faq

Who founded the MACH Alliance?

The MACH Alliance was founded in June 2020 by five founding partners: Amplience, commercetools, Contentstack, EPAM Systems and Valtech

What are the benefits of joining the Alliance?

The MACH Alliance advocates for composable technologies, challenging the position of long-established monolithic enterprise suites. By joining, you can tap into a peer network comprised of thought leaders in the composable space, validate your business’s innovation and role in the transition away from monoliths, and take part in shaping the future of MACH as it moves from early adopters to mainstream enterprise usage.

As an Ambassador and someone who loves to evangelise about MACH, you are able to do so at scale and with the support of a global organization whilst also connecting with a like-minded network of fellow representatives.

Who can join the MACH Alliance?

The MACH Alliance has three types of organization as members:

MACH Tech Vendors (ISV's) represent new, best-of-breed technology platforms. They work with a number of other vendors in the MACH space and their customers are both international and enterprise level.
MACH System Integrators (SI's) have the experience and expertise to consult, architect, implement, integrate and manage a modern, composable tech environment.
MACH Enablers support functional areas of a MACH architecture, including monitoring, data storage, cluster/container mgt, tracing, and orchestration. Additionally, we have an ambassador program, see here for more information.

What makes a start-up?

We only allow ISV start-ups to apply to join. You will need to have a headcount of less than 50 and $2M or over annual revenue from product licenses. Start-up applications must have board sponsorship.

How do you get sponsored as a start-up?

You may well have a connection with one of our Board members already. If you don't, let us know and we will be happy to put you in touch with the most relevant person so you can share more information about your business and discuss whether MACH Alliance membership is the right thing for you.

Can we apply if our product offerings are not all MACH (yet)?

As an ISV, 100% of your product offering/portfolio must be MACH compliant. Where an ISV has a legacy product or is moving to a MACH architecture please see these Additional Terms.

1) Joining the MACH Alliance is only possible on a company-wide basis. It is not possible to join as a country or region, being part of a bigger group, or to join with a single software solution when your portfolio offers more than one solution. All solutions you offer “as new” will be assessed from a technology and GTM perspective.

There are cases where a requirement is not applicable to your company or where there is an edge-case. We will discuss this during the application process.

2) The following is an example of the non-technical aspects that the Growth Council and Executive Board will assess on a membership application where an ISV has a legacy product or is moving to a MACH architecture: All products currently offered for sale must be MACH

"Controlled availability" or some other "gate" for selling non-MACH products isn't strong enough. The product cannot be offered for sale anymore.

Non-MACH product is not on current price-lists

Customers running non-MACH products can buy additional CPUs/capacity of existing products but not a net new non-MACH product

If a customer signs a global contract with the vendor, the customer is able to roll out the non-MACH product to other countries, lines of business, etc but only under that contract. Not a new contract.

100% of new license revenue in the past 6 months can only be from MACH-based product

Excludes additional CPUs/capacity from existing customers

Minimum of $5m/ARR in past 6 months from MACH-based product

In addition: Non-MACH products cannot be marketed. There must be no public customer references or case studies from non-MACH products available to the public. The features listed on your website, feature guides, etc must all be from MACH products

The last analyst evaluation from Gartner or Forrester must have been of MACH product(s) only Documentation and other technical collateral in support of existing legacy non-MACH products may still be available

Non-MACH product may still be supported

No feature releases of non-MACH product

You can offer bug/security releases of non-MACH product

How much does it cost?

The annual fees of being a member of the MACH Alliance are:

MACH Tech Vendor Start-up: $10k

MACH Tech Vendor / MACH System Integrator / MACH Enabler Standard: $25k

MACH Tech Vendor / MACH System Integrator / MACH Enabler Enterprise: $50k

Do we need to apply every year?

No, there is no need to reapply. Membership is automatically renewed unless either side requests a termination.

If our application to become a member is denied, when can we re re-apply?

We typically suggest a minimum period of 6 months until you next apply. However, you will have had specific feedback from us so we would recommend you do not reapply until you have made headway in those areas.

Our application was denied because we don't meet certain criteria, but we see some of the earlier members of the Alliance who should have been denied membership on the same grounds. Have the criteria changed?

Yes, we have recently made some small changes to our criteria. Moving forwards we will continue to reassess our criteria on an annual basis to ensure we align with current MACH thinking. From January, 2023 we will be conducting an annual audit of members to check that all meet our criteria, whether due to a change in our criteria or a change in their business.

Is there a re-evaluation of compliancy after a certain period of time?

MACH Alliance retains the right to an annual audit to ensure you comply with its criteria. We may also update the joining criteria to remain up to date with current industry standards. If for any reason you no longer remain compliant we will alert you to discuss.

What requirements does the MACH Alliance have of its members?

Members must feature the MACH Logo on their main company website.

Whilst not mandatory, we encourage members to contribute actively to Councils and Working Groups (available to anyone in the Company). We encourage members to run MACH Alliance Events and contribute content and thought leadership. We encourage members to create other member connections and contribute to member discussions. In this way, you'll maximise ROI for your business and the impact of the Alliance on the broader industry as a whole.

What is the minimum criteria for membership?

Below is a summary of criteria for each type of member. Please note, an applicant is given a score out of 100 for each and requires an average of 90 to pass.

MACH Tech Vendors:

Your entire company product(s) offering/ portfolio is 100% MACH compliant.

At least three different microservices that each have their own domain.

Live projects with at least 3 other MACH Vendor member companies.

15 or more customers, each generating more than $100M in annual revenue using MACH compliant product(s).

$10M or over annual revenue from product licenses.

A headcount of 50 or more.

MACH Tech Vendor Start-ups:

$2M or over annual revenue from product licenses.

