Organizations must always be ready to change to meet the demands of the market. This puts pressure on employers and workers to keep learning and developing new skills. For many global system integrator (GSI) and system integrator (SI) organizations, it is important that they can show potential customers that they have the right skills to help them use cloud services efficiently and effectively.

AWS Training and Certification provides a way for learners to become experts in the cloud based on roles or solutions. It also offers certifications to validate cloud expertise, which can build credibility and confidence. AWS GSI and SI partners may see more business opportunities and return on investment (ROI) by having their employees go through the AWS Training and Certification program.

Forrester’s study provides information on how AWS partner organizations can grow revenue and profitability with the help of an AWS trained team.

Through interviews with 13 representatives at nine partner organizations that have gone through the AWS Partner Training and Certification (AWS T&C) programs and offerings, Forrester concluded that AWS T&C has the following three-year financial impact:

How AWS Partner Training and Certification helps improve revenue

Improvement in win rate related to projects and deals

It is helpful for sellers to be skilled and knowledgeable so they can have better conversations with potential clients about what they need. Also, if the people who deliver and work on the project at the client’s organization are AWS certified, that makes the organization more attractive to potential clients who are considering different proposals during the request for proposal (RFP) stage.

Creates new offerings and capabilities that add additional revenue

Having an AWS trained team helps the organization create new offerings or enter new spaces that it could not do so before going through AWS Training and Certification. The expansion into new offerings and capabilities will bring additional revenue to the organization.

Increases in average deal size

If employees better understand customers’ business needs and how to solve them with AWS solutions, the organization will have more opportunities to upsell and cross-sell, as well as charge higher rates for projects because the quality of work is high. This means that with an AWS trained team, the organization increases the average deal size it is winning and delivering.

Operational efficiency gains of having an AWS trained team

Faster project delivery

By including a team of AWS trained experts, an organization will have more skilled and knowledgeable employees, who work efficiently and complete the projects at a faster pace. Therefore, it will be able to deliver projects faster.

Upskill existing employees to fill skilled hire roles

Through AWS Training and Certification, an organization empowers its employees to develop relevant cloud skills and places those employees in emerging cloud-related roles. By filling open roles with upskilled employees, the organization can avoid the costs associated with hiring and the higher salaries that experienced cloud talent demand.

Improve customer and employee satisfaction

With an AWS trained team, organizations will be able to enhance customer and employee experience.

• Partner organizations will be able to understand the needs of its customers better and customize offerings where needed. This leads to customers being more satisfied with the final deliverables. This promotes a more positive customer relationship, which opens additional opportunities in the future.
• Organizations that provide AWS Training and Certification to their employees tend to have more satisfied employees. Employees appreciate companies that invest in their development and career progression. Having more employees skilled in AWS allows organizations to better utilize their employees on projects.

How organizations select the right partner program?

Client demand

Organizations decide which training and certification program to use based on what their clients want. If clients or potential clients ask for projects related to a particular cloud provider, the organization will provide training based on that cloud.

Comprehensiveness of training and certification program

According to the study, the comprehensiveness of services is another deciding factor in choosing the program. Training and certification programs vary greatly in terms of the range of courses they offer, making it important to research a program before committing to it. Assessing the depth and breadth of available services can help potential learners determine whether a program offers the ideal mix of instruction and resources for their individual needs.

Source: AWS

Read next: Microsoft and AWS named Leaders, Alibaba Cloud and Google named Strong Performers in ‘The Forrester Wave™: Public Cloud Development and Infrastructure Platforms’