Unlock the AI and SaaS opportunity in partnership with Microsoft 

Did you know that, as an independent software vendor (ISV) in today’s fast-changing digital landscape, you are uniquely positioned to build and scale innovative solutions that drive competitive advantage?

Our ecosystem offers you a rare chance to create and sell impactful solutions with the latest technologies. In this blog, we’ll explore key areas of ISV opportunity and share stories of innovative partners that have unlocked new possibilities with Microsoft.

Build, innovate and scale with Azure Cloud 

The shift to cloud computing is undeniable, with the cloud’s agility, scalability and economics propelling cloud spend to a projected $1 trillion by 2026. According to the IDC, Microsoft partners that build software earn $10.11 for every $1 of Microsoft revenue. Two compelling reasons to adopt the Microsoft Azure platform and sell through our commercial marketplace.

While Azure offers a secure and scalable foundation for developing and deploying high-performance software solutions, our marketplace helps you simplify sales and unlock growth.  Azure’s comprehensive suite of tools and services also allow you to rapidly build, innovate and scale operations seamlessly, all while reducing costs. By partnering with us, you’re better able to meet market demands swiftly, ensuring you remain competitive and relevant. 

These benefits have been harnessed by AutoRek, a financial reconciliation software provider that specialises in automated reconciliation, financial reporting and data management solutions. They help financial institutions streamline processes, ensure regulatory compliance and improve overall operational efficiency.

In partnership with Microsoft, AutoRek has built a scalable, secure and efficient solution on Azure that can handle vast amounts of data and perform real-time reconciliation. This enables its customers to improve their financial accuracy and significantly cut operational costs. The AutoRek platform is available now on the Azure Marketplace. 

Drive innovation in the era of AI with the latest tools and models 

Generative AI is also revolutionising business models and creating new ISV opportunities. By infusing Azure AI capabilities into your solutions and developing your own copilot with Microsoft Copilot Studio, you can drive significant innovation and differentiation. This solution enables you to offer enhanced functionalities, improve customer experiences and unlock new revenue streams.

By leveraging our AI expertise, you can significantly transform your offerings and capture new market segments. Discover how other innovative partners are leaping ahead with Microsoft AI and Azure-powered technologies: 

• Stability AI, a leader in open-source generative AI, creates models that excel in areas such as imaging, video, audio and 3D, delivering top-tier performance and minimal resource requirements. The company is now extending them through Azure’s AI model catalogue. Coming soon as a “Model as a Service” (MaaS) offering, users can leverage pay-as-you-go inference APIs and self-hosted models, including fine-tuning that makes high-quality AI more accessible and customisable than ever before. 

• BeyondWords is an AI audio platform building voice-cloning, audio-generation, distribution and monetisation tools for modern news publishers. By partnering with Microsoft Azure, BeyondWords has been able to build a robust, scalable solution that handles high-volume content while maintaining top-notch audio quality. This collaboration allows news and insights publishers to create frictionless audio experiences, boosting audience engagement and unlocking new revenue streams. 

• The Access Group  is a leading provider of industry-focused solutions to small and mid-sized organisations in Europe, the USA and Asia. In addition to AI-supported workflows, their innovative Access Evo copilot feature intelligently connects users to business-wide software, offering a personalised generative assistant that saves time and ensures data security. Users can ask questions and get instant responses, enhancing productivity and efficiency. 

Accelerate your business revenue with the cloud marketplace 

Today’s digital transformation has sparked a new “Buy vs. Build” revolution, with more organizations favouring ready-made SaaS solutions over custom software development.  

Cloud marketplaces simplify this new buying behaviour by enabling ISVs to provision solutions quickly and reliably, while serving as a critical go-to-market channel. Canalys predicts that cloud marketplaces will exceed $45 billion in value by 2025, driven by new governance models and streamlined procurement processes.  

Our Azure Marketplace is at the forefront of this trend, giving you a global platform to showcase and sell your solutions. It also simplifies the buying process for customers, making it easier for them to discover, purchase and deploy your solutions.  

