Healthcare demands are growing, and the industry is grappling with rising costs, staffing shortages, accessibility issues, quality of care, and patient satisfaction. Our partners understand that technology can have a profound impact in mitigating issues facing the healthcare industry and delivering better, more effective, and personalized care for patients. We’ve been working together to deliver innovative solutions to the most challenging issues in the healthcare industry today.

The growing demand to improve the customer and patient experience and reduce costs can have a direct impact on the quality of care. With our partners, we’re helping the healthcare industry by eliminating manual processes, improving patient interactions, and accelerating the speed and accuracy of analyzing large amounts of data and imaging.

To follow are just a few examples of how our partners are developing solutions in support of the healthcare industry.

Rubrik and Microsoft support St. Luke’s electronic health record system migration

St. Luke’s University Health Network is a leading healthcare provider that uses innovative technology to deliver services to patients and streamline operations for employees. Partnering with Microsoft, St. Luke’s migrated its electronic health records system, Epic, to Microsoft Azure. St. Luke’s also uses Microsoft partner Rubrik to protect and back up its operational database, knowing that Rubrik provides Zero Trust data protection, policy-based management, and fast recovery from ransomware attacks. St. Luke’s migration provided increased scalability and performance to handle growing patient volumes, reduced costs and complexity, and enhanced security and compliance. Read the customer story.

AIDAN Health and Microsoft enable reduced patient wait times for MDLIVE

MDLIVE for Cigna, a telehealth provider, collaborated with AIDAN Health, a Microsoft partner, to develop accurate forecasts of patient demand using Azure Machine Learning. The goal was to predict seasonal fluctuations of illnesses to reduce patient wait times and better balance the workloads of its medical professionals. The solution cut patient wait times by more than 50 percent, reducing the need for provider incentives during patient demand surges, and improving patient satisfaction and retention. Read the customer story.

Insight and Microsoft increase speed and efficiency for Relias

Relias is a healthcare training and performance provider that serves more than 11,000 healthcare organizations across the United States. Relias helps its clients improve patient outcomes and advance healthcare talent by using data-driven solutions. Relias collaborated with Insight, a Microsoft partner, to migrate its data infrastructure to a fully managed, serverless platform using Microsoft Power BI and Azure Synapse Analytics. By implementing this solution, Relias improved the customer experience by providing faster and more accurate insights, and increased scalability by handling large volumes of data and accelerated innovation. Read the customer story.

Delivering solutions together

Microsoft and our partners are changing the patient and provider experience—like simplifying interactions for St. Luke’s and their patients; helping MDLIVE for Cigna adjust to ever-increasing demand; and assisting Relias in providing faster access to more accurate and reliable data. We’re putting the patient first, while removing barriers for healthcare businesses by reducing the cost and increasing the speed to market.

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As virtually every industry continues to build momentum around digital transformation, this momentum is especially critical in the healthcare industry where worker burnout is prevalent. The way we rely on and access care has changed rapidly over the past few years, with Microsoft stepping up from the beginning to support healthcare organizations and providers by utilizing our technology, partner network, and influence to help meet the urgent needs of communities around the world.

As frontline workers have been facing unprecedented burnout across the industry due to staggering workloads, chronic understaffing, and the physical toll, Microsoft has worked to maintain open channels with our healthcare customers and healthcare industry partners. This has allowed us to respond quickly to meet emerging needs in the field.

To relieve some of the pressure, Microsoft and our partners have applied AI and automation to reduce such essential and time-consuming work as transcribing patient records and provide virtual assistance – freeing up time for providers to focus on their core priorities where they can make the most impact and streamlining communication and patient care throughout the process.

This is really what gets us excited about what we do, and we brought this energy to the HIMSS conference last month!

Key takeaways from healthcare partner listening sessions at HIMSS

In March, Carlos de Torres, Vice President, Partner Management Industry & ISV here at Microsoft and I along with additional members of our Microsoft team had the pleasure of representing Microsoft at HIMSS, a global health conference attended by nearly 29,000 people in Orlando, Florida. We joined over 1,000 companies to demonstrate the future of health digital innovation, and how to reimagine health and wellness for everyone, everywhere.

