Earlier this month Microsoft released an announcement that they would be focusing on Partner Compliance. There seems to be a commitment and focus on this that we havenât seen before, so what does this actually mean for all of us.
When you sign up as a Microsoft Partner you agree to Terms and Conditions along with a Partner Code of Conduct, my guess is not many of you didnât read these legal documents but ticked the boxes and move on. Which is absolutely normal, and Iâve done this myself, itâs human nature for most of us.
There is an expectation from Microsoft that the rules are followed when trading in their products, be it software or hardware. Which is fair enough, itâs what we agreed to when we signed up. What we havenât previously seen is proactive emails being sent to Partners regarding âPartners Compliance within the ecosystem.â
In the past week we have been contacted by Partners who have received different emails from Microsoft around remaining compliant. One was a call to action and essentially a short course in the Partner University and questions to follow, the other was a general reminder without any action required.
Both Partners havenât breached any of Microsoft Compliance rules at all, so this would indicate that a general education process seems to be underway. Dicker Data have requested more information around this with Microsoft ANZ and will pass on any further information when we hear back from them.
In Microsoftâs announcement, it details that they have enhanced the Partner Program to include more education around compliance around the code of conduct and this will include direct-to-partner engagement on compliance with articles and training, so far, we have seen examples of both. The flip side is partners that are noncompliant will have this to deal with.
Other actions to address persistent noncompliance violations include, but aren't limited to the following:
- Further training
- Pause in future discretionary incentives/investments.
- Partner's repayment to Microsoft of incentives earned through noncompliant behaviour.
- Deauthorization from certain Microsoft partner programs
- Removal of noncompliant partner(s) from Microsoft's partner ecosystem.
For most of our Partners, this will have very little impact and you can just keep doing what youâre doing, but if you get emails around this topic with a call to action, do the action. This will ensure that youâre seen to be taking positive actions and of course, will remain compliant.
For those of you who want more information: Microsoft Partner Code of Conduct can be found here
If you have any additional questions at all, please donât hesitate to reach out to your Partner Development Manager or myself.
Be well all.
