Microsoft Regional Business Building Sessions - Coming to a Town Near You

Microsoft's Brad Clarke will be hitting the road again next month presenting SMB focussed 'Business Builder' sessions in the following locations:

• Albury
• Ballina
• Canberra
• Ballarat
• Coffs Harbour
• Gosford
• Liverpool
• Newcastle
• Orange
• Penrith
• Wollongong
• Gold Coast
• Ipswich
• Cairns
• Townsville
• Caloundra
• Geelong
• Bendigo

These sessions will cover

• Small and Medium Business Technology Overview
• Partner Network Update
• Cloud Computing

You can register for a session in your location here. Contact Brad at bradcl@microsoft.com.au if you'd like more information or to organise a 1:1 session.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Earn $$$ with Microsoft Dynamics Lead Referral Program

This new referral program was announced at APC and Brad Clarke of Microsoft has kindly provided more information.

If your clients could benefit from a Dynamics solution in their business but you lack the skills, resources or desire to implement a dynamics solution yourself, then this program can earn you up to $20,000 per opportunity by referring a Dynamics solution through this program.

To qualify you must be part of the Microsoft Partner Network and there is an registration form to complete.

More details on the Microsoft Partner Network website.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Microsoft SMB Roadshow - November

I'm happy to share with you that Microsoft will be continuing the recent reintroduction of roadshows with planning currently underway to hold a series of roadshows in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth in November.

The great thing is Microsoft recognise that the content and format needs to be relevant to partners - not just Microsoft talking from the front of the room.

I've been asked to gather input from the SMB partner community to help make sure these events are useful for partners - so please email me at keira@directions.com.au with your wishlist!

I look forward to your input.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Heads up on SMB pre-day and content at Microsoft Australia Partner Conference

There's less than a month until the Microsoft Australia Partner Conference, but I know some of you are still sitting on the fence.

So here's the important stuff you'll want to know about as an SMB partner who resells or supports Microsoft technologies:

1. SMB Pre-Day - Yes, there will be one! 'Delivering Solutions with Microsoft's SMB Servers with our Productivity, Virtualisation and Online offerings' on Tuesday 31 August from 8:30 am to 3:30 pm. Microsoft's SMB Partner Technology Advisor, Mark O'Shea will present this session with Sharmila Gosai. This sessions will also focus on product roadmap, solution scenarios, virtualisation, management and migration. Anyone registered for APC can also attend this pre-day a part of the APC ticket. There will not be separate tickets available for any pre-day.
2. SMB Track - There are 11 SMB sessions over the two full conference days with come great content for SMB partners. These are business and sales focussed sessions designed to highlight opportunities for partners to generate increased revenue with Microsoft products and services. Hopefully this year they will tell us which button we should press to make all the money fall out the bottom!
3. Cloud Services - unless you've been living under a rock you may have noticed Microsoft are a little excited about the cloud right now. There is plenty of content on sales, deployment and best practice plus many opportunities to pick the brains of Microsoft and partner experts who are already delivering BPOS and cloud services.
4. Pinpoint - This is a great tool that Microsoft are providing to drive customers to your door. One hundred million times better than Solution Finder, I rate it and have already had great customer enquiries from it. There are 'Pinpoint "Customer Magnet" Workshops' you can attend to help you get the most benefit from Pinpoint.
5. Networking - this is probably the biggest reason to attend APC. Lots of partners in the one place all working with Microsoft in different ways all at different stages of maturity with their business. Meet other partners, vendors and Microsofties between sessions, in the Expo, at the social events and you are sure to come away with information and tips you can take back and use in your own business.
6. Awards - On Thursday night, APC will wrap up with a celebration dinner and presentation of the Microsoft Partner Awards. Last year Microsoft struck the balance between great music, good food, great room and exciting presenters - lets hope they can go two from two and do the same again this year. If you've thought about entering the Awards but haven't quite made it, this is a great opportunity to find out who the winners are even have a chat about their entry. You'll find most partners are pretty generous with info when they've just received adulation from a key vendor and their peers.

A full agenda is available online with further details and you can follow the links to register from there.

Certified and Gold Partners are entitled to complimentary tickets.

If you still want further information or would like to ask questions of someone who is an APC and WPC veteran, please leave a comment.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Resources for SBS7 and Aurora

At the recent Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference in Washington DC, we were lucky enough to get an indepth preview of SBS7 and Aurora in multiple sessions. I'll be blogging more about this just as soon as I can convert all that info into something easy to consume. There's plenty of info on the technical specifics that you can already find elsewhere so I will be endeavouring to blog about the business opportunity, leaving the technical stuff to those with more credibility.

