Vivek Puthucode (Microsoft)
Rhipe, NTT Data and Adobe Systems have been named as winners in the inaugural Microsoft APAC Partner Awards, for 2020.
For the first time this year, Microsoft has introduced three new Asia Pacific Partner Awards categories to recognise outstanding regional partners that have demonstrated business leadership in the region with innovative and unique services and solutions built on the Microsoft platform.
Microsoft Asia Pacific One Commercial Partner general manager Vivek Puthucode said in a blog post that the Microsoft Asia Pacific (APAC) Partner community saw "tremendous" growth last year, despite the many challenges partners faced.
Indeed, Microsoft's APAC channel community grew by more than 16 per cent over the past 12 months, according to Puthucode.
"This growth, to me, is evidence of their trust in the Microsoft partnership and how our collective customers are increasingly looking to us as an industry to help them recover, rebuild and even to reimagine their business as they address the challenges that COVID-19 has presented," Puthecode said.
"As a community, our partners and us also have the unique privilege to empower organisations and individuals with technology-led solutions and innovations so that they can emerge stronger from the pandemic," he said.
Against this backdrop, Puthecode noted that although Microsoft recognises the achievements of its partner community across the countries in which the company operates, many partners replicate their customer successes in more than one region.
Hence the introduction of the three new Asia Pacific Partner Awards categories, aimed at recognising those partners excelling across the entire region.
The three winners include Australian listed cloud software distributor Rhipe, which took home the APAC Services Partner of the Year Award 2020.
Rhipe beat out several regional finalists, including Accenture and Avanade, Adobe Systems, Ingram Micro Asia and NTT Data.
NTT Data was named as the winner of the APAC Global Systems Integrator (GSI) Partner of the Year Award, beating fellow finalists Accenture and Avanade, Cognizant, HCL Singapore, NTT Data and Tech Mahidra.
Meanwhile, Adobe Systems won the APAC Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Partner of the Year Award 2020. The finalists in this category included Check Point Software and Hitachi Solutions Asia Pacific.
Rhipe CEO Dominic O’Hanlon said his company's win was a "great honour".
"We are so proud of our close interdependent working relationship with Microsoft and we will continue to innovate and push the growth boundaries for Microsoft and for our amazing partners. Thank you to all our fantastic staff, partners and incredible colleagues at Microsoft," he said.
Rhipe was recently announced as the winner of the FY20 CSP Partner of the Year Cambodia, FY20 Microsoft Cloud Distributor of the Year for Indonesia and also the Coopetition Excellence Award at the FY20 Microsoft Philippines Partner Awards.
“This recognition by Microsoft is a testament to the strength of the Rhipe and Microsoft partnership and our combined unwavering commitment to delivering the best services and solutions to our customers," O’Hanlon said.
Microsoft unveiled via a virtual celebration ceremony on 14 January for the company's Singapore awards, recognising the leading providers which demonstrated excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions, solutions capable of transforming businesses, cities, homes and user experiences across the city-state.
Winners included Cognizant, Ingram Micro, Accenture and Avanade, Insight and Axiom IT Solutions.
