Scaling Innovation and AI at Avanade with Nancie Calder

Practice Leading Finale - I Quit Superware

#14. This is - probably - the final episode of Practice Leading. I created the podcast to chart my journey growing Superware, the Microsoft partner business I founded in 2020. But my time at Superware has come to an unexpected end. A huge thanks to all the guests who joined me for the lessons they shared: Mohamed Mostafa, Joel Lindstrom, Ben Vollmer, Areti Iles, Bob Bell, Edit Kapcari, Kathrine Hogseth, Chris McNulty, Nancie Calder, Lucy Bourne and Ole Gjerde. 👋 LET'S CONNECT 🌐 Subscribe to Practice Leading newsletter [https://practiceleading.com] for key lesson takeaways and special event invitations 🟥 Subscribe on YouTube [https://youtube.com/@practiceleading] 🟦 Follow on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/company/practiceleading] 🟦 Neil Benson on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/in/neilbenson] 🦋 Neil Benson on BlueSky [https://bsky.app/profile/neilabenson.bsky.social] 🧪 PRACTICE LEADING LAB FOR EMERGING LEADERS Apply to join Practice Leading Lab [https://members.practiceleading.com] ⭐ RATE AND REVIEW THE SHOW Rate Practice Leading [https://practiceleading.com/rate]

Wins and Challenges in Growing a Managed Services Practice (MSP)

#13. Ole Gjerde, CEO of TruNorth Dynamics, Ole built a custom software business, before running a managed services business, before running a business applications business so he’s seen run the full gamut of business models. Ole shared lessons from years of building, merging, and separating MSPs, and why focus and clear division of teams are crucial for success. We discussed when it’s smart to outsource your own internal technology support for any Microsoft partner, and if you’re going to launch an application support practice or MSP business, how to structure pricing for real client value, and why it’s more important than ever to prioritise transparency and partnership. KEY LESSONS 1. Focus is everything: Ole stressed the importance of keeping business lines like managed IT services and business app development truly separate—unless you’re large enough to support dedicated teams and leadership. Otherwise, you risk operational headaches and stunted growth. 2. Onboarding customers (and their baggage) is tough: Inheriting support for systems built by someone else is inherently challenging. A strong onboarding process is a must to manage the friction and uncover those “skeletons in the closet”. 3. Designing win-win support models matters: There’s no universal delivery or pricing model. Empower your customers with options, but be wary of making your operations too complex in the process. Striking the right balance can help foster healthier, longer-term partnerships. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Security concerns of a fully remote business 00:29 Neil Benson introduces Practice Leading and today’s themes 02:32 Ole Gjerde’s journey from IT services through MSPs to business applications 04:18 Is it a bad idea to combine managed services and a business apps practice? 06:20 Deciding what should be covered by your MSP offering 09:56 Signals that it’s time to outsource your internal technology support 13:08 How to choose the right MSP partner for your organization 15:49 Security, compliance, and working in a remote or hostile environment 17:43 Aligning your MSP’s compliance to your client’s industry standards 20:17 Key considerations when adding managed services to a business apps practice 26:35 Pricing models and structuring value for managed application support 33:08 Balancing resource allocation between support, consulting, and product teams 36:07 Handling customer requests for 24/7 support with a smaller team 39:46 Final advice, summary, and episode wrap-up RESOURCES * TruNorth Dynamics website [https://trunorthdynamics.com/] * TruNorth Dynamics on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/trunorth-dynamics] * Ole Gjerde on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/olegjerde/] 👋 LET'S CONNECT 🌐 Subscribe to Practice Leading newsletter [https://practiceleading.com] for key lesson takeaways and special event invitations 🟥 Subscribe on YouTube [https://youtube.com/@practiceleading] 🟦 Follow on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/company/practiceleading] 🟦 Neil Benson on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/in/neilbenson] 🦋 Neil Benson on BlueSky [https://bsky.app/profile/neilabenson.bsky.social] 🧪 PRACTICE LEADING LAB FOR EMERGING LEADERS Apply to join Practice Leading Lab [https://members.practiceleading.com] ⭐ RATE AND REVIEW THE SHOW Rate Practice Leading [https://practiceleading.com/rate]

