Partners who demonstrate deep knowledge, extensive experience, and proven experience deploying Microsoft Identity workloads with Microsoft Entra ID (ME-ID) may seek the Identity and Access Management specialization.

“Identity and threat protection are high on customers’ minds. Getting identity right is a critical part of a Microsoft 365 engagement and is the first place we start. “ -Forrester 2020 Microsoft 365 Enterprise Total Economic Impact Study (A commissioned study conducted by Forrester ConsultingTM on behalf of Microsoft, June 2020).

As our world undergoes rapid digital transformation, we are seeing both increasingly sophisticated security threats and protection measures. That new security paradigm is addressed by a Zero Trust framework, which puts identity at the forefront of verifying every access and connects security solutions across the entire digital estate. From identity to data, apps, infrastructure, network, and endpoints, Microsoft 365 is built on the principles of Zero Trust, with a strong cloud identity at its core.

Customers today are facing many challenges related to identity and access management—like numerous apps, devices, and users across and outside of the corporate network. As the organizational barriers blur between who is in and out of your network, organizations struggle to manage identities for not only their employees, but also external partners, suppliers and distributors, and even end consumers and customers or citizens. In addition to this, COVID-19 accelerated this trend as organizations had to rapidly transition their employees to work remotely and identify secure and cost-effective solutions for business continuity.

There was a 300% increase in identity-related attacks last year, and customers are looking for reliable partners and new ways to proactively protect and monitor the security of IP and customer data to safeguard businesses. The Identity and Access Management specialization is designed to help customers identify which partners have the technical capabilities and proven experience in deploying Microsoft Identity workloads with Microsoft Entra ID.

Partners who meet the comprehensive requirements to earn an specialization receive a customer-facing label that they can display on their business profile in Microsoft AppSource, are prioritized in customer searches to drive new business, and can generate a certified letter from Microsoft that verifies the specialization that they have earned.

How do I apply?

Only administrators of an organization’s Microsoft partner account can submit an application for the Identity and Access Management specialization on behalf of the organization. If you have the appropriate role and access, you can apply by signing in to Partner Center and navigating to your Partner Center dashboard > Membership > Specializations.