When it comes down to it, competitors in the IT industry have a lot in common: we’re all trying to solve for complex customer challenges and do great things with technology. The 2025 Global Technology Distribution Council (GTDC) North America Summit, held last month in Oceanside, Calif., was the perfect testament to that. Vendors, distributors, and resellers alike gathered to share best practices and plan for the future of IT—together.

Throughout the event, several key themes continued to pop up as priorities. To no one’s surprise, AI is and will continue to be a hot topic in this current era of IT services and solutions. But since there’s a widely agreed-upon feeling of AI fatigue, we’re sticking to five other themes that surfaced repeatedly, both in formal sessions and casual conversations. Here’s what’s shaping the future of IT.

1. Security

If there’s one thing the entire IT channel can agree on—security is essential for the entire IT stack. Across sessions, security was named as one of the top priorities shaping IT in 2025, driven by AI’s rapid adoption and ongoing geopolitical uncertainties. As one panelist noted, the AI revolution is creating both skill gaps and security vulnerabilities, and the market needs partners who can help secure new architectures as fast as they’re built.

Patrick Zammit, CEO at TD SYNNEX, noted how we continue to invest in risk and compliance expertise, which can be a huge differentiator in the market. Whether addressing new AI-enabled security threats, navigating global regulations, or helping resellers establish a zero-trust security strategy, security is woven into its value-driven specialization as resellers safely go to market.

2. Cloud Computing

Cloud isn’t just a product anymore—it’s the foundation for nearly every conversation about the future of IT, especially post-pandemic. Several distributor CEOs and market analysts called out cloud as one of the fastest-growing areas in IT, along with AI and cybersecurity. But beyond just growth, cloud has become essential as AI drives demand for modern infrastructure—and distributors have been key to making that transformation secure and accessible.

Patrick Zammit reinforced that aligning vendor and reseller needs in the cloud is a top priority, with a focus on digitalized market engagement through tools like Digital Bridge. As resellers and MSPs seek to keep pace with emerging cloud solutions, it’s the enablement and support from distributors like TD SYNNEX that can make the difference.

“The pace of change in cloud and AI means our reseller partners need us to be high-touch and proactive in delivering expertise and enablement.”

3. Hyperscalers

Hyperscalers—Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and others—are essential. Discussions at the summit reinforced that partners need help navigating the hyperscaler landscape, especially as AI, cybersecurity and cloud intersect.

Distributors like TD SYNNEX are bridging gaps between hyperscalers and resellers, ensuring that all players have access to personalized enablement, financing/credit, and services that unlock growth. TD SYNNEX is working to build upstream relationships with hyperscalers, while sharing the benefits downstream to resellers so they can easily navigate complex multi-cloud environments.

4. Professional Services

The phrase “distributor” has become more of a habitual term than a truth—as several speakers noted. Yes, distributors still pick-pack-and-ship and are the go-to for data center servers and storage, but in 2025 and beyond, distributors are so much more. Resellers are looking for a partner can do all of the aforementioned tasks without a second thought, but also help with enablement, upskilling, services and additional value-add activities that raise margins and boost revenue.

Professional services—project-based support activities such as design, procurement and deployment—are becoming more widespread in IT, helping resellers scale faster. Targeted, high-value professional services can extend the reach of all levels of the IT ecosystem.

In particular, TD SYNNEX is making strategic moves to accelerate its services portfolio, with Zammit calling out professional services as a critical priority for the coming year. By focusing on enablement and expertise, TD SYNNEX helps resellers and MSPs deliver more value without overextending their own resources. As AI, cloud, and security projects become more complex, partners will need distributors who can walk with them through delivery—not just provide the tools.

5. Relationships

If there was one word that echoed loudest throughout the event—it was relationships. Technology will always keep evolving, but the one constant is navigating each tech revolution through the personalized touch of partnership.

Zammit underscored this point during the Distributor CEO panel, stating clearly, “Distribution is all about relationships,” and highlighting TD SYNNEX’s deep touch at the reseller level. The blending of reseller identities—MSPs, MSSPs, ISVs, VARs—is making relationships more crucial than ever. That’s why, at TD SYNNEX, we’re Making IT Personal.

While AI might dominate the headlines, these five terms—cloud, security, hyperscalers, professional services, and relationships—are the real forces shaping the future of IT. At TD SYNNEX, we’re committed to helping our partners succeed in this evolving landscape, staying focused on the fundamentals that drive real value, scale, and growth.

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