A new virtual conference is giving Microsoft Partner marketers a venue that has not existed in the ecosystem before. VOICES, a one-day online event set for November 12, will bring channel marketers together for a full day of sessions, with registration and a call for speakers now open.
Monica Hoyer, conference chair for VOICES and CMO at PartnerTalks, joined Rick McCutcheon on PartnerTalks to introduce the event. Hoyer has spent five years in the Microsoft ecosystem after coming from a B2B marketing background, and she said marketing teams in the space have rarely had a dedicated forum for in-depth conversation about their work.
Marketing conversations have lacked a venue
McCutcheon and Hoyer pointed to last year’s pre-day marketing conference at Directions North America in Florida as evidence of demand. More than 100 marketing professionals attended that single day, and organizers are already planning a repeat on-site event in 2027. The gap is the time in between.
“We walked out of there and we said we really can’t leave this for a year,” McCutcheon said. VOICES is the answer: a fully online event designed to fill the space until Partners can gather in person again.
One day, four tracks, sessions available on demand
VOICES runs entirely online on November 12. The day opens with general sessions for all attendees, then splits into as many as four tracks, each with three to four sessions, before regrouping for closing general sessions in the afternoon.
Hoyer said the track topics will be shaped by what speakers submit, but she expects subject areas to include AI, thought leadership, marketing data and a track for marketers who are new to the Microsoft ecosystem. Marketing data sessions will draw on research that has presented at other conferences with MSDynamicsWorld, covering how customers move through the buying cycle and how Partners engage ISVs during decision-making.
Attendees are not limited to the sessions running in their own track. Registering in advance secures access to recordings of every session, that will stay live for several weeks after the event.
Call for speakers is open, no experience required
Registration and the call for speakers are both open now, with submissions managed through Sessionize. Hoyer encouraged marketers who have not spoken before to submit a session idea rather than sit this one out, noting that presenting from behind a computer is a lower bar than speaking to a room. Organizers also plan breakout tables and discussion groups that can pair newer speakers with more experienced ones.
“If you’re a marketer and you know your stuff, we want you to present, especially if you’re experienced in the world of Microsoft business applications,” McCutcheon said.
Early bird pricing closes Aug. 31
Marketers who register before Aug. 31 can use the code EARLYBIRD for 33% off a ticket. Hoyer encouraged attendees to pass the code along to colleagues and others in the ecosystem who could benefit from the day.
