Delivered to the York Technology Alliance (YTA) Services Peer Group on November 12, 2010 "Partnering and ultimately going to market with large technology companies brings with it a great many benefits — and an equal number of challenges. From navigating a complex, matrix organization to knowing what moves the dial for an individual seller to an executive sponsor, getting it right can mean a difference measured in months of time and millions of dollars. Sharing lessons learned from over sixteen years of building strategic alliances in the software and IT services sectors, Shawn Yeager will provide insights into the practical steps technology vendors can take to accelerate the process and dramatically improve the outcomes of partnering with Big IT."

1. 8 KEYS TO PROFITABLE PARTNERSHIPS
PARTNER-READY FOR BIG IT
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2. 2

3. WHAT’S THE UPSIDE?
+ Reduced time to market
+ When you speak, be heard
+ Know what moves the dial
+ Know what success looks like
+ More opportunities & joint deals
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4. Subsidiary
Region
Area
Team
X
$
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5. 1. TAKE INVENTORY
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6. STAKEHOLDER EXPECTATIONS
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7. ALLIANCE CAPABILITY &
CAPACITY
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8. FIELD SALES & MARKETING
COVERAGE
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9. COMPETITIVE PARTNERSHIPS
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10. PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
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11. ONE WORD: REVENUE
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12. 2. DO YOUR HOMEWORK
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13. UNDERSTAND THEIR
ORGANIZATION
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14. PEOPLE & PROCESS
+ Know the decision makers and influencers
+ Understand how they typically partner
+ Understand how they measure success
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15. UNDERSTAND THEIR
MOTIVATION
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16. KNOW WHAT MOVES THE DIAL
+ For an individual seller
+ How are they measured on revenue?
+ How are they measured on major business
objectives (MBOs)?
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17. KNOW YOUR THEIR LIMIT
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18. GIVES & GETS
+ What field sales & marketing (usually) will do
+ Increase account intelligence
+ Remove barriers
+ Advance the sales cycle
+ Document the win
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19. GIVES & GETS
+ What field sales & marketing (usually) won’t do
+ Account planning when you have no real
opportunities
+ Broad-scale lead generation without targeted
programs
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20. CASE STUDY: MICROSOFT
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21. OVERLAYS & VIRTUAL TEAMS
+ Territory Unit (Area)
+ Industry (Geo)
+ National Partner
(Geo)
+ Developer &
Platform
Evangelism (Geo)
+ Product (HQ)
TUEPG
SMS&P
Industry Product
National
Partner
DPE
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22. WHAT THEY CARE ABOUT
Signing an
Enterprise
Agreement (EA)
Renewing an EA
at its 3-year term
Advancing the
deployment of
product to secure
EA renewal
Account
Manager
e.g. SQL Server
deployments
Documenting
solution wins
Solution
Sales
Specialist Dynamics CRM
sales &
deployments
Documenting
design wins
Dynamics
CRM
BDM Engaging vertical
partners to
secure Microsoft
deployments
Documenting
industry wins
Industry
BDM
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23. General Manager
District quota; customer/partner
satisfaction
Account Manager
EA renewals; individual product quotas
Account Technical Specialist
Account quota (revenue & units)
Solution Sales Specialist
Product quote (revenue & units);
business development
Product Technical Specialist
Product quota (revenue & units)
Partner Account Manager
Partner pipeline, case studies, wins,
demand generation
Microsoft Consulting Services
Microsoft “skin in the game”; beta
technology adoption; sub-contracting
opportunities
WHAT GETS THEM EXCITED
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24. 3. CRAFT YOUR MESSAGE
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25. ANSWER THE QUESTION:
WHY SHOULD THEY CARE?
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26. WHY THEY’LL CARE
+ You help them generate more revenue
+ You help them secure new or existing clients
+ You help them beat the competition
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27. THEY’LL WANT TO KNOW
+ How you influence revenue
+ How and against whom you help them win
+ Your wins and credentials
+ Your competitive landscape
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28. NAME (CUSTOMER) NAMES
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29. STORYTELLING
+ Know how to tell compelling stories about
relevant wins.
+ If you have strength in particular industries or
verticals, call them out with supporting
credentials.
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30. BE DIRECT. BE BOLD.
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31. SHARED EXPERIENCE
+ Tell them why they should spend their time with
you in specific terms.
+ If they lose when you lose, be clear about it.
Shared pain can be as important as shared
success.
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32. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
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33. 4. FIND AN ADVOCATE
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34. PRIME CANDIDATES
+ Salepeople attached to customers you’ve
already won
+ Newer salespeople still ramping up and with
cycles to spare
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35. MAKE A HERO
+ First, focus on one or two individuals that you
can help succeed.
+ Make measured investments in their success.
+ Smart salespeople will want to follow.
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36. 5. BUILD A TRIBE
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37. GO VIRAL
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38. GIVE AND GET
+ Once you’ve demonstrated success with your
advocate, give her the tools to spread your
message.
+ Then ask for internal webinars, territory
meetings or sponsored team meetings where
you can get the word out.
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39. HAVE PATIENCE
39

40. GIVE AND GET
+ A partnership is a marathon, not a sprint.
+ Expanding your reach and engagement will
take time, so have patience, but don’t stop
pushing.
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41. PLAN TO SCALE
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42. 6. SHARE YOUR SUCCESS
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43. EXAMPLE: WINWIRES
Winwire: {Insert Company Name and Logo}
Headline:
Win Overview:
Pain:
Power:
Vision:
Value:
Control:
Win Revenue:
Can any details of this win be shared publicly with other customers?
Your Name:
Microsoft Contributors:
Partners:
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44. 7. KEEP AN EAR TO THE
GROUND
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45. PEOPLE
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46. PROGRAMS
46

47. PRODUCTS & SERVICES
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48. 8. ADAPT & EVOLVE
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49. WHY DO PARTNERSHIPS FAIL?
+ No formal governance structure
+ Lack of agreed-upon performance metrics
+ No regular assessment
+ No senior management involvement
+ Insufficient resources
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50. It’s about people, customer value
and money—everything else will
change.
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51. © ASAP 2010 Page 1
www.strategic-alliances.org
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52. SHAWNYEAGER.COM/CONTACT
THANK YOU
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53. © COPYRIGHT 2010 SHAWN YEAGER + CO. INC.
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