In addition, your customers can leverage existing Azure Cloud Committed budgets when buying software, which contributes 100% off a customer Azure Marketplace invoice. So why not reach a broader audience and accelerate your GTM strategy by listing your offerings on Azure Marketplace?  

Get inspired by other partners who are succeeding with this strategy: 

• Quantexa is a global AI, data, and analytics software company pioneering decision intelligence to empower organizations with the right data to make the right AI-enabled decisions. The company brings innovation and confidence in decision-making to every industry by driving the shift to contextual data. Quantexa recently announced its Decision Intelligence Platform on the Azure Marketplace, which enables organizations to unify siloed data, create context with knowledge graphs, and put data to work using AI and analytics to drive effective decision-making and automation throughout the enterprise. 

• UiPath offers AI-powered automation solutions to boost enterprise productivity and streamline business processes. With its comprehensive platform, companies can discover, build and operate automation at enterprise-scale. Buying UiPath Automation Cloud via the Microsoft marketplace gives customers access to the latest UiPath platform technology. In addition, Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC) customers can simplify their procurement by using their existing Azure commitment and payment conditions. 

Multiply your reach and offerings through our partner ecosystem 

In search of longer-term value, ISVs are exploring new technology partnerships and business efficiencies. A multiplier effect occurs when they collaborate with the extensive Microsoft channel partner ecosystem to create multiparty private offers (MPOs).

MPOs on Azure Marketplace enable ISVs to include their preferred partners in deals, streamlining procurement and enhancing customer satisfaction. This enhances the value proposition for all involved.  

Our Partner Network nurtures these collaborations, enabling ISVs to co-innovate and co-sell solutions. By joining our rich ecosystem, you can leverage complementary strengths, expand your market reach, and deliver more comprehensive solutions to your customers.  

Here are just two examples of how our collaborative approach has helped other partners drive sustained value and innovation, and ensured mutual growth and success.

Leveraging the Microsoft Channel Partner ecosystem: Nutanix and Computacenter 

Recently, Nutanix and Computacenter collaborated on an MPO for a global customer, migrating workloads to Azure and implementing self-service automation for workload provisioning. This successful collaboration highlights the value of MPOs in driving efficient transactions and fostering strong partnerships. 

Building marketplace and adoption practices with partners: Veritas and Softcat 

Partners such as Softcat are developing robust marketplace practices to drive application modernisation using Azure Marketplace and MPOs. By helping customers holistically adopt Azure Marketplace as a transformation mechanism, Softcat delivers agility and innovation while maintaining governance and guardrails.  

Softcat and Veritas recently collaborated with a UK law firm to modernise the customer’s data management strategy using the Veritas Alta archiving solution on Azure. This showcased how Softcat used MPOs to manage billing and deliver cloud SaaS technology from Veritas, ensuring maximum value and business efficiency for all stakeholders involved. 

Discover the power of partnership

Whether you’re an ISV or a software-as-a-service (SaaS) company – and whatever the size and maturity of your business – partnering with us can empower you to succeed. ISV Success, part of our Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Programme, will give you all the support and guidance you need on the Microsoft Cloud. You can also gain free Azure credits, developer tools, app consultations and much more.  

Interested in registering? Please visit the ISV Hub, or if your headquarters are in the UK, email ISVUK@Microsoft.com. 

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Learn more about partnering with Microsoft

Build and publish with ISV Success (part of the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Programme)

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About the author

After gaining 25 years’ experience in the technology consulting sector, including leadership roles at Accenture across Software as a Service, Cloud First Applications and Salesforce Business for the UK & Ireland, Orla joined Microsoft in March 2021 to lead the Global Partner Solutions organisation. She oversees Microsoft’s UK partner ecosystem, which includes independent software vendors, advisory partners, systems integrators, telcos, and channel partners. Orla also serves on the Microsoft UK Senior Leadership Team.