Channelscaler launches partner performance benchmark

Channelscaler has launched the Scaler Index, a benchmark for measuring partner performance, drawing on data from more than 30,000 partners.

The benchmark is aimed at channel leaders seeking to understand which partners and programme activities contribute to pipeline and revenue. Its first report examines deal registration and pipeline performance, using anonymised platform data to track how commercial results change as deal registration adoption matures.

Channelscaler analysed data collected between 2016 and 2025, focusing on the first three years after a deal registration programme is introduced. The study was intended to identify performance patterns as the process becomes part of day-to-day partner selling.

According to the analysis, the median programme recorded a 614% rise in registered opportunities over the first three years. Registered pipeline increased by 238%, partner participation rose by 191%, and closed registered deal value climbed by 736%.

It also reported a 176% relative increase in deal closure rate from year one to year three, suggesting that more mature deal registration programmes are linked not only to higher pipeline volume but also to stronger conversion of registered opportunities into closed business.

Benchmark gap

The launch addresses a longstanding issue in channel management: the lack of common reference points for evaluating partner performance. Many organisations can track internal results, but comparing those numbers with peers has been more difficult because partner data often sits in separate systems and attribution models vary.

The issue has become more pressing as partner ecosystems take on a larger share of sales development and revenue generation. Channel chiefs are under pressure to justify spending on enablement, market development funds and sales support, while showing which partners are delivering measurable returns.

The index is designed to shift attention away from activity metrics such as partner logins or training completion and towards commercial outcomes, including partner contribution, pipeline movement, programme execution and revenue. Future versions will cover more parts of the partner lifecycle.

Pam Erlichman, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Channelscaler, said the goal was to provide a clearer industry standard for partner leaders. "Partner leaders don't need more dashboards; they need proof," Erlichman said. "For too long, fragmented systems and inconsistent attribution have made partner performance difficult to measure and even harder to compare. Scaler Index creates a common standard for understanding what good looks like, giving partner leaders credible benchmarks to demonstrate impact, identify opportunities and make better decisions about where to invest."

Market focus

The company was formed through the merger of Channel Mechanics and Allbound and sells software for managing partner relationships and channel programmes. Its customers include Optiv, SAP, Broadcom, Cisco, HP and Box.

By grounding the benchmark in platform data, Channelscaler is positioning itself within a wider shift in how indirect sales organisations are assessed. Rather than treating engagement as the main marker of programme health, vendors are increasingly looking for evidence that partner activity is translating into deals, pipeline quality and booked revenue.

For users of its software, the benchmark will also serve as a comparative tool. Customers will be able to measure their own performance against anonymised benchmark data and identify where results are stronger or weaker than the median.

The first findings suggest that deal registration remains a significant lever in partner sales strategy when it is adopted consistently over time. In Channelscaler's dataset, programmes that matured over three years showed growth across every core commercial metric measured.