microsoft partner blog
105 TopicsPartner Blog | Capturing the marketplace opportunity: Part one of a series by selling path
Cloud marketplaces have become the fastest growing channel for B2B software sales, driven by continuous growth in IT spending that is projected to reach $5 trillion in 2024 1 . More customers are centralizing their cloud portfolios and making marketplaces their preferred buying platform. For software companies, adopting cloud marketplaces as a core go-to-market strategy helps close deals faster and increases deal sizes. At Microsoft, the marketplace is the center of gravity for how we go to market with our software partners to solve customers’ technology challenges. The Microsoft commercial marketplace promise The marketplace democratizes IT, helping empower any Microsoft partner to sell to any Microsoft customer worldwide. As a B2B global commerce engine, the marketplace adapts to how customers want to buy and how you want to sell, whether that is digital direct (always-on selling to help grow your pipeline), through partner (selling alongside the Microsoft global ecosystem of over 500,000 partners), or with Microsoft (unlocking enterprise deals alongside Microsoft sellers). This blog is the introduction, and first in a four-part series on maximizing your marketplace opportunity across these different selling paths. Our next edition will dive into always-on selling with digital direct. Continue reading here You can continue to stay connected to us through the Marketplace Community and follow our Marketplace Blog for important announcements.26Views0likes0CommentsPartner Blog | What's new for Azure partner-led offerings: ISV Success and specialization updates
As a partner-first company, Microsoft is dedicated to investing in partner success and creating new opportunities to drive business and AI transformation. In this blog post, we'll share what's new for Azure Migrate and Modernize and Azure Innovate as of January 1, 2025—including expanded AI benefits and incentives with ISV Success, updates to specializations, and the growing Azure Essentials momentum. Throughout the year, you can find key updates here on the partner blog as new scenarios and workloads are added. Overview of Azure partner-led offerings Azure partner-led offerings—which include Azure Innovate and Azure Migrate and Modernize—are built to work together to simplify the adoption of Azure. With comprehensive resources, extensive coverage across scenarios, and tailored incentives in one easy-to-navigate hub, accredited partners can access these offerings to better support customers from migration to innovation. To underpin these offerings, Azure Essentials equips partners with foundational guidance, best practices, and dedicated skilling to help you elevate security, reliability, and ongoing performance for cloud and AI workloads. What's new effective January 2025 Continue reading full blog here66Views0likes0CommentsPartner Blog | Empowering partners with AI: unveiling Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat
On January 15, 2025, we announced the general availability of Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat. This secure, no-cost AI chat solution, powered by GPT-4o, integrates advanced agents directly within the chat while providing robust IT controls, including enterprise data protection. Copilot Chat opens exciting opportunities for partners to deliver value to their customers and accelerate AI adoption across organizations. It empowers partners to enhance customer engagement and generate new revenue streams through tailored AI solutions. Based on my conversations with partners and customers, it’s clear the opportunities with Copilot Chat are immense. I’m excited to share how you can use Copilot Chat to drive transformative success and greater impact with your customers. Continue reading here101Views1like0CommentsMicrosoft and OpenAI evolve partnership to drive the next phase of AI
We are thrilled to continue our strategic partnership with OpenAI and to partner on Stargate. This announcement is complementary to what our two companies have been working on together since 2019. Read more here!255Views0likes0CommentsPartner Blog | Grow your business with updated partner benefits
You asked, we listened. Your updated partner benefits are here. Microsoft is excited to announce big changes to our benefits offerings that better align with partner needs. Today, we’re adding more than 25 in-demand product licenses to many of our partner benefits offerings to give you access to the latest innovations across the Microsoft Cloud. These updated licenses include several Microsoft 365 Copilot products, Power Apps Premium, Microsoft Defender for Endpoint, and Microsoft GitHub—all of which empower your organization with intelligent collaboration, actionable insights, and robust security. This move is part of our larger commitment to evolving the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program to help Microsoft, our partners, and our shared customers continue to lead the way and accelerate the shift to AI to realize programmatic outcomes. As part of this commitment, Microsoft no longer offers Microsoft Action Pack, Microsoft Learning Action Pack, or legacy silver or gold benefits for purchase or renewal. If you renewed your benefits before January 22, 2025, you may keep those benefits until their anniversary date. Partners who have eligible active legacy silver or legacy gold benefits as of January 21, 2025 will be eligible for the remainder of the FY25 Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) incentive term, which runs through September 30, 2025. All partners can access partner benefits packages, which contain updated benefits designed to accelerate your growth and fit your business needs. Partners who provide software are encouraged to explore ISV Success, which provides additional benefits that help expand your development capabilities and accelerate your time to market. Depending on your business growth and goals, you may also choose to pursue a Solutions Partner designation or specialization, both of which provide you with a portfolio of tailored benefits to help you differentiate your organization to customers in a competitive market. Continue reading here Join the conversation in our partners benefits discussion board235Views0likes0CommentsInnovating in line with the European Union’s AI Act
