Wednesday, 13 January 2010

If you type ‘Microsoft Gold Partner’ into your internet search engine, you will find a wealth of information about this coveted accreditation. Indeed anyone carrying out research for an ERP enterprise resource planning software project will come across it, usually sooner rather than later. But why should we care if a software provider is a ‘Microsoft Gold Partner’? What benefits does working with a company of this status bring to us as end-users?

In spite of its monolithic size, Microsoft is a surprisingly agile organisation. It derives its success by developing useful solutions for its core market: the Small to Medium-sized Enterprise (SME), while at the same time not claiming to have all-seeing knowledge of each industry sector’s business specialisations. This, it leaves to its vast network of Value Added Resellers (VARs) within its partner channel, who act as the gateway to Microsoft’s comprehensive product offering. These companies not only specialise in reselling particular solutions from the Microsoft Dynamics product family - Microsoft Dynamics AX, GP, NAV and SL – many also add industry-specific features and functionality which make the product more suitable for a particular sector.

One such example is Microsoft Gold Partner Syscom PLC. Syscom specialises in providing Microsoft Dynamics AX and Microsoft Dynamics GP to companies within the manufacturing and distribution sectors. As part of a continued commitment to tailoring Microsoft Dynamics to the demands of these industries, Syscom has recently announced the release of advanced shipment functionality for Microsoft Dynamics AX. Syscom’s development will allow businesses to better monitor and manage shipping times, facilitate the tracking of containers and streamline administrative procedures for more efficient container processing.

“The manufacturing and distribution sectors are facing increasing pressure on margins and lead times within an environment of quickly changing market demand,” says Sally Reynolds, Marketing Manager of Syscom. “Consequently, supply chain management is emerging as a critical success factor.”

This type of product specialisation by VARs is what makes an approved accreditation scheme crucial to the successful reselling of Microsoft Dynamics products within vertical markets. If, like Microsoft, your access to the market relies on thousands of partners, which not only distribute your product but can also re-configure them like building blocks to make the ideal solution for the end user, you should be very careful how they go about it. You’d want to make sure that there’s some competency involved – your reputation might rely on it.

Can you ensure that they will all configure and sell your products the way you meant them to be? And don’t forget there are a lot of these resellers around. A picture of a sheep-dog attempting to herd squirrels comes to mind here...

And there’s not just Microsoft’s peace of mind to consider of course – companies that are considering working with a new business solutions software provider will want to be able to investigate their credentials. After all, they could end up investing a vast sum of money in their products and services and, perhaps more importantly, they may spend a long time working with them as a trusted partner.

An approved accreditation scheme seems to be a reasonable way of achieving this co-ordination and inspiring confidence in those purchasing software. However, as we all know, membership of an accredited association can, at times, be as credibility-building as including your National Cycling Proficiency Test as a CV qualification. What is required, here, is an accreditation that is as robust in the credibility stakes as it is of value to customers.

Launched back in December 2003, the Microsoft Partner Program was set up to represent Microsoft’s commitment to its business partners and, through them, to its customer base.

There are three levels of Partnership in the programme: the lowest being the Registered Membership level; the intermediate level is the Certified Partner, which represents a high degree of competency and expertise in Microsoft technologies. The highest level of Gold Certified Partner enjoys a very close relationship with Microsoft, allowing full access to a comprehensive range of the software giant’s support resources.

An internet search on the subject will yield a seemingly large number of Microsoft Gold Partners eager to shout about their achievement. Indeed, at first sight, it may seem that there are few VARs that don’t boast this accreditation. Even bearing in mind that a software provider would hardly post a press release about the Microsoft Gold Partnership if they had failed to make the grade, it seems at first glance that Gold Partnership is available to practically anyone who asks for it.

However, dig a little deeper and you will see this is not the case. Not everyone can become a Gold Partner, and it certainly doesn’t happen overnight. What’s more, unlike some membership schemes, you can’t just buy your way up the ladder: it has to be earned; tough examinations have to be passed and stringent criteria must be met.

A closer look will reveal that many of these Gold Partners are American software companies. It’s interesting to note that, out of about twenty five thousand registered Microsoft Partners in the UK, only about 10% have achieved the Gold Partner accreditation. What’s more, only a small percentage of these can boast a sustained retention over a number of years, and even fewer will also have multiple competencies.

To achieve Gold Partnership status, a software company has to declare its expertise in at least one main Microsoft product-led competency as a specialist area. The declared competencies are designed for customers looking for a particular type of solution; it helps them identify a partner’s capabilities with specific Microsoft technologies.

