BMS Blog: SBS Consulting in the UK

Whilst at WPC09 I attended the first meeting of the new Partner Area Leads. As this was the initial meeting it was really all about introductions and setting expectations etc. during the next 12 months rather than an in depth exploration of any particular topic.

We were joined part way through the meeting by Birger Steen, Vice President of SMB&D & Judy Kolde, Senior Director, Broad Partner Strategy, WW Partner Group for a Q&A session around SMB partners, the community and the changes to the partner program, or as it is now known the Microsoft Partner Network. Obviously there was a lot of discussion around what will be happening to the SBSC designation, the reasons behind the changes and how it will effect SBSC partners.

The impression I got was that Microsoft are looking to simplify the partner program and have therefore decided to create various new competencies and that includes bringing the SBSC designation into that framework. The concern over the disappearance of the “blue badge” was raised and it seemed to come as a surprise to Birger that it would cause concern for partners. I do get the impression that in some countries the SBSC designation has not taken off in the community sense like it has in the UK. Birger talked about the possibility of incorporating some kind of SBSC logo in to the new Microsoft Partner Network (MPN) and would take that information back to Redmond.

I also got to meet up with “Mr. Licensing” Eric Ligman Global Partner Experience Lead, Microsoft Worldwide Partner Group. His understanding of MS licensing is truly amazing and it was a pleasure to talk to him. His knowledge and passion about the SMB arena is without reproach and I learnt more in an hour talking to Eric than I’ve learnt about SMB licensing in the last 12 months!

I have to say I left the meeting with more questions than answers, particularly around the impact of the partner program changes but I’m sure it will all start to become clear with time.

My next PAL task is to meet with Emily Lambert for the first of our regional PAL meetings and discuss the first quarters actions. You can be sure I’ll be putting all of your questions and concerns to Emily and the team so please email me anything you want on the agenda as soon as possible.

The Microsoft Partner Program is evolving into the Microsoft Partner Network. This brings with it significant changes to the SBSC community designation we have today.

As blogged by Emily Lambert:

The Small Business Specialist Community designation will be reassigned to a new competency called Small Business Solutions.  Key enhancements include providing additional entry points to target other types of partner communities such as Web VARs.  With that, the new competency will retain many of the same requirements and benefits that partners are familiar with today - and partners should continue to enrol in the Small Business Specialist Community designation to maintain program status and benefits.

the Small Business Solutions competency is for partners who focus on supplying a range of base technology solutions to small business customers. Partners should be experienced in working with customers who value a local service that can meet their specific IT needs.

When will the changes take effect?

These changes are not scheduled to take effect until May 2010 and Microsoft will aim to advise and support you through the transition process.

Read that again:

The Small Business Specialist Community designation will be reassigned to a new competency called Small Business Solutions.

My immediate reaction to this is that Microsoft are trying to bring the SBSC designation more in line with the rest of the program by turning the SBSC designation into an actual competency. However it does mean we will effectively “lose” our differentiation as it looks as though the blue sbsc logo will be going as well. While I can see some benefits to this we (and Microsoft) have put a lot of time, effort and expense into the SBSC designation as it is our key differentiator from the rest of the program.

I can’t find any definitive information at the moment on the requirements that need to be met for the new Small Business competency other than to say it appears many of the requirements will remain the same. I’m attending the first PAL meeting this Thursday at WPC09 so I’m hoping some clarification will be forthcoming.

Please post your initial thoughts/concerns/reaction to the SBSC designation changes below or email me at swright@bmsnet.co.uk BEFORE Thursday 16th July so I can take them up at the PAL meeting.

The day is almost over, or at least the sessions etc. will shortly becoming to and end and then it’s off to a cocktail reception at the W Hotel courtesy of the Windows 7 Ignite team.

For me the 2 main point of interest today (and there have been a lot) is the announcement around the partner program changes and the fact that Dynamics CRM gets a Twitter add-on!

Corporate Vice President Allison Watson kicked off the WPC09 conference on Monday, July 13, by launching the new Microsoft Partner Network. Watson was joined by Stephen Elop, president of Microsoft Business Division and Bill Veghte, senior vice president, Microsoft Business Division, to outline a bold roadmap of products and services the company will deliver in the coming year to help partners distinguish themselves with customers and compete confidently in the new economy. Watson said, “With the Microsoft Partner Network we’re creating a community based on our continued commitment to serve the needs of our partners and help them reach their full potential. Working together, we continue to focus on creating innovative solutions that drive profitability and sustain competitive advantage.”

Looking forward to the keynotes tomorrow and some more excellent breakout sessions.

Another vid from WPC09: A quick tour of the city and the day of giving on the Sunday:

A couple of vids from WPC09

So I’m making the final preparations before heading off to New Orleans for the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC09), which I am very much looking forward to. This will be my first time attending WPC and I’m guessing the scale of it is going to come as something of a shock to the system!

I’ve got a full itinerary of keynotes, breakout sessions, focus groups and partying planned courtesy of the Windows 7 Ignite team, my fellow MS partners and the digital WPC site.

One of the most important meetings I’ll be attending is the first PAL meeting for the 09/10 PAL’s which is scheduled for the Thursday morning. There I should find out who my fellow PAL’s from around the globe are and find out what changes are planned for the SBSC program and other relevant information.

I’m planning on blogging during the events but I’ll also be tweeting about the most important announcements so please feel free to follow me on twitter. I’m also taking the Flip HD video camera kindly provided by the Windows 7 Ignite team so I might even post up a few vids! Watch this space.

Please feel free to send me any questions you’d like me to put to either the Windows 7 team or anything regarding SBSC and I’ll make sure it gets asked.

July’s meeting is fast approaching and this month we have 2 speakers who can help maximise your exposure and help control your managed services costs:

First up is Ranbir Sahota of Vitis PR, a Public Relations company specialising it IT PR:

Our broad-range of tech experience spans open source, internet security, network security, biometric security, web application security, public sector technology organisations, business intelligence, document management, content management, business process management, biotechnology, telecoms network infrastructure, enterprise software, software testing, web conferencing, digital marketing recruitment, clean tech, Chip and PIN security, VOIP, mobile workforce and outsourcing.

For our clients we target specialist technology trade, national and broadcast media.  We have also conducted successful campaigns for clients that provide software or hardware for the following sectors: retail, logistics, security, financial services, education, recruitment, hospitality and marketing.

For start ups
Few start-ups can hope to compete with established players using traditional marketing strategies, but with a well thought out public relations strategy even the smallest companies can be heard without having to spend large amounts of their funding on PR.
For small to medium sized companies
The Vitis PR team has years of experience designing and implementing campaigns that help small to medium sized (SMEs) companies take on the established players.

Second up is Christian Nagele of CentraStage:

CentraStage is an IT support platform with a difference. Designed and built in the UK for the IT support company servicing the SME marketplace, it simplifies the management and support of thousands of remote devices over multiple customers, giving IT support companies visibility and control of their environment through a web-based management interface. Uniquely, however, and unlike many other managed service platforms and support technologies, at £1 per device per month CentraStage is priced to go on every device – PCs, laptops, servers – and works out of the box.

With the core functionality of CentraStage being remote support, audit and monitoring, software deployment and configuration, reporting and web-based administration, CentraStage allows cost-effective management of customer devices through a single system.

The CentraStage pricing model means no upfront capital investment - you pay monthly for what you use. Simply log in, deploy the CentraStage client software and you are up and running.

Looks like it’s going to be a great meeting. I’ll send out a calendar request shortly but as normal the meeting is at the Arden Hotel, 5pm for a 5:30 start.