Cloud Solution Provider
Support Practice
Builder
Cloud Solution Provider
Cloud Solution Provider
Contents
Why Should I Create a Support Organization?
Setting up a Support Organization
Key Considerations
Cloud Solution Provider
Why Should I Create a Support Organization?
Cloud Solution Provider
Benefits of Creating a Support Organization?
Have a stronger relationship with your customer
Differentiate from MS Support and other MS Partners
Customer Loyalty
Sell more/upsell
Sell additional products/services
Cloud Solution Provider
Advantage for Partner
Knows the customer environment and story (trust & relationship)
Knows the customer organization, contacts, & business units
Has experience in support and architecture
Delegate Administration to manage customer’s cloud environment
Cloud Solution Provider
Advantage for Customer
One point of contact
Faster case resolution
Phone support for SMB
Local Language Support
Help on configuration issues (MS – break-fix only)
Help on on-premises issues (MS – Cloud issue only)
Have onsite help from partner when needed
Customizations
Access to Pro-active services (Upgrade, Product End-of-life, Migration)
Cloud Solution Provider
Opportunities (Value Add Services)
Priority Support 24/7
Onsite Support
Pro-active Services (Update, End of Life...)
Technical Phone Support in local language
Special Access to Partner KB
End-to-End support during Services Upgrade
Health Check (Servers, Client Network Assessment and Update)
Fee example: Monthly, Yearly, On Demand, Flatrate, Hourly...
Cloud Solution Provider
Your Business Opportunities (Example)
• Mail, phone and/or web (self service or
chat guided) services
• Payment method: monthly fee, pay per
incidence, pay per seat etc.
• Automation (Crest API, Partner CRM, etc.)
Depth:
Managed Customer
space
• Provide onsite services, health check, proactive
services, readiness activities (for IT personnel and
for users
• User training under fee
• Account management services (for escalations)
Cloud Solution Provider
Setting up a Support Organization
Cloud Solution Provider
Partner Support Team
Cloud Solution Provider
Partner New Service Launch
Present State:
• Launching first service as a CSP Partner
Planning and Services Readiness Areas (In Scope):
• Planning for Cloud Services technology stack support
• Planning for Coverage and Channels
• Planning for Staff Capacity and Skills
Cloud Solution Provider
Developing Services Support
Present State:
• Established Support Partner; planning to develop & grow
Planning and Services Readiness Areas (In Scope):
• Planning to expand hours of operation, languages, regions
• Planning to support more services (more Cloud)
• Planning to offer more services (deployment consulting, custom
solutions, coding)
Cloud Solution Provider
Mature Services Support Delivery Examples
Present State:
• Mature Services Support Partner; planning to differentiate
Planning and Services Readiness Areas (In Scope):
• Planning for Incremental Investments
• Planning to Scale Support offerings
• Planning for IP Management
• Planning to manage costs and remain competitive
Cloud Solution Provider
Support Org Structure
Centralized
Hybrid?
Decentralized
Cloud Solution Provider
Microsoft/Partner SLAs
Support Service Level Agreements
Microsoft only
provides service level
guidelines for
support
Service levels for
support are response
guidelines only
No service levels are
provided regarding
issue resolution times
• Partners should consider relationship of their SLAs and Severity guidelines to those
provided by Microsoft
• Partners should consider any commitments that conflict with their ability to escalate
to Microsoft
Cloud Solution Provider
Reactive vs Proactive: It’s Your Decision!
Customer calls when
issue exists
+
Preventative Actions
Health-Checks
Readiness Activities
=
Additional
Sales!
Cloud Solution Provider
Managed Services & IP
Managed services
• VIP services/premium
support
• On top offerings
• Integration services
• Developer services
• Customized solutions
Intellectual property
• End-user training
• IT Pro training
• Support articles
Cloud Solution Provider
Managed Services & IP (cont.)
Deployment & migration services
Managed services and support
• Sell Cloud readiness assessments
• Evaluate customer needs for
advanced compliance technology
like eDiscovery, archiving,
retention policies
• Deliver proof of concepts
• Move email, calendar, and
contacts to Office 365
• Move documents to Cloud
• Install and set up Office desktop
applications and Skype for
Business
• Build internal and external
websites
• IT admin training
• New user setup
• End-user training
• Cloud services help desk – Tier 1
or Tier 2 support
Add-on projects and solutions
• Deliver advanced administration
services like eDiscovery and
setting up data-loss prevention
and archiving policies
• Build custom line of business apps
through new Cloud app model in
Office 365
• Manage app store for customers
Cloud Solution Provider
Customer Purchasing Models
Pros
• Work scope and
delivery is clear
Cons
• Difficult to manage
transactions
• Administrative
overhead
• Does not help with the
customer attach
concept
Pros
• Paid for all work done
Cons
• Administrative
overhead
• Not %100 aligned to
the customer attach
concept
Pros
• High customer attach
Cons
• Might be difficult to
forecast call volumes
• As seats are flexible,
adaption can create
admin overhead
Pros
• Very high customer
attach
• Easily forecasted
revenue
Cons
• If case volumes go
beyond Partners’
support forecast and
headcount, it might
end up being costly. So
a limit might be
implemented
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Service Offerings
Service offerings should be defined with clear scope
Add-on services must be defined with clear scope and pricing
Discounts on support services should be considered if
• Customer purchases more seats
• Customer does not use the reactive service as frequently as forecasted
For mid- and big-sized customers, a Services Account Manager could be offered or assigned
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Key Considerations
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Learnings (Call Types vs Lifecycle)
Question Types:
•
•
•
•
Presales
Compete
Compatibility
Supportability
Provided for/as:
• Free
• Trial
• Support package
Managed by:
Evaluate the
services
• Partner presales team
• T1 (or Partner support team basic support)
Deployment
Running and
consuming
the services
Cloud Solution Provider
Learnings (Call Types vs Lifecycle) (cont.)
Question Types:
•
•
•
•
•
Compatibility
Supportability
Deployment
High availability
Integration
Provided for/as :
• Support package
Managed by :
• T2 (or Partner support team)
Evaluate the
services
Deployment
Running and
consuming
the services
Cloud Solution Provider
Learnings (Call Types vs Lifecycle) (cont.)
Question Types:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
High availability
Integration
Customization
Upgrade
Presales
Compatibility
Supportability
Provided for/as :
• Support package
Managed by :
• Partner presales team
• T2 (or Partner support team)
• Partner development team
Evaluate the
services
Deployment
Running and
consuming
the services
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Support Org: Lifecycle Example
Pilot
Support existing customers (if any)
Free trial – 1/3 months
Goals
Identify most common issues
Evaluate skill gaps
Increase experience
Promote your new business
3–6 months after pilot
