As Indian enterprises race to operationalize AI, one truth is becoming increasingly clear: platforms alone don’t deliver transformation. Ecosystems do. SAS is acting on that reality with a decisive shift—moving from a partner-supported model to a partner-first, co-innovation-led strategy that is reshaping how analytics and AI are deployed across India. At the center of this shift is a reimagined channel ecosystem where partners are no longer peripheral enablers, but core drivers of value, innovation, and scale.
“Customers want faster outcomes, flexible deployment, and solutions that integrate seamlessly into their existing ecosystems,” says Manish Nair, Regional Sales & Channels Leader at SAS. “That level of scale and specialisation can only be achieved through a strong partner-led model.”
From Enablement to Co-Innovation
For decades, enterprise software channels were optimized around resale and implementation. But AI has changed the rules. Outcomes matter more than licenses. Trust matters more than features. And speed matters more than perfection.
SAS’s reset was driven by three strategic imperatives: accelerating customer value, expanding regional reach, and meeting the scale demands of AI across sectors like BFSI, government, manufacturing, life sciences, and utilities.
“Today, partners are not just implementers,” Nair explains. “They are co-innovators, co-creators, and long-term transformation enablers for our clients in India.” This shift is especially relevant as enterprises push beyond pilots and demand AI systems that are production-ready, governed, and aligned with business outcomes.
The New Economics of AI Partnerships
AI investments are under intense scrutiny. CIOs and CISOs are under pressure to demonstrate ROI—not in years, but in quarters. This is where SAS Viya has emerged as a cornerstone of the company’s partner strategy. Designed as a cloud-native, open, and scalable platform, Viya brings together analytics, AI, machine learning, governance, and decisioning into a single enterprise stack.
“SAS Viya is built for faster ROI,” says Nair. “For partners, that means quicker implementation cycles, sharper model performance, and transparent AI governance—all of which directly translate into measurable financial outcomes for customers.”
To further accelerate value realisation, SAS is enabling partners with GenAI-assisted modeling, industry-specific accelerators, and flexible commercial models aligned to consumption and usage.
“Partners can now deliver financial impact in weeks rather than months,” Nair adds—a critical advantage in today’s cost-conscious enterprise environment.
In conversations with Indian partners and customers, three themes consistently surface: openness, trust, and performance. “Viya’s ability to run on any major cloud and integrate with open-source tools gives partners tremendous flexibility,” Nair says. “But governance and explainability are equally important—especially in regulated sectors like BFSI and government, where AI must be trusted, not just powerful.”
Unlike fragmented toolchains, Viya offers an end-to-end platform—from data ingestion and modeling to operationalisation—without compromising accuracy at scale.
“That combination is why partners increasingly see Viya as future-ready,” Nair notes.
Training as a Growth Lever
A partner-first strategy only works if partners are truly equipped to deliver. SAS has invested heavily in modernizing its Partner Program through capability pathways, training academies, discounted certifications, and cloud-readiness modules.
“Training isn’t just about skills—it’s about confidence,” says Nair. “Certified partners come in with both technical depth and industry context, which significantly reduces deployment timelines.”
The result is a virtuous cycle: faster implementations, higher customer satisfaction, and stronger partner profitability. “Our belief is simple—partner success equals customer success,” he adds.
One of the most tangible outcomes of SAS’s partner strategy is the rise of sector-specific AI solutions, co-developed with ecosystem partners to address real-world challenges.
Recent examples include:
Power & Utilities: AI-driven revenue assurance systems that detect leakages, reduce AT&C losses, and improve billing accuracy
Banking: Advanced fraud detection using network analytics, alongside next-generation AML and regulatory risk platforms
Government: Smart city analytics enhancing mobility, public service delivery, sustainability initiatives, and tax fraud detection
Manufacturing: Predictive maintenance solutions reducing downtime and improving asset reliability
“These are not generic AI deployments,” Nair emphasizes. “They are deeply contextual solutions where co-innovation materially changes outcomes.”
The 2026 Vision: A Connected, Trust-Driven Partner Ecosystem
Looking ahead, SAS sees its channel evolving into a more autonomous, profitable, and collaborative ecosystem—one shaped by continuous feedback, advisory councils, and joint go-to-market strategies.
“By 2026, partners will have end-to-end delivery capability, co-owned IP, and flexible consumption-led revenue models,” says Nair. “We’re also investing in shared labs, joint innovation frameworks, and deeper GTM alignment.”
The goal is clear: create a scalable, commercially strong ecosystem that can lead India’s next wave of enterprise AI adoption.
“Together, SAS and its partners are building an ecosystem designed not just to participate in AI transformation—but to lead it,” Nair concludes.
As India accelerates toward data-driven decisioning, generative AI, and cloud modernisation, the channel ecosystem is emerging as one of the most critical levers of transformation. With its deep analytics heritage and a future-ready partner strategy, SAS is positioning itself—and its partners—at the heart of this shift.