However, something you won't find all in one place is the product brochures that Mark O'Shea has kindly aggregated into a blog post on the Australian Partner Technology Advisor SMB Blog. You will find info both products, as well as details of presentations Mark is conducting next week on these products. Leave a comment on Mark's blog if you would like more details of those forthcoming events.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Technology Forecast: Increasingly Cloudy

As talk of the cloud in IT media circles increases to deafening point, many SMB focussed providers are facing the reality that the push to the cloud could have real impact on their business.
Thats not to say that if you're focussed on the SMB market you should pack up your toys and open a lawnmowing business and leave selling IT services to Telstra. Rather, cloud services needs to be part of your business plan, even if it sits in the category of stuff you don't plan on offering right now.

The simple reality is that many of us already offer cloud services to our customers - remote monitoring and management, hosted exchange, backup replication to a data centre. So really, cloud services in SMB are nothing new. What is new is the immediate need large vendors have to fill their scorecards with cloud services sales. Those SMB IT providers helping vendors like Microsoft and Telstra to hit their targets will be rewarded with actual face time from a partner account manager they never got when they were selling on premise solutions. Will this face time help your business achieve higher levels of success?

Cloud services are no easier or harder to sell than on premise. And that is the key. You must decide if cloud services are part of your product offering, how you will attract customers who want this service and how you as a business owner will make a sustainable product on their sale. Its clear that the margins available on the Microsoft/Telstra BPOS offering are low, so simply reselling this service, or that of Google or any other cloud vendor will only work if your business relies on volume. If, like many SMB IT business owners, your business predictably hits a 20 - 30% margin, then you'll need a good suite of services to add to your cloud services sales if you intend to transform their sales into a sustainable business.

If your business doesn't have a predictable sales engine or regular marketing actions to attract new customers, then frankly it doesn't matter what you sell. You will be left behind as SMB IT service delivery is aggregated and streamlined.

So before you waste another breath on explaining to a vendor or fellow SMB IT community member why you think cloud services won't work, make some time to document your business plan and how you will make sure that you have customers this year, next year and for years to come. The names and specifics of technology has always mattered more to those in the SMB IT community than it has to customers. What technology delivers the business results to customers is irrelevant - what counts is the valuable services you deliver in packaging those solutions into a consumable product that delivers consistent profits to your bottom line.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Media Downloads for SBS/EBS 2008

So if you've spoken to me about this subject you'll know one of my pet peeves is the distribution model for the product.

• You can't download it from VLSC
• You can't get your license keys from VLSC
• ....and to add insult to injury since around August 2009 your disty could no longer fulfil your media order (or prompt you to order media with your licensing purchase).

VLSC got a bit ugly there for a while but it now seems to have stabilised for the most part, following some strident complaints from Partners and lobbying by the Australian subsidiary (and others no doubt also).

I recently spoke with Brad Clarke (NSW Partner Territory Manager) and Inese Kingsmill regarding these issues and Brad has courageously taken on the fine fight to get some more sensible distribution going for the SBS and EBS open license products.

Read more about it on the Microsoft Australia Partner Network Blog.

I'd also be interested in hearing your comments regarding VLSC.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Microsoft SMB Partner Roadshow - Save the Date

I wanted to make sure everyone reading along is aware of the upcoming SMB Partner Roadshows coming to a city near you.

This is a great opportunity to learn more about:

• Microsoft Partner Network Update
• Licensing
• Online Services
• Windows 7 and Windows Server Opportunities for SMB
• Management Opportunities with Hyper V, Virtual Machine Manager and MDOP
• Growing your Business with Partner Marketing Centre and the Customer Insight Tool
• SMB Campaigns & Marketing Opportunities

This is also your opportunity to meet Mark O'Shea, recently appointed SMB Partner Technical Advisor who I'm sure you'll agree is a welcome addition to the Microsoft SMB lineup.

And if that's not enough the roadshow will conclude with networking drinks - a great opportunity to chat with the team from Microsoft and other partners.

Here's the dates:

Brisbane 18 March
Melbourne 19 March
Adelaide 22 March
Perth 24 March
Sydney 30 March

Full details in this month's edition of Spark. You can register here.

If you're in a regional area - don't despair! Brad Clarke and other Partner Territory Managers are planning to get out on the road and see more partners - if you'd like a visit in your area please let me know.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

SBS 2008 training opportunities

I know from talking to many Microsoft partners that you found the training provided for SBS 2008 less than acceptable and this feedback was very clearly channelled back to Microsoft via Hilton Travis who was last years PAL for Australia.

A number of training and readiness initiatives are being prepared for the Australian Microsoft Partners and these are going to mean very very good things for SMB partners.

