Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference was held this summer in Washington, D.C., and the keynote address provided some insight into the direction of the company and how it plans to help businesses better maximize time and increase productivity.
The keynote identified a few things that we already know about the changing technology landscape, but let’s recap a few lessons learned from the address:
Now, let’s connect the ideas from Microsoft’s redefined vision to the ways in which they stand to impact your business by increasing employee productivity through existing and emerging technologies.
People use technology in their daily lives, and how they use it fuels their expectations for employing it in the workplace.
They demand cloud-based applications as well as search and resource services. They want technology to enhance time management, employee collaboration and advanced expression.
Their wants aren’t luxury items. These are tools to increase employee productivity while maximizing and managing time. Without them, your people – and your business – are at a disadvantage.
In a memo to Microsoft employees, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, wrote that the company would “reinvent productivity to empower every person and every organization on the planet to do more and achieve more.”
The best example of this new strategy is in the Surface Pro 3, called “the tablet that can replace your laptop.” With the body and functionality of a laptop, the device runs all Windows desktop software, empowering employees to work on all devices.
Stemming from the success of the Surface Pro 3, Microsoft plans to develop new products and updates to their existing software to allow businesses and their employees to work from anywhere on any device and better than they were ever able to do before.
Ultimately, future technology developments from Microsoft will make it very hard for businesses to turn a blind eye to the amazing opportunities from which they stand to benefit by embracing new technologies.
For businesses looking for a work productivity jumpstart, Office 365 offers some major advantages:
As an example of the kind of developments around enhancing collaboration, Microsoft showcased its real-time Skype translator and conducted a demo.
This kind of technology enhances not only the personal lives of employees who are able to reach relatives and foreign contacts across the globe, but also a business’ ability to tap into international markets. It’s the kind of technology that advances personal and professional development, and a true example of how Satya and the rest of Microsoft plan to empower people to do more and achieve more through emerging technologies.
The world and workplace are full of distractions. We need creative solutions to help us manage that or risk creating unproductive, unhappy employees and dissatisfied customers. Microsoft has positioned itself as the answer to all of our problems.
Will it deliver?
Given our history of working with Microsoft and empowering businesses through adoption of its technologies, we believe good things are on the horizon.