Practice Leading: for emerging and curious leaders of Microsoft partner practices

Practice Leading is for emerging and curious practice leaders of Microsoft partner businesses. I’m Neil Benson and, if you’re anything like me with an unquenchable curiosity and zero tolerance for BS, you’ve come to the right place. Together we’ll learn from innovators and investors, executives and entrepreneurs, and business leaders and business coaches that have already left their stamp on the world and those that are exploring new and smarter ways building their businesses. Whether it’s ground-breaking innovations, hiring high-performing teams, or the sheer force of will to disrupt our industry, each episode is a masterclass from the trailblazers who have achieved significant success. Find Practice Leading on YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts, and learn from the mentors you wish you had earlier in your career.

Practice Leading: for emerging and curious leaders of Microsoft partner practices is a business podcast hosted by Neil Benson, with 15 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Neil Benson hosts Practice Leading: for emerging and curious leaders of Microsoft partner practices, a business show with 15 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #14

  Practice Leading Finale - I Quit Superware

  Oct 8, 20258 minS0

  <p>#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.</p><p >But my time at Superware has come to an unexpected end.</p><p >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. </p><p>👋 LET'S CONNECT</p><p>🌐 Subscribe to Practice Leading newsletter for key lesson takeaways and special event invita...

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  Episode #13

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

  Jul 21, 202543 minS0

  <p>#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.</p><p>Ole shared lessons from years of building, merging, and separating MSPs, and why focus and clear division of teams are crucial for success. </p><p>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...

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  Episode #12

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

  Jul 4, 202511 minS0

  <p>#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. </p><p>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.</p><p>KEY LESSONS</p>Diagnose, don’t guess. We sp...

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  Episode #11

  Forging a Modern Microsoft Alliance with Lucy Bourne

  Jun 16, 202538 minS0

  <p>#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.</p><p>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 miss...

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  Episode #10

  Scaling Innovation and AI at Avanade with Nancie Calder

  Jun 2, 202539 minS0

  <p>#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.</p><p>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.</p><p>KEY LESSONS</p>Innovation is for everyone. True innovation goes beyond technology. Nancie instills an i...

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