Veeam has announced the Sovereign Service Providers Program, a global partner programme centred on data sovereignty. The first phase is the Data Sovereignty Competency within the Veeam Cloud & Service Provider (VCSP) programme. Service providers that meet the requirements will be identifiable to customers through their partner profile. Further elements will follow later this year.
The Sovereign Service Providers Program combines Veeam’s data protection technology with local service providers’ knowledge of their market, legislation and business operations. According to Veeam, the company supplies the technology to protect data in line with local laws and regulations. Partners build services around it that meet requirements for data storage, operational control, access management and jurisdiction. Veeam says customers do not have to compromise on protection against cyber threats or on recovery after an incident.
Requirements for the competency
Among other things, service providers must demonstrate that they operate locally, comply with applicable laws and regulations, have staff in the region and apply clear data management processes. They must also show how customers retain control over their data and how data remains protected during disruptions or incidents. Only providers that meet these requirements are eligible.
Customers can find approved service providers via Veeam partner profiles, which include information on data sovereignty capabilities, regional coverage and competency status. The new competency complements the existing VCSP competencies. As a result, customers can combine data sovereignty with services such as disaster recovery as-a-service and off-site backups.
Veeam states that the recognition confirms a service provider meets the programme requirements. Customers remain responsible for researching their own legal obligations, regulations and risks, and for complying with them.
Technology and operations
Michelle Graff, Senior Vice President Global Partnerships at Veeam, says sovereignty is defined by each customer’s regional governmental, legal, regulatory and operational requirements. Whether these are met depends, in her view, on both the technology and the way a service is operated. Graff sees the programme as a way of bringing those two aspects together, with Veeam providing the technical foundation and local partners contributing the sovereign business model and governance expertise. According to her, the competency gives customers a clearer way to identify providers that have invested in both.
Tim Pfaelzer, General Manager and Senior Vice President EMEA at Veeam, says sovereignty in Europe has shifted from a compliance issue to a strategic business requirement. According to Pfaelzer, organisations facing expanding regulation and scaling up their AI initiatives want greater certainty about where their data is located, who has access to it and which legislation applies.
Regulation and AI
Veeam places the programme against the backdrop of stricter requirements around data residency, access, control, portability and jurisdiction. Whereas data sovereignty used to be a concern mainly for governments and heavily regulated sectors, the company expects more organisations to have to demonstrate that they are in control of their data. In its Hype Cycle for Digital Sovereignty, 2026, analyst firm Gartner describes digital sovereignty as a growing board-level issue, driven in part by ongoing geopolitical tensions.
The company also points to its own research into AI workflows in EMEA organisations. It found that at 70 per cent of organisations, AI workflows work with sensitive business data without full oversight. In addition, 67 per cent say employees are setting up autonomous AI workflows that IT teams cannot fully monitor.
Next phases
The Data Sovereignty Competency is the first phase of the rollout. Veeam plans to add further elements to the programme later this year. The company will announce details once they are ready for market.
The full report can be read via research into AI workflows in EMEA organisations.
This article was originally published in Dutch on MSP Business. Read the original →
