Marching Orders 2019: Let's Make this the Year of P2P

What are the top steps Microsoft partners can take to help their businesses succeed in 2019? We put that question to top experts, including Microsoft channel veteran and RCP contributor Per Werngren.

I have been a leading advocate for partner to partner (P2P) cooperation for several years and in recent years I'm seeing a hockey stick effect, which is marketing lingo for something that takes off and grows like crazy.

P2P is simply on everyone's lips, and the momentum that I saw last year is a great promise for what 2019 will bring to us.

Not only in IT, but in perhaps every industry, we see that companies partner with others. Great examples are to be found in car manufacturing, aerospace, healthcare and real estate. Perhaps General Electric is evidence of a company trying to do too many things and paying the price.

To be successful, you will need to specialize and surround yourself with partners that work together with you.  As a Microsoft partner, you have a large pool of fellow partners that you can work with. And Microsoft has transformed into a wonderful company to do business with; in fact, they are now a great business partner – they will help you sell your solutions and products in a fashion that we haven't seen before. And it works.

When searching for partners, Microsoft or others, it is important to have a great pitch that is welcoming and clearly states the benefits for the partner and for the customer.

Finding partners is sometimes hard. You will need to invest time and travel as in-person meetings are key to make this work. My advice is to attend all gatherings arranged by Microsoft in your proximity and perhaps also join meetings in cities nearby. It will take a while until you find great partners. It is often a matter of knowing people, enjoying their company and then finding opportunities to work together. Spending time with fellow partners pays off.

The International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners (IAMCP) is a great association that is open for all partners and they provide, among other things, fantastic networking opportunities in several locations across the United States and abroad. You are always welcome to attend a few meetings as a guest and you will find your nearest chapter on www.iamcp-us.org.

But in order to become really successful you will need a great plan, and that comes from having a great structure. I am overwhelmed by the uptake on the P2P Maturity Model, and I constantly meet partners that have succeeded with this structured approach. If you haven't yet started to work with the P2P Maturity Model, you can find it at www.p2pmaturitymodel.com.

Going back to where we started, the momentum for P2P is great and working with others has never been so popular as it is right now so it is a risk-free prediction to say that this year will be the Year of P2P.

Posted by Per Werngren on March 22, 2019