📢 Maximizing Your Microsoft Partnership: From Zero to Hero!
Daphne van Vliet
Ecosystem Builder at Microsoft | Partner Business Development | Inclusive Innovation & Skilling Advocate | Responsible AI | Storyteller of #DiversityOfThought | #PartnersMakeMorePossible | #Human2Human 🕊️
It is a lot to manage your Microsoft Partnership but with the right focus I have seen partner go from zero to hero in no time. Taking your partnership to the next level unlocks many benefits, like very valuable internal use rights, higher profitability, close collaboration with the sales teams and marketing insights that can spark new customer conversations. How to do it all? It’s not a one-person job—but it is absolutely possible!
With the latest announcements by Nicole Dezen in her blog CSP: Deepening our investment in our partners a new level playing field has been announced. With this blog I am aiming to give you all the latest insights to set your business up for success!
We will cover the following topics:
Let's go!
First of All - Everything AI Ready?
Last year it was copilot, this year it is agents! Here is an overview of potential business propositions that can consider to bring your customers the latest and the greatest of AI, with some links like Unlocking unprecedented growth from AI in 2025 to get started!
As you navigate the complexities of implementing and optimizing Copilot solutions, it's crucial to understand where you stand today and identify areas for growth. This journey involves assessing various dimensions such as AI advisory, deployment readiness, change management, and agent development. By evaluating these practices, you can develop targeted strategies to enhance your capabilities and better support their customers. Access Technical Presales advisory hours for personalized help to build your practice or solution!
📢 AI Advisory and Responsible AI
One of the challenging areas for partners is AI advisory, particularly when it comes to responsible AI and organizational change. Partners often understand basic AI concepts and can discuss general benefits, but they may struggle with detailed conversations about responsible AI and the required organizational changes. This can lead to confusion and resistance within the organization. To develop in this area, partners should focus on deepening their understanding of AI principles, ethical considerations, and regulatory compliance. Providing strategic guidance on integrating AI responsibly into business operations and effectively communicating the need for organizational change can significantly enhance their advisory capabilities.
Start with reading the blog Microsoft announces new European digital commitments - Microsoft On the Issues or listening to Microsoft’s Brad Smith on digital resilience during geopolitical volatility - Atlantic Council.
📢 Use Case Discovery
Another critical practice is use case discovery. Partners may start from scratch without a standardized process or functional/industry supporting materials, leading to inefficiencies and missed opportunities. Developing a standardized process supported by best practices and expert collaboration can help partners discover use cases that prioritize business value. This approach not only optimizes processes but also focuses on the organizational impact of AI, fostering continuous innovation.
📢 Business Case Development
Creating a compelling business case is essential for demonstrating the value of Copilot solutions. Partners may struggle to show business value, presenting generic examples that fail to connect Copilot features to customer needs. To improve, partners should focus on quantifying business value and ROI at an organizational level. This involves estimating revenue gains, cost savings, and benefits for employee welfare, compliance, and control. Providing evidence for business value through specific examples and KPIs can strengthen their business case presentations. Get inspired with Microsoft recently released Microsoft 365 Copilot Bill of Materials (BOM) — and it’s more than just a deck. It’s your go-to resource for making smarter, faster, more strategic moves with SMB customers on their journey to the AI-powered workplace. Check it out it in my last blog The Changemaker’s Guide to Microsoft 365 Copilot!.
📢 Data Security and Governance
Data security and governance are foundational practices that can be challenging for partners. Addressing technical prerequisites exclusively or positioning data security as a blocker to deployment can hinder progress. Partners should develop comprehensive data security assessments with tailored recommendations and continuous monitoring. Implementing a structured approach to data governance, guiding customers through the implementation journey, and focusing on automation and continuous improvement can enhance their capabilities in these areas.
To understand your Secure Score check out this session Understanding Partner Secure Score – Enhancing Our Security Posture Together To gain an understanding of where you are and what needs to be done to protect both your own and your customer business. Also please use my earlier blog 🔐Empowering Microsoft Partners with Essential Security Resources and Partner-to-Partner Solutions as a reference on how to secure your business.
