Ian's Blog

So day 4 of the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference has come and gone and it is time for me to go. Not because it is winding up but because I have gathered the information I was looking for and gained the insight I feel I need to confidently plan for the next year.

There has been a lot of technical sessions covering the broad spectrum of products and services provided by Microsoft, and a lot of sessions discussing the changing landscape of technology, buying patterns and business outlook.

We all know about the challenges faced by businesses and individuals over the last year and that has translated to a renewed focus on gaining value from the products and services we purchase. IT is in the middle of it. People are scrutinizing their IT systems and waiting longer to decide if or when they should proceed with a project.

Our job as IT specialists, is to make sure we effectively articulate the business benefits in the implementation of technology solution we recommend.

Will it save you money?

Will it make you more efficient?

Will it uncover new opportunities?

These are the key points we will start applying more rigorously to the recommendation we make. If it does not address one of those three points then I suggest the project is not worth doing.

So, back to work tomorrow (not that I have stopped working here!) with a renewed and refreshed outline on the year!

Another wonderful day at the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference. Day 3 started with the keynote address and a glimpse of some emerging and intriguing technologies that Microsoft is working on. This video was shown and the interesting thing is every bit of technology shown is being actively worked on by Microsoft. This video is not a pie in the sky idea. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiqgmAYrd3c

Microsoft Surface was demoed a lot during the keynote and the fun part is there are dozens of them around the conference area available for use to use/try and play with. To see what Surface is check this out... http://www.microsoft.com/surface/.

I spent some time with Ben from TenDigits learning about MobileAccess, a tool allowing people with mobile devices like Windows Mobile phones or Blackberries, to use Dynamics CRM