Microsoft SA bullish on cloud and virtualisation offerings
Office 365, and the alliance with Nokia in the phone space, are big bets for Microsoft this year. This is word from Melanie Botha, the marketing and operations lead at Microsoft South Africa.
Microsoft is facing increased competition in South Africa from competitors like Google and Apple – and coupled with the continued economic downturn, the company is seeing a lot of caution in purchasing new Microsoft products.
Despite this caution, many companies are forking out money for mission-critical technologies.
“As part of a globally-listed company, we don’t disclose our figures per region. But what I can tell you is that, while buyers of technology are more cautious than in previous years, they’re investing heavily in mission-critical technologies that deliver real value to the business,” says Botha.
“Areas where we’ve seen significant uptake were especially in public sector, advertising and online. Our CRM and ERP Business have also grown, as well as unified communications.”
Botha added that Microsoft has always been strong in the products that keep businesses ticking – like server and infrastructure solutions and productivity suites. “Where we’re seeing a lot of interest right now is in areas like unified communication solutions, virtualisation and solutions that underpin a private cloud infrastructure,” said Botha.
Botha continued, saying that, while the market conditions are still tough, Microsoft SA is cautiously optimistic that its strong cloud and virtualisation offerings will help it to stay ahead of the curve.
“We’re focused heavily on business and realise that, at the tail end of an economic downturn, companies need to be smart in how they spend money, and what they get for it. Big bets for the year include Office 365, which can transform the way companies buy and use productivity software – and our alliance with Nokia in the phone space, where we feel we have a powerful business story to tell,” said Botha.
“Another big bet for Microsoft is in the SMB community; and we’re in the process of developing several targeted and customised solutions in partnership with several key industry players. The Microsoft/SMB landscape is one we are keeping a firm eye on, and we are excited to see our efforts in serving this community flourish.”
“Otherwise, our focus remains on solutions that reduce travel and communication costs; increase collaboration; reduce energy consumption; optimise computers; and make it easier to purchase technology,” Botha concluded.
Loading ...