The technology landscape across South Asia is shifting rapidly, and for Microsoft partners, the potential for scalable growth has never been larger. At IAMCP India’s recent Horizon’26 Leadership Connect, over 175 Microsoft partners from India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and the Maldives gathered to map out the future of AI-driven transformation.
With insights from top Microsoft executives, the FY27 kick-off event made one thing abundantly clear: the ecosystem is primed for massive expansion, provided partners are ready to evolve.
The $12 Billion SMB Goldmine
The standout revelation from the summit was the sheer scale of the regional market. Powered by over 23 million small and medium enterprises, India alone represents a largely untapped $12 billion SMB opportunity.
Microsoft’s Area Channel Sales Lead, Om Batra, highlighted a critical shift in channel economics: for every $1 a customer spends on software, partners can capture up to $6 in services revenue. This lucrative multiplier will be driven by high-margin offerings in AI, Microsoft Copilot, security, and data modernization.
The “Customer Zero” Mandate
To successfully sell the future of work, you must live it. A major theme of the event was the concept of becoming “Customer Zero.” Partners were urged to actively adopt Microsoft’s AI capabilities internally before taking them to market in order to build firsthand credibility and expertise.
Additionally, leadership stressed operational discipline. The message was simple but effective: Partner Center should be the second app every partner opens daily, right after Outlook, to consistently leverage incentives, insights, and co-sell motions.
Enter LaunchPad 2.0
To turn market potential into actual execution, IAMCP and Microsoft officially unveiled LaunchPad 2.0. Designed for technically capable, Copilot-ready partners, this enhanced growth program focuses on accelerating business through:
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Direct Microsoft VDS referrals from upper-medium market accounts
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Joint go-to-market (GTM) execution strategies
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Co-sell acceleration and customer conversion support
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Dedicated AI skilling and capability-building sessions
Partner Center Roadmap
Ravi Mittal shared announcements around strengthening the Partner Center experience and establishing a more structured partner feedback mechanism. Ravi outlined the Partner Center roadmap, including sharper visibility into partner business health, improved co-op management, and tools such as a partner economics modeler to support better planning and execution.
He announced the formation of a Partner Advisory Council (PAC) operating model for IAMCP, designed to convert partner signals into actionable priorities. The PAC will provide a formal channel to listen to partner feedback, prioritize systemic friction points, validate roadmap direction, and close the loop with IAMCP members through a monthly synthesis, quarterly roadmap touchpoints, leadership escalation, and partner close-out communication.
As IAMCP India President Neeraj Gargi noted, the ultimate goal is to build the most vibrant partner community in South Asia. By combining Microsoft’s AI platform with IAMCP’s collaborative network, channel members have everything they need to accelerate their pipelines today.
