Greetings East Region Partners,

To help you prioritize your training activities this month, here is a summary of recommendations from the U.S. Partner Team.

You can always find up-to-date information on recommended on-demand, local in-person, and virtual training opportunities by visiting the Regional Partner Training Finders and the Learning Plan Tool, or subscribe to communications such as the U.S. Partner Newsletter and the U.S. Partner Learning blog to have current training tools and opportunities delivered directly to your inbox. 

Training and Certification Promotions, Tools, and Resources                      

Sharpen Your Skills and be Entered to Win this January

You could win a Flip Ultra Camcorder, a $120 Amazon gift card, or a $25 American Express gift card when you attend any of our featured on-demand courses. This month’s solutions include Server Virtualization, Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack, Exchange Server 2010, and Azure Platform. You’ll earn a prize entry for each course you attend. 

Time to Thrive Webcast Series for Sales Specialists

This monthly series is dedicated to helping both old and new Microsoft Sales Specialists thrive within the current landscape and hit your short-term and long-term sales goals. Next in the series: Wednesday, January 11 – Take the Balanced Approach: Hit Your Sales Target with Confidence with Kendra Lee.

”Escape to Fun” US OEM Winter Sales Track Sweepstakes

Complete the courses below for your chance to win a “Pick Your Escape” vacation for two, a Panasonic 42” plasma TV, or a Sony Blu-Ray player with the OEM Winter Sales Track Sweepstakes. To enter, sign in with your Live ID and create an account at the OEM Training Zone.

• Why Sell Windows 7: PCs vs Mac
• ROKStar (OEM Reseller Option Kit)
• How to Demo Office 2010 to Your Customers
• Leading With Microsoft - Partnering for a Successful Future in the Cloud (optional course)

Intensive Training Events

Regional SQL Server 2012 Training – Don’t miss your chance to take a deep dive into SQL Server 2012 with these local trainings this winter:

Microsoft Application Platform University

A half day sales training that provides a strategic selling framework to elevate your selling-readiness for solutions developed using Microsoft products. We will discuss new and exciting opportunities that our incoming releases will bring for you and our current private and public cloud positioning.

SQL Server 2012 Technical Ignite

A two-day course focused on the new features of SQL Server 2012, combining presentations and hands-on labs to help you understand how SQL Server 2012 addresses the mission critical, business intelligence, and database development needs of your customers.

Dynamics Business Leader Roadshow – This premier leadership event is an invaluable opportunity to collaborate with, and learn from business development experts, Microsoft field and business leadership, and your peers. This year's event takes a deep look at what successful partners have done to align their businesses for greater impact and results. Join us in one of the cities below:

Irvine, CA – January 11th and 12th
Dallas, TX – January 17th and 18th
Tampa, FL – January 25th and 26th

Partner Services and Support Virtual Classroom Events

• Power Start Workshops - Get access to essential knowledge for Microsoft products and solutions. Learn about new product features and presales opportunities, and get an overview of a solution with these workshops. Cost: 1 advisory hour

• Momentum Workshops - Access the latest technical training for deployment, development, and migration to deepen your skills and knowledge base around current Microsoft products and solutions. Cost: 1 advisory hour
• Practice Accelerators - This comprehensive set of reusable tools and best practices can help you identify customer requirements and project scope, analyze customer needs, and deploy solutions. Offerings include Server Virtualization, Exchange Server 2010, SharePoint Server 2010, BPOS, and MDOP. Cost: 10 advisory hours

Live Online Web Seminars