📄 Join the Security Partner Open Hour in June with on the agenda the NEW April 2025 Microsoft Cybersecurity Reference Architecture.
AI ready or not, NIS2(EU Network and Information Systems Directive) is important! The NIS2 legislation refers to the Network and Information Systems (NIS) Directive, which is a European Union (EU) directive that aims to improve the security and resilience of critical infrastructure in the EU by establishing a common set of minimum requirements for the protection of network and information systems (NIS) in the EU member states.
📢 Change Management
Effective change management is crucial for successful Copilot adoption. Partners may have limited awareness of change management methodologies or adopt ad hoc processes that focus on basic communications and training. Developing a fully documented change management methodology utilizing best-in-class frameworks can ensure robust and holistic change management. Emphasizing the people side of change and tracking business value through KPIs correlated to Copilot usage statistics can improve their change management practices.
📢 Agent Development
Finally, agent development is an area where partners can significantly enhance their capabilities. Partners may lack understanding of the Copilot agent stack or have limited experience in developing agents. Developing a deep understanding of the agent stack, gaining implementation experience with various agents, and creating structured processes to guide customers through technical decisions can strengthen their agent development practice. Additionally, focusing on governance and monitoring, with strong adherence to security and compliance standards, can optimize their agent development efforts
By understanding their current practices and identifying areas for development, partners can enhance their capabilities and better support their customers. Continuous improvement and collaboration are key to staying ahead in the competitive landscape and delivering value through Copilot solutions.
Ready to build your own AI-powered agents with Microsoft Copilot Studio.? Join us on June 10–12 for a hands-on workshop designed to help you create, deploy, and govern intelligent agents across websites and enterprise channels. 👉 https://lnkd.in/ezMa2TAj
The Latest and the Greatest on Copilot Agents - Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot agents, and Copilot Chat are designed to enhance your work experience by leveraging the power of AI. Let's dive into what each of these components is and how they can transform your workflow. In this blog I will share the latest and the greatest resources for copilot and if you share your most favorite prompt or way how you use copilot in the chat you might win a pair of copilot socks to be running together on #Copilot. Win #Copilot socks! I still have some left!
Competencies and Internal Use Rights
Solution Designations for SMB are a game-changer! In this chapter you can learn more bout partner competency management, operations, skilling and marketing. To motivate yourself you might first want to understand the value of internal use rights, as an example 200 E5 licenses for the Modern Work Designations, which can be stacked up (for free, you only pay for one) with the other designations. Review the benefits guide and updated benefits offerings to understand the true value of the designations!
In case you still need more internal use rights check out these Partner benefits packages that replace the action pack.
Earlier this year Microsoft introduced a new SMB pathway for Solutions Partner designations for Azure, which includes Data & AI, Digital & App Innovation, and Infrastructure. More recently Microsoft introduced the (SMB) paths for the Solutions Partner for Security — a dedicated route that reflects how you do business. Whether you're securing Microsoft 365 environments, deploying Azure workloads, or both, your work finally counts where it should.
Security and Azure opportunity for extra incentives but first of all cost saving with Internal Use Rights.
In short: 🎯 Earn 70+ partner capability points across performance, skilling, and success = you’re in. Same badge. Same benefits. New, SMB-friendly path!
Tip! For details about benefits specific to each Solutions Partner designation, check the partner training gallery and review our benefits guide.
✅ Customer Adds
Get 5 net new SMB customers (5–300 seats or $600+ ACR) = 20 points. 📌 Leverage the GTM resources to approach new customers. 📌 Link a PartnerID for PAL (Partner Admin Link)(this one is easy to set up) 😉 📌 Link a PartnerID for CPOR (Claiming Partner of Record) (Set up an operational process, one is easy to set up)
Skilling
📚 Skilling Yes, you now get points for completing prerequisite certs (AZ-500 + SC-200), and up to 40 points total with scoring certs like SC-100, SC-300, SC-400. Leverage the skilling resources available.
