Introduction
Achieving recognition for your organization’s achievements and innovation with a Microsoft Partner of the Year Award (winner or finalist) is a remarkable accomplishment. Every year, partners submit for awards in over 50 categories. Typically, there is one winner and three finalists recognized for each category award.
Along with the recognition comes a press release template and a digital badge that you can leverage in marketing campaigns, on your website and on your marketplace pages. Other elements might include a Microsoft-supported case study, main-stage call-outs from Microsoft leadership, and greater opportunities to co-sell. Most partners will tell you that being recognized as a winner or a finalist increased their opportunity funnel and helped them close more deals.
If you peruse the list of winners and finalists each year, you will learn that all sizes and types of partners are recognized. You do not have to be a large global partner to win.
But to win you do have to demonstrate business innovation, technical innovation and a demonstrated commitment to advancing Microsoft’s mission, “To empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more”.
The awards categories and criteria are usually released at the end of January each year, with the awards submissions typically due the first week of April. This gives you the months of February and March to create and enter your submissions. But it’s not too early to start now.
Why start now?
The importance of early preparation cannot be stressed enough. Often there are multiple people in your organization who were involved with winning the customer account and implementing the technology. Frequently, these people might move to other roles in your organization or be busy or unavailable during the critical eight weeks that you are pulling your submission together. Starting early allows you to identify the key elements that might make the story a compelling part of your entry. It also helps you identify which stories, while great stories on their own, might not be a fit for a Microsoft Partner of the Year Award.
Preparing for your best – Building a story long-list
A “story long-list” is a collection of your best customer success stories, where you’ve leveraged Microsoft technology to bring about transformative changes in a customer’s operations or the industry they operate in. These stories serve as the foundation for your award submission and are vital in showcasing your organization’s innovative prowess.
Not every successful implementation of Microsoft technology will fit the specific criteria of a Microsoft award category. For every 3-4 customer stories identified by your sales and delivery teams, usually only one is a good fit for the award. Therefore, you need time to review and identify key criteria to help you select the most suitable stories once the award submissions open.
How to build a story long-list:
- Align now with Sales and Delivery Teams: Collaboration between your sales and delivery teams is critical. They are on the frontlines and can identify projects that stand out in terms of transformation and innovation. Schedule meetings with these teams to gather insights and determine potential award-worthy stories.
- Story Evaluation: Assess each identified story against the existing award criteria and categories. You can use last year’s categories as a rough guide, but to make it easy, here are the four main criteria you need to identify:
- What was the transformation that the customer experienced?
- What Microsoft technology was used?
- What did you do for the customer that was unique and innovative that sets you apart from any other partner?
- What state is the customer project in (pre-delivery, pilot, delivery, post-delivery)? Microsoft is looking for stories that are post-delivery for at least phase one of the project.
- Metrics and Results: Quantify the impact. Use concrete data and metrics to demonstrate the success of each project. This could include cost savings, revenue growth, increased efficiency, or any other relevant KPIs as they will help support your submission. Projects with delivery before year-end can provide metrics by March for the submission.
- Involve the Customer: Reach out to your customer and ask for their perspective on the transformation. Customer testimonials and endorsements add credibility to your submission. Let the customer know that this will be a private submission and only seen by a handful of Microsoft judges – that nothing will go into the public domain. This makes it easier to get their support, especially if the customer is not allowed to provide a public reference.
- Document with Win Wires: Microsoft loves to see that you have documented your wins. The best way is with a public-facing customer case study (although those often take a long time to develop), but an internal win wire that can be shared with Microsoft is also good evidence that will support your submission.
- Engage with Microsoft: Reach out to your Microsoft contacts and ask them how they perceive each customer story you have collected, as well as your company and the value you bring to your partnership with Microsoft.
Conclusion
Preparing for a Microsoft Partner of the Year Award submission is a meticulous process that requires careful planning, collaboration and storytelling prowess. Starting early and engaging with your sales and delivery teams to build a robust story long-list is one of the keys to success. Remember, it’s not just about showcasing your achievements but also about how Microsoft technology has catalyzed transformation in your customers’ businesses and industries. By following these steps and putting in the effort, you increase your chances of earning the recognition you deserve in the world of technology innovation.
If you need help collecting and documenting your customer stories, consider using our free tool “daXai” which is available at https://www.daxai.com/pricing/#awards or hiring the Mercer-MacKay Microsoft Awards writing team. Email us at awards@mercermackay.com.
Good luck with your Microsoft Partner of the Year Award submission!