Should Wasabi Technologies Make the Move from Direct Sales to a Channel Strategy?

Should Wasabi Technologies Make the Move from Direct Sales to a Channel Strategy?

From Cold Call by HBR Presents / Brian Kenny

March 31, 2026 · 28 min · Episode 279

About this episode

The episode discusses whether Wasabi Technologies should shift from direct sales to a channel strategy and the implications of such a move.

After launching Wasabi Technologies, a successful cloud storage company, founder and CEO David Friend was ready to scale the venture rapidly. The company had focused primarily on direct sales, but an opportunity to pivot toward channel sales was on the horizon. However, making this pivot would mean changing its sales, marketing, and staffing strategies dramatically, and effectively veering the company away from its already successful course. Harvard Business School Senior Lecturer Lou Shipley joins Brian Kenny to discuss the case, “Wasabi Technologies” and the questions Friend wrestled with: Was channel sales the right play for the burgeoning cloud storage provider? If so, how should it best be implemented? They also explore ideas connected to Shipley’s new book, Unlikely Entrepreneurs.

People in this episode

Host: Brian Kenny

Guests: David Friend, Lou Shipley

Topics covered

  • cloud storage
  • sales strategy
  • channel sales
  • entrepreneurship
  • business pivot

Keywords

  • Wasabi Technologies
  • cloud storage
  • channel sales
  • David Friend
  • Lou Shipley

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Wasabi Technologies, Harvard Business School

Books & works: Unlikely Entrepreneurs

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