286 – Why the AI Economy Is a Multiplier Game—and Most Companies Are Playing It Wrong

Stop losing the AI revenue multiplier game. Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://theultimatepartner.com/ebook-subscribe/ Check Out UPX: https://theultimatepartner.com/experience/ In this episode, Jay McBain reveals why focusing solely on consumer AI hype is a massive mistake that causes businesses to miss the real opportunity: the 99% of business data currently sitting in cold storage. We discuss the critical shift toward “Agentic AI” and integrations, where the real money lies for partners—moving from a standard transaction to a $3 to $7 multiplier effect. Jay also issues a stark warning about the “book of failure” waiting for companies that refuse to adopt a platform mindset, explaining why you can’t hire your way out of the talent shortage and must embrace the seven-partner ecosystem to survive the next decade. https://youtu.be/RXRJW027Qz8 https://youtu.be/RXRJW027Qz8 Key Takeaways Partners can unlock a $3 to $7 multiplier on every dollar of Microsoft revenue by focusing on the full customer journey.99% of the world’s business data is not yet trained into models, representing the massive “Agentic AI” opportunity.The talent shortage is forcing end customers to outsource because they cannot compete with hyperscalers for AI skills.Integration is now the number one buying criteria for modern customers, necessitating a platform approach.We are overestimating the AI change in two years but vastly underestimating the transformation coming in ten years.Your visible pipeline may be less than 10% of your total addressable market because you aren’t seeing the 28 moments before a sale. If you’re ready to lead through change, elevate your business, and achieve extraordinary outcomes through the power of partnership—this is your community. At Ultimate Partner® we want leaders like you to join us in the Ultimate Partner Experience – where transformation begins. Key Tags Agentic AI, AI Multiplier, Cold Storage Data, Business Integration, Jay McBain, Platform Economy, Ecosystem Strategy, Managed Services, Co-selling, Hyperscaler Partnerships, Talent Shortage, Magnificent Seven, Digital Transformation, 28 Moments, AI Governance. Transcript: [00:00:00] Jay McBain: And getting from one to two to $3 a multiplier. So if Microsoft wins a hundred thousand dollars, I win $300,000 at 75% margin. And a sticky customer that’s gonna continue to enrich every 30 days forever. [00:00:16] Vince Menzione: I want to double click here. You talked about ag agentic technology and ai. I just wanna go back in on this. [00:00:21] Vince Menzione: So where is the money? Where’s the real money for the partners that are, that are participating? Microsoft? We’ll talk to Microsoft about Frontier Firm in a little while, but is it on advisory? Is it on build? Is it on managed services or ongoing optimization? Of the, of the stack. Where, where is it? [00:00:36] Jay McBain: Yeah. All the above. [00:00:37] Vince Menzione: All of the above. [00:00:38] Jay McBain: So Microsoft is famous for, you know, $8 and 45 cents of multiplier. We’ve written probably three dozen of these reports. Just this year. So whether you’re in a cyber platform, whether you’re in a hyperscaler platform, big SaaS platform, the first thing the CEO does when they get on CNBC or they get, uh, on their keynote in Vegas is say, Hey, you know, you can make $7 and 5 cents. [00:01:01] Jay McBain: You can make $7 and 13 cents, and here’s where it’s. This percentage of it is in consulting advisory. This percentage is in design and architecture, implementation, integration, managed services. This is how much, it’s a small little slice in procurement. If you wanna resell, that’s fine, but here is the opportunity and there’s no customer on the planet that’s gonna outsource seven to one. [00:01:23] Vince Menzione: Right? [00:01:23] Jay McBain: You know, it’s not advisable that anyone hands over the keys. You have to have some insourced talent Absolutely. To keep the thing running. But what would’ve been in the past, maybe one to one, or you know, two to one, is quickly becoming three to one to say that I can’t find, as an end customer, the AI talent to do this. [00:01:43] Jay McBain: I can’t find the cyber talent. I can’t find the infrastructure talent. I, I can’t find the talent. Even if I did, I can’t compete with these magnificent seven. I can’t compete with these big partners in terms of what they can pay. So now my ability, and now a younger buyer, majority buyer, now being a millennial loves a team sport. [00:02:02] Jay McBain: So they don’t mind this outsourcing of talent where they need it, and that’s why there’s seven partners around the table. But in this multiplier effect, the biggest opportunity for partners is not a specific skill or not a specific part of the journey. It’s actually understanding this multiplier and better serving the customer. [00:02:20] Jay McBain: Through before, during, and after ...