Microsoft’s Adriana Bade and Pam Johnson on Driving Partner Success Through Marketing Insights, Strategies

Welcome to the “Biz Apps Partner Podcast,” a weekly video series designed to decentralize intelligence about how partners can scale their Microsoft practice by having short, to the point discussions with Microsoft leaders in product, engineering, marketing, partner management, programs, and more.

In episode 28, John Siefert is joined by Pam Johnson, Senior Channel Partner Marketing Manager, Microsoft, and Adriana Bade, Director, Partner Marketing, Microsoft, to discuss the details of their “Microsoft Partner Marketing Keynote,” at the Biz Apps Partner Marketing Workshop and trends in the ecosystem including AI, security, and migrations.

This episode is brought to you by the Biz Apps Partner Summit, taking place July 23-24, 2025 in Seattle, Washington.

Key Takeaways

• Overview: Adriana explains that she works with top-managed system integrators (SIs) in the SMB and SMC segments, focusing on their go-to-market efforts and pipeline generation. Additionally, her team gathers market insights and trends from partners to inform business actions. Pam notes that she primarily works with distributors and larger partners that drive scale and volume, focusing on targeting modern workplace resellers to explore business applications.
• Biz Apps Partner Marketing Workshop: Pam and Adriana will be leading the “Microsoft Partner Marketing Keynote” at the Biz Apps Partner Marketing Workshop, running on Sunday, October 13, in San Antonio, Texas. The session will be both fun and interactive, focusing on the importance of solution designation and how it unlocks additional investments from Microsoft. They’ll discuss funded engagements, incentives, and how to leverage various Microsoft assets and marketing tools to accelerate deals and help on-prem customers transition to the cloud. Adriana adds that during the keynote, the two will discuss the best ways to communicate with Microsoft, including channels to plug into and ensuring visibility in Microsoft’s communication sources.
• Connect with Pam and Adriana: After the presentation, Pam and Adriana will be available for appointments to hear about your challenges and successes, and explore opportunities to leverage Microsoft’s resources. Sign up for a one-on-one meeting here.
• Market trends: When discussing other market trends, Adriana explains AI is a major focus, with 87% of organizations believing it provides a competitive advantage by enhancing employee experience, customer experience, and business processes. Additionally, security remains a top concern for customers, particularly in maintaining confidentiality and preventing breaches. Pam agrees that it’s crucial to proactively plan for migration to avoid security breaches, leveraging Microsoft’s market offers to stay ahead of competitors.

Stream the audio version of this episode here: