Get ready for the 2026 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards: Nominations open June 1
From innovative solutions to high-impact services, the 2026 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards recognize and celebrate partner success in delivering meaningful customer outcomes across solution areas, industries, and regions. They’re an opportunity to highlight the exceptional work partners deliver and the many ways you’re driving Frontier Transformation—turning AI ambition into measurable, high-impact business outcomes for customers. If your organization has delivered transformative solutions on Microsoft platforms over the past year, now’s the time to begin shaping your strongest submission. The nomination window for the 2026 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards opens June 1, 2026, and closes July 7, 2026. Winners will be announced in November 2026, timed to celebrate with the global partner ecosystem at Microsoft Ignite. Review the 2026 award guidelines and resources linked at the end of this blog to begin preparing your organization’s submission early. What’s new for 2026 Across the ecosystem, partners continue to advance what’s possible for customers. Some are building innovative solutions and IP. Others are delivering high-impact services that modernize operations, strengthen security, and accelerate adoption at scale using Microsoft technology. The Partner of the Year Awards recognize these achievements and celebrate the breadth of partner innovation, execution, and customer impact. Award categories highlight how partners are delivering customer outcomes across solution areas and industries. The awards also recognize partners worldwide through the Country and Region Partner of the Year Awards, reflecting the global reach and local impact of partner delivery. New awards for 2026 include: Frontier Transformation: Recognizes partners who innovate with Microsoft AI, spanning Copilot, Foundry, and agent-based solutions, to deliver end-to-end customer transformation and create value through scalable, real-world business impact. Commercial Device Channel: Recognizes partners who deliver exceptional impact across commercial device sales motions, driving customer transformation through Copilot+ PCs, AI-powered devices, Windows 11, Surface, and OEM portfolios. In addition to updated category awards, a regional award tier recognizes partner impact across the Americas, EMEA, and Asia regions. Why nominations matter A strong nomination does more than compete for an award; it helps you clearly articulate your value to customers and Microsoft. By capturing your strongest work, you sharpen how you tell the story, from the customer challenge through the solution, delivery, and outcomes you achieved together. Finalists and winners gain broader recognition with Microsoft and customers. That recognition can increase credibility with customers, create stronger visibility with Microsoft field teams, and ultimately translate into expanded business opportunities. How to build a strong submission The winning submissions rarely come together at the last minute. Use the time before the nomination window opens to align your story, validate the details, and establish a simple internal process so your team can execute quickly once nominations open. Choose the category where your story is strongest and most differentiated. Start by reviewing the guidelines, which include details on each award. Focus on one flagship customer story or solution motion that clearly demonstrates what’s different about your approach and why it mattered to the customer. Document measurable outcomes and results. Strong nominations are grounded in specific proof points, so the key elements of your story should include: The customer scenario and the stakes. What you delivered and how it was deployed. How you used Microsoft technology to drive outcomes. Evidence of results, adoption, and business impact (as permitted and approved for sharing). Start the process for customer reference approvals early so you don’t lose time later. Treat your nomination like a small release. Assign a single owner, identify contributors (delivery, engineering, marketing, customer success), and set internal milestones that land well ahead of the July 7 submission deadline. Build in time for review so your submission is crisp, consistent, and complete. As you prepare your submission, use the following resources to plan, validate, and submit with confidence: Review the submission guidelines. Understand the official rules. Explore the awards overview. Check out the FAQ. Visit the awards website. Review the 2026 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards guidelines and resources now to begin shaping your strongest submission ahead of the nomination window opening on June 1. Read this article on the Microsoft Partner BlogComing soon: the 2026 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards
It's almost that time of year again: the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards are quickly approaching. These awards recognize the exceptional work partners deliver across solution areas, industries, and regions. And they celebrate the many ways our partners are driving Frontier Transformation––turning AI ambition into high-impact business outcomes for customers. Winning an award is a meaningful achievement that highlights the transformative influence partners like you have on customers around the world. Nominations open on June 1 and close on July 7. The winners will be announced on November 11, just in time to celebrate Microsoft Ignite 2026. Learn more about the awards at the link, start preparing your organization’s submissions, and be on the lookout for more details coming in mid-May. Learn more about the Partner of the Year AwardsDon’t miss out: Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards nominations are now open!
