Introduction to Solutions Partner designations

Appropriate roles: Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program partner admin

Silver or gold membership

Microsoft no longer offers Silver and gold memberships. Partners should stop using references to Silver and gold membership in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program.

Overview

The Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program offers three Solutions Partner designation badges and six Solutions Partner designation pathways. Partners can earn designation badges and incremental benefits to stand out from the competition and increase their customer reach.

• Solutions Partner for Cloud & AI Platforms
  • Data and AI (Azure) pathway
  • Digital and App Innovation (Azure) pathway
  • Infrastructure (Azure) pathway
• Solutions Partner for Security
  • Security pathway
• Solutions Partner for AI Business Solutions
  • Business Applications pathway
  • Modern Work pathway

Solutions Partner designation badges

Each Solutions Partner designation pathway contributes to one of three Solutions Partner designation badges. These badges align to Microsoft's commercial solution areas and let you showcase your capabilities within the broader solution area, while you retain full visibility into your individual designation pathway progress and score.

The way you qualify, enroll, earn benefits, and are scored for each designation is unchanged. You continue to see and work with the six individual designations in Partner Center; the badge is an external representation that rolls up the designations you earned.

Qualifying for any designation pathway that maps to a badge earns you that badge. Your individual designation pathway names, capability scores, and progress remain unchanged and visible in Partner Center.

Qualify for Solutions Partner designations

Eligibility for Solutions Partner designations is based on the partner capability score achieved by your organization. A partner capability score is a composite score that quantifies performance across three categories - Performance, Skilling, and Customer success. This score is calculated through measurements based on information already captured in Partner Center. Learn more about how this score is calculated.

Partners with the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program partner admin role can track progress toward attaining any Solutions Partner designation from the Solutions Partner dashboard.

Purchase the Solutions Partner designations

Once you're qualified in one or more designation pathways, your status changes to qualified. You can then proceed with payment to enroll in the Solutions Partner designation offer. Learn more about how to make a payment.

Renew the Solutions Partner designations

After you purchase the Solutions Partner designation offer (new partners), you can renew it after one year. Your renewal window opens on your anniversary date, one year after the date of your last purchase. You can renew your membership anytime after this date. To ensure your benefits (Azure credits, cloud services, or software) continue, renew within 30 days of your anniversary date during the open renewal period. If you can't renew within the 30-day renewal window, you can process a new purchase after the renewal period.

Partners who meet Solutions Partner designations qualification requirement

New or existing partners can buy or renew their Solutions Partner designation membership. You should make the payment and then enjoy the benefits associated with new Solutions Partner membership.

Benefits with Solutions Partner designations

To support you as you grow your business, the Solutions Partner designation offer provides a benefits bundle that aligns to the six Solutions Partner designation pathways. The three Azure Solutions Partner designation pathways share core benefits, and each have incremental benefits. For more information, download the MAICPP benefits guide.

Solutions Partner designations are prerequisite to Specializations

To enroll into a Specialization, you need to already be enrolled into the aligned Solutions Partner designation pathway. See the following section to map specializations to the relevant Solutions Partner designation pathways.

Benefits associated with Specializations and Azure Expert Managed Services Provider (MSP)

With Solutions Partner designations, specializations, and Azure Expert Managed Services Provider (MSP). When you enroll into a specialization, you receive additional specialization benefits subject to a maximum cap by designation pathway. These additional benefits align with your Solutions Partner designation enrollment anniversary date. For more information, see the MAICPP benefits guide.

Map Specializations to relevant Solutions Partner designations

Related content

• Partner capability score