving exponential growth, securing $20M in defense appropriations, and delivering a third of the company’s revenue—through partnerships built on collaboration and execution.

Then came nearly a decade at Microsoft, where I led the US Public Sector Partner business through one of the most significant transformations in tech. We grew revenue from $2.5B to $4.6B, shaped the modern cloud reseller model, and built high performing partner teams known for trust, alignment, and results.

But I saw a gap. Leaders didn’t just need strategy decks—they needed real focus, practical frameworks, and a trusted space to learn from one another.

In 2017, I founded Ultimate Partner® to be that compass for technology leaders navigating ecosystem-led growth. Through Ultimate Guide to Partnering®, now 270+ episodes strong, and Ultimate Partner LIVE events, I bring together top voices from Microsoft, AWS, Google, and across the partner ecosystem. I also developed the 8 Principles of Partnering Success, used to align strategy and drive measurable impact.

Our mission is simple: empower leaders and their organizations to grow with clarity, connection, and credibility—while building partnerships that scale with purpose.

Founder

Over six years ago, I embarked on a mission to empower partners struggling to navigate the complex world of tech giants like Microsoft, Google, and AWS. 

Having witnessed the industry from multiple perspectives – leading a $4.6 billion Ecosystem at Microsoft, spearheading partnerships for a billion-dollar company, and hosting 200 episodes of the Ultimate Guide to Partnering®, I’ve gained invaluable insights and crafted a manifesto of principles to guide your success.

In an era defined by tectonic shifts, such as the global pandemic, economic headwinds, and the rise of AI, the role of hyperscalers has become increasingly critical. With investments of billions of dollars in ecosystems, technology, and customer acquisition costs, they have secured over $200 billion in customer commitments to durable cloud budgets. We stand on the precipice of a marketplace moment where simplifying and streamlining economic models associated with co-selling and ecosystem-led growth will shape the decade ahead.

Yet, as vendors and organizations demand more from us while resources diminish, we ask, “Where do we go? How do we navigate these seismic shifts? How do we thrive during this decade of the ecosystem?”

If you’re a partner, you’re likely grappling with these questions. The watering holes of the past no longer offer the guidance required to transform into a Cloud GTM and embrace Ecosystem Led Growth. That’s why Ultimate Partner exists – to be your trusted compass amidst the noise.

Visit our website, tune into Ultimate Guide to Partnering and join The Ultimate Partner LIVE events.

Microsoft just placed a HUGE bet — and partners are at the center of it.

In my latest episode, Erwin Visser breaks down the real story behind Microsoft’s AI and SMEC strategy — what’s changing, what partners need to know, and how this shift will redefine co-sell, Copilot adoption, and the future of the ecosystem.

If you lead a partner business, this is the conversation you cannot afford to miss.

 🎧 Listen to the episode https://lnkd.in/ejU4Tr4z

 📩 Subscribe for deeper insights in the newsletter https://lnkd.in/e4BCMxQ3

 🧭 And join us inside UPX, where leaders get the clarity they need to win in this new era. https://lnkd.in/e-ZpX3pB

Let’s rise to the moment. The opportunity is here — and it’s partner-led.

Connecting tech leaders through community, media and events, creating high growth in hyperscaler ecosystems | Founder, Ultimate Partner® | Host, Ultimate Guide to Partnering® | Chief Connector UPX

View newsletter: Ultimate Guide to Partnering

What a thrilling week hosting partner leaders at Ultimate Partner LIVE in Reston, VA at the Carahsoft Training Center. Even if you couldn't be with us

Open article: Microsoft Co-Sell & AI: Erwin Visser on the $600B Growth Model by Vince Menzione • 3 min read

Microsoft Co-Sell & AI: Erwin Visser on the $600B Growth Model

Canela Media

▶︎ Led the development of Canela Audience Solution (CAS), a proprietary Hispanic audience extension solution based on proprietary content IP viewership and deterministic data.
▶︎ Tasked with driving business unit growth by engaging with major Holding agencies and direct clients. Play a pivotal role in expanding client relationships and contributing to the overall growth and success of the product.
▶︎ Directed planning, development, and implementation of the identity framework, integrating LiveRamp solutions, Canela’s CTV 1P data, and proprietary content viewership data. 
▶︎ Promote audience solutions through collaborations with internal sales teams and engagement with external stakeholders.
▶︎ Oversee initiatives to identify and onboard new data partners that enhance audience richness and create new revenue streams for Canela Media.

SVP of Canela Connect,  Audience & Data Solutions

▶︎ Lead Commercial Operations for a digital media OTT/CTV technology firm. 
▶︎ A key member of the executive leadership team
▶︎ Managed team of 38 across Media Strategy, AdOps, Client Success, and Adtech business unit
▶︎ Tasked by CEO to lead the company's data enablement and audience expansio solution. Audience solution based on leveraging first-party deterministic data and identify graph deployment. 
▶︎ Supported sales leadership in client Upfront negotiation to secure Bix Six holding agency engagements
▶︎ Oversee BU P&L, product roadmap development, and GTM strategy. Audience product on schedule for a Q1 2024 rollout.

Senior VP of Commercial Operations

Venci

Provide technical and executive consultation services on marketing, data & analytics, business development, and ad-tech platforms solution with a specialty engaging with media, marketing, and insights leaders for brand direct and advertising agencies.

