Azure partnership pathways simplified

We kickoff another year and yet again, we strive to make a success of selling Microsoft Cloud Solutions by leveraging from proven selling methodologies to successfully land the next deal or even have an entire on-premises data center migrated to the cloud. The value is evidently proven by using Microsoft’s well-designed Sales and Solution Play guides. Extensive research has been invested by Microsoft in various Industry verticals to make our lives as Microsoft Partners easier and attainable. We get entangled in our day-to-day tasks and attend to multiple requests from new opportunities; therefore, we tend to forget the basics of being a Microsoft Partner and ignore the benefits of the provided tools and easy to attain incentives.

Most of our partners follow multiple paths to evolve and modernize their Azure practice but even this requires some extensive planning and strategizing. Are they just going to showcase some Azure capabilities to earn a Solutions Partner designation or become an Azure Expert MSP to stand out more to drive extra revenue or differentiate their organization’s Azure skills to become more reputable in areas that are in higher demand.

Let us take out some of the monotonous tasks of research and simplify this for you:

Solutions Partner Designations

To become a Microsoft Solutions Partner in Azure, you need to meet the qualification requirements for one of the three areas of Azure Data & AI, Infrastructure, and Digital & App Innovation or all three.

A partner capability score is used to gauge your organization’s Performance, Skilling, and Customer success, which are measured automatically. To earn the designation, your organization must:

• Earn a minimum of 70 points in their respective Solution area (Azure Data & AI, Infrastructure, and Digital & App Innovation)
• Earn points in the following five metrics:

o Performance

o Skilling: intermediate certifications

o Skilling: advanced certifications

o Customer success: usage growth

o Customer success: deployments

In short, the Performance category measures your organization’s ability to increase the number of customers who use Azure services and workloads. The Skilling category uses the number of certified persons in an organization as a measure of partner capabilities and skills. The Customer Success category measures your organization’s ability to help customers achieve their desired outcomes with Azure services and workloads.

Azure Expert Managed Services Provider (MSP)

If you find your organization to be a capable Azure Solutions Partner and meet all the requirements for all its badges, then it would make sense to become and Azure Expert MSP to drive more revenue for themselves, and in turn, their customers.

To become an Azure Expert MSP, you will need to have the following:

• Qualify for one of the three areas of Azure: Data & AI, Infrastructure, and Digital & App Innovation.
• You need to have attained a minimum bar of Azure consumed revenue per month and maintain it over trailing 12 month period, considering that shorter periods also qualify.
• An active MPN ID and maintain an active CSP contract.

The application process is quite rigorous and involves a pre-audit assessment and on-site audit. If you pass the audit, you will earn an exclusive Azure Expert MSP badge, get showcased to Microsoft customers, and gain top priority in Microsoft’s referral engine. You will also be prioritized for co-sell engagements and leads and receive support to develop new practices going forward.

Azure Specializations

If you wish to put your organization onto a different path and specialize on a specific technical expertise then these specializations, range from Microsoft Azure Virtual Desktop all the way through to Migrating and modernizing apps to Azure, will put you on the map for better incentives and revenue.

There are too many specializations to mention but below are a few noteworthy categories to look at:

• AI and Machine Learning in Microsoft Azure
• Data Warehouse Migration to Microsoft Azure
• Build and Modernize AI Apps with Microsoft Azure
• Microsoft Low Code Application Development
• Microsoft Azure Virtual Desktop
• Infra and Database Migration to Microsoft Azure
• SAP on Microsoft Azure

To qualify as a partner, your organization must demonstrate the highest level of service quality and customer satisfaction. Microsoft and/or a third-party vendor will check all the requirements, either automatically or manually, and may change them at any time. Your organization must first meet the pre-qualification criteria and then provide additional proof of your company’s skills.

Use these guidelines to build your Azure practice will certainly light up your customer’s radar and increase your potential revenue. So contact your Surestep Ambassador team at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to find ways to be part of these successful journeys.