Building Successful Relationships with Microsoft: A Guide for Partners with Rob Fegan

[00:00:02] This is an alternate take if Fagan is the right speech.

[00:00:07] We talk about Microsoft all the time and the big tech players.

[00:00:11] They're doing a lot we're interested in, particularly around AI and copilot.

[00:00:15] But how do you connect with Microsoft and how do you make sure you're relevant to what they're doing?

[00:00:19] Rob Fagan is the founder of Envido and is focused entirely on helping Microsoft partners

[00:00:24] harness the scale and reach of Microsoft's field teams.

[00:00:27] And he joins me in this bonus episode of the Business of Tech.

[00:00:32] Today's episode is supported by CoreView.

[00:00:35] Your customers need your Microsoft 365 expertise and CoreView has the only M365 management platform designed for MSPs.

[00:00:44] Manage hundreds of tenants, automate manual tasks and monitor compliance all while intelligently comparing to the baseline.

[00:00:51] With a no-code control approach, CoreView revolutionizes your Microsoft 365 administration.

[00:00:58] This powerful platform enables automatic reporting and remediation, ensuring optimal performance and security.

[00:01:05] The best part? You achieve this high level of service without the need for a large workforce,

[00:01:10] allowing you to focus on growing your business through efficiency.

[00:01:14] Want to know more? Visit coreview.com slash MSP and find out more.

[00:01:22] Rob, thanks for joining me today.

[00:01:24] I'm super excited to be here, Dave.

[00:01:26] I'm excited to have you. So before we dive in, because you're a super deep Microsoft partnership expert,

[00:01:33] but in order to give me some context about tell me kind of how you got to be an expert in all things, Microsoft and the partnership relationship.

[00:01:41] Yeah, that journey goes back a few years now. It's about 15, 11, 20 years now.

[00:01:47] I think that I've worked with Microsoft in the partner community.

[00:01:51] So both as a value added reseller, I was an individual contributor there and then went through that journey in a number of different companies.

[00:02:01] And finally, back in 2015, I started my own Microsoft partner where we were referred to as a systems integrator.

[00:02:08] So we were deploying Microsoft software for businesses of all sizes, whether they were sort of small companies of 50 or 100 people,

[00:02:16] or they were larger companies of thousands up to tens of thousands of employees.

[00:02:21] We were deploying Microsoft software. So that's really where the journey started.

[00:02:25] And I've always had a passion for working with Microsoft.

[00:02:28] I think the technology has evolved and has really become very broad in terms of what Microsoft brings to the table.

[00:02:35] So I've really enjoyed this journey.

[00:02:37] But in particular, when I think of the big tech players,

[00:02:41] Microsoft really is the only one that is very bold about saying we are partner friendly and want to engage.

[00:02:47] You know, I don't think about Alphabet and Google despite them having a partner program.

[00:02:51] I don't think of them in the same way.

[00:02:53] Amazon same way has a program. I don't think of them in the same way.

[00:02:56] But Microsoft has that reputation.

[00:02:59] Now, when you're starting to talk with somebody about like, OK, hey, I want to be better at working with Microsoft.

[00:03:05] But where do you start that conversation to understand the best ways to navigate a really large organization?

[00:03:13] Yeah, that is it's the million dollar question because as I alluded to,

[00:03:18] Microsoft does so many different things and they have so many different avenues that you can add value to a customer.

[00:03:25] So where I always start is what do you feel is your superpower as a partner?

[00:03:31] What is the area where you bring the most value to your customers?

[00:03:36] You know, is that in collaboration technologies?

[00:03:39] Is that in underlying IT tech so that, you know, are you building out networks or are you running servers?

[00:03:47] Are you on the data side?

[00:03:49] So really trying to understand and peel back what you as a partner are great at.

[00:03:55] And that helps you align with Microsoft and who in Microsoft is going to really resonate with your story, with your superpower.

[00:04:04] So almost universally when I'm talking to a partner is really I want to get to the meat of what is it that you believe you're great at?

[00:04:13] You know, you'll go toe to toe with anybody.

[00:04:16] And what customers do you serve?

[00:04:18] So not just what do you do, but who are you best positioned to serve?

