The Record - Issue 21: Summer 2021

61 Tell me more about IAMCP’s history, the range of partner organisations that belong to the association and the industry segments they support. The International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners (IAMCP) is a professional, high-trust organisation dedicated to helping its members navigate the Microsoft ecosystem and maximise their business potential. Through part- ner-to-partner (P2P) engagement, member advo- cacy, inclusiveness and education, our members can grow their business and are able to execute on a business strategy that helps customers reap the manifold benefits of digital transformation. IAMCP not only nurtures partners’ connec- tions to Microsoft but more importantly serves as the ‘Voice of the Channel’ into Microsoft, aggregating suggestions and helping the chan- nel to better understand and align with the var- ious programmes that partners can use to build their business. Globally, our members serve clients across the main business segments and cover most, if not all, industries and our member’s clients include Fortune 500 companies. The association was founded in 1994 and is organised in chapters across three main regions: Americas, APAC and EMEA. For Microsoft end users, where does the IAMCP proposition add most value? how might those operating in both enterprise and public sector settings usefully connect with your member companies? Over the last decade, the technology landscape has been evolving at a mind-boggling pace, but more recently, the pandemic has really acceler- ated this evolution, bringing to the fore the need for an IT service provider to be not just a vendor but a true business partner. As a business decision-maker, you now need to not only ensure that you’reworkingwith someone you trust, but it is also very important that your partner constantly keeps abreast of changes and evolves their services and offerings to align with this huge evolution we are all witnessing. I listed trust first because, as technology firms, we are often given the ‘keys to the kingdom’ and there needs to be explicit trust between the client and service provider. Our member organisations are highly engaged with Microsoft, constantly learning and expert collaborators. Collaboration and partnership are built on the foundation of trust and by having a P2P mindset, it allows our partners to focus on providing the best and most complete solutions to their clients. Let me provide an example of this collabora- tive mindset. When building a house, you would ask a plumber to carry out the plumber, a joiner the joinery and carpentry and an electrician for the electric works. Each tradesperson focuses on what they do best and a general contractor ensures the work is performed in harmony. It works much the same with our member organisations with one typical exception, the general contractor is one of the specialists. While some have more than one speciality, it’s more likely that the security firm will work with another partner to implement a customer relationship management solution, for example. By doing this, each partner organisation builds expertise in their field and can stay up-to-date on the latest innovations. You assumed the role of international president earlier this year. What are your primary aspirations for the months ahead and what new innovations are you hoping to bring to IAMCP during your tenure? My primary aspiration is to create more value for our members and enable them to achieve more with their customers. IAMCP international president Sarika Malhotra discusses the association’s work, its relationship with Microsoft, how it helps Microsoft customers and its plans for the future A foundation of trust BY ANDY C L AY TON - SM I TH