In the meantime, I wanted to make sure that you are aware that you can now download the SBS 2008 Hands On Labs. The download is 12 GB, but the Microsoft Readiness team are working providing physical media to local partners and I'll provide details of that as soon as they are available.

In the meantime, for those partners whose internet connection and download limit is up to it, you can find the details of the SBS 2008 Hands on Labs over on Sean Daniel's blog.

There are four labs available on Microsoft Connect:

• SBS 2008 Administration
• Managing Clients on SBS 2008
• SBS 2008 Installation
• Migration from SBS 2003

I hope to have details of physical media ordering for these Hands On Labs soon.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Get Ready for Microsoft Pinpoint

Thanks to the awesomely hardworking Sarah Arnold of Microsoft , Australian Partners will soon be able to take advantage of Pinpoint, the fantastic new tool which will replace the very average Find a Partner we currently have in Australia.

Australia will be one of only four Microsoft subsidiaries to have Pinpoint and I'm optimistic it will be a good source of leads of partners for small and medium business focussed partners who take advantage of its capabilities.

To get things rolling, Microsoft have a special offer for partners who want to prepare for the launch of Pinpoint in 2010 - here are the details:

Prepare your company for the launch of Microsoft Pinpoint in Australia

Get a free professionally written company profile
Microsoft Pinpoint is Microsoft’s unified online business marketplace. It is designed to help customers find the right Microsoft Partner to enable them reach their business goals. To prepare for the 2010 launch of Microsoft Pinpoint, we’re giving your business the chance to shine by helping you create a promotional blurb to upload into the Partner Solution Profile tool.

To qualify for this offer you must:
Be a qualified Small Business Specialist within the Microsoft Partner Network, with a head-office in Australia.
Fully complete the template below to the best of your ability before sending it through.

The first 40 fully completed templates that we receive will be eligible. You will be notified if your request has been successful.

6 Steps to Creating your Profile
Download and complete the template.
Send the template to libby@writeminded.com.au with Solution Profiler in the subject line.
If your template is one of the first 40 received, you’ll receive confirmation of your request with an indication of the production time.
Final copy will then be sent back to you, which you’re free to amend yourself.
The final step is for you to upload your completed copy into the Solution Profiler tool under ‘Solution Description’.

Work with a leading online copywriter
To help you create a great profile, Microsoft has engaged the services of write-minded Pty Ltd director and online communications consultant, Libby Varcoe. Libby was one of Australia’s first online copywriters. Her clients include True Local, Optus, Qantas, ninemsn, MBF, The NSW Premier’s Department and The National Museum of Australia. Libby also runs web writing workshops for the Department of State and Regional Development’s small business program. She has helped hundreds of businesses like yours find and express their voice online. For more information about write-minded visit: http://www.writeminded.com.au/.
Terms and conditions
This offer is open to all qualified Small Business Specialists, within the Microsoft Partner Program, who have a head-office in Australia.
To accommodate the Solution Profiler Tool, your company solution will be no longer than 1200 characters.
The information that will be included in your company profile will be derived from what you include in the template. Please fill this out to the best of your ability.
Once final copy is sent to you, it remains your responsibility to make any changes and upload the copy into the tool.
Offer ends October 1 2009.

More details at the Partner Network blog: http://blogs.msdn.com/auspartners/archive/2009/09/10/prepare-your-company-for-the-launch-of-microsoft-pinpoint-in-australia.aspx

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Australian Partner Conference Agenda Now Available

Still sitting on the fence, unsure if the Microsoft Australia Partner Conference is going to be worthwhile for you and your business?

I've just seen the Agenda Overview and there are some really great sounding sessions. Lots of business development, sales and marketing content and a really strong line up of SMB sessions.

You can view the Agenda here: http://www.mrmworldwide.com.au/hosted/microsoft/apc09/agenda.pdf

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Count Down to WPC 09 - New Orleans

We're just over a month out from this years Microsoft Worldwide Partner conference and I have a list as long as my arm to complete before we head off. Before we leave, we have to get a couple of new recruits bedded in, review various options for new office premises, get end of financial year preparations in order and I need to finish writing by presentation for the ICT Factor Conference. Not to mention getting to grips with being Microsoft's Australian SBSC PAL for 09-10!


Last year's WPC was held in Houston, a city which left me thoroughly uncharmed (possibly something to do with having spent two weeks in New York before WPC and a week in Bora Bora afterwards). So I'm really looking forward to New Orleans - a city famed for its history, food and music.


The format of this years conference has been changed to allow for Solutions Track Breakout Sessions, Segment/Industry Breakout Sessions and Business Model Breakouts with keynotes from the usual suspects like Kevin Turner, Allison Watson and Steve Ballmer. Lets hope Allison's not making another music video this year! One special keynote that is sure to be popular with the partners is Wednesday morning's session with Jack Welch. There's also a golf tournament and the WPC Day of Giving where you can roll up your sleeves and help out with the ongoing rebuilding work in New Orleans.