Our booth was filled with Microsoft partners focused on the healthcare industry, and it was great to once again be able to meet with them face to face. I only wish I could have had more time to see all of their amazing demos! Our team participated in a range of speaking sessions, lunch-and-learn opportunities, partner engagements, customer meetings, and both in-person and virtual booth tours. I also had the chance to hold 1:1 meetings with seven of our partners: UST, EPAM, Teladoc, Hillrom, Innovaccer, Nuance, and Silk.

Looking back at these valuable interactions with partners and customers, my team and I identified four main takeaways:

1.      The value of Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare is landing with customers and partners

At HIMSS, we had the opportunity to speak directly with customers and partners about Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare, a consolidation of capabilities across Microsoft 365, Azure, Dynamics 365, Power Platform, and the partner ecosystem that offers a full range of end-to-end healthcare solutions designed to meet the most pressing needs of our healthcare customers.

As more organizations make the shift from on-prem to cloud, Azure’s reputation for security, compliance, and trust has been a notable differentiator for helping partners answer the questions of healthcare organizations around HIPPA compliance, deidentifying patient data, and so forth.

We’re thrilled to hear how more partners are recognizing and sharing our excitement around leveraging this framework to deliver value faster, focus on tightly tailored solutions, and strengthen last-mile industry execution to transform the experience of care teams and patients alike.

Our vision for FY23 is to continue to leverage these strengths and momentum to build a robust portfolio of partner offerings that customer organizations will be able to seamlessly plug-and-play right out of the box, extending the value of Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare for customers and providing scalability for partners.

Learn more about what you can do with Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare.

2.     Partner solutions for healthcare are finding resonance in other verticals

Several times over the course of the conference, we were approached by partners who had discovered exciting intersectionality between a solution they designed for a specific healthcare need and applications in other industries. Built on the versatile foundation of the Microsoft Cloud, they found that their IP played into multiple spaces, opening the door to growth into other markets.

For example, one partner who designed a virtual team collaboration solution to help alleviate caregiver burnout through customized and secure communication channels, streamlined case collaboration, and virtual visits, found that their solution can also be configured for public safety and justice use cases within the judicial system. In another case, a partner with a solution aimed at helping patients maintain their care plan by providing data-driven insights for coordinated care management was able to extend the same technology to help students stay engaged with their education by empowering digital counselors to predict and prescribe student success.

It’s exciting to see that whether a partner is innovating for the healthcare sector or an adjacent vertical, they continue to discover new opportunities for growth.

 3.     Partners are actively seeking out strategic partnerships within the ecosystem

In fact, another takeaway was the excitement around establishing partner-to-partner (P2P) relationships. This is something we’ve been encouraging for a long time, and it was really encouraging to have multiple partners approach us about getting introductions to other partners doing complementary work.

For example, a large, long-time SI partner asked for an introduction to two young, up-and-coming ISV partners as a pathway to moving beyond a services and advisory role. They recognized that working together presents opportunities to upsell current customers or partners, by offering a more comprehensive and stronger overall solution.

 We’re thrilled by this trend since we see P2P as a key driver for sustainable partner growth and as a mechanism to bring the full power of the cloud to more customers going forward. It is important to note, however, that we observed that a partner’s enthusiasm for making these connections oftentimes didn’t consider the diligent planning and coordination required up-front to be successful.

Check out the Partner-to-Partner (P2P) – Channel Transformation video series for an idea of what to expect and best practices.

4.     Microsoft’s acquisition of Nuance is an incredible win for the ecosystem

As we saw at HIMSS, the digital transformation that we expected over the next 10 years is happening right now, with the application of AI transforming the healthcare industry. Leading the way is Nuance, which is providing a whole new range of outcome-focused AI solutions that scale easily on Microsoft’s secure global platform.

