Partner of the Year Award Winners Announced at Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference

July 17, 2006; 02:21 AM

Microsoft Corp. tannounced the winners of the 2006 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards. The awards recognize Microsoft Registered, Certified and Gold Certified partners that delivered exemplary solutions for their customers during the past year. Award winners were chosen from a group of finalists from around the world. Winners were announced at Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference 2006, the company’s premier annual event for industry partners, held this year in Boston. In addition, Microsoft announced the winners of the Global Enterprise Services and Technology Partner of the Year, Global ISV Partner of the Year, Customer Experience, and Winning Customer awards.

More than 2,400 entries were submitted by partners worldwide; the award winners were selected from a group of finalists based on their dedicated use of Microsoft technologies to provide solutions for their customers’ needs. Finalists for each category were chosen from defined regions of the world: Asia-Pacific; Canada; China; Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA); Latin America; Japan; and the United States.

The Microsoft Partner of the Year Award winners were honored in the following categories, each of which represents a particular business practice area or partner business model. Winners were selected for both a Technology Innovation Award and a Sales and Marketing Award in each category: Advanced Infrastructure Solutions, Business Process and Integration Solutions, Custom Development Solutions, Data Management Solutions, Information Worker Solutions, ISV/Software Solutions, Learning Solutions, Licensing Solutions, Microsoft Business Solutions, Mobility Solutions, Networking Infrastructure Solutions, OEM Hardware Solutions, Security Solutions, and Small Business Specialist. In addition to announcing the Partner of the Year Award winners, Microsoft honored the Specialization Excellence Award winners for each category, based on a partner’s demonstrated ability to deliver specific solutions within a specialized subset of Microsoft’s competency areas.

Microsoft also honored the winners in the Winning Customer Award and Customer Experience Award categories.

In addition to the Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards, CMP Media LLC selected five partners to receive the CRN Best in Show awards.

CRN Best in Show Award Winners

The CRN Best in Show awards highlight innovative solutions developed by channel partners that serve as a source of inspiration for the entire channel. These solutions leverage a keen understanding of specific customer needs with emerging technologies to create new solutions that expand market opportunities for the channel as a whole.

Winning Customer Awards

The Winning Customer Awards recognize the successful implementation of solutions on the Microsoft platform, resulting in the migration of customers to Microsoft technologies from competing technologies such as Novell Inc.’s NetWare, UNIX or Linux. Partners received this award by expertly developing customer solutions that exemplify the benefit of working on the Microsoft platform rather than those of other technology vendors.

Global Winning Customer Award Winners

Regional Winning Customer Award Winners

Customer Experience Award Winners

The Customer Experience Awards recognizes the outstanding customer service that partners have provided to their customers by demonstrating an understanding of their needs, and honors partners’ ingenuity in developing unique and relevant approaches to customer outreach.

Global ISV Partner of the Year Winner

Global Enterprise Services and Technology Partner of the Year Winners

Advanced Infrastructure Solutions

The Advanced Infrastructure Solutions Awards recognize partners with proven expertise in designing and/or implementing any or all of these complex infrastructure specializations. Network infrastructures are growing increasingly complex with the demand for Web-based applications, internal and external portals, solutions for managing large amounts of data and translating it into business intelligence, and more efficient communications both within the enterprise and from remote sites. Enterprises are looking to Microsoft technologies to meet these demands, and looking for technology partners with the skills and expertise to design and implement innovative, cost-effective solutions that incorporate these technologies.

Advanced Infrastructure Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Advanced Infrastructure Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Advanced Infrastructure Solutions Specialization Award Winners

Business Process and Integration Solutions

The Business Process and Integration Solutions Awards recognize best practices for selling and deploying business process management (BPM) and integration solutions. These awards are intended for systems integrators, solution and service providers, and software developers that concentrate on enterprise application integration, business-to-business application integration, BPM, and adapter development using Microsoft BizTalk^® Server.

Business Process and Integration Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Business Process and Integration Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Custom Development Solutions

The Custom Development Solutions Awards recognize partners that focus primarily on development of customized solutions and tools built on Microsoft technologies and solutions using the Visual Studio family of development tools. Specifically, custom development partners may deliver highly custom-built solutions to support customer-unique business practices, deliver individual enhancements that allow customers to integrate existing systems with new technologies, or develop extensions to existing Microsoft solutions that the customer may already employ.

Custom Development Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Custom Development Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Custom Development Solutions Specialization Award Winners

Data Management Solutions

The Data Management Solutions Awards recognize partners that provide both mission-critical transactional applications and business intelligence solutions. The broad data management story is supported by two specializations:

With increasing demands on IT resources, companies must find new ways of maximizing their data platform investments. Microsoft provides the next-generation data management platform that enables customers to unleash the full potential of their data assets.