Good Strategy/Bad Strategy: Forming Superware's Strategic Plan

#12. We just wrapped up our latest round of strategic planning at Superware—and it was a game-changer using the approach outlined in Richard Rumelt’s Good Strategy, Bad Strategy. Here’s what stood out from our process and why it made such a difference for us. After landing a major consulting win, we still hadn’t cracked product market fit for our industry apps. Instead of more generic goals and vision statements, we dove into Rumelt’s practical framework and it completely reset how we tackled strategy as a team. KEY LESSONS 1. Diagnose, don’t guess. We spent time individually reflecting and then collectively diagnosing our core business challenge—rather than just listing random goals, we drilled down to the one issue holding us back. 2. A strategy is a hypothesis. We treated our strategy as an experiment instead of a guarantee. This mindset (so familiar to us coming from agile software backgrounds!) lets us iterate, learn, and adapt much faster. 3. Coherent actions aligned around guiding policy. Instead of a to-do list, we identified focused, coherent actions that all support our guiding policy—making it clear what to prioritize and what to (confidently) leave out. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Learn how Superware used Good Strategy/Bad Strategy to reset direction 00:25 Introduction to Practice Leading and Neil Benson 01:12 Kicking off a new financial year with strategic planning 02:00 Major consulting win versus lack of product market fit 02:51 Discovering Richard Rumelt’s Good Strategy/Bad Strategy framework 03:31 Defining bad strategy and pitfalls to avoid 04:21 Key elements of good strategy: Diagnosis, guiding policy, coherent actions 05:03 Tangible example of guiding policy: The local grocery store 06:00 Diagnosing Superwire’s biggest challenge using design thinking 06:57 Dot voting and achieving team alignment on strategy 07:50 Addressing industry focus concerns and building a strategic hypothesis 08:49 Aligning team around coherent actions and a six-month strategy horizon 09:28 Treating strategy as a living hypothesis, not a fixed plan 10:12 Inviting listeners to share their strategy approaches and engage with Practice Leading RESOURCES * Good Strategy/Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters [https://www.amazon.com/Good-Strategy-Bad-Difference-Matters/dp/0307886239], Richard Rumelt 👋 LET'S CONNECT 🌐 Subscribe to Practice Leading newsletter [https://practiceleading.com] for key lesson takeaways and special event invitations 🟥 Subscribe on YouTube [https://youtube.com/@practiceleading] 🟦 Follow on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/company/practiceleading] 🟦 Neil Benson on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/in/neilbenson] 🦋 Neil Benson on BlueSky [https://bsky.app/profile/neilabenson.bsky.social] 🧪 PRACTICE LEADING LAB FOR EMERGING LEADERS Apply to join Practice Leading Lab [https://members.practiceleading.com] ⭐ RATE AND REVIEW THE SHOW Rate Practice Leading [https://practiceleading.com/rate]

Forging a Modern Microsoft Alliance with Lucy Bourne

#11. Lucy Bourne is the cofounder and director of Oaka Studio in the UK. Oaka Studio, which just celebrated its second birthday, helps Microsoft partners level up their Microsoft alliance in their marketing, sales, their Microsoft alliance and in the operation of their Microsoft practice. Lucy is a former partner development manager from Microsoft, and she dives deep into what it takes to thrive in your alliance with Microsoft. As you’ll hear in this episode, this is an area where I’m still struggling: wrestling with Partner Center, figuring out whether a solution designation is worthwhile or missing out on recognition in deals where we weren’t the invoicing CSP. Lucy cuts through all that and helps us focus on what matters most in our Microsoft alliance and the steps we need to take to succeed. KEY LESSONS 🔑 1. Alliance management needs two distinct skill sets. Don’t expect a single person to handle both the operational, programmatic tasks in Partner Center and the relationship-building with Microsoft sellers. Lucy recommends splitting these responsibilities: methodical, detail-oriented team members for the admin side, and storytellers/networkers for the relationship side. 🔑 2. Focus, focus, focus. To get noticed by Microsoft and the market, don’t try to be everything to everyone. Specialise—pick an industry or two, and build a crystal-clear narrative for your expertise. You can still deliver broadly, but your outward marketing should be laser-focused for maximum impact. 🔑 3. Recognition for implementation partners. Business apps partners can now claim recognition for workloads they’ve implemented—even if they weren’t the ones transacting the licenses. This “dual partner recognition” can accelerate your journey toward solution designation and unlock more opportunities and funding from Microsoft. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Lucy Bourne explains the value of vendor focus for large partners 00:40 Neil Benson opens the episode and introduces Lucy Bourne and Oka Studio 03:18 Lucy shares her career background and Oka Studio’s mission 05:24 Discussion of partner types Oka works with and the evolving Microsoft partner landscape 06:11 Is it harder now to become a successful Microsoft partner? 08:16 Do partners need a dedicated alliance manager? Where do you find one? 09:36 The two key roles in alliance management—operational and relational 12:54 The most important thing successful partners do: focus, focus, focus 14:17 How to balance specialization in marketing with versatility in delivery 16:08 Common mistakes partners make—neglecting alliance program management 17:30 Can partners succeed with multiple vendor relationships? 22:07 Discrete investments partners can make—case studies, awards, and social proof 28:21 Microsoft’s new dual partner recognition and what it means for partners RESOURCES * Lucy Bourne on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucyalicebourne/] * Oaka Studio on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/oaka-studio/] * Dual revenue recognition for Microsoft business applications partners [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eL3XBJo65Cs] (Oaka Studio webinar recording) * Dual recognition for Microsoft business applications partners [https://dynamicspartners.transform.microsoft.com/resources/partner-blog/powerplatform/cpor-for-csp] (Microsoft blog) RECOMMENDED EPISODES #8 Insider Secrets to Succeeding as a Microsoft Partner with Chris McNulty [https://www.practiceleading.com/insider-secrets-to-succeeding-as-a-microsoft-partner-with-chris-mcnulty/] 👋 LET'S CONNECT 🌐 Subscribe to Practice Leading newsletter [https://practiceleading.com] for key lesson takeaways and special event invitations 🟥 Subscribe on YouTube [https://youtube.com/@practiceleading] 🟦 Follow on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/company/practiceleading] 🟦 Neil Benson on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/in/neilbenson] 🦋 Neil Benson on BlueSky [https://bsky.app/profile/neilabenson.bsky.social] 🧪 PRACTICE LEADING LAB FOR EMERGING LEADERS Apply to join Practice Leading Lab [https://members.practiceleading.com] ⭐ RATE AND REVIEW THE SHOW Rate Practice Leading [https://practiceleading.com/rate]

