For more than 30 years, the Microsoft Partner Network has been helping partners to provide innovative and unique solutions across a huge range of industries, helping their customers to evolve and adapt in our rapidly-changing world.
To ensure they continue to meet what you need to innovate, grow your business and deliver for your customers, the Microsoft Partner Network is changing. To help you understand and navigate the new system, we’ve got the lowdown on what these changes mean for you and your customers.
Introducing the Microsoft Cloud Partner Program
Microsoft has launched its new program in order to better align partners’ go-to-market motions with the way customers buy and in fact the way Microsoft have been categorising and marketing with their own solutions over the last few years. Its primary aim is to make it much easier for customers to identify partners with the technical capabilities, knowledge and experience they need.
The new program is now known as the “Microsoft Cloud Partner Program” (MCPP). The MCPP streamlines the existing 18 competencies into a new model focusing on proficiency in 6 solution areas:
- Modern Work
- Security
- Infrastructure (Azure)
- Data & AI (Azure)
- Digital & App Innovation (Azure)
- Business Applications
There will be 2 qualifying levels:
- The solutions partner level involves meeting specific requirements across what partner capability score (see below) for each solution area.
- Specialisations and expert programs will give solutions partners a way to differentiate and demonstrate deep technical expertise and experience in specific technical scenarios under each solution area.
The Solutions Partner designations will combine the current silver and gold tiers. By attaining these designations, you can demonstrate your organisation’s ability to meet customer demand.
Please note – if you have existing silver or gold competencies, you’ll have time to learn more and assess how the new designations will fit into the strategic plan for your business.
How are points achieved?
Points are achieved across 3 separate areas:
Performance: measured by net customer adds in the specified solution area.
Skilling: points are awarded for each person on your team with specified certifications.
Customer success: measured by usage growth and number of successful deployments.
To achieve the Solution Designation, partners must score at least 1 point within each metric.
Capability scoring explained
Partner capability scoring is a framework designed to measure partner performance, skill and customer success. Each partner is evaluated based on their certifications, number of customers, successful deployments and overall growth.
To attain a Solutions Partner designation, partners must earn a capability score of at least 70 (out of 100) points across the 4 areas of measurement. You can see your progress towards your solutions partner designation by accessing your dashboard in the Partner Centre.
How existing competencies track onto Solutions Partner designations
Here’s exactly how the existing competencies fit into the Solutions Partner designation framework.