[00:04:22] Because in my career I started with companies that we were really focused on smaller companies,

[00:04:28] sort of the 25 to 100 person companies.

[00:04:31] And that was our sweet spot.

[00:04:33] And I knew I could be successful there versus later in my career I was working at companies that we really only wanted to work with five to 10,000 person employee company.

[00:04:42] So really getting a good grasp on what you're great at and who you serve in that market is the first place I always start with any partner I'm talking to.

[00:04:51] So a partner identifies themselves say they're, you know, a great example would be, hey, we serve, you know, the SMB market.

[00:04:59] You know, we are our sweet spot of customers tends to be those that are spending two to three thousand dollars a month on I.T.

[00:05:08] You know, that's probably going to put the end customer in anywhere between, you know, 15 and 50 employees.

[00:05:16] Right. So it's sort of that that's that typical spot there.

[00:05:19] They've identified that they say, hey, you know, what we're really good at is we're good at helping them with their cloud deployment.

[00:05:25] So we do a lot of Microsoft 365 likely as part of that little bit more Microsoft 365 than it is, say, Azure.

[00:05:33] But they say it can be some Azure there, like in terms of the A.D. and some of the bits are like, how do you guide them from there to say, OK, these are the these are the things we're looking for and the way that we get in touch with them correctly?

[00:05:46] Yeah, it's a great question.

[00:05:49] And it's really we start to think about alignment then is who in Microsoft is going to be incented to serve that audience or how does Microsoft serve that audience?

[00:06:01] And to your earlier point about Microsoft being very partner friendly in that space, Microsoft is universally partner driven.

[00:06:10] So they are not trying to serve that market by going direct.

[00:06:16] They are only serving that market through partners.

[00:06:19] So Microsoft has a number of different groups inside of their sales and general sales organization, which are what they refer to as the SMB sellers or the SMC sellers and SMB small to medium business.

[00:06:32] And the SMC is small to medium corporate.

[00:06:36] And so they break it out sort of SMB being 100 percent driven by partners and SMC, sort of that next level up to 100 employees or greater 200 employees or greater is driven is owned by the SMC market inside the Microsoft sales teams.

[00:06:55] But it's still 80 percent partner driven.

[00:06:58] So there's no place where if you're in that sort of sweet spot of 25 to 150 200 employees that you're serving and your company is in that sort of cloud first organization or cloud first approach to helping customers, you are absolutely going to be aligned with those sellers that focus on SMB SMC.

[00:07:22] So that's important to know is that they're highly incented to find good partners.

[00:07:28] It's the only way they can scale.

[00:07:30] You know, on average, a a seller inside of Microsoft in that market can have 150 to 250 accounts they align to or they are handling.

[00:07:42] They can't scale to that.

[00:07:44] They need great partners.

[00:07:46] So that's first and foremost is understand that Microsoft needs you just as much as you need them.

[00:07:52] How may I understand a little bit about the way that they work best for distribution because we know ultimately like you could kind of buy two ways right?

[00:08:01] You can go to Microsoft dot com as a small business customer.

[00:08:05] You can put in your credit card.

[00:08:07] You can even be linked to a partner of records that things are all connected that way.

[00:08:11] Or you can go through distribution channels right so that the partner can help deploy it.

[00:08:16] It come through any of the regular bits like is there a better way to think which is better?

[00:08:22] How does Microsoft think about it?

[00:08:24] Like talk to me a little bit about the differences between the two ways to go to market.

[00:08:28] Yeah, and how I really look at it is as a customer.

[00:08:32] So fine. I own a company and I want to deploy Microsoft and cloud.

[00:08:37] I need to understand is do I need help doing that?

[00:08:41] And I would argue that if you don't have somebody inside of your organization that's competent and able to do that, then you absolutely are going to need help.

[00:08:50] And I always recommend that companies find a great partner and they partner with that company to help first acquire the right licenses because Microsoft has lots of different licenses.

[00:09:04] So just knowing what the right thing for you to buy is a job on its own, but then being sure that it's deployed correctly.

[00:09:11] So in today's world we want to move to the cloud.

[00:09:14] We want to get away from having on premise infrastructure that we've got support and buy servers and all those different things.

[00:09:21] But we have to realize that it's not just as simple as moving it and being done.