It's time: the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards nomination window is now officially open until Tuesday, July 7, at 6:00 PM Pacific Time. Nominate your organization today for awards highlighting exceptional work across solution areas, industries, and regions. The 2026 Partner of the Year Awards celebrate the many ways our partners are driving Frontier Transformation––turning AI ambition into high-impact business outcomes for customers. Winning an award is a meaningful achievement that highlights the transformative influence partners like you have on customers around the world—and positions your organization for greater market recognition and new business opportunities. Winners receive benefits such as a customized logo and other go-to-market assets that signify award-winning status, as well as impactful press coverage. To prepare your submissions, we recommend reviewing the following resources before completing your application: Check out the awards website and the FAQ. Read the awards overview and the blog. Review the submission guidelines and the rules and regulations. Get advice from the judges. Winners and finalists will be announced on November 11—just in time to celebrate together at Microsoft Ignite 2026. We look forward to reviewing another amazing set of nominations, so get started today. Don’t miss this opportunity to celebrate your organization’s accomplishments on a global stage! Nominate your organization todayCongratulations to the 2025 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards winners and finalists
Each year, Microsoft partners redefine what’s possible for customers through innovation, collaboration, and trust built with Microsoft Cloud and AI. Partners impact industries across the globe, enabling organizations to modernize operations, unlock new opportunities with AI, and deliver sustainable growth at scale. The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards celebrate that impact. These awards recognize the partners who have set a new standard for excellence by activating Frontier Firm capability, advancing business transformation, creating customer success, and contributing to positive change in their communities. I’m proud to announce the 2025 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards winners and finalists. This year’s awards span eight global categories that reflect the breadth of innovation across our ecosystem: Azure Business Applications Modern Work Security Industry Social Impact Partner Innovation Business Transformation In addition to the global award categories, we’re recognizing partners from over 80 countries and regions as part of the Country and Region Partner of the Year Awards. Together, these honorees represent the strength and diversity of our ecosystem and the collective innovation that drives us forward. This year, we received more than 4,600 nominations from 100 countries and regions, reflecting the continued momentum and growth of our ecosystem. Every submission showcased innovation, technical excellence, and inclusion as partners bring transformative solutions to market. We’ll celebrate these achievements together at Microsoft Ignite, taking place November 18–21, 2025. I look forward to connecting with many of you there as we recognize success, share insights, and continue to accelerate opportunity and innovation together. Register to attend Microsoft Ignite. You can explore the full list of winners and finalists on the Partner of the Year Awards website, along with stories highlighting partner innovation across Azure, Business Applications, Modern Work, and Security. Congratulations to this year’s winners, finalists, and nominees. Your dedication to customer success and your drive to transform business through Microsoft Cloud solutions continue to define what’s possible when we innovate together.Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards: Want to Win? Here’s How!
Being named a Microsoft Partner of the Year can transform your business—but crafting a winning nomination requires strategy. Join us for an exclusive webinar on June 11th at 10:00 am CDT where past winners & industry experts will reveal insider tips on: ✅ How to tell a compelling story in your nomination ✅ Key strategies to showcase measurable impact ✅ Common pitfalls to avoid Seats are filling fast—secure yours now! Register here As a thank you for attending, all guests will receive a copy of the eBook "Winning the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards."Nominations are open for the 2025 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards!
The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards celebrate our partners and their remarkable work driving digital transformation for customers across the globe. Partners can self-nominate during the Partner of the Year Awards nomination window, which is open now through July 18, 2025. These awards recognize outstanding successes and innovations across solution areas, industries, and key areas of impact, with a focus on strategic initiatives and technologies. This is an opportunity for your organization to be recognized on a global scale for the innovative solutions built using Microsoft technologies Finalists and winners receive global recognition from Microsoft, visibility within the partner ecosystem and Microsoft field teams, opportunities to build credibility with customers, enhanced market presence, and business momentum. Winners will also receive a Microsoft Ignite exclusive Partner of the Year Award winners’ experience, learn more by checking out the blog. How to nominate: Review the official award rules, frequently asked questions (FAQ), guidance from judges and program overview documents on the Partner of the Year Awards website. As part of choosing an award to nominate for, be sure to review the awards’ entire guidelines, inclusive of overview, eligibility requirements and executive summary sections to determine eligibility. Submit your nomination by the July 18, 6:00pm PT deadline. If you have any questions, please send an email to the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards team (potyasup@microsoft.com) and allow 48 hours for a response. You can also refer to our AMA session to see if your question has already been asked and answered in the comments.Post AMA Questions | Partner of the Year Awards program and nomination process
Thanks to those that joined our AMA (Ask Me Anything) | Partner of the Year Awards program and nomination process event today, lots of great questions! If you were unable to attend, please feel free to post your questions in the comments of this blog and the team will respond to them as they are able. Before posting you may want to check the comments in the event link above as it may have already been asked and answered. Check out the POTYA Homepage for all details around this program. Be sure to follow the POTYA label in our Partner News Blog to stay up to date on all announcements. Important links Submission portal: https://aka.ms/potya_nominate Guidelines: https://aka.ms/POTYA_Guidelines Rules and Regulations: https://aka.ms/POTYA_RulesRegulations Guidance from the Judges: https://aka.ms/POTYA_JudgesGuidance FAQ sheet: https://aka.ms/POTYA_FAQ Overview: https://aka.ms/POTYA_OverviewOnly four days left to submit for a Microsoft Partner of the Year Award!
2025 finalists and winners receive global recognition from Microsoft, visibility within the partner ecosystem and Microsoft field teams, opportunities to build credibility with customers, enhanced market presence, and business momentum. Winners will also receive a Microsoft Ignite exclusive Partner of the Year Award winners’ experience, learn more by checking out the blog. How to nominate: Review the official award rules, frequently asked questions (FAQ), guidance from judges and program overview documents on the Partner of the Year Awards website. As part of choosing an award to nominate for, be sure to review the awards’ entire guidelines, inclusive of overview, eligibility requirements and executive summary sections to determine eligibility. Submit your nomination by the July 18, 6:00pm PT deadline. If you have any questions, please send an email to the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards team (potyasup@microsoft.com) and allow 48 hours for a response.Updates to the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards! 🏆
The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards acknowledge outstanding successes and innovations by partners in over 100 countries and in a wide variety of categories and industries, including cloud to edge technologies, entrepreneurial spirit and social impact. 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. Watch this space for more updates on nomination details coming later this spring and mark your calendars to celebrate the winners and finalists during Microsoft Ignite. Thanks to all the partners who submitted nominations for this year's awards! Explore the winners and finalists now. Meet the 2024 Partner of the Year Award winners