Data Management Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Data Management Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Data Management Solutions Specialization Award Winners

Information Worker Solutions

The Information Worker Solutions Awards recognize exceptional partners that have excelled in offering breakthrough Microsoft Office system solutions. These awards recognize partner solutions that showcase a unique and positive impact on their customers’ business pain points through their expertise in the Information Worker Solutions Competency.

Information Worker Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Information Worker Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Information Worker Solutions Specialization Award Winners

ISV/Software Solutions

The ISV/Software Solutions Awards recognize partners that specialize in developing and marketing packaged software solutions based on Microsoft technologies. Independent software vendors (ISVs) face a unique set of challenges among Microsoft solution partners. Increasing business needs and ever-changing customer and technology demands all add to the pressure of running a successful software business.

ISV/Software Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

ISV/Software Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

ISV Achievement Award Winner

Learning Solutions

The Learning Solutions Awards recognize partners’ commitment and ability to deliver high-quality learning services using a consultative engagement model. It also validates the impact that skills assessment, technical training, student mentoring and Microsoft Certified Professional exam preparation have on customer satisfaction, and the application of Microsoft technology to solve business problems.

Learning Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Learning Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Licensing Solutions

The Licensing Solutions Awards recognize partner innovation and sales and marketing expertise, as well as specific capabilities related to licensing delivery or software asset management specializations. The Licensing Solutions Competency was created to allow partners to establish their licensing and software asset management expertise and differentiate their services in the marketplace.

Licensing Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Licensing Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Licensing Solutions Specialization Award Winners

Microsoft Business Solutions

The Microsoft Business Solutions Awards honor partners that are unsurpassed in providing product and service excellence. These are true champions of financial management, supply chain management, customer relationship management, and/or retail management software whose energy, persistence and integrity have allowed Microsoft to strengthen its leadership across multiple platforms and markets. These partners demonstrate leadership in managing their businesses through new customer additions, total revenue and revenue growth.

Microsoft Business Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Microsoft Business Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Microsoft Business SolutionsSpecialization Award Winners

Other Microsoft Business Solutions Award Winners

Mobility Solutions

The Mobility Solutions Awards recognize partners that specialize in developing, deploying, supporting and marketing packaged software solutions and services based on Microsoft Windows Mobile technologies. Companies and organizations worldwide are implementing mobile business solutions to accelerate business cycles, increase productivity, reduce operating costs and extend their enterprise infrastructure. ISVs, systems integrators and related services partners are utilizing this unique opportunity and very effectively developing, deploying and supporting breakthrough mobility solutions.

Mobility Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Mobility Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Networking Infrastructure Solutions

The Networking Infrastructure Solutions Awards honor partners that have infrastructure practices with proven proficiency in implementing solutions based on the Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 or Windows Server 2003 operating systems. These awards also recognize partners with innovative solutions that help small and midsize customers realize their potential by providing operational efficiencies with the help of the Windows Server System.

Networking Infrastructure Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Networking Infrastructure Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

OEM Hardware Solutions

The OEM Hardware Solutions Awards recognize outstanding system builders, independent hardware vendors and original device manufacturers. As customers expand and upgrade their information technology assets, there is a demand for high-quality hardware solutions — such as desktops, servers and peripherals — built and designed to work with Microsoft technologies. These hardware solutions are configured according to the customers’ needs and supported to ensure customer satisfaction.

OEM Hardware Solutions Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

OEM Hardware Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

OEM Hardware Solutions Specialization Award Winners

Security Solutions

The Security Solutions Awards recognize exceptional partners that have demonstrated expertise in providing the most advanced security solutions and services to protect their customers’ information assets.

Security SolutionsSales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Security Solutions Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

Security Solutions Specialization Award Winners

Small Business Specialist

The Small Business Specialist Awards are for Microsoft Small Business Specialists that demonstrate the innovation of deploying a Microsoft-based solution in a business with fewer than 50 employees or fewer than 25 PCs. Key Microsoft products in the small-business solutions stack include Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Microsoft Office Small Business Edition 2003, Microsoft Office Small Business Accounting 2006, Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Small Business Edition and Microsoft Small Business Financials.

Small Business Specialist Sales and Marketing Partner of the Year Winner

Small Business Specialist Technology Innovation Partner of the Year Winner

About Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference

Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference provides Microsoft’s partner community with access to key marketing and business strategies, leadership, and information regarding specific customer solutions designed to help partners succeed in the marketplace. Along with informative learning opportunities covering sales, marketing, services and technology, the Worldwide Partner Conference is an ideal setting for partners to garner valuable knowledge from their peers and from Microsoft. More information can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/partner/events/wwpartnerconference.