[00:09:25] We have to move it correctly.

[00:09:26] We have to ensure the identities of our people are moved up correctly.

[00:09:30] We have to make sure that they're protected.

[00:09:32] That the only cyber security threats that are right there today being trying having a partner that understands how to deploy your instance of Microsoft 365 in a secure way that still allows people to be productive is so critical.

[00:09:49] I think that that is part of why the partner community is so valuable to Microsoft is they can make these deployments successful on the first try versus customer trying to sort of fumble through it on their own.

[00:10:00] Getting a great partner that can make it right the first time and ensure that you're secure, you're protected and you're productive.

[00:10:08] And that's the that's sort of the holy grail of trying to get this done and get your company up and running in the cloud.

[00:10:15] Now one of the things that I found really fascinating about the way that you work is you've got a very particular journey that you actually map out for helping partners work with Microsoft.

[00:10:27] Give me a little bit of an overview of how that all works.

[00:10:30] Yeah, and I'm over the years.

[00:10:33] I've developed this framework and I've went through it multiple times and really refined it down to four key steps or four key phases.

[00:10:42] And I'll kind of give you first the high level and then we can dive into each of them if you like.

[00:10:47] So first out, and we alluded to this earlier was your messaging.

[00:10:52] Understand what you're great at and how to communicate that to Microsoft.

[00:10:57] In line with that is also understanding who inside Microsoft is going to care about that message.

[00:11:03] So, you know, you talk to an Azure sellers, Microsoft has a whole team of people focused on selling Azure and then a separate team focused on Microsoft 365.

[00:11:12] So it makes sense to know, OK, who are the right people to talk to?

[00:11:16] And so that's first and foremost is get your message right and understand who's gonna want to share it.

[00:11:21] Then the next thing is really just start to think about the sales team alignment.

[00:11:26] Microsoft has a journey they take all their customers through and they want to know that you as a partner understand what that journey looks like.

[00:11:35] So first educating your sellers on what Microsoft what a Microsoft sales journey looks like.

[00:11:41] Even if it's different from yours, Microsoft just wants to know that you're going to hit the sort of hot buttons of things they want to be done during a sales process.

[00:11:50] And then more importantly is connecting your sales teams with the Microsoft sellers.

[00:11:57] So whether you're geographically based or your industry based, finding out who are the right people for you to connect with inside of Microsoft is critical because if Microsoft doesn't know about you,

[00:12:09] you know, leads aren't just going to fall from heaven in terms of landing in your lap.

[00:12:14] You're going to have to connect with the people that this is that your superpowers going to resonate with.

[00:12:20] So that's key. That's one and two is first the message and the sales alignment.

[00:12:25] That's third component. And I think one that people underestimate is partner center.

[00:12:31] So Microsoft does a ton of work.

[00:12:34] There has done a ton of work in partner center to make it much more partner friendly to allow us as partners to access more programs, more dollars, more funding to get designation.

[00:12:46] So they've done a lot of this inside of partner center now.

[00:12:50] So it's a much more robust and that sort of center for us as partners to build our practice and to ensure that Microsoft knows who we are, what we do, how our certifications are laid out and what certifications we have.

[00:13:07] So that's the third component is partner center.

[00:13:11] And then finally, it's there's an overarching program now called the Microsoft A.I.

[00:13:16] Cloud Partner Program, which is absolute most of all, but understanding that it's a holistic program, a holistic program that covers all the different aspects of, you know, are you an integrated?

[00:13:30] I heard. Sorry.

[00:13:32] Sure.

[00:13:33] It covers how I like in this.

[00:13:37] By the way, the Microsoft A.I.

[00:13:40] Cloud Partner Program covers all the different types of partners.

[00:13:43] So managed services providers, independent software vendors, systems integrators, distributors.

[00:13:51] They're all under that program or that umbrella.

[00:13:54] And it allows you to access different resources, including funding, including dollars.

[00:13:59] So really understanding that.

[00:14:01] And so that's the four key components of working with Microsoft in my mind.

[00:14:06] Get your message right.

[00:14:07] Get the salespeople you align with have partner center aligned correctly to you and then understand the Microsoft A.I.

[00:14:15] Cloud Partner Program so you can leverage all the programs.