Founder & Head of Strategy

BrandTotal

▶︎ Head Client Success and member of executive leadership team managing all post-sale activities for leading social media intelligence SaaS platform
▶︎ Led the Customer Success, and professional services teams across US, UK and Israel 
Responsible for customer retention (100% retention on top enterprise accounts) and growth (107% net retention)
▶︎ Responsibilities of the team include delivering best-in-class customer experience, from initial adoption, training, and technical support to implementing account growth initiatives
▶︎ Oversaw senior-level client partnerships for Fortune 500 clients, including work with L'Oreal, PepsiCo, Samsung, Microsoft, and UScellular
▶︎ Spearheaded strategic alliance with key partners across data and measurement initiatives
▶︎ Report to the CEO and BOD as a part of the executive leadership team

SVP Global Head of Customer Success & Strategic Partnerships

Entravision Communications

▶︎ Managed P&L, business strategy, sales and marketing operations for National Digital business unit
▶︎ Led an international team of 24 across offices in LA, NY, Chicago, Mexico and Argentina to drive best in class client retention and reduction of campaign fraud rate
▶︎ Responsible for growing the advertising business across programmatic solutions, managed media services, mobile, CTV, and owned & operated web properties
▶︎ Conceived and launched audience acquisition strategy for Shopify based on audience look-alike and data enrichment strategy leading to new untapped markets 
▶︎ Defined the revenue model, go-to-market strategy and launch of a flagship mobile audio app
▶︎ Responsible for the strategic growth partnership associated with digital advertising, data solutions, and content partnerships.

Senior Vice President, Digital National Sales & Business Development

▶︎ Pulpo harnessed first-party data enabling brands to hyper-target consumers across desktop, mobile, video, social, and OTT channels
▶︎ Identified new opportunities and partnerships which drove revenue across content, data platform and agency services
▶︎ Managed direct reports responsible for driving operational excellence in areas of marketing, client services, sales planning, ad-ops and marketing
▶︎ Led sales marketing effort including business unit repositioning, developing the division’s value proposition and overseeing website redesign efforts
▶︎ Helped build and retain media revenue across direct and programmatic media services
▶︎ Responsible for marketing direction, vision, and full budget accountability.

Senior Vice President, Digital Marketing &  Insights 

▶︎ Co-founded Luminar, a Big Data provider focused on delivering insights into the multicultural market. Company delivered predictive models based on robust transactional data gathered from over 2000 sources and utilizing a “big data” (Hadoop) analytical technology stack. 
▶︎ Managed product development, built a best-in-class team of data scientists, analysts, & application engineers
▶︎ Recruited core team of 7 across sales, ad ops and CS across US, Mexico and Argentina
▶︎ Spearheaded analytic engagements for key engagements with clients Valvoline, Capital One, Nestle spanning requirement requests to full implementations. 
▶︎ Led deployment of company’s DMP and first-party data product by leveraging existing data assets and activating offline consumer data into online cohort segments 
▶︎ Oversaw partnership development and negotiations with data and ad-tech providers including, DataSift, The Trade Desk, Celtra, LiveRamp and IZEA

Vice President of Strategy

Vertis Communications

Responsible for building Interactive division for Vertis Communications, a $1.8B direct response, and communications company. As a direct report to CMO-led digital division including strategic services, website development, social media, mobile marketing, and all aspects of daily division operations. Responsible for division P&L and managing delivery services team.

Senior Director, Digital Strategy

Mindshare Interactive Campaigns

Managed day-to-day operations of the company's multi-cultural practice. Led strategy, technology, and marketing teams to concept, plan, and execute integrated online programs that addressed clients’ critical communications objectives in reaching U.S.  Hispanics.

Managing Director

Bridgeline Digital

Directed sales and business development efforts for internet communications and development firm specializing in the e e-philanthropy solutions.  In addition to managing new business development activity,  had direct oversight for managing account base generating over $900,000 in annual revenue.

Director, Business Development

Blackboard K-12

Managed account territory for e-learning enterprise SaaS company. Responsible for account base for west-coast territory consisting of 12 states and 150 accounts representing $5M+ in annual recurring revenue.

K-12 Senior Senior Account Director

Hitachi Consulting

Marketed enterprise software applications to fortune 1000 clients. Solutions included business Intelligence, engineering consulting services, custom digital applications.

Strategic Consultant Director

An experienced, passionate, and purpose-driven executive with 20+ years of technology, data, sales, and customer success leadership roles within media companies, ad agencies and SaaS operations. 

Track record includes multiple executive roles and co-founding partner of Big Data analytics company with executive relationships at key industries. Senior-level client experience includes, PepsiCo, L’Oreal, UScellular, Samsung, Microsoft, Carnival Cruise Lines and agency collaboration with GroupM, Wunderman Thompson and OMD. Skilled at building and leading global cross-functional teams to drive revenue, retention, and growth.

Areas of expertise include: 

▶︎ Technical fluency in advertising technology, adtech data marketplace, and key industry players
▶︎ Posses a unique blend of knowledge across analytics, data strategy, digital media strategy, and operations
▶︎ Comprehensive understanding of multicultural Hispanic marketing leveraging digital media and data to engage audiences and produce meaningful results.
▶︎ Success in a data-driven role with quant background supporting advanced targeting solutions. Hands-on experience with martech/adtech platforms such as LiveRamp, The Trade Desk, Celtra, Marketron
▶︎ Deep business and strategy acumen providing strategic direction to major brands pursuing integrated digital media and data solutions. Keen business mindset to turn technology solutions into business value. 
▶︎ SaaS leadership experience directing high-performing Customer Success and professional service teams in social media data platforms and ad-tech
▶︎ Ability to manage complex projects through the entire lifecycle, including opportunity identification, scoping, resource planning, workflow, and delivery to senior stakeholders

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