Digital Revolution Awards

We were delighted to attend the Digital Revolution Awards, celebrating the organisations and individuals driving meaningful change through technology across the UK. It was a fantastic evening recognising real innovation and impact, and a great reminder of the quality of work happening across our industry. Congratulations to all of the nominees and winners on the night.

The sun came out just in time for our annual Summer Social at Bondi Green. Hosted with Seer 365 and sponsored by our friends at TrueCommerce, iDynamics Business Solutions, Yavrio - Open Banking, Vertex Inc., Xe.com, Formpipe, Revolent Group, and Binary Stream Software - Microsoft ERP Solutions, the aim was, as always, to keep things simple - no slides. no presentations or pitches - just great conversation and a few cocktails, all enhanced by the gorgeous backdrop of the canal, thanks to Bondi Green's superb location.


These kinds of nights are a reminder that real community matters. Thanks to everyone who joined us - if you'd like to join us next year, please just let us know at info@oaka.studio.

IAMCP Events:

European Power Platform Conference: June 29 – July 2

FY27 MCI Funding -Same Budget, Different Pockets

Microsoft changed the incentive rates on 1 October. Three months into the financial year. If that caught you mid-deal, you weren't alone, which is why October's Oaka Partner Insights went back over MCI funding when we'd normally have moved on to something new.


Lindsay Climson walked through the changes by solution area, with Kate Balgowan, Head of Cloud Alliances at Arrow, covering the CSP rebate side. The short version is in the title. Microsoft insists there's no less money on the table this year. It has just been moved into different pockets, and more of it now pays out for what happens after the deal rather than for the deal itself.

These are the parts worth acting on.

AI Business Solutions: paying for what happens next


Copilot funding now sits under Frontier Accelerate for Copilot rather than Copilot Jumpstart. If you were a Jumpstart partner in FY26 you've been grandfathered in, but only until 31 December. After that you need the M365 Copilot specialisation, which means an audit. Audits cost money and take time, so if yours isn't booked, consider this your nudge.


The Copilot deployment accelerator now pays in two milestones. The first lands when the engagement is done. The second arrives six months later, and only if the customer's usage has grown to target. Claims per tenant have dropped from four to two, with only one live at a time.


A few things are already tripping partners up:

  • T-shirt sizes are locked once you nominate. Overshoot and you won't be paid more when the customer buys double. Undershoot and you'll miss the second milestone.
  • Licences must be bought in the same calendar month. 100 seats on 30 September and 200 on 1 October don't make 300. Twenty-four hours apart, still no.
  • Partner Center's eligibility check is optimistic. It shows every CSP deployment accelerator as available, but the customer only qualifies once they've bought the right number of licences in the last two months. Worth a word with your sales team before anyone over-promises.
  • FY26 engagements count towards your 33% performance rate. Microsoft tracks it quarterly and will pause you if you fall short. You'll find it under Insights, then MCI performance.


Strategic 500 customers are excluded from Frontier Accelerate funding across the board, and Microsoft Elevate customers (education and non-profit) from most of it. More on the exception below.


There is good news for SMB-focused partners. The Business Premium deployment accelerator only needs a Modern Work Designation, not a specialisation. Sell 50 or more seats and that's $2,000 towards deployment, plus another $1,600 if you're displacing Google Workspace. Conversion bonuses like this run across the solution areas, with Salesforce, SAP and Genesys named on the Dynamics side.


Lucy put it plainly on the call. This funding isn't just a reason to get in front of a customer. Microsoft is checking whether it drives the outcome it paid for, and partners need the governance in place to prove that it does.


What's changed on CSP rebates


Kate explained the new split between direct and indirect. Tier 1 direct bill partners still earn core rebates on AI Business Solutions and security. Indirect partners don't. Instead, Microsoft has moved that 2.5% into growth for the indirect channel. As Kate put it, distribution's job is now to make you grow faster.


Two things worth modelling before renewal season:

  • Growth is paid on the increment only. Sell 100 seats last year and 110 this year, and the 12.5% growth rebate applies to the extra ten.
  • Change of channel partner pays nothing but growth for 12 months. Win a like-for-like renewal on price and you won't earn on that licence for a year. Win it and grow Copilot or E5, and the maths looks very different.


Cloud and AI platforms: new numbers, same plumbing


Azure funding works differently. T-shirt sizes are set by anticipated Azure consumed revenue (ACR) over the next 12 months, not by licence counts. Nearly every rate was reset on 1 October, some in oddly specific ways ($2,000 to $1,680, anyone?), but the mechanics underneath haven't changed. If you're mid-conversation with a customer, double-check the numbers.

Specialised partners get the full menu. New this year, partners with an SMB solution designation in any of the cloud and AI platforms areas can reach a smaller post-sales pot, worth between $1,600 and $24,000. SMB customers haven't felt much love from MCI in recent years, so this one is worth a look.


