The change in the standard Microsoft Certified and Microsoft Gold Certified Partner brands is proving to throw up some unexpected consequences. For most of the larger Gold Certified Partners it was a simple case of selecting to become an Advanced ERP Competency and avoid the ERP Competency. However this has proved to be confusing for End Clients, recently I was involved in a discussion with an existing End Client, who had instigated the meeting due to his concern that the partner I was representing had “lost” its Gold certification. Although the certifications and competencies are primarily for internal Microsoft uses, such has been the skill in which Microsoft have shown over the years in branding the “Gold” partners it took an entire hour of a meeting to correct the End Clients thinking that Advanced ERP Competency was the same as Gold Certified and therefore there would be no loss of service or discount.

If this is what happens when a client is not even trying to cause problems, will there be an unseen damage in which potential clients are put off by the lack of the “gold” standard. I am aware there are far too many imponderables in that statement to be answered, but the hope is that Microsoft will spend as much time, effort and money in branding the Advanced ERP Competency, however I will mourn the loss of the Gold standard given it’s what I grew up, then again I still forever calling Dynamics NAV by its Navision name, so maybe it’s just the dinosaur in me!!

A more concerning development in the change in the standard has been the ever increasing move to up the number of certified individuals. I am all for strengthening the quality of those of us that are involved in Dynamics, but just upping the number of certified individuals does on its own not achieve this. The added worry is that with VARs and ISVs now allowed to self certify this surely does not bode well for increasing standards. The opportunity to charge $100 a day more for a certified functional or technical consultant will as day follows night allow the self certification to slowly drop in its criterion.

But what concerns me most is that there surely has to be the opportunity for freelancers to become VARs for small companies to exist and compete against the larger organisations on a level playing field. I am not asking Microsoft to bring an NFL style draft, but to allow the smaller budget teams to still play the same game. The number of smaller VARs and ISVs that have produced outstanding add-ons over the years has been what has improved the channel no end. The ability to innovate is not the right of the larger VARs and ISVs alone. In recent weeks we have seen 2 of the ISVs who has serendipity would have it were named last month in this very sites own list of Top Add-Ons for 2011 having to recruit new staff with the relevant competencies, and it is my understanding that they are finding this difficult as their specific needs for specific exam passes, has meant that recruiters are not only attaching a premium to their fee but also to the salaries of potential employees.

This is not in itself a reason to rail against the new Advanced ERP Competency, as I do agree that standards need to be raised, but in future if Microsoft could bring themselves to run focus groups with us smaller companies and if the larger VARs and ISVs could remember what it was to a be a small company then I think the whole channel would improve together.