Aside from getting involved with a whole bunch of PAL related activities, I'm also hoping to get more out of meeting other partners using WPC Connect this year.


If you haven't already registered its not too late!

You can find out all about WPC09 and New Orleans by checking out these links:


Info on WPC09
https://partner.microsoft.com/40018508
http://www.digitalwpc.com/



Conference Agenda
http://www.digitalwpc.com/Agenda/



Things to See and Do
http://www.neworleansonline.com/
http://www.neworleanscvb.com/

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Microsoft Software Benefits Go Digital

Microsoft have recently announced a change to distribution of software benefits - meaning you'll be able to download software for internal use.

In some ways this a good thing, as managing physical media can get a little difficult - who hasn't wasted time trying to find the disk you need - especially if you've got behind on filing them away. Downloadable media should help you get what you need faster. Physical media will still be available to order (at a cost)

More details direct from Microsoft :

The partner community provided us with feedback to improve access and management of software benefits—we listened. We’re pleased to announce that you can now digitally access your software benefits from one, central location at any time. The advantages of the Microsoft Partner Program digital distribution solution: By directly downloading your internal-use software, you can gain access to software and updates the moment they’re made available—no need to wait for your Microsoft Action Pack Subscription or Microsoft Gold Certified or Certified Partner box shipment. Benefits include:

• Faster and more flexible: Access software immediately—24x7 availability.
• Greater visibility: View all of your software benefits summarized in a license statement.*
• Improved software benefits management: Add or remove users and manage their access to downloads, keys, and a license statement.
• Decreased environmental impact: Help reduce the amount of waste from manufacturing, shipping, and disposing of disk kits.
  *Available August, 2009.

What you need to know about this beneficial, new change:

• At launch, you’ll be defaulted to receive Digital-Only software distribution or Digital-Plus-Physical software distribution, depending on your location.* View the frequently asked questions for details.
• If you’re defaulted to receive Digital-Only software distribution, you can always order physical media (software discs)—additional fees may apply. Visit your local Microsoft Partner Program portal for information on fees and expenses.
• If you’re defaulted to receive Digital-Plus-Physical software distribution, you must wait until re-enrollment to change to Digital-Only.
• Software benefits will always be available digitally, even when you’re receiving physical media.
• Access to software keys and license statement will only be available digitally, even when you’re receiving physical media.
• Marketing and sales resources are available online—in a few weeks, you’ll receive a communication to access these resources.
• Microsoft Gold Certified and Certified Partners will still be shipped Microsoft Partner Program plaques and certificates as appropriate.
  *Certain locations will receive physical media (software discs) due to digital accessibility issues.

How to get digital access:
From this link, you can access your software benefits today. You can use a step-by-step instruction guide for assistance. How to order physical media and when you can make changes:If you aren’t automatically receiving physical media for your location, you can order it at any time—additional fees may apply. You’ll still have digital access to your software benefits.

For more information:
Check here for the latest details specific to your location and to review frequently asked questions. If you need support, please contact your local Regional Service Center.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.

Welcome To the SMB Technology Manifesto

In the midst of the 'Global Financial Crisis', Swine Flu and a period of intense busy-ness at Directions Technology, I am honoured to have been nominated as Microsoft SBSC PAL for Australia for 2009-10.

I'm really honoured to have been chosen by the partner community for this important role. While I'm still feeling my way around to find out the best way to engage with the community and Microsoft, I am looking forward to meeting more of you and finding out about your real world experiences at the frontline.

I'm going to be upfront about the fact that I don't have anything like the level of technical expertise that most members of the Small Business Specialist Community possess. My job at Directions Technology is to manage client accounts, develop marketing strategies and lead sales activities. This sees me talk to our clients all day every day and gives me a pretty good insight into what small and medium business owners and managers want from us as their technology partners and trusted advisors. At the end of the day, if we can't understand our clients needs, communicate with them and deliver on their requirements and expectations, all our efforts are for naught.

We are busier than we've ever been at Directions Technology, and I feel fortunate that we've chosen to really focus on boosting our sales and marketing activities over the last 12 - 18 months.

Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference is just around the corner, and I'll be making some time in the next week or so to strategise how we are going to make the most of our time in New Orleans. I've had a brief peek at the program which looks promising.

I welcome your comments and if you'd like to contact me directly, shoot me an email.

Keira McIntosh is the General Manager at Directions Technology - an Australia owned small business providing managed and reliable IT Support in Brisbane. You can also find her on Twitter and Linked In.