Partner Networks a Gateway to Growth: IAMCP Provides Hub for Microsoft Partners By Bill Breslin When a Dallas-based software developer needed deeper expertise for a Microsoft SharePoint project, the company called on trusted specialists to assist. In turn, a tandem of software vendors brought a third supplier into the fold to handle infrastructure requirements. Ultimately, three small companies joined forces to provide a turnkey solution, and each brought in revenue it couldn’t have captured alone.

Scenarios like this one become more common every day. The concept of complementary businesses teaming up isn’t new, but it’s more powerful than ever as our technology ecosystem becomes overwhelmingly complex. Few companies have the depth and breadth to be a one-stop shop, and attempting to be everything to everyone is usually a business plan for failure. Instead, the IT world is increasingly composed of smaller, highly I specialized experts that excel in one particular area. When the job requires it, they band together to deliver a complete portfolio of services to their customers.

It’s a phenomenon known as partner-to-partner networking, or P2P. Increasingly, these types of business connections are made through P2P organizations like the International Association of Microsoft Certified Partners (IAMCP). With more than 4,000 members across over 70 chapters worldwide, IAMCP is the virtual community where non-competing businesses come together to uncover new opportunities and succeed through collaboration. Since only Microsoft Certified Partners can join, IAMCP members know they can count on the skills and experience of others in the network.

Research shows that P2P networking is a gateway to growth for companies with specialized expertise to offer. An IDC study revealed that IAMCP members engaged in $6.8B of P2P transaction activity in 2006. In the same year, members with a high commitment to forging new partnerships grew an average of five percent faster than less active members.

There’s little doubt that the industry has recognized the value of partnering. Many of the world’s technology giants, such as Cisco and HP, have implemented partner programs of their own. In the process, organizations have also emerged to help those partners find and link to each other. However few, if any, P2P networks have evolved to offer the same level of value that IAMCP brings to its members.

More than just a directory of contact names, IAMCP is a vibrant professional organization teeming with networking events, education and training opportunities, and community activism. IAMCP is also an advocate for its members’ interests, providing Microsoft with input on future product developments, and even lobbying Congress on important legislative affairs.

What makes IAMCP truly unique, however, is its independent status. Though Microsoft is IAMCP’s biggest sponsor and supporter, the association is not affiliated with Microsoft and is run entirely by volunteers consisting of business owners from around the world who represent the voice of the IT community. This “bottom-up” philosophy creates an environment of trust among members that’s hard to find in any other professional organization.

The trust is evident in the hundreds of business relationships that sprout every year through the IAMCP network. When a U.S. government agency needed an IT vendor in Costa Rica, they found one through IAMCP. When a major telecom vendor needed financing services to close a million-dollar phone system deal, an IAMCP member got the call. And when a member from Houston was away on business, he tapped the IAMCP network to manage a client emergency during his absence.

The success stories are endless, and so are the opportunities awaiting technology companies that embrace the power of partnering.

About the Author

Bill Breslin is vice president of Application Development at Insource Technology in Houston. He also serves as U.S. president of the International Association of Microsoft Certified Partners (IAMCP).

Visit www.iampc.org for more information.

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