Support new customers on selected
SKUs
Paid service
Goals
Identify most common issues
Evaluate skill gaps
Increase experience
6+ months after pilot
Support new customers on Enterprise SKUs
and complex environments and scenarios
Paid service
Goals
Provide Advanced and Premium Services
Support customization and complex scenarios
Support Services upgrade
Cloud Solution Provider
Planning Considerations
Support boundaries?
Be sure to state in writing what issues
your organization supports. It is often
a good idea to publish this
information on a website or on a sign
in your help desk.
When will your organization be
available for assistance?
Setting and publishing consistent
hours for your organization will allow
people to know when they may come
to your organization for support.
Cloud Solution Provider
Basic Services Alignment and Planning
Set customer
expectations
• Define support
boundaries and
make sure that
your clients know
what to expect
from your
organization.
Optimize your
delivery
• Structure your
organization so
that your less
experienced
support personnel
are the first to
attempt to fix a
problem. If they
cannot fix the
problem, have
them escalate the
issue to a more
experienced staff
member.
Implement a
ticketing system
• Track and manage
cases and issues
• Data and insights
• Monitor support
performance
Implement a CPE
survey
• Help you in
improving your
Support
Organization
Cloud Solution Provider
Maintaining a Support Organization
Make sure to continuously
reevaluate the support
system you have created. If
you notice that there is an
issue with your system that
results in an influx of issues
to your help desk, attempt
to change this policy.
Document technical
procedures. Maintaining a
wiki that houses
information on how to
solve common issues gives
your whole staff a better
ability to mitigate issues
for which they may be
unfamiliar.
Making the Knowledge
Base publically available
can also allow your more
savvy users to fix problems
without the help of your
support personnel.
(Restrict to customers.)
Cloud Solution Provider
Driving Support Efficiency and Best Practices
Support is often the largest cost component in Online Services
Lowering incident/support rates is paramount in reducing costs, increasing
customer satisfaction, and accelerating growth
There are different approaches and best practices for increasing the
efficiency of support and reducing costs
Cloud Solution Provider
Operational or SLA Review Process
Methods
Review
support
operations
Review
and
optimize
monitoring
Optimize
process
Optimize
staffing
levels
Optimize
technology
Optimize
physical
workspace
Optimize
staff skills
•
•
•
•
•
•
Rhythm of business meetings
Case review meetings
Resource planning
Readiness and training planning
Tools/technology optimization
Monitoring
• Case quality checking
• Escalation gatekeeper*
• Customer satisfaction surveys
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Support Quality Gatekeeping Concept
Partner T1
• Frontline support for call
triage and/or basic
troubleshooting and
services
• (100% of cases)
Partner T2
• Technical support
agents/engineers for
more advanced
troubleshooting and
services (25%–50% of
cases)
Partner
Gatekeeper
• Checks that support
process was followed
(problem analysis and
troubleshooting steps,
proper use of ticket
template and available
tools like KB, search, etc.)
• Validates/authorizes the
escalation to Microsoft
• Participates in case
quality reviews
Microsoft
Support
• Cloud Partner support
receives escalations with
troubleshooting
information
• Microsoft works with
partner (gatekeeper) to
review and maintain the
quality of escalations to
ensure resources are
used optimally for the
benefit of partner and
customer.
Cloud Solution Provider
Customer Satisfaction Monitoring
Systematic customer
satisfaction surveys
Non-systematic customer
satisfaction surveys
• Short survey sent with the closing
of a support case or as part of the
welcome pack or intro procedure
to the services and products
• Overall satisfaction with support
process and results (1–9 ranking)
• Satisfaction with the product and
services (1–9 ranking)
• Detailed questions: e.g. efficiency
of the support, ease of access,
helpfulness of the support agent,
satisfaction with the products and
services, reliability, etc.
• This method can be used when
systematic surveys are not in place
or not possible or when the data is
not reliable or exploitable.
• Customer satisfaction survey with
stratified customer samples (e.g.,
separate surveys of sampled
customers from the different
market segments of your customer
base).
Other ways to capture
customer satisfaction
• Use a method or channel to
facilitate the feedback obtained
from customers (e.g., comments
made during a support case) to
the appropriate services and
ensure they are acknowledged
with the customer.
Cloud Solution Provider
Launching and Ramping Up Support Efficiently
Launch
Ramping up
Run Mode
• Staff: 2–3*
• Type: Tier 2 support
escalation engineers/trainers
• Skills: Troubleshooting,
training, cloud, or Exchange
expertise, escalation
management.
• Scope: Focus on high call
drivers (Exchange Online,
connectivity, set up). All cases
going to T2 directly.
(Frontline, if used, simply
forwards cases.)
• Staff: 3–6*
• Type: Tier 2 (and T1/Frontline
ring-fenced
team)
Ramping
up
• Skills: Advanced
troubleshooting (T2), support
process, and simple
troubleshooting (T1)
• Scope: Gradually extend T2
team skills to other products
(SharePoint, Skype for
Business, etc.) and train
Frontline teams.
• Staff: 6–XX (see staff sizing
section)
• Type: Tier 2 and T1/Frontline
(general)
• Skills: Advanced
troubleshooting and
escalation management (T2),
basic troubleshooting and
assistance (T1).
• Scope: All products and
services.
Cloud Solution Provider
Launching and Ramping up Support Efficiently
Table illustrates methods
depending on staffing size,
experience and the suitability of
scheduling and level (T1/T2)
Cloud Solution Provider
Appendix
Cloud Solution Provider
Microsoft cloud partner support offerings
We are committed to helping you grow your cloud business and provide the best service by offering flexible
support options designed to meet you and your customers’ needs.
Level of support
Best
Better
Good
Premier Support for Partners
Most comprehensive support for partners
with highly complex customers – whether
in the cloud, hybrid or on-premises
Advanced Support for Partners
Advanced support for partners who are
growing their cloud business with
moderately-complex customers
MPN Technical Services
Foundational support for partners who are
establishing their cloud business
Account
management
Service
delivery
Deployments
covered
Problem
resolution
Assigned
On-site and
remote
Cloud
Hybrid
On-premises
Fastest response
(1st priority, 1/2/4
SLA, CritSit)
Remote
Cloud
Limited Hybrid
Faster response
(2nd priority,
1/2/4 SLA)
Remote
Cloud
Hybrid
On-premises
Standard
response
(3rd priority,
2/4/8 SLA)
Pooled
N/A
Compare the support offerings and benefits available to your business at aka.ms/partner_support_offerings
Cloud Solution Provider
Support Comparison
Microsoft Partner
Network (MPN)
Advanced Support
for Partners (ASfP)
Premier Support for
Partners (PSfP)
Microsoft Products & Services Supported
Cloud
Hybrid
On-premises
Cloud
Options* for Hybrid & On-premises
Cloud
Hybrid
On-premises
Support Delivery Method
Remote
Remote
Remote, On-site
Submit Support Tickets On Behalf of End Customer



24x7 Technical Support



Case Severity & Target Initial Response Times
Sev A: 2h
Sev B: 4h
Sev C: 8h
Sev A: 1h
Sev B: 2h
Sev C: 4h
Sev A: 1h
Sev B: 2h
Sev C: 4h
24x7 Critical Situation Support
--
--

Support Account Management
--
Pooled
Designated
Escalation Services
--


Advisory “How To” Services



Technical Presales Assistance

Available with MPN subscription
Available with MPN subscription
Cloud Solution Provider API Support
Self-guided and Packaged
Packaged
Customizable for you and your customers
Proactive Support Services
Self-guided and Packaged
Packaged
Customizable for you and your customers
Developer Mentoring & Coaching
--
--
Optional*
Designated Support Engineering
--
--
Optional*
Minimum Price (USD)
Included in MPN Competency or MAPS
subscription
$1,250/mo
$28K/yr
MPN Technical Services Website
ASfP Website
PSfP Website
* Available for an additional fee
Cloud Solution Provider
Creating Service Requests Directly in Azure and O365 Portals
It is important to always start in Partner Center when
submitting a service request on behalf of a customer
to ensure “On Behalf Of” functionality is invoked
When bypassing Partner Center CSP partner is logged into Azure or O365
portal on their own subscription context and not the customer’s
Cloud Solution Provider
Can a CSP End Customer Get Support?
Customers will be provided Partner contact information if
they attempt to submit a service request
CSP customers cannot utilize your support benefit with
Microsoft and must contact the partner for support.
Cloud Solution Provider
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.