As AI enablement specialists file into the channel promising immediate returns on mounting AI investments, Insight Enterprises is putting a timeframe on what clients should expect. The company established a forward deployed engineering practice in August with the aim of generating rapid ROI, CEO Jack Azagury told Channel Dive.
“If you go to most organizations, it's pretty clear where the AI opportunity is,” Azagury, who joined Insight in April after nearly three decades in leadership roles at Accenture, said. “Forward deployed engineers help fast-track the journey. They need to understand the business requirements of a client, have deep technical capabilities and know how to get from listening to the client's requirements to a proof of value that is live and running in days, not multiple weeks.”
Insight’s focus on AI engineering underscores the firm’s shift to a systems integrator model, with IT services backing substantial cloud and hardware resale businesses. The company saw revenues increase 22% year over year to $2.4. billion in the third quarter, fueled by 32% growth in its hardware segment and a 17% bump in core services, CFO James Morgado said last week during a Q3 2026 earnings call.
The gains reflect the hybrid nature of enterprise AI strategies, according to Azagury. Insight clients are expanding cloud usage and building out on-premises capabilities, he said. While analysts expect cloud growth to surpass on-premises investments, Insight clients have favored a balance of the two, Azagury added.
Insight remains infrastructure agnostic. The company’s value play is in attaching engineering assistance to cloud and hardware procurements.
“A lot of people ask me, especially with my services background, is the focus resale or is the focus on services, and the answer is yes,” Azagury said during the earnings call. “Our strategy is to be the solution integrator. That means bringing the hardware, the software, the cloud and the services to drive results.”
As Insight shifts into high gear on AI, the company is downsizing in other areas. The company began restructuring its workforce in Q3, a move Morgado characterized as “a voluntary separation program.”
Azagury elaborated on the cuts during the earnings call. “This is about more than cost reduction,” he said. “It’s about reallocating resources towards our highest growth opportunities, streamlining how we operate and building a more focused organization that can move faster and execute more consistently.”
More than 600 Insight associates hold Anthropic or OpenAI technical certifications and 100 have Nvidia credentials. Azagury said the company would continue to upskill in “areas where we see the greatest growth opportunities.”
