In episode three of Coffee and Cloud, Nick interviews Paul Schuman, a senior director at Microsoft who has spent much of his career working with partners worldwide. Schuman began his career as an analyst at Dataquest before moving on to work at an early-stage startup inSilicon Valley and eventually joining Microsoft.

During the interview, Schuman discusses the evolution of theIT industry and how partners have played a vital role in driving cloud innovation. He reflects on how the industry has changed over the years, highlighting the growth and innovation that has occurred, as well as the bumps and ups and downs that have come along with it.

One of the key points that Paul makes is the importance of partnerships in the IT industry. He notes that partnerships between technology companies and other organisations have always been critical, but they have become even more important in the age of cloud computing. In the past, partnerships were primarily focused on selling hardware and software, but today, they are more likely to be centred on providing cloud-based services.

Paul also discusses the role that managed service providers(MSPs) have played in the evolution of the IT industry. He explains that MSPs have traditionally focused on providing IT services to small and medium-sized businesses, but in recent years, they have also become involved in cloud computing. MSPs are now able to offer cloud-based services to their clients, which has helped to drive innovation in the industry.

In addition to discussing the role of partnerships and MSPs in the IT industry, Paul also talks about the challenges that organisations face when it comes to adopting and using cloud-based services. One of the main challenges is the lack of in-house expertise and resources, which can make it difficult for organisations to effectively migrate their systems to the cloud.

Despite these challenges, however, Paul is optimistic about the future of the IT industry and the role that partners will continue to play in driving innovation. He believes that the cloud will continue to be a major driving force in the industry, and that partnerships will be key to helping organisations successfully navigate this rapidly-evolving landscape.

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