Overview
The Accenture Microsoft Business Group (AMBG) is a joint venture launched in 2020 by Accenture, Microsoft, and Avanade. It combines the Microsoft-aligned capability of Accenture's global consulting practice with Avanade's dedicated 35,000-person Microsoft delivery organisation. AMBG itself contributes more than 10,000 dedicated practitioners; with the Avanade joint venture overall the combined Microsoft expert base totals roughly 45,000 professionals across more than 50 countries. The group operates inside Accenture's Technology service line and is led from Seattle and Dublin.
AMBG focuses on enterprise-scale Microsoft transformations spanning Azure migration and modernisation, Microsoft 365 and Copilot adoption, Dynamics 365 ERP and CRM rollouts, Microsoft Fabric and Power Platform, and integrated security with Defender, Sentinel, and Entra. The group holds top-tier partnership status with Microsoft across every solution area and is consistently among the largest Microsoft partner-of-the-year award winners globally. A 2024 expansion announcement deepened joint go-to-market on generative AI, Copilot enterprise rollouts, and industry-specific solutions.
Buyers typically engage AMBG for the largest, most complex Microsoft programmes — global ERP rollouts, enterprise Copilot deployments at 50,000+ seats, regulated-industry Azure migrations, and multi-year managed services across the full Microsoft stack. The group is rarely the lowest-priced option. Smaller Dynamics rollouts, single-region engagements, and Business Central work are typically better served by Avanade directly or by Microsoft mid-market specialists.
Services Offered
- Azure migration, landing zone, and modernisation programmes
- Dynamics 365 F&O and CE enterprise implementation
- Microsoft Copilot enterprise rollout and Azure OpenAI
- Microsoft Fabric, Synapse, and Power BI platforms
- Microsoft Defender, Sentinel, Entra ID, and Purview deployment
- Microsoft 365 and Azure managed services at enterprise scale
- Application modernisation to .NET and Azure-native architectures
- Industry transformation aligned to Microsoft Cloud for industries
- Azure DevOps, GitHub Enterprise, and platform engineering
- Change management for Copilot and modern work adoption
Typical Engagement
| Engagement Type | Model | Typical Range |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft strategy & assessment | Fixed-fee project | $250K–$1.5M (8–14 weeks) |
| Major implementation programme | T&M or outcome-based | $5M–$50M (12–30 months) |
| Enterprise Microsoft transformation | Multi-year outcome contract | $30M–$300M+ (3–7 years) |
| Microsoft managed services | Monthly retainer | $100K–$3M+ per month |
| Staff augmentation (consultant) | Hourly bill rate | $150–$320/hour blended |
Pricing verified May 2026 from public procurement data and reference checks; ranges vary by region and engagement structure.
Strengths
- Largest combined Microsoft delivery footprint in the world via Accenture, Avanade, and AMBG (45,000+ professionals)
- Top-tier Microsoft partnership status across every solution area, including Dynamics 365, Azure, M365, and Security
- Joint roadmap access with Microsoft product engineering teams provides early sight of preview features
- End-to-end ability to deliver strategy, implementation, change, and run under a single contract
- Industry IP across financial services, life sciences, public sector, energy, and consumer through Accenture's verticals
- Capability to deliver outcome-based pricing on multi-year Microsoft programmes with risk-sharing
Limitations
- Premium pricing — onshore senior rates exceed $300/hour and partner time can run beyond $500/hour
- Methodology-heavy delivery can feel rigid to product-led organisations preferring iterative discovery
- Commercial pressure toward managed services follow-on creates vendor lock-in considerations
- Less suited to mid-market or single-country deployments under $3M in total contract value
- Strong Microsoft alignment may bias technology recommendations away from non-Microsoft alternatives