I had the opportunity to attend MCAPS Start for Partners, where Microsoft shared its vision, strategy, and roadmap to help partners align to their FY25 priorities. It’s always inspiring to attend new fiscal year kick off events to see how much Microsoft is investing in their partners and how much effort they are putting into helping their partner ecosystem build their businesses.  Microsoft is empowering partners in FY25 to deliver innovative and impactful solutions to customers across industries and priority scenarios. Below are some of the key takeaways and best practices that I learned from the event, and how they can help you grow your business and differentiate yourself in the market.

Microsoft Key Priorities

One of the main themes of the events was the Microsoft key priorities for FY25, which are:

• Copilot For Every Role: Microsoft wants to enable every partner to become Copilot experts to help scale the Copilot offerings to every customer. Similar to the “Windows on every desktop” mission statement, Microsoft is looking to have Copilot used by every user in the world.
• AI Design Win in Every Account: Microsoft believes that artificial intelligence (AI) is the key to unlocking new opportunities and creating value for customers. AI design win means that every partner should have at least one AI solution or project in every customer account, leveraging the Microsoft AI platform and services. Microsoft provides a comprehensive AI portfolio, covering the entire spectrum from data to insights to action, and supporting various scenarios such as conversational AI, computer vision, natural language processing, machine learning, and cognitive services.
• Cyber Security for Every Customer: Microsoft recognizes that cyber security is a top priority and a strategic imperative for every customer, especially in the cloud era. Cyber security for every customer means that every partner should help their customers protect their data, devices, identities, and infrastructure from cyber threats, using the Microsoft security solutions and best practices. Microsoft offers a holistic and integrated security approach, spanning across identity and access management, threat protection, information protection, cloud security, and security management.
• Azure Migrations: Microsoft aims to accelerate the adoption and usage of Azure. Azure Migrations means that every partner should help their customers migrate to the cloud and optimize their Azure experience, using the Microsoft migration tools and frameworks. Microsoft provides a seamless and secure migration path, supporting various scenarios such as infrastructure, data, applications, and hybrid cloud.
• Microsoft 365: Microsoft 365 continues to be at the center of everything Microsoft. Getting more companies into Microsoft 365 will enable more customers to have success with Copilot. Microsoft is still relying on more partners to get customers to premium Microsoft 365 SKUs.

Microsoft Solution Areas

Another key theme of the event was partners aligning themselves to the six primary Microsoft solution areas. The primary Microsoft solution areas are:

• Modern Work & Surface: This solution area is about enabling customers to work from anywhere, anytime, and on any device, using the Microsoft 365 suite and the Surface devices. Modern Work & Surface helps customers improve their productivity, collaboration, communication, and creativity, while ensuring security, compliance, and manageability.
• Security: This solution area is about providing customers with comprehensive and integrated security solutions, using the Microsoft security portfolio and the Azure cloud platform. Security helps customers protect their data, devices, identities, and infrastructure from cyber threats, while enabling them to meet their regulatory and industry standards.
• Infrastructure: This solution area is about helping customers modernize their IT infrastructure and optimize their cloud operations, using the Azure cloud platform and the hybrid cloud solutions. Infrastructure helps customers reduce their costs, increase their agility, and improve their performance, reliability, and scalability.
• Digital and App Innovation: This solution area is about empowering customers to create and deploy innovative and differentiated applications, using the Azure cloud platform and the app development tools and services. Digital and App Innovation helps customers accelerate their time to market, enhance their user experience, and increase their competitive advantage.
• Data and AI: This solution area is about enabling customers to harness the power of data and artificial intelligence, using the Azure cloud platform and the data and AI services and solutions. Data and AI helps customers generate insights, make predictions, and take actions, while improving their efficiency, quality, and innovation.
• Business Applications: This solution area is about helping customers transform their business processes and outcomes, using the Dynamics 365 suite and the Power Platform. Business Applications helps customers streamline their operations, engage their customers, empower their employees, and optimize their decisions, while leveraging the Microsoft cloud platform and ecosystem.

Microsoft Best Practices

The last theme of the events was the Microsoft best practices, which are the five proven strategies that Microsoft shared with partners to help them succeed and grow in the cloud market. The Microsoft best practices are:

• Partner Superpowers: This best practice is about showcasing and amplifying your unique strengths and capabilities, using the Microsoft partner ecosystem and the co-sell program. Your Superpower should identify and communicate your core competencies, value propositions, and differentiators, to create and deliver more innovative and competitive solutions and services to customers.
• Industry Expertise: This best practice is about developing and demonstrating deep industry knowledge and vertical solutions, using the Microsoft industry cloud offerings and the industry-specific resources and programs. Industry Expertise means that partners should understand the needs, challenges, and trends of their target industries, and tailor their solutions and services to address them, to differentiate themselves and win more customers and deals.
• Trusted Advisors to your customers: This best practice is about building and maintaining long-term and trusted relationships with your customers, using the Microsoft customer success framework and the customer lifecycle management tools and best practices. Trusted Advisors to your customers means that partners should engage with their customers throughout their cloud journey, from planning to adoption to optimization, and provide them with guidance, support, and value-added services, to increase their satisfaction, loyalty, and retention.
• Investing in Marketing: This best practice is about investing in effective and scalable marketing strategies and campaigns, using the Microsoft marketing resources and programs. Investing in Marketing means that partners should leverage the Microsoft marketing platforms, such as the Partner Marketing Center, and the Partner Solution Showcase, to generate awareness, demand, and leads for their solutions and services, and to reach more customers and prospects.
• Change Management for the AI revolution: This best practice is about preparing and enabling your customers and your own organization for the AI revolution, using the Microsoft AI readiness and adoption tools and best practices. Change Management for the AI revolution means that partners should help their customers and their own employees understand, embrace, and adopt AI solutions and technologies, and provide them with training, education, and support, to overcome the challenges and realize the benefits of AI.

These are just a few of the key takeaways and best practices that I learned from the MCAPS Start for Partners events this week. I couldn’t be more excited about what FY25 means for us at TPM and all of the partners in the Microsoft ecosystem.  If there is anything that The Partner Masters can do to help you in your journey with Microsoft, please reach out!  Thank you for reading and happy partnering!