Show Notes
Scaling a Modern Partnership Function at Epsilon At AWS re:Invent, I had the opportunity to chat with Chandos Quill, Senior Vice President of Channels and Alliances at Epsilon, for a rich discussion about building a partnership discipline inside a global data and marketing technology organization. Chandos brings deep experience across data, ad tech, and marketing platforms - and her work at Epsilon demonstrates how a focused, disciplined approach to alliances can unlock entirely new routes to market. Inside Partnering is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Who Epsilon Serves and Why Partners Matter Chandos began with a quick overview of Epsilon’s role within Publicis Groupe. Epsilon is the data, technology, and services arm that helps brands acquire customers and deepen relationships with existing ones. As she put it, the mission is simple - bring data driven solutions to marketers that drive meaningful outcomes. But the real story comes through the evolving role of partners. Infrastructure providers, Martech platforms, ad tech channels, and specialized point solutions all play a part. “What we’ve tried to do is within each of those categories of partners, we focus on the most important thing that Epsilon can bring to add value on top of the partners’ technology or products.” Building a Partnership Function from the Ground Up When Chandos joined Epsilon a year and a half ago, partnerships existed only in pockets across the business - organic, siloed, and ad hoc. Her charter was to build a centralized function that aligned tightly with corporate direction and product strategy. “We had a few pockets of people doing partnerships, but we didn’t have a centralized partnership function.” The first year focused on talent assessment, team formation, defining strategy, and building foundational systems - including tracking, measurement, and aligning the field around partner value. Quality Over Quantity Epsilon works across several categories of partners - infrastructure players like AWS and Databricks, technology platforms like Adobe and Salesforce, ad tech channels, and point solution integrations. But Chandos emphasizes disciplined focus. “My message to all of our partners is we’re leaning in on the ones that really matter and continuing to grow and scale those versus signing up 20 or 30 new ones.” With finite resources and a mandate to prove value, prioritization is essential. The goal is not breadth - it’s depth. A Breakthrough Moment with AWS Marketplace A major milestone came recently when Epsilon transacted its first large deal through AWS Marketplace. The impact was immediate - seller excitement, internal visibility, and growing alignment with AWS. “We actually closed an extremely large deal through the Marketplace… and it’s gotten the attention of our sales people.” This opens new opportunities for Epsilon sellers accustomed to working with Marketing and Line of Business buyers, as AWS provides access to IT and procurement relationships that accelerate deal velocity. Enabling Sellers for a New GTM Motion For many sellers, partnering with AWS requires a shift in mindset. They now have the opportunity to jointly navigate enterprise accounts from two different entry points - Marketing and IT. “Some of our sellers are kind of newer to that idea of how you can use an AWS partner to help us get those relationships with IT, get those relationships with procurement, get our deals through faster.” Much of Chandos’s 2026 agenda centers on sales enablement - making these motions repeatable, predictable, and valuable for both sides. Data Privacy and the Future of Clean Rooms As a global data provider, Epsilon is deeply invested in privacy, compliance, and responsible data stewardship. This extends to partnerships as well. Chandos noted that clean rooms are becoming increasingly important as brands seek to collaborate on data without exposing sensitive inf
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