Partner enthusiasm grew as we had the opportunity to share the full impact that the Nuance acquisition will have on the ability for partners to deliver a reimagined patient-provider experience to customer healthcare organizations, and the ability to access a whole new customer base.

Learn more about Microsoft + Nuance.

Other exciting trends to watch for

The above takeaways are just the beginning. If you were at HIMSS or are a part of the ecosystem of partners supporting this industry, you know that there is a ton of buzz around the almost limitless opportunity to help healthcare organizations and their teams embrace digital transformation.

The trend toward the consumerism of healthcare, for example, will be the catalyst for necessary changes in how providers meet the needs of patients, whether it’s greater ownership over patient records, enabling transparency into healthcare costs, or imagining the broader applications for telehealth and telemedicine.

In fact, indicators such as 50% of Gen Z preferring to access health care at mini-clinics versus primary care providers demonstrates how providers will need to adjust in order to maintain relevance. We’re even seeing non-traditional companies like ride-hailing services and big box electronics stores recognizing how their unique capabilities can be extended to healthcare.

The depth and breadth of innovation in healthcare is truly unimaginable! But we – Microsoft and our partners – have the great privilege of being on the front lines of shaping and enabling the next generation of health. We hope you’ll join us in digging into the opportunities available within this exciting industry.

Ways to build your Healthcare industry practice

• Get started: Learn more about Microsoft Cloud for Healthcare
• Understand the opportunity: Industry Clouds are a robust launch pad for partner innovation
• Become a P2P powerhouse: Partner-to-Partner (P2P) – Channel Transformation video series

We’ve heard from past winners about how being recognized as a Partner of the Year Award winner has led to greater business opportunities, boosted recognition throughout the Microsoft ecosystem, and given them an edge in differentiating in the market. We wanted to share more about these benefits in their own words.

Greater trust & respect among customers

Partner of the Year Award winners report receiving greater trust and respect among customers, thanks to the esteem of the awards.

“We all know that trust is the cornerstone of every relationship,” explained Matt Jackson, VP of Consulting at Insight, the POTYA winner for Migration to Azure category. “Trust is hard to build, which is why the Partner of the Year Awards at Microsoft are so important for our business.”

“Externally, not only do we have great customer references to share, but now we also have a proof point,” says Marcel Narish, VP of Sales & Marketing, Hitachi Solutions, the Dynamics 365 Field Services category winner. “That level of recognition from our partner, Microsoft, is invaluable when we’re in discussion with prospects.”

This trust also provides a foundation for deeper collaboration and customer retention at a time when customer mobility is at an all-time high.

 According to Mauricio Astacio, Senior Director, Cloud Partner Group with Hashicorp, Azure Open Source category winner, the impact of this recognition extends beyond the company itself. “It validates the choice that thousands of practitioners make every day to standardize on our tools,” he said. “The credibility that this award brings to Hashicorp within the developer community means that thousands of enterprises using our open-source tools on Azure can confidently make greater investments in both our solutions and their journey to Azure Cloud.”

Prestige & increased recognition across the ecosystem

In addition to strengthening relationships with customers, Partner of the Year Award winners enjoy increased recognition from Microsoft and the partner community. Winners point out that the prestige that comes with these awards opens the door to business opportunities.

Hitachi Solutions’ Narish sees it this way: “Microsoft continues to grow – that means more Microsoft team members to meet.” Holding the title of POTYA winner? “What a great introduction!”

“[The award] gives us that instant credibility that we can go into any conversation knowing that – whether it’s a client, a partner, or someone in the Microsoft field – that they can trust us with their most important business or technology challenge,” explained Jackson of Insight. “For us, it’s really that stamp of approval that builds trust instantly and allows us to grow our business.”

A powerful point of differentiation

The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards represents the best-of-the-best across more than 100 countries and regions around the world. It’s no wonder, then, that recognition as a top partner in one or more of than 58+ categories creates a powerful point of differentiation in the market.