Application sponsorship from a MACH Alliance board member. Required prior to application.

MACH System Integrators:

Three public enterprise MACH references - customers willing to speak publicly about how you helped them move hosted solutions/on premise architectures to composable SaaS architecture or, build “greenfield” new MACH ecosystems for a new brand or operation.

100 or more engineers and architects, certified by one or more of the major cloud providers (AWS, GCP or Azure) in engineering, architecture, and operations of cloud-native solutions.

Executed partnership agreements with one of either AWS, GCP or Azure.

A headcount of 250 or more. At least 5 clients who sell for $100M GMV or more online per year.

Executed partnership agreements with at least 2 MACH Vendor member companies.

3 MACH Vendor company members willing to recommend working with you.

MACH Enablers:

Be able to clearly explain how your offering(s) enables MACH architecture.

That you enable at least three enterprise-grade solutions or clients using MACH technology.

A minimum of five ISV partners with at least $10M in ARR.

All applications:

Must have C-level sign-off and active support.

Must demonstrate creation and promotion of MACH thought leadership and content that further advance the category.

Must demonstrate your intent - where do you want to take MACH? what sort of role do you want to play in the Alliance?

And what is your vision for a MACH future.

What is the difference between standard and enterprise levels of membership?

The Enterprise level is for large, global, enterprise companies. The membership fee for Enterprise level is $50,000 per annum. Standard members have one seat on each Council, whereas Enterprise members have two.

Why do you have criteria around global presence and enterprise clients?

The MACH Alliance advocates for open and best-of-breed enterprise technology ecosystems. As such it is important that all our members have the experience, expertise and capabilities to deliver to global enterprise clients.

How long does the entire application process take?

The entire application process typically takes between 2 and 3 months.

Applying: We respond to all applications within five working days.

Discovery call: Once we have a final application and signed NDA we will organise a discovery call within ten working days. When that call has taken place the Admission Panel will review your application within a further ten working days.

Tech check: A 1-hour tech check call should take place within 15 business days of being requested.

Final evaluation: A recommendation will then be made to the board and you will receive a final response within ten working days.

Who can I speak to if I have questions about our application?

You can email applications@machalliance.org. However please do not email if the application is still within the timings given. See above.

What happens if our company gets acquired/changes ownership?

This will be picked up in the annual audit of member companies. If your company no longer meets the criteria set out due to a merger, acquisition or other, membership will be terminated.

How is the Alliance run?

The MACH Alliance is a member-driven organization. Strategy is set by the Executive Board. Any member can apply to be a member of the Board. Seats are elected by the membership on an annual basis. The Board then elects a President, Vice President, Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.

In support, there is a Central Team employed by The MACH Alliance to run the organization on a day-to-day basis. This team is led by the Managing Director. Members play a key role in driving that strategy and the Alliance's programmes and projects through our Councils and Panels:

Growth Council - responsible for sustainable and purposeful growth of the Alliance

Tech Council - responsible for driving our technical remit

Marketing and Community Council - responsible for awareness and partnerships

Application Panel and Ambassador Panel - to ensure criteria and neutrality are adhered to throughout

In how many councils, panels and workgroups can we participate?

For Standard members of the MACH Alliance, one person can sit on each of the Councils (Tech, Growth, Marketing & Community). For Enterprise members this rises to two per Council. You can also put forward anyone in the company to sit on one of our Panels or participate in our many Working Groups. Inclusion will be decided on best fit but showing enthusiasm and commitment are a big part of it!

What events are associated with the Alliance?

MACH events are the heart of our community and you can find all upcoming events on the Events page. Through events we are able to educate, evangelise, connect with peers, create thought leadership, raise awareness and share success.

We have three types of events:

1- MACH Alliance Conferences and Special Events

2- Member Events - organise your own MACH event by following our guidelines available in the member portal

3- Future Commerce Monthly MACH Alliance Dinners - As a MACH Alliance member you can sponsor and attend this international series

What is a MACH Ambassador?

In addition to MACH compliant companies, the Alliance welcomes a limited number of individual industry leaders who actively support and contribute to advance MACH technology, who drive adoption for the most advanced tech standard and those who deliver great results.

Ambassadors include:

- Technology-focused individuals in leadership roles, or passionate advocates, employed at companies that are utilizing and/or transitioning to MACH technologies, with a strong preference on individuals that have hands-on or practical experience with MACH adoption.
- Self-employed thought leaders including journalists and analysts.

What does an Ambassador need to do?

An Ambassador commits to:

- Writing at least one piece of content for the MACH Alliance per year

- Participating in at least one MACH Alliance Event per year

- Generating, distributing and promoting the MACH Alliance philosophy and content

- Offering availability on an as-needed basis to act as a sounding board for various council discussions

- Attending an annual general meeting

- Agreeing to publish the name, photo, and bio on digital and print materials of the MACH Alliance

Who decides who can be an Ambassador?

The Ambassador programme is run by our Ambassador panel, made up of members of the Alliance.

The panel will be looking for:

- Hands-on or practical experience with MACH adoption, concepts, and technologies

- That you have delivered significant results by using MACH technology

- Existing MACH evangelism via published content

- Diversity, not just in gender and ethnicity but in region and area of expertise To apply visit the application page here.

What is the Membership breakdown of MACH ISV's, SI's and Enablers?

The current breakdown of members is MACH Tech Vendors 37, MACH System Integrators 25, MACH Enablers 5. All membership categories are currently open and we are actively seeking to increase the number of Enablers within the membership.

Does the Alliance have members in APAC or LATAM? Or is it focused on Europe and North America?

The MACH Alliance is a global organization and our members are based all over the world. If you would like to play a role in activating the Alliance and raising awareness of MACH in your region get in touch.

Frequently Asked Questions

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