[00:14:18] So asking about that messaging portion, it feels like as somebody who I spend a lot of time thinking about marketing, right?

[00:14:24] It would feel like I need to have that message right.

[00:14:27] Just in general, right?

[00:14:28] I need to have a really good website and communicate what I'm good at.

[00:14:31] How is it different?

[00:14:33] My broad, strong marketing message versus messaging from Microsoft.

[00:14:39] Great question.

[00:14:40] It's really something it's subtle, but important that you understand that.

[00:14:45] Yes, you have your message to the market.

[00:14:47] You understand that sort of branded messaging that you've got out to the market.

[00:14:52] But inside of Microsoft, they care not only that you have a message for the market, but they want to hear how do you help me?

[00:15:00] What's in it for me to work with you?

[00:15:02] So I always encourage partners to be able to articulate really quickly and concisely who you are, what you do, how you do it, who you do it for.

[00:15:12] But more importantly, what's in it for Microsoft?

[00:15:15] So do you sell licenses that do you drive Azure consumption?

[00:15:20] Are you a dynamics partner focused on, say, discrete manufacturing?

[00:15:26] You really want to be clear to Microsoft how you differentiate yourself from the sea of other partners.

[00:15:33] I mean, there's roughly 400,000 partners in the Microsoft ecosystem.

[00:15:38] So there's no shortage of partners Microsoft can pull from.

[00:15:42] And they need to have what I refer to as that Rolodex moment of, oh, my goodness, I just heard this company needs X.

[00:15:50] I've got a partner that does X.

[00:15:52] Let me connect the two.

[00:15:53] And so it's really important to have clear, concise messaging so that Microsoft can connect you with the right type of opportunity for you.

[00:16:03] Now I figure out who I am and I know what I'm really good at.

[00:16:06] How do I find the right people at Microsoft to talk to?

[00:16:10] That right there is the million dollar question.

[00:16:14] So it's probably the number one thing that people reach out to me for is either how do I connect with people inside Microsoft or how do I get leads?

[00:16:24] And it's always I always start with just what you referred to as how to connect with these people, because that's first and foremost, it's a relationship business.

[00:16:33] You are building a relationship with Microsoft.

[00:16:36] But more importantly, you're building a relationship with a Microsoft salesperson or a Microsoft field person that works and touches their customers.

[00:16:45] So I tell people that they're not hidden.

[00:16:48] I mean, they're all on LinkedIn.

[00:16:50] You can go and search for account executive Microsoft and you will find hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of them.

[00:16:57] And you'll have to spend a little time sifting through.

[00:17:00] Are these the right people? Does this person report up through the what's SMC or small to medium corporate chain of salespeople or are they an enterprise salesperson?

[00:17:10] Are they focused on health care?

[00:17:12] And I will say Microsoft and Microsoft employees do a great job of identifying where they fit in the Microsoft ecosystem right on LinkedIn.

[00:17:21] So it's not hidden.

[00:17:22] And so I would encourage any partner that wants to start their journey with Microsoft, find some people to reach out to and have a conversation.

[00:17:30] Rob, if people are interested in learning more and reaching out to you, how can they best do that?

[00:17:35] Sure. So you can always find me on LinkedIn first and foremost, but you can go to my website at them video V E N V I T O dot net and T and you'll find me.

[00:17:49] You'll be able to book a meeting with me directly.

[00:17:51] Awesome. Well, Rob, this has been really helpful. I appreciate you joining me today.

[00:17:55] My pleasure, Dave. I really enjoyed the conversation.

[00:18:00] The Business of Tech is written and produced by me, Dave Sobel under ethics guidelines posted at business of dot tech.

[00:18:07] If you like the content, please make sure to hit that like button and follow or subscribe.

[00:18:12] It's free and easy and the best way to support the show and help us grow.

[00:18:17] You can also check out our Patreon where you can join the business of tech community at Patreon dot com slash MSP radio or buy our Why Do We Care Merch at business of dot tech.

[00:18:30] Finally, if you're interested in advertising on this show, visit msp radio dot com slash engage.

[00:18:37] Once again, thanks for listening to me and I will talk to you again on our next episode of the Business of Tech.

[00:18:47] You're part of the MSP radio network.