 “Being awarded healthcare partner of the year has validated our vision as a 100% dedicated Microsoft partner,” said Steven Balusek, Senior Vice President of Global Solutions Development with Quisitive, the Microsoft POTYA winner for the Healthcare Industry category.

“Our growth has been fueled by leading with industry-focused solutions and aligning those solutions with Microsoft’s industry clouds and field teams,” continued Balusek. “Our healthcare solution specifically built upon Dynamics 365 and Azure enhanced business operations across the care continuum to allow healthcare workers to do what they do best: treating patients.”

Greater trust among customers, increased prestige among the Microsoft ecosystem, and a powerful point of differentiation to stand on in the market – these and more are the benefits that come with claiming your place as a Microsoft Partner of the Year Award Winner.

Still on the fence? Marcel Narish of Hitachi Solutions has this bit of encouragement: “Have fun sharing your story this year. Whether any of us become finalists, it’s a great way to share successes with your community!”

Claim your place on the Partner of the Year Awards podium!

Your organization could be the next Microsoft Partner of the Year Award winner! With the submission deadline looming, don’t wait to submit your nomination to be considered.

Final submissions are due April 5, 2022 at 6:00 PM Pacific Time. This could be your year to be celebrated and recognized for your hard work, success, and innovation.

Hear more what partners had to say about winning:

• Hashicorp video
• Hitachi Solutions video
• Insight video
• Quisitive video

Advice, tips, and inspiration

For tips and inspiration to help you build a stellar nomination, check out the resources below for advice from past judges, storytelling tips from an expert writing coach, and details about past award winners.

• POTYA judge’s advice for a winning entry | Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards
• How storytelling defines winners | Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards
• Celebrate your social impact with Partner of the Year Awards and #BuildFor2030
• Get inspired by past POTYA winners

We look forward to receiving your nominations. Be sure to finish and submit yours today so you don’t miss out on the opportunity to be the next Microsoft Partner of the Year!

The areas below will help you facilitate customer engagement and grow market share, enabling partners at all levels in their lifecycle to build intelligent solutions, accelerate time to market, reach new customers, and be discovered in the Microsoft commercial marketplace by millions of customers.

We hope that this will be a useful guide in helping you identify which priorities integrate well with your partner competencies and what steps you can take to grow into these key opportunity areas.

Priorities for the next half year

These select priorities have been defined for Microsoft and partners to focus on in the second half of our fiscal year (January-June 2022).

1.      Make Hybrid Workplace a reality for customers with Microsoft 365 E5

We see a massive opportunity as customers continue to embrace Hybrid Workplace and look for productivity solutions that facilitate rich team collaboration and foster employee engagement, while strengthening your cybersecurity posture. Microsoft 365 E5 continues to be a top priority for Microsoft field teams in our fiscal H2 (January-June 2022).

Microsoft partners make the possibilities of the Hybrid Workplace a reality for our customers – through workshops and pilots, and accelerating deployment and adoption of these advanced workloads.

The following workshops can help establish the value for Microsoft 365 E5 workloads:

• Modernize Communications
• Microsoft Viva
• Microsoft Viva Insights
• Threat Protection
• Discover Sensitive Data
• Manage & Investigate Risk
• Hybrid Cloud Security

Please nominate customers for workshops in MCI Engagements via aka.ms/MCI/Claim.

2.     Employ the power of Surface for employee retention

Our customers are among the many organizations struggling to overcome what’s been coined ‘the Great Resignation’ where as many as 40% of employees are considering leaving their job this year¹. One of the primary pain points – reported by 70% of workers – is the need for improved devices to support a successful hybrid work experience².

Microsoft Surface is one way we are helping customers achieve a competitive advantage in holding onto top talent. In fact, when Microsoft asked their customers about the benefit of M365-powered Surface devices, 86% agreed that they help drive employee satisfaction and retention³. Devices partners can take Microsoft services to market on their devices, offering incremental value to their customers.

