-- Partners recognized for innovative solutions and making more possible for customers worldwide Microsoft Corp. on Thursday announced the winners and finalists of the 2021 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards. The annual awards recognize Microsoft partners demonstrating excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions based on Microsoft technology. Award winners and finalists from around the world will be recognized at the all-digital Microsoft Inspire( https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=3219462-1&h=1111565305&u=https%3A%2F%2Fpartner.microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Finspire&a=Microsoft+Inspire ), July 14-15, 2021. Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/24227/Microsoft_Logo.jpg This year, Microsoft acknowledged partners in 56 categories celebrating each of the solution areas, industries and sectors globally in which Microsoft technologies are used. Several new awards and categories were announced this year, including a new Social Impact category, which encompasses community response, inclusion and sustainability. Microsoft selected the finalists and winners for all Partner of the Year Awards from more than 4,400 nominations collected from more than 100 different countries worldwide. Applicants were judged based on their commitment to customers, their solution's impact on the market, and exemplary use of Microsoft technologies. "Announcing the winners and finalists for the Partner of the Year Awards is always a highlight for us each year," said Rodney Clark, corporate vice president, Global Partner Solutions, Channel Sales and Channel Chief, Microsoft. "These companies are bringing innovative solutions to complex business challenges and providing digital transformation opportunities for their customers from cloud to edge. Congratulations to each winner and finalist on this tremendous achievement." Additional details on the Microsoft 2021 Partner of the Year Awards are available in an updated Microsoft Partner Network blog: ( https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=3219462-1&h=713318199&u=https%3A%2F%2Fc212.net%2Fc%2Flink%2F%3Ft%3D0%26l%3Den%26o%3D3219462-1%26h%3D3926690748%26u%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fblogs.partner.microsoft.com%252Fmpn%252Fcongratulations-to-the-2021-microsoft-partner-of-the-year-awards-winners-and-finalists%26a%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fblogs.partner.microsoft.com%252Fmpn%252Fcongratulations-to-the-2021-microsoft-partner-of-the-year-awards-winners-and-finalists&a=https%3A%2F%2Fblogs.partner.microsoft.com%2Fmpn%2Fcongratulations-to-the-2021-microsoft-partner-of-the-year-awards-winners-and-finalists ) The complete list of categories, winners and finalists, including the Microsoft Country Partner of the Year Award winners for 2021, is available at https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/inspire/awards. About Microsoft Inspire Microsoft Inspire is the company's largest partner event of the year. This conference brings together partners from around the world, industry leaders and Microsoft experts to discuss Microsoft cloud innovation, opportunities for partner growth and profitability, and ways to create and strengthen connections. This year, Inspire will take place July 14–15, 2021. More information can be found at https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/inspire. About Microsoft Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. SOURCE: Microsoft Corp. NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information, news and perspectives from Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft News Center at http://news.microsoft.com. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication but may have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft's Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://news.microsoft.com/microsoft-public-relations-contacts. CONTACT: For more information, press only: Microsoft Media Relations, WE Communications, +1 (425) 638-7777, rapidresponse@we-worldwide.com