Scaling Innovation and AI at Avanade with Nancie Calder

#10. Nancie Calder is a Senior Vice President and Global Consulting Practice Lead at Avanade, based in Toronto, Canada. From her start as a freelance consultant to leading a global team of 3,000 people, Nancie brings three decades of experience driving innovation at scale. Nancie shares her hard-won insights about what it really takes to nurture innovation and continuous learning across a 3,000+ person global practice—especially in the fast-changing Microsoft ecosystem. Her emphasis on combining practical experience with scalable programs really hit home. KEY LESSONS 1. Innovation is for everyone. True innovation goes beyond technology. Nancie instills an innovative mindset throughout her team by hiring for passion and curiosity - not just technical skills. Encouraging everyone to leverage AI and new Microsoft tools is at the heart of their success. 2. Continuous learning is non-negotiable: Avanade dedicates specific learning hours, gamified certification paths, and peer mentoring to ensure their team is always up to speed. A growth mindset isn’t just a buzzword - it’s a requirement for staying relevant. 3. Global knowledge sharing matters: With biweekly cross-regional meetings, dynamic communities of practice, and creative use of Copilot to gather project learnings, Nancie demonstrates the importance of collaboration and knowledge sharing for scaling leadership across borders. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 Helping teams deliver AI assessments and using AI in practice 00:35 Introduction to Practice Leading and the focus on innovation at Avanade 02:42 Nancie Calder introduces herself and her journey in the Microsoft partner ecosystem 05:02 Scaling a global practice and building capability across regions 06:40 Defining innovation at a global systems integrator: product development and service improvement 08:26 Balancing billable work and professional development in consultancy 10:48 Instilling a culture of innovation and continuous learning at scale 13:17 Capturing and sharing project lessons learned across the organization 16:07 Incentivizing knowledge sharing and using AI to identify expertise internally 19:34 Formal innovation initiatives like hackathons, Innovation Days, and global knowledge sharing 21:11 Practice overlaps and navigating resource contention between business units 23:48 Supporting team members with different growth mindsets and learning from client attitudes toward innovation 29:36 Choosing which Microsoft innovations to invest in and building specialized practices RESOURCES * Nancie Calder on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nanciecalder/] * Avanade on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/avanade] * Avanade website [https://avanade.com] RECOMMENDED EPISODES #7 From Four to Forty: Building CRMK’s Team and Culture with CEO, Kathrine Hogseth [https://www.practiceleading.com/from-four-to-forty-building-crmks-team-and-culture-with-ceo-kathrine-hogseth/] 👋 LET'S CONNECT 🌐 Subscribe to Practice Leading newsletter [https://practiceleading.com] for key lesson takeaways and special event invitations 🟥 Subscribe on YouTube [https://youtube.com/@practiceleading] 🟦 Follow on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/company/practiceleading] 🟦 Neil Benson on LinkedIn [https://linkedin.com/in/neilbenson] 🦋 Neil Benson on BlueSky [https://bsky.app/profile/neilabenson.bsky.social] 🧪 PRACTICE LEADING LAB FOR EMERGING LEADERS Apply to join Practice Leading Lab [https://members.practiceleading.com] ⭐ RATE AND REVIEW THE SHOW Rate Practice Leading [https://practiceleading.com/rate]