To ensure that more customers recognize this opportunity, we’ve launched Modern Work Assembled, an integrated Microsoft 365, Surface, and Services Partner program aimed at streamlining cross-solution selling. New integrated training and BOMs are available to help partners kick off customer-centered conversations, and there are a number of channel and customer incentives and promotions available for you to leverage. Speak to your PDM for more information.

Get started:

• Learn how to include Surface in your Hybrid Workplace conversations.
• Explore Q3 Surface offers you can leverage through March 2022
• Invite your customers to our February Webinar: Reimagine workplace dynamics and adapt your business to the new world of work
• Learn more about the Windows 11 optimized Surface Premium devices: Surface Pro 8, Surface Laptop Studio and Surface Laptop 4

¹Work Index Study

²PC Devices Forrester Research Paper

³M365+Surface TEI Study

3.     Boost Business Applications billed revenue and Dynamics 365 customer adds

The US Business Applications market has grown beyond $78 billion⁴ this year. There is significant growth potential for Microsoft solutions and partners. Leading customers to their first Dynamics 365 workload is key to accelerating our market share and hitting our growth objectives in FY22 and beyond. Microsoft Internal Research shows that winning that first workload with a customer, and deepening relationships with business leaders (BDMs), is key to strengthening our impact across the customer’s organization and expanding reach into other next-best workloads.

In H2, we continue to focus on leading customer conversations with industry stories and business impacts that speak to the circumstances of the customer. In this way, we demonstrate empathy for our customers’ challenges, can better anticipate their questions, and build trust among BDMs.

Our FY22 Business Applications Partner Offers Presales Program enables partners to utilize Business Value Assessments to accelerate the sales process and funds pre-sales engagements at a customer level.

Partners are encouraged to understand our Sales Plays, Industry Marketing Priorities, and leverage our presales offers to grow their business.

• Learn more about the Microsoft Business Applications business opportunity and ways to grow your practice.
• Leverage the Partner Plays-in-a-Box bringing together capacity and enablement, go-to-market, and co-selling resources for Business Applications.
• Explore partner GTM resources and case studies: Dynamics 365 Partner Portal (microsoft.com)
• Request funding for pre-sales engagement: FY22 Business Applications Partner Offers – Presales
• If you need help closing a large deal, fill out the Partner Lead Sales Resource Engagement Form to ensure that you have the right resources to close the deal.

⁴ Microsoft Internal Research

4.     Drive co-sell readiness through Commercial Marketplace

Through Microsoft’s global co-sell programs and our cloud-based Commercial Marketplace, we are working toward enabling our partners and customers for digital transformation.

One meaningful benchmark of progress is enabling our partners to take advantage of transformational business opportunities like marketplace and Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC). Becoming co-sell ready is the first step to getting there. By publishing transactable offers on the marketplace, partners gain access to Microsoft’s global customer base to build awareness of their solutions and drive frictionless B2B sales at a global scale. B2B sales at a global scale.

Microsoft’s industry-leading commercial marketplace gives partners unmatched access to customers and opportunity to drive sales more effectively and efficiently. Simply creating a listing in marketplace gives you access to over 4 million active visitors per month across 140 geographies. Through relationships with Microsoft field sellers and partner-to-partner co-sell, you can scale your sales force through the Commercial Marketplace while earning Marketplace Rewards.

Microsoft is committed to ensuring our partners know how to leverage commercial marketplace and how to benefit from associated FY22 Marketplace Incentives, such as the Teams Build With incentive. Publishing on commercial marketplace is easy – set up your account, prepare your offer, create your offer, publish, and go to market. Get started now with step-by-step guidance for publishing to commercial marketplace.

Takeaway

Staying aligned with Microsoft priorities ensures you are prepared to move into key industry growth opportunities and take advantage of programs, resources, and incentives Microsoft offers to drive mutual growth.

Stay connected

Keep a pulse on these priorities throughout the quarter – join Microsoft and other US partners in the US Partner Zone within the Microsoft Partner Community!