The VAR’s individual software professionals also have to personally pass rigorous examinations on a regular basis to become Microsoft Certified Professionals (MCPs) and Microsoft Certified Systems Engineers (MCSEs). This is a qualification that is becoming rapidly recognised in the industry – great if you’re a software engineer looking for a new job. In his recent study of MCPs, MCSEs and their supervisors, Jack McKillip, Ph.D. of Southern Illinois University, rated MCPs as highly effective workers, with IT supervisors rating MCSEs as more competent on all global dimensions compared to non-certified systems engineers. This is definitely not a throw-away certification.

“We are very proud of our Microsoft Gold Partner status,” says Sally, “and we work very hard to ensure we retain it. We have to meet stringent quality standards each year, which includes a number of our qualified technical staff passing examinations representing specific skills and services. Syscom has been a Microsoft Gold Partner since 2004, and we are delighted to have retained our Microsoft Gold Partner status for the fifth year running. Our continued success reflects the specialist skill set of our technical team and our proven ability meet our customers’ needs.”

However, it’s all well and good being part of an elite, well-qualified global club, and we would all like our software providers to have a high level of expertise and skill within their product set, but what is really in it for the customer?

By all accounts there seems to be quite a lot in it for them. Companies searching for solutions to achieve greater efficiency and profitability have rightly become extremely cautious about who handles their information management needs. Any new systems implementation project can either make a business fly or, if executed wrongly, can set it back by years. This is why these customers are looking for more of a partnership approach of their own with software houses; a relationship akin to a trusted business adviser, such as an accountant or legal team. The days of selling boxed solutions and walking away are long gone.

And if you were going to choose a new business partner, wouldn’t you choose one that is well connected? This is precisely what a Microsoft Gold Partner brings to the table.

John Moses, Managing Director of Syscom PLC, explains: “As a Microsoft Gold Partner, we are able to bring an unprecedented wealth of support to our customers. This special relationship we have with Microsoft means that we are incredibly well connected. Not only do we have proven and accredited expertise in designing and implementing solutions to deliver efficiencies to businesses, we also provide a gateway to valuable up-to-the-minute knowledge made possible through our Gold Partner status.”

Allison Watson, Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President of the Worldwide Partner Group, also believes that Gold Partners, with their certified experience, training and support direct from Microsoft can build a much more positive customer experience: “Customers are looking for partner companies that can bridge the gap between their business demands and their technological capabilities. They need to trust in suppliers that can act as expert advisers for their long-term strategic plans. We place tremendous value on our partners, who help us deliver solutions and applications to achieve this with the highest levels of professionalism.”

So we’ve heard from Microsoft and Microsoft Gold Partner Syscom PLC about why Microsoft Gold Partner accreditation is so valuable. But what about someone independent? Someone who can tell us about the downsides as well as the benefits? After all, we are told that all that glisters is not gold…

To get to the bottom of the real advantages and disadvantages of anything that seems too good to be true, you have to think laterally. So I typed in ‘Microsoft Gold Partner–disadvantages’... then ‘Microsoft Gold Partner–the downside’... then ‘–not all roses’... then ‘–not what it’s cracked up to be’... then ‘–my personal nightmare’... ‘–how my business lost £000s’... ‘–ended in divorce’... and finally, ‘–end of the world as we know it’. But sadly, I found no juxtaposition of a single negative phrase relating to the Microsoft Partnership Program (or Programme, if you’re this side of the Atlantic). Not an e-zine article... no anarchistic website... not even the merest blog.

What I did find was a recent report by Gartner, global leaders in independent information technology research and advice, identifying Microsoft Dynamics AX as the only solution that currently qualifies as a market leader for product-centric midmarket companies. What was interesting about this report in the context of evaluating the Microsoft Gold Partner accreditation is that this prestigious placement of Microsoft Dynamics AX was, in part, due to Microsoft’s approach to offering industry specific functionality through a high level of mutual engagement with selected channel partners. Indeed the ability of Microsoft’s partner ecosystem to deliver industry- and customer- specific solutions, coupled with Microsoft’s commitment to ensuing the quality of its partners through continually improved, extensive certification programs are listed among the solution’s key strengths.

It appears no one has a bad word to say about the Microsoft Gold Partner accreditation. Rather, the scheme is of clear benefit to customers in that it not only raises standards, it also maintains them. Customers can be sure that their technological partner is under continuous scrutiny by Microsoft for quality in all areas of its work. Accreditation is by no means a ‘lifetime achievement’: the VAR has to invest time and effort into keeping its accreditation as it is monitored on a continuous basis and knowledge of any new developments is regularly tested.

An accreditation this valuable, which is not only awarded but also needs to be constantly maintained by the VAR, should inspire a significant amount of confidence in customers looking for solutions partner. It seems we finally have an accreditation that lives up to its name!