Fixing the basics: 🛡 22/23 May – Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals - https://lnkd.in/ezFzGpXX 🛡 3/4 June – Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals - https://lnkd.in/eZJE5Q2T 🛡 11/12 June – Defend Against Threats with XDR - https://lnkd.in/eb-YCKGc 🛡 19/20 June – Implement Data Security with Microsoft Purview - https://lnkd.in/eSsh5xR 🛡Certification Week for Microsoft Al Cloud Partner Program - Security
Prerequisite certifications: 🛡Azure Security Engineer Associate (AZ-500) 🛡Microsoft Security Operations Analyst (SC-200)
Scoring certifications 🛡Microsoft Cybersecurity Architect Expert (SC-100) 🛡Microsoft Identity and Access Administrator (SC-300) 🛡Information Protection and Compliance Administrator (SC-400)
and even more Ongoing skilling opportunities:
🚀 Customer Success
Deployments and usage growth are now also based on SMB-sized environments. 🚀 Leverage the GTM resources to approach new customers. 🚀 Link a PartnerID for PAL (Partner Admin Link)(this one is easy to set up) 😉 🚀 Link a PartnerID for CPOR(Claiming Partner of Record) (Set up an operational process, one is easy to set up)
📌PS. Make sure all your employees are linked to partner center with their certifications!
Partner Profitability with Incentive Programs
Sign in at aka.ms/partnerincentives and understand what you can optimize and which incentives you can leverage! It is important to frequently download the guide as new promo's and updates are all published in this document. Also check the Partner Center documentation page to be up to date about all incentive opportunities! Most important here is that you understand for each incentive in which sales stage is to activate it in time!
Partner-led incentives
Learn more about partner-led scenarios and nominate a project today. While most of these programs need a Specialization, when you have an Azure solution designation you can do an Azure Migrate and Modernize nomination which can bring in very interesting incentives (see the partner incentive guide). Join the Azure Migrate and Modernize and Azure Innovate partner community for the latest updates and discussions.
📌For example: Don't forget to claim your incentives on Azure projects that drive more than 1000$ growth per month for partners that have SMB - Azure designations. You do need to nominate your customer just before the migration gets started. This is usually in the later sales stages.
📌No people available to do an Azure migration? Check out the Cloud Accelerate Factory collection for more information on how to nominate a customer to be migrated by Microsoft without any costs!
Co-op Funding
Cooperative Marketing Funds (Co-op) are earned funds claimed by participating partners to help differentiate and build channel awareness and preference for Microsoft products. Partners participating in an incentive with a co-op component will earn a portion in rebate (paid monthly) and a portion in co-op (accrued for six months based on fiscal calendar) to use on eligible co-op activities.
Promo's
Unlock the future with Microsoft365: Exclusive Partner Promotions you can’t miss! With powerful new Microsoft 365 promotions, you can drive both immediate savings and lasting impact—fueling smarter work, stronger security, and bold innovation.
Collaboration with Microsoft Sales teams and the pre-requisites
When you have a business profile set up you can showcase your designation at appsource. List your solution on the Microsoft commercial marketplace to get leads. Publish a transactable offer (uses “Get it Now” call to action) to the marketplace and get Azure IP co-sell ready. You can also see how your competition is doing or your potential new security partner, see for example Nedscaper or Northwave! Or maybe Workplacebuddy or Let's Copilot!
Join the Partner Sales Acceleration Program to build a understanding on how Microsoft does sales. Let get Next Level Microsoft Partner Sales & Marketing ready to: Co-sell together!
