Partner-First Moments from Extreme Connect 2026

At Extreme Connect 2026 in Orlando, Florida, we welcomed partners from around the world to our first Extreme Partner Summit on May 4, 2026, focused on how we’re investing in shared success across every stage of the sales lifecycle to better serve our customers.

Throughout the sessions and conversations, one theme came through clearly: Partner success isn’t just about closing a deal. It’s about working together to plan ahead, grow with confidence, and deliver better outcomes for customers, while celebrating the milestones along the way.

Starting with what matters most: price confidence

One of the most immediate challenges partners face today is pricing volatility driven by global supply chain disruption. This challenge affects all of us across the ecosystem. When pricing shifts unpredictably, it creates friction at every stage, from quoting and deal progression to customer trust and long-term planning.

During the Day 2 mainstage at Connect, Norman J Rice, III, Chief Commercial Officer at Extreme Networks shared what we’re seeing across the industry:

• Component costs have surged dramatically (e.g., DDR4 memory)
• Supply chain instability continues to impact availability and pricing
• Many vendors are passing that uncertainty directly to partners, with prices shifting between order, shipment, and delivery

We knew we needed to take a different approach—one that not only supports our partners but also brings greater transparency to the end customers we serve. That’s why our Deal Registration Price Guarantee is designed to create stability across the entire motion, helping ensure that what we quote is what our joint customers can rely on.

Deal Registration Price Guarantee (DRPG) available now

To help partners and customers navigate this uncertainty, we introduced the Deal Registration Price Guarantee (DRPG)—available May 4 through November 1, 2026. As Norman Rice shared, “We want you to plan ahead. When we know what’s coming, we can support you better.”

With DRPG, partners and customers can:

• Lock in pricing through November 1, 2026
• Protect deals from unexpected price increases between order and delivery
• Plan projects with greater confidence and fewer financial surprises

DRPG is available now, and a broader set of partner incentives will roll out in FY27—beginning July 1, 2026—to better support how partners land, adopt, expand, and retain business with Extreme.

From planning ahead to recognizing what Extreme Partners have achieved

While much of Partner Summit focused on helping partners navigate what’s ahead, it was also an opportunity to recognize everything our partners have accomplished during the past year. At the 2026 Partner Summit Awards, we brought the community together to celebrate the partners who are driving real impact across regions, industries, and business models. Awards included:

GLOBAL

CDW—Global Partner of the Year

CDW is recognized as our Global Partner of the Year for delivering exceptional global scale, consistent business growth, and deep strategic alignment with Extreme across regions and solutions.

AMER

PCS—AMER Partner of the Year

PCS is honored as our AMER Partner of the Year for driving strong year‑over‑year growth, expanding new customer adoption, and executing as a highly engaged strategic partner.

APAC

Marubeni Information Systems—APAC Partner of the Year

Marubeni Information Systems is recognized as our APAC Partner of the Year for delivering consistent growth, strong customer outcomes, and close strategic collaboration across the region.

J’s Communication—APAC Distributor of the Year

J’s Communication is named APAC Distributor of the Year for expanding Extreme’s regional reach, supporting partner success, and driving strong execution across the distribution ecosystem.

NTT East—Recurring Revenue Partner of the Year

NTT East is recognized as our Recurring Revenue Partner of the Year for driving strong annual recurring revenue through subscriptions and services and enabling long‑term customer success.

EMEA

CMS IT‑Consulting GmbH—EMEA Partner of the Year

CMS IT‑Consulting GmbH is recognized as our EMEA Partner of the Year for strong business performance, high‑impact customer engagements, and deep alignment with Extreme’s strategy.

MSP

Telia Finland Oyj—MSP Partner of the Year

Telia Finland Oyj is named MSP Partner of the Year for driving recurring revenue growth, delivering high‑quality managed services, and enabling long‑term customer success.

Distribution

ScanSource—AMER Distributor of the Year

ScanSource is recognized as our AMER Distributor of the Year for consistent revenue growth, strong partner enablement, and dependable execution across the Americas.

Exclusive Networks—EMEA Distributor of the Year

Exclusive Networks is named EMEA Distributor of the Year for accelerating partner success, expanding Extreme’s footprint, and driving strong regional performance.

Partner Summit also included two breakout tracks—Architect Your Business and Amplify Your Market—giving partners the flexibility to go deeper based on their priorities, from evolving business models and services to demand generation and competitive opportunities. And the partner programming continued beyond Summit with two dedicated sessions focused on Extreme’s AI vision and the AI skill sets partners can build to stay ahead.

To all the partners who joined us in Orlando, thank you for the conversations, collaboration, and continued partnership.

Thank you to our sponsors

And a special thank you to our Connect 2026 event sponsors for helping make the whole conference a success!

Join the Extreme Partner First™ program

To learn about how to become an Extreme Partner, visit our Partner Page. Once you join, here’s a sneak peek at what’s waiting for you:

• Extreme Partner Portal Your central hub for deal registration, training, marketing resources, and community engagement.
• Extreme Partner Demand Center Access ready-to-launch campaigns and co-brandable assets to drive demand and accelerate pipeline.
• Extreme Partner Pulse Podcast Created for partners on the go! Tune in for insider insights, success stories, and strategies from featured guests.
• Extreme Partner Sales AI Assistant A game-changing sales acceleration tool that helps you qualify opportunities faster and close deals with confidence.