The Claude Partner Network, explained

Launched 2026-03-12 with a $100M ecosystem investment, the Claude Partner Network is how Anthropic ranks and rewards the agencies, consultancies, and SIs building on Claude. Since the Services Track and Partner Hub arrived (2026-06-03), one metric dominates: certified headcount.

Why the 10-certified-staff rule changes everything

Certification stopped being an individual career decision and became a business requirement. An agency that wants Select-tier visibility needs ten currently-certified people — and since credentials expire in 12 months, that's not a one-time push but a standing pipeline. If you run or work at such a firm, the question isn't "should I get certified?" — it's "how do we certify ten people, fast, and keep them certified?"

The official learning path

The Partner Network learning path (via Anthropic's Skilljar) has four courses:

1. Introduction to Agent Skills
2. Building with the Claude API
3. Introduction to Model Context Protocol
4. Claude Code in Action

These are the theory. What they don't include is practice under exam conditions — that's what CruxLevel's free mock exams and domain quizzes add. The efficient sequence: official course → our quiz on that ground → next course → full mock before booking.

Certifying a whole team

Ten people self-studying at ten different paces rarely hits a deadline. The pattern that works: a shared study calendar against the free CruxLevel paths, mock-exam scores as the go/no-go gate for booking real exams (below 720 on the mock = don't spend the fee yet), and — when the deadline is real — a structured cohort.