Certification Notes for Azure Product in Cisco LCI Program

The Cisco Lifecycle Incentives (LCI) program is designed to reward Cisco partners for driving software adoption, usage, and successful customer outcomes. This program encourages partners to engage with customers throughout the software lifecycle, ensuring value realization and satisfaction. Certifying an Azure product for the Cisco LCI program involves understanding the program’s structure, objectives, and the integration requirements with Azure solutions.

Program Overview

The Cisco LCI program is divided into distinct milestones that track the customer journey:

Deal Registration: Partners register qualified deals and are rewarded for initiating the customer lifecycle.

Solution Design: Incentives are provided for proposing and developing optimal solutions for customers.

Activation: Rewards are offered for assisting customers in activating their software licenses or subscriptions.

Adoption and Consumption: Continuous engagement to help customers maximize their use of Cisco solutions and achieve intended outcomes.

Azure Product Certification

Certifying an Azure product for Cisco LCI involves ensuring the product aligns with the program’s goals, particularly around driving adoption and usage. Key considerations include:

Integration with Cisco Technologies:

The Azure product should seamlessly integrate with Cisco solutions (e.g., Cisco SD-WAN, SecureX).

Ensure compatibility with APIs or tools that Cisco uses to track lifecycle milestones.

Lifecycle Tracking and Reporting:

Azure products must facilitate detailed tracking of adoption metrics.

Incorporate telemetry systems for usage analytics and share these insights with Cisco's platforms for milestone verification.

Terms and Conditions Compliance:

Provide clear and accessible Terms & Conditions documentation using termsAndConditionsDocs or termsAndConditionsDocSasUrl.

Ensure documents are hosted securely and comply with Cisco’s partner program requirements.

Azure Features for LCI Alignment

Scalability and Flexibility:

Products like Azure Virtual Machines or Azure Kubernetes Service can host Cisco solutions for flexible deployment.

Azure’s autoscaling ensures efficient resource utilization during high-demand periods.

Secure Hosting and Compliance:

Microsoft Azure meets stringent compliance requirements like ISO, SOC, and GDPR, ensuring that Cisco’s data is protected.

Tools like Azure Policy and Azure Security Center provide an additional layer of governance.

Monitoring and Insights:

Leverage Azure Monitor and Log Analytics for usage tracking.

Share consumption data with Cisco to validate milestones for incentives.

Benefits of Certification

Increased Partner Engagement: Certification aligns the Azure product with Cisco’s growth strategies, increasing credibility among partners.

Financial Incentives: Enables partners to earn rewards by registering, activating, and driving adoption.

Customer Success: Ensures the product supports Cisco’s commitment to delivering value at every stage of the customer lifecycle.

Key Certification Steps

Register the product in the Azure Marketplace with appropriate documentation and terms.

Validate lifecycle milestone tracking, such as activation and consumption metrics.

Perform integration tests with Cisco systems, ensuring compatibility with LCI tracking tools.

By aligning Azure products with the Cisco LCI program, partners can deliver exceptional value, boost software adoption, and ensure lifecycle success.

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