GTIA’s newest resource-based, member-driven programming has arrived on podcast platforms everywhere with “GTIA Presents,” a space dedicated to how the GTIA community turns shared insight into real business results.
In its inaugural episode, host and GTIA Channel Development Advisory Council chair Vicky Bruns is joined by Corey Kirkendoll, CEO of 5K Technical Services and Mike Psenka, CEO of Moovila, to explore GTIA’s biggest event, ChannelCon, and the dynamic “channel effect” behind it.
Register now: ChannelCon 2026, August 3–5 in San Diego
Where the Power Starts
For both Kirkendoll and Psenka, ChannelCon’s impact begins with mindset. Long before sessions start, the tone is set by how people choose to engage. As Psenka describes it, attendees show up differently: “People seem to want to communicate, want to engage.”
That openness creates a noticeable contrast to more transactional industry events. Conversations move quickly beyond introductions into honest dialogue about challenges, opportunities, and uncertainty.
But that environment depends on participation. Kirkendoll is direct about the responsibility attendees carry: “You get out what you put into it.” It’s a simple premise, but a defining one. ChannelCon isn’t just attended—it’s built in real time by a community willing to show up, contribute, and connect, both said.
In Between Is Where Momentum Builds
ChannelCon delivers strong programming, but what resonates most often happens outside the agenda. Psenka points to the unstructured moments as the differentiator. At many events, he notes, interactions are compressed—“everybody’s rushing somewhere…they have two minutes to talk,” he said. At ChannelCon, those constraints fall away. Conversations extend, deepen and evolve. Attendees linger long enough to challenge ideas, validate thinking and add real-world context.
That shift creates a unique atmosphere. "People…are just sort of willing to be open and transparent…that’s a very different feel than kind of any of the other industry events,” Psenka said. For Kirkendoll, these moments are where the real value takes shape. It’s where trust forms, where conversations move beyond surface-level networking and where shared problem-solving begins to unfold naturally.
From Conversation to Clarity
As those exchanges deepen, their practical impact becomes clear. For ITSPs, the experience is often one of immediate relief—and acceleration. Challenges that feel isolated quickly become shared. “There’s 30, 40, 50 people who have been there…that can give you advice,” said Kirkendoll. That access to peer experience can dramatically shorten the path to resolution. Decisions that might take months to navigate independently are clarified through a handful of conversations.
In many cases, those discussions reframe the problem entirely. What initially appears to require a new tool or solution may instead reveal untapped potential. “You haven’t had a conversation with your current provider…you just didn’t know,” Kirkendoll said.”
For vendors, the value takes a different but equally important form. ChannelCon creates an environment where customers are not only present, but candid and engaged. Psenka underscores the rarity of that dynamic, saying “Where else are you going to get so many customers…willing to share their needs and their wants?” It’s not just what’s said, but what’s observed, what drives engagement, where conversations continue and which topics resonate most. Those signals provide a clearer picture of market sentiment than formal feedback alone.
Bruns highlights an additional layer: The opportunity for vendor-to-vendor collaboration. Conversations that begin around shared challenges often evolve into partnership discussions, expanding impact beyond individual organizations.
Why It Sticks
What ultimately defines ChannelCon isn’t just the experience on-site—it’s what carries forward. Because ideas are exchanged in real time and grounded in lived experience, they’re more actionable. Kirkendoll returns to his team with clarity, translating conversations into direction and decisions. That follow-through is intentional. “If you don’t connect within 24 hours…you don’t follow up…nothing happens,” he said.
For Psenka, the value continues through alignment. The insights gathered inform product strategy and help ensure development stays closely tied to real-world needs rather than assumptions.
At the center of it all are relationships—built not through quick exchanges, but through openness and repeated interaction. Connections that extend beyond the event itself and evolve into a lasting network.
Kirkendoll distills that idea into a simple truth: “You don’t have to know everything—you just need to know somebody that knows somebody.” Kirkendoll and Psenka emphasize that the power of ChannelCon—and the broader “channel effect” behind it—isn’t just what happens on-site. It’s what carries forward. It’s the decisions made with more confidence, the conversations that continue long after the event, and the relationships that quietly support progress across the industry.
Listen to the full episode of GTIA Presents: The Power of ChannelCon
Register now: ChannelCon 2026, August 3–5 in San Diego
