Biz Apps Partner Podcast: RSM’s Mike Gillis on Forming Strategic Partnerships with Microsoft, Customer Wins

In this episode of the “Biz Apps Partner Podcast,” Mike Gillis, Principal, RSM US, joins John Siefert to discuss the strategic partnership between RSM and Microsoft, emphasizing the importance of understanding Microsoft’s account segmentation and focusing on specific business opportunities to enhance collaboration. Mike also discusses rising trends and shares tips for effective partner engagement.

This episode is brought to you by two events: the Biz Apps Partner Preconference Workshop, taking place on October 13, at Community Summit North America 2024, and the Biz Apps Partner Summit, taking place July 23-24, 2025 in Seattle, Washington.

Key Takeaways

• RSM and Microsoft partnership: Mike, who is responsible for RSM’s relationship with Microsoft, emphasizes the strategic partnership between the two companies. He views it as building a closely aligned business with Microsoft, leveraging its extensive customer base to streamline processes and drive revenue.
• Building effective partnerships: To get more help and closer engagement with Microsoft, it’s crucial to understand their account segmentation, which includes unmanaged (partner-led) and managed accounts. Focus on relevance by knowing the specific accounts Microsoft representatives handle and adopt a “How can I help you?” attitude to build effective partnerships, advises Mike.
• Improving engagement: To improve engagement with Microsoft, it’s effective to discuss specific companies and projects, highlighting opportunities where the company has a strong presence. By comparing a specific company’s extensive client list with Microsoft’s SMC accounts, you can identify the best matches and present relevant names, which enhances brainstorming and collaboration.
• Rising trends: A trend that Mike references is that the traditional approach of implementing a large ERP system over several years is shifting towards a more incremental, pay-as-you-go model. This approach allows businesses to implement solutions by department or function, gaining benefits more quickly and addressing specific problems with tools like AI and Power Apps. This method is now being adopted even by large enterprises, leading to a larger overall technology spend and more efficient project management.
• Quick wins: Effective communication involves focusing on specific problems rather than broad issues, and having an industry focus helps in understanding customer challenges and opportunities more quickly. Delivering industry solutions built on Microsoft Cloud, combined with enterprise software expertise, allows for quick wins for customers.
• Final tips: To be an effective partner, it’s crucial to understand Microsoft’s segmentation and align with its goals and objectives in prioritized industries and segments. By focusing on areas where you can excel and asking how you can help, you increase the chances of mutual success.

Stream the audio version of this episode here: