How AWS Specializations & Competencies Help Partners Stand Out
AWS Specializations are official recognitions from Amazon Web Services that highlight a partner’s deep expertise in specific services, solutions, or industry workloads. For technology and consulting firms, earning an AWS Specialization demonstrates proven technical proficiency, validated customer success, and the ability to deliver optimized AWS solutions at scale. From Service Delivery and Managed Services to Competencies in areas like machine learning, financial services, and security, AWS Specializations help organizations stand out in the cloud ecosystem, attract new clients, and accelerate digital transformation with confidence.
AWS breaks down Specializations into 4 broad categories:
- AWS Competency (Industry and Use Case, such as Retail, Generative AI, and Digital Sovereignty)
- AWS Service Delivery Specialization (such as AWS WAF and Amazon API Gateway partners)
- AWS Service Ready Specialization (such as AWS PrivateLink)
- AWS Managed Services Provider (MSP) Specialization
Let’s dive in.
What are the benefits of AWS Specializations?
When it comes to the AWS Partner ecosystem, earning AWS Specializations is key to standing out not only to AWS customers, but AWS employees as well, including account managers, PDMs, and AEs.
Once partners earn an AWS Specialization, they unlock tangible benefits such as:
- A place on exclusive partner lists related to relevant industry and use cases, accessibly only to AWS employees
- Access to AWS credits and funds, including MDF (marketing development funds)
- Go-to-market support
- Technical enablement
AWS Specializations by the numbers
In a report by Canalys (now Omedia), analysts point out how customers and partners alike leverage specializations to drive success. Check out the numbers for yourself to see how AWS specializations can help build trust with customers and close deals.
- 74% of customers review their partners’ certifications at least twice a year
- 87% of AWS customers rank specializations as a top 3 selection criteria
- 68% of partners use specializations as proof of expertise to pursue vendor certification
- 55% of of partners say marketing development funds (MDF) and migrations funds
- 40% see industry focus as a top 3 selection criteria
- 64% of partners use their industry expertise as a differentiator point
- 55% of partners were asked for case studies from prospects
- 46% of customers took 3 months or longer to scrutinize and select their partners
- 65% of multi-cloud customers said AWS Specializations were extremely valuable in choosing vendors
- The majority of the AWS Partner Economy is connected to some AWS Specialization
- Customers are focused on analytics, managed services, consulting, migration, program delivery, advisory services, and reselling
AWS Marketplace vs. AWS Specializations
Getting listed and transactable on AWS Marketplace – AWS’s B2B storefront for third-party solutions – allows customers to discover, purchase, and deploy software solutions. If an ISV is fully built on AWS and meets other requirements, AWS can use their committed spend budget to procure software.
For marketplace ISVs, earning a specialization helps your solution stand out for deep expertise in a specific area. This signals your successful track record of deployments and certified staff.
How to Earn an AWS Specialization: Step-by-Step
Earning an AWS Specialization demonstrates your company’s technical expertise and proven success in delivering AWS solutions. Here’s the step-by-step process for partners:
- Join the AWS Partner Network (APN): Enroll as a Consulting or Technology Partner through the AWS Partner Central portal. It’s free to join, and you will need to enroll in the Software or Services path.
- Review Specialization Requirements: Select a specialization that aligns with your business: Competency, Service Delivery, Service Ready, or Managed Services Provider, and review the specific technical and customer success requirements.
- Prepare Customer Case Studies: Gather multiple references showing successful projects and measurable outcomes related to your chosen specialization.
- Demonstrate Technical Expertise: Provide evidence of AWS certifications, solution architecture, and operational best practices.
- Submit Your Application: Apply for the specialization in AWS Partner Central under Programs > Program Applications.
- Validation by AWS: AWS reviews your technical capabilities and customer references to confirm compliance with program standards.
- Receive Recognition and Benefits: Once approved, your company receives the AWS Specialization badge, unlocks marketing and funding benefits, and gains access to AWS technical enablement programs.
Following these steps not only validates your expertise but also increases credibility with customers and visibility in the AWS ecosystem.
About Invisory
When it comes to cloud marketplaces, getting listed is only the start. To really start to see results, you will need to create a go-to-market strategy for each cloud marketplace where you are listed. But once you have the flywheel in motion, your cloud marketplace listings can quickly become revenue-generating machines.
With Invisory, you can:
- Accelerate getting listed on multiple cloud marketplaces through API integrations
- Develop a go-to-market strategy
- Create messaging that resonates
- Co-sell more effectively with our expert-built playbooks
- Navigate cloud partner programs
- Launch a multi-cloud strategy on AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and Salesforce, HubSpot, and Databricks
- Navigate AWS partner programs, including AWS specializations, competencies, and more.
FAQ
What is the difference between AWS Specializations and AWS Competency?
In the AWS Partner ecosystem, Competencies are actually a type of Specialization. AWS Specializations is the umbrella term that covers all formal recognitions of partner expertise, which include Service Delivery, Service Ready, MSP, and Competencies. Competencies specifically recognize partners with proven expertise in an industry, workload, or solution area, validated through customer references and technical reviews, whereas other specializations might focus on a particular AWS service or operational practice.
So in short: all Competencies are Specializations, but not all Specializations are Competencies. Not sure where to get started? Invisory can help.
What is the difference between AWS Specializations and AWS Certifications?
AWS Certifications validate the technical skills of individual professionals, demonstrating expertise in areas like architecture, security, or machine learning. AWS Specializations, on the other hand, recognize partner companies that demonstrate deep organizational capability in delivering specific solutions, backed by certified staff and customer success. In short, certifications showcase personal expertise, while specializations highlight a company’s proven experience and impact.
To earn specializations, individuals in your organization will likely get certified in 1 or multiple areas.
Select AWS Specialization Categories & Some Specializations
- AWS Competency (AWS Specializations by industry and use cases)
- Industry
- Consumer Goods
- Public Safety
- Small and Medium Business (SMB)
- Cyber Insurance
- Automotive
- Travel and Hospitality
- Media and Entertainment
- Smart City
- Energy and Utilities
- Advertising and Marketing Technology
- Supply Chain
- Retail
- Use case
- Digital Sovereignty
- Generative AI
- Service Delivery Partner Offerings
- Security
- Networking
- Mainframe Migration
- Migration and Modernization
- Containers
- Digital Customer Experience
- Cloud Operations
- DevOps
- Data and Analytics
- Digital Workplace
- Cloud Resilience
- Conversational AI
- Internet of THings (IoT)
- Competency Partner Offerings)
- Workload
- Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)
- Oracle
- SAP
- Microsoft Workloads
- Industry
- AWS Service Ready and Service Delivery
- AWS Graviton (Compute)
- Amazon API Gateway (Serverless Computing)
- AWS WAF (Security)
- AWS Security Incident Response (Security)
- Amazon Security Lake
- AWS Private Link (Network and Content Delivery)
- AWS Direct Connect (Network and Content Delivery)
- AWS Config (Management Tools)
- And more..
- AWS Managed Services
- AWS Competency (AWS Specializations by industry and use cases)