A Guide to Submitting High-Impact Referrals 🚀
Are you making the most of your #Microsoft partnership? The key to unlocking more growth opportunities is strategic deal submissions—and we’re here to help you get it right! ✅
When submitting a referral, precision and clarity matter. The more detail you provide, the faster we can align the right Microsoft sellers and resources to drive success. Here’s a step-by-step guide to ensure your referrals get the attention they deserve. ⬇️
🔹 1. Deal Name: Set the Stage for Success
Your deal name should clearly reflect the customer name, solution area, and need.
🔹 Example (Security): Contoso Retail – Security – M365 E5 1000 Seats
🔹 Example (Azure Security): Contoso Retail – Sentinel/XDR – $1,000 per month projected
🔹 Example (Modern Work): Contoso Retail – M365 Copilot – 1000 Seats
A well-structured deal name makes it easier for Microsoft teams to identify and prioritize your referral. 🎯
💰 2. Estimated Value: Show the Business Impact
Estimating the minimum value to Microsoft is crucial. Whether it’s Annual ACR (consumption-based revenue) or Annual Billed/Contract Value, ensure your deal falls within a clear range:
💡 IP Co-sell: $50K | $100K | $250K | $500K | $1M+ 💡
Consumption, or Billed Value: $25K | $50K | $100K | $250K | $500K
This estimate helps Microsoft assess the opportunity and allocate the right resources efficiently. 📊
🔹 3. Solution Area, Solution Play & Campaign ID: Align for Speed
Choosing the correct Solution Area (e.g., Security, Azure, Business Apps) and Solution Play (e.g., Threat Protection, App Innovation) is essential for routing the referral to the right Microsoft seller.
🎯 Best Practice: Always include relevant Campaign IDs like #PartnerGTM or special sales motion tags (e.g., “NIS2”) to ensure alignment with Microsoft initiatives.
🏆 4. Partner Notes / Customer Need: Tell the Full Story
The more context you provide, the better!
📌 Why does the customer need more seats/licenses?
📌 What pain points are they trying to solve?
📌 How have you engaged with them so far?
🔍 Example: Customer is expanding their security posture and needs M365 E5 for compliance reasons. They require CSI Data Security Workshop support to assess risks and justify investment.
Rich context ensures quick engagement and a higher likelihood of success. 🚀
🤝 5. Help from Microsoft: Define Your Collaboration Level
Select the best way Microsoft can support your opportunity:
🔹 Workload-Specific / Proof of Concept (Recommended): Get direct Microsoft seller engagement.
🔹 Partner-Led: No Microsoft seller engagement. Choose this only if you want full ownership of the deal.
🛠 Pro Tip: Opt for workload-specific engagement to tap into Microsoft’s technical, sales, and funding resources.
📞 6. Customer & Partner Contact: Who’s the Go-To Person?
To speed up deal progression, provide customer contact details along with:
✔️ Budget information
✔️ Desired outcome & timeline
✔️ Key partner contact (someone who can answer deal-specific questions—not just a VP of Sales!)
This ensures smooth communication between Microsoft and your team. 📅
🚀 Take Action Today!
A well-crafted referral is your ticket to faster deal progression and greater Microsoft support. ✅ Follow these best practices and watch your opportunities accelerate!
Go-to-Market together
Do your customers have interest in another workload? Download and process CloudAscent reports to identify new sales opportunities in your existing SMB customer base so you can run a targeted campaign in the next step.
How cool is it to have your success story featured with Microsoft? For all partners, Microsoft Partner Success stories showcase how you are solving real-world challenges with Microsoft technology. We handle the content creation; you get the spotlight. Learn more and submit your nomination on the Partner Success submissions page. These low-cost marketing opportunities help build credibility, attract customers, and grow your brand.
Before you get started with going to market with Microsoft, make sure that you have up your business profile in Partner Center to enhance visibility, generate leads, and become eligible for referrals and incentives.
Activate powerful tools and campaigns to boost awareness, sales, and impact:
Understand the Solution Area Narratives
Understand Microsoft Sales Plays.
Security:
Azure
Voor de Solutions Partner for Infrastructure zit de focus op Migrate Windows Server en SQL server.
