Is it time to take the Pledge?

In this article, we look at the Microsoft Parter Pledge and ask if it’s something that all partners should sign up for?

The challenge of keeping pace on CSR and DE&I

Large corporations and government agencies are increasingly being judged on their impact on the people they employ and the communities they work in, including their environmental impact. Companies typically use two programmes to measure and drive these non-financial initiatives, corporate social responsibility (CSR) and diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I).

Smaller companies such as the typical service providers in the Microsoft Cloud Partner Programme, tend to have less of a focus on these areas. Two factors are changing this – the pressure from society and within the company to address these areas; and the need for the larger corporations to trace sustainability and ethical sourcing of products, materials and services throughout their supply chain.

Implementing such programmes can be confusing and expensive for a smaller partner business, but help is at hand in the shape of the Microsoft Partner Pledge. This enables a company to sign up to set of goals alongside Microsoft and, most importantly, gives clear guidance and support in achieving progress.^1,2

What is the Microsoft Partner Pledge?

Signing up to the Microsoft Partner Pledge is a simple online process. The Pledge offers partners a simple framework to kick-start their CSR/DE&I initiatives with a set of useful tools and guides.

The framework splits commitments into three areas.

Growing talent in our industry
Enhancing diversity and inclusion
Shaping a desirable world

Let's explore each in turn:

Growing talent in our industry

Growing talent in our industry allows partners to attract, train and retain the very best staff for the business. A well- defined learning culture within a business makes it a more attractive proposition for new employees looking for an employer who invests in skills and learning. Initiatives including the six-step skilling initiative, Microsoft Apprenticeship Network and Digital Skills Bootcamps enable partners to provide their employees with the types of programmes usually associated with much larger corporations.

Enhancing diversity and inclusion

Enhancing diversity and inclusion is a key initiative to ensure that each member of staff is provided with a supportive environment to deliver their best work, a benefit for the company and the individual³. Studies have shown that companies with the greatest workforce diversity deliver stronger financial performance than those with less diverse employees⁴. It’s worth noting that using this explanation for having a diversity and inclusion policy can backfire as employees from diverse populations are more likely to be attracted to companies who explain their diversity initiatives as the right thing to do for fairness rather than financial gain^5,6.

Another key element to consider here is the shift that is taking place with generation alpha (those born between 2010 and today) being more open to expressing their gender identity and neurodiversity. As their impact on the workplace is felt, companies will need to offer the type of inclusive workplaces they will rightly demand. With strong moral and financial imperatives for DE&I, having the guiding hand of a global leader like Microsoft can help partners along the way. With tools like the Women Rising Programme and the D&I accelerator, the Partner Pledge offers concrete, actionable initiatives to help partners advance their diversity and inclusion actions and policies.

Shaping a desirable world

Shaping a desirable world covers a number of elements. Initially grounded in sustainability, this area has been bolstered with commitments around responsible and ethical AI. When it comes to sustainability, all the major IT and cloud providers have set admirable targets and, arguably, Microsoft has the most stringent reporting and transparency on its sustainability goals and progress⁷. The Microsoft Partner Pledge has separate sections for ISVs and services partners with a suite of tools and advice tailored to each audience. Services partners can calculate their cloud carbon footprint, learn how to study the Microsoft Sustainability Guide and use Microsoft Sustainability Manager to record, report and reduce their environmental impact.

Microsoft is also leading the way in AI with Copilot being included in more solutions on a regular basis. As partners and their customers start to deploy AI, the need to mitigate risks whilst solving problems in a new way is critical. Microsoft provides partners with a body of research and guidance under their AI for Good banner.

What are the benefits to a Microsoft Partner of signing the Partner Pledge?

Signing the Partner Pledge and aligning to the three pillars provides the following benefits to Microsoft Partners:

Microsoft and distribution visibility
- Most Microsoft Partners that we speak to are keen to increase their traction with either Microsoft directly for larger clients or with distribution. Signing the Partner Pledge and having clear business strategies for the three pillars is a clear statement that a partner is a business worthy of investment and customer introductions.
Increased profitability
- As evidenced above, firms with a strong focus on DE&I achieve better financial performance. The ability to attract and retain the right staff for your business will be significantly enhanced by the three pillars of the Partner Pledge.
It’s the right thing to do
- It is no longer acceptable for businesses to prioritise profits ahead of people, communities and the environment. The three pillars of the Partner Pledge align with goals which should be at the heart of any responsible organisation. Signing the Microsoft Partner Pledge is a clear signal that a Microsoft Partner is a forward-looking company.
Marketing potential
- A quick online search for Partner Pledge will uncover thousands of results for Microsoft Partners who have already signed. From the largest global systems integrators to local managed services providers, the Microsoft Partner Pledge is an activity that companies want to shout about.
Access to valuable tools and guidance
- The Microsoft Partner Pledge provides clear guidance and supporting tools to achieve the goals that companies should be striving to achieve anyway. Larger corporates pay consulting firms significant fees to develop programmes in these areas. Using the provided tools within the Pledge, Microsoft Partners can elevate their status as an ethical business with minimal cost.

Advice to Microsoft Partners around the Microsoft Partner Pledge.

We advise all Microsoft Partners to sign the Microsoft Partner Pledge for the reasons outlined above. Signing up is just the start though, success will depend on how well the business is aligned to the three pillars and progress is made in the right direction. To ensure that the Pledge becomes more than just an empty promise, we suggest the following.

Any cultural change in a business requires support from the management and passion from the employees. A top-down edict will be resisted, and an employee-led approach will fail without management support. We recommend that each pillar within the Partner Pledge is led by an employee with a passion for the area with support from the management to drive the right initiatives. For example, TD SYNNEX has created DE&I councils for each geographic region and within that are several virtual teams called Business Resource Groups (BRG). Each BRG focusses on a pillar of the DE&I journey (e.g. LGBT, disability and neurodiversity, women in technology, ethnicity and religion) and comprises a group of individuals who put themselves forward to contribute. Each BRG is given time and budget to create programmes to guide the organisation on its DE&I journey, and they report directly to the local country board. This mechanism of giving a voice to staff with the passion to drive change is in itself inclusive and is likely to drive change faster than a top down edict.⁸
We suggest making clear commitments in key areas such as diversity and sustainability, publishing those commitments and monitoring progress quarterly. Making your journey public will help customers and partners understand your commitment and maintain focus on progress within the business.

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