Channel partners, Channel chiefs, MSP, Content

Pax8 Names Craig Donovan Chief Experience Officer

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Credit: Pax8

 Pax8 today announced the promotion of Craig Donovan to Chief Experience Officer (CXO).

Pax8 runs a cloud-based marketplace that allows MSPs and channel partners to source various SaaS applications and business services. Last month, Pax8 added Rewst's robotic process automation solution to its marketplace. Earlier this year, CrowdStrike and Malwarebytes were added to the company's offerings.

Craig Donovan is Pax8's new CXO

The CXO role is a newly created position that will align with the evolving needs of the business, according to a statement from Pax8. In the role, Donovan will lead the company’s new experience team that will focus on enhancing the experience with partners, vendors, and customers. Donovan will continue to report to Nick Heddy, Chief Commerce Officer, in his new role.

Donovan has been recognized for his pivotal role in fostering a strategic partner-centered approach at Pax8, the statement noted. The design of the company's Professional Services Automation (PSA) integrations for Pax8's cloud marketplace have played a critical role in enhancing the partner experience. In addition, Donovan developed the company's professional services program, further strengthening the support provided to partners. Lastly, his vision led to the successful launch of Pax8 Academy, aimed at providing comprehensive business and technical development opportunities for partners, empowering them to thrive in the channel.

“Delivering the best-in-class experience for our partners, vendors and customers is Pax8’s top priority,” said Heddy. “Craig has a proven track record of leading partner enablement and services, and I am excited to see how his innovative vision will ignite a stakeholder-centric culture across our entire organization.”

“I hold a profound passion for the channel and its remarkable contributors of partners, vendors, and customers," stated Donovan. "Pax8 stands at the forefront of innovative ideas, technology, and initiatives that will revolutionize the industry. The formation of the Pax8 Experience Team marks an infinite opportunity for Pax8 to listen and learn with these stakeholders as we build the future of our marketplace. We will use these insights to drive programs and initiatives that foster a more connected ecosystem.”

Pax8's Recent Growth

Pax8 recently hit a major milestone: Achieving $1 billion ARR. In February, Pax8 named Rob Rae Corporate Vice President of Communities and Ecosystems. In April, the company announced the appointment of David Powell as Vice President of Sales Strategy.

At its Pax8 Beyond event in June, the company announced the next evolution of its cloud distribution marketplace — a system to match prospective managed services customers with MSPs. The system will acquire end customers via its vendor partners, as Jessica Davis reported. Here’s how that works. SaaS vendors typically have contact forms on their websites to capture information from potential direct SMB end-customers. But it’s not normally cost-effective for vendors to work directly with SMBs. Pax8 will work with vendors to replace those fill forms with a “Buy Now” button that will enable Pax8 to collect customer information. Then, an AI-driven matching system on the back end will match customer buyers to MSPs. Both customers and MSPs will have the ability to swipe left or right to choose or reject a potential match.

Pax8 has also made a number of recent acquisitions, including Microsoft Dynamics partner Bam Boom Cloud.

Sharon Florentine

Sharon manages day-to-day content on ChannelE2E and serves as senior managing editor for CyberRisk Alliance’s Channel Brands. She also covers enterprise-class technology companies, strategic alliances and channel partner strategies. Sharon is a veteran tech journalist and editor with more than 25 years experience in the industry, and has previously held key editorial, content and leadership positions at Techstrong Group, CIO.com, Ziff Davis Enterprise and CRN.