Security & Modern Work
Leverage and align with sales plays FY25 Incentives Partner Playbooks by Solution Area
SMB Partner Playbook – Threat Protection(To be Updated)
Yes it is true, this is a huge blog with many steps to take and manage. Some organizations have build a business model around it that can help you manage your Microsoft partnership and I am lucky to be working closely with some of them. Below is a short list of partners that can help you build your business from an Alliance Manager as a service to Security and Adoption practices.
Get help with your Microsoft partnership by first contacting your distri and if you really want to go deep or even outsource you Alliance Manager as a Service contact PartnerBoost B.V. or The Channel Concierge Company.
Security
Business Applications
Partner of the Year Awards
In case this blog was peanuts for you to read as you have everything in place? You might be ready to be recognized on a global stage! The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards return June 18 — spotlighting the partners who drive innovation, deliver impact, and elevate customer success through #Microsoft solutions.🌍
From #AI breakthroughs to #Security excellence... 🌱 From #Sustainability leadership to industry-wide transformation... 💡 This is your moment to shine.Whether you’re co-innovating with #Copilot, building secure cloud solutions, or empowering communities through tech — your work deserves the spotlight.
📅 Mark your calendars: Nominations open June 18, 2025!
🧰 Need a head start? Or just peaking in all the winning partner propositions of last year?Explore resources to craft a winning entry: 👉 https://lnkd.in/d9fwyuW
💬 Have questions? Drop them below or reach out your distributor or reach out to your Microsoft Partner Manager! 🔥
🙏 Thank you for making it to the end of this blog — I know it's a lot! Managing your #MicrosoftPartnership can feel like a full-time job in itself. But with the right focus, strategy, and support, I’ve seen partners go from zero to hero in record time. 🚀
Leveling up your partnership unlocks a world of opportunity: valuable #InternalUseRights, higher #Profitability, deeper collaboration with Microsoft #SalesTeams, and #MarketingInsights that ignite new customer conversations. 💡
So, how do you do it all? 💬 You don’t — not alone. This is a team sport, and there’s strength in community. With the latest announcements from Nicole Dezen in CSP: Deepening our investment in our partners, there’s never been a better time to reset, refocus, and rise.
Let this blog be your guide to building a future-ready, AI-powered partner business — and if you ever need a running buddy for the #Copilot journey, you know where to find me. 🧦😉
#PartnersMakeMorePossible #Copilot #Microsoft365 #PartnerEcosystem #VoiceOfDaphne #ConsciousLeadership #SecureSMB
#MicrosoftPartner #CoSell #Azure #Security #ModernWork #BizApps #PartnerGTM
Partner Solution Sales Microsoft | MBA RSM
2moLove this, Daphne!
Fantastic overview, Daphne van Vliet! 🙌 At Mountup Advice BV, we see every day how powerful it is when partners take intentional steps on their Microsoft journey. Your blog is a great guide covering everything from AI advisory to agent development and incentives. Thanks for bringing so many valuable insights and resources together in one place! #PartnersMakeMorePossible #AIReady #Copilot #MountUp #Microsoft
Fantastic overview, Daphne van Vliet! 🙌 At Mountup Advice BV, we see every day how powerful it is when partners take intentional steps on their Microsoft journey. Your blog is a great guide covering everything from AI advisory to agent development and incentives. Thanks for bringing so many valuable insights and resources together in one place! #PartnersMakeMorePossible #AIReady #Copilot #MountUp #Microsoft
Ecosystem Builder at Microsoft | Partner Business Development | Inclusive Innovation & Skilling Advocate | Responsible AI | Storyteller of #DiversityOfThought | #PartnersMakeMorePossible | #Human2Human 🕊️
2moErik Gijbels Frank Verlaan Glenn Habes Shachi Kulkarni Agarwal Verônica Labad Marisol V. Remco Treur Rik Hardon Simone Hendriks Kiki Karakatsani Bob Smelik Sarah Bahlinger