The admin is heavier than elsewhere:

  • Show your working. Proof of execution includes the ACR calculator export, plus extra paperwork for some engagements.
  • Size realistically and watch your ratio. You need two pre-sales engagements for every post-sales one. Conversion bonuses (AWS and Google are the named competitors) only pay if you claimed the original engagement at the same t-shirt size.


Performance reports arrive monthly by email rather than in Partner Center, with 30 days' notice before any pause. And if you hold Azure Expert MSP, note that it's being retired at the end of calendar 2027. It currently unlocks almost all Azure funding, so it's worth planning your route now. The Frontier specialisation belongs in that conversation.


On rebates, cloud and AI platforms keeps things simpler. Tier 1 and tier 2 earn the same rates, there's still a 3% core incentive and the levers stack to a maximum of 15%.


Security: everyone's business now


Kate didn't mince her words. No one should be selling a Copilot licence without Purview attached. If you've been thinking security funding isn't for you, in FY27 it probably is.


The most time-sensitive opportunity of the session sits here. Partners with any of the four security specialisations can nominate Microsoft Elevate customers for up to $8,000 per tenant, but only between 1 October and 15 November. You still get the usual 90 days to deliver once the customer consents. The nomination itself needs to be in by the 15th. Sarah from HTG confirmed on the call that these customers do show up in Partner Center.


Elsewhere in security:

  • Any security specialisation will do. You no longer need a specific one to unlock the funding in many cases.
  • There's a designation-only entry point. The Business Premium Defender and Purview deployment accelerator needs just a Security designation.
  • Check the customer's FY26 history. If a tenant had three or more security workshops last year, no partner can claim pre-sales funding for it this year. That was common, so check before you pitch.
  • Usage incentives won't claim themselves. They still exist for specific specialisations and workload growth, but you have to go in and claim them.


Microsoft has also introduced a separate consumption rebate for Security Copilot, Sentinel and Defender for Cloud. You can't double count it against Azure, but it does count towards your Security designation and specialisation targets.


If the specialisation route feels out of reach for now, talk to your distributor. Kate pointed out that Arrow can access some funding on partners' behalf, even just to test an engagement a couple of times before you commit to an audit.

Co-op: the money you've already earned


In one week we spoke to five partners who didn't know they should be claiming co-op. As Lucy said on the call, if she had a pound for every partner asking how to get more money out of Microsoft, she'd be living on a yacht somewhere.


Here's how it works. CSP rebates are paid on a 60/40 split. The 60% lands in your bank 45 days after the month it was earned. The 40% builds up in a co-op bucket over the half. Reach $10,000 and it becomes claimable in Partner Center from 15 February, against activity from 1 January,  or 15 August against activity from 1 July depending on which half of the year you're in. Fall short and it's simply paid as cash in month seven.


Before you assume there's nothing there, check three things:

  1. You're enrolled in Microsoft Commerce Incentives. If you're transacting CSP and you aren't, the money disappears into the ether.
  2. Your banking and tax profiles are set up.
  3. You're looking in the right place. Co-op management opens on a blank page. Click the small eye icon marked Program view, then Microsoft Commerce Incentives, and look for a little pie chart. Check the earning period and every location ID too, especially if you've acquired other partners. There may be pots hiding under each one.


What's changed for FY27:

  • Allocated resource is capped at 50% of your co-op. Microsoft has said that will drop again in FY28, so if co-op covers someone's salary, you have a year to plan. Sales and marketing skilling courses are required to claim, though marketing skilling is waived for H1.
  • Multi-touch campaigns need paid media. LinkedIn ads or a Sales Navigator licence both count.
  • Venues should lean educational. Less football stadium, more learning.
  • A detailed invoice is now the preferred proof of execution. Say what happened, when, who attended and what Microsoft content was used. Keep the photos and registration pages on file for two years anyway, as audits have been hinted at.


Microsoft's own research says the best-performing partners put their co-op into demand generation. And unlike MDF, co-op asks for evidence that the activity happened, not MQL or SQL targets.


Don't let the tail wag the dog

Lucy closed on her soapbox, and it's worth repeating. Part of the reason Oaka exists is to demystify all of this. But the incentives shouldn't be setting your strategy.


A specialisation costs real money in audits, certifications and customer growth. Whether the juice is worth the squeeze depends on what you're trying to build as a business, not on what Microsoft happens to be paying for this half. If you'd like help working that out, get in touch.

In the meantime, bookmark the incentives guide at aka.ms/incentivesguide. Lindsay calls it the incentives bible. She may have it memorised.

What's next


Missed the session? The full recording is on the Oaka website under Oaka Events.

Get in touch

Whether you're three claims deep into Frontier Accelerate or still checking whether you're enrolled in MCI at all, the rules will keep moving this year. We talk to Microsoft partners about incentives, specialisations and co-op every day, and we work alongside distributors like Arrow who see it from the other side of the channel.



If you'd like to talk through which specialisations are worth the audit, how to model your rebates or where your co-op has got to, email us. Our inbox is always open.

info@oaka.studio

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