As our Microsoft AI Tour reached Brussels, Paris, and Berlin toward the end of last year, we met with European organizations that were energized by the possibilities of our latest AI technologies and engaged in deployment projects. They were also alert to the fact that 2025 is the year that key obligations under the European Union’s AI Act come into effect, opening a new chapter in digital regulation as the world’s first, comprehensive AI law becomes a reality. Read the full blog here...111Views0likes0CommentsPartner Blog | AI-powered innovation leads the way at CES 2025
AI-powered innovation leads the way at CES 2025 Walking through the bustling halls of this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES), I couldn't help but reflect on the incredible journey we've taken with Windows PCs. From the early days of basic computing to the advanced capabilities of today's AI-powered Copilot+ PCs, the evolution has been remarkable. CES 2025 was a whirlwind of technology and excitement as industry leaders, partners, and enthusiasts gathered to share and experience the latest trends and innovations. One of the highlights for me was witnessing the unveiling of our partners’ new AI-driven technologies that promise to reshape the way we interact with our devices. Our device partners continue to drive the innovation and scale that make them technology leaders. I also joined an Omdia panel to discuss the potential of AI at the edge to change computing by empowering both the cloud and local edge AI to work together in a hybrid model to enable real-time processing and decision-making. This shift is driven by the need for results with little to no latency, tighter privacy and security, and the ability to operate offline in environments with unreliable internet connections. Microsoft is well positioned to help independent software vendors (ISVs) bridge this hybrid environment with a complete platform and toolset. Continue reading here151Views1like0CommentsPartner Blog | Drive customer demand and accelerate growth with Microsoft skilling offerings
The stakes of skilling have never been higher, as 2024 revealed a striking trend: 71% of employees now seek more frequent skill updates, and 80% are calling on their organizations to prioritize upskilling and reskilling investments, according to TalentLMS. Developing cutting-edge skills isn’t just a priority; it’s a competitive necessity. Microsoft partners can turn this willingness to learn into an opportunity to drive innovation and growth. We know organizations and individuals are particularly interested in sharpening their AI skills and security knowledge, as well as enhancing decision-making. That’s why the most popular skilling topics in 2024 were AI and machine learning, cybersecurity, and data literacy and analytics. Companies sought to meet skilling demand with increased investments in training programs, bootcamps, immersive experiences, and self-guided learning to better prepare for customer demand in these areas. In 2025, we anticipate that skilling trends will continue to build upon the growing demand for innovative skills, and individuals and organizations will be particularly interested in self-guided learning, bite-sized and stackable certifications, industry-specific training, and the topic of career resilience. Microsoft provides our partners with tools and opportunities to help your organization thrive in 2025. We host skilling events around the world, such as bootcamps and workshops, as well as self-guided learning opportunities to develop sales and technical skills in the areas most critical to your organization. Our skilling offerings include: Build expertise with Partner Project Ready Workshops Your organization’s developers, solution architects, and data scientists can prepare for real customer needs with our Partner Project Ready Workshops. Continue reading here74Views1like0CommentsPartner Blog | What's new for Microsoft partners: January 2025 edition
We value partner feedback and celebrate the diversity of voices within our community as we improve the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program. Our first blog of 2025 offers expert insights, updated learning resources, and recent benefits from the last four months to support your growth. Announcements Accelerating growth through partners in the era of AI AI is reshaping every industry, and Microsoft partners are leading the way. Read Nicole Dezen's blog to learn about the role of Cloud Solution Providers (CSPs) in supporting small and medium businesses, new incentives and flexible billing for partners, and a special Microsoft 365 E5 promotion for AI readiness. Partner Center Technical Corner: December 2024 edition This month’s highlights include a closer glimpse at the Partner Center AI assistant (preview), important security updates, and a recap of recently released capabilities. As always, you can find the most up-to-date technical roadmap and essential Partner Center resources at the end of the blog. Updates to the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards In 2025, we’re shifting the awards timeline to later in the calendar year to give our partners more time to showcase their innovations and achievements. Stay tuned for updates on nomination details coming later this spring and mark your calendars to celebrate the winners and finalists during Microsoft Ignite in 2025. Flexible billing for Microsoft 365 Copilot; pricing updates for annual subscriptions and Teams Phone As of December 1, 2024, we're offering an updated monthly billing plan for annual subscriptions to Microsoft 365 Copilot, Microsoft 365 Copilot for Sales, and Microsoft 365 Copilot for Service on the new commerce platform. Learn how this will give customers added flexibility and help accelerate partner momentum on Copilot sales. Continue reading here356Views1like0Comments