Cloudforce Elevates Its Game with Microsoft Advanced Specialization

Preparation & lessons learned

Advanced Specializations require many thorough pre-requisites such as:

1.  Multiple staff must pass a variety of required Microsoft certification exams, which indicate their deep proficiency in various Azure services and methods. Having completed these pre-requisites, Cloudforce staff now hold over 80 individual Microsoft certifications.
2. Microsoft requires specific monetary thresholds or “Azure Consumption” to demonstrate that our current customers are already using Azure. These thresholds demonstrate to Microsoft that a partner already has significant experience in not only migrating but also in maintaining and managing Azure environments.
3. Audit preparation; this is the big one!
   a) We had to prepare and show exacting documentation & artifacts for multiple customers where we had completed Windows Server and SQL Server Azure migration projects. We had to ensure our documentation strictly conformed to Microsoft Best practices outlined and in alignment with the CAF.
   b) In addition to showcasing Azure migration case studies using these documents, we had to additionally demonstrate to the auditor that we have the technical chops to perform a laundry list of migration tasks. This performance could not have been choreographed for the stage, as it involved multiple Cloudforce staff showcasing complex migration scenarios in real time to our auditor.

With the audit now completed and safely in our rear view mirror, we have incorporated feedback from the auditor and have enhanced our internal migration processes to further mature our workflows & documentation, leading to even more streamlined future migrations.

As a Microsoft Gold Partner with Advanced Specialization in Windows Server and SQL Server migrations, 100% of the Cloudforce delivery team is now certified on Microsoft’s cloud platforms at the highest levels, including certified Azure Solutions Architect Experts. This achievement has been on our radar for a couple years, and it has taken us a little longer than we anticipated to get here, but we are thrilled to have been recognized by Microsoft for what we already knew; that we truly are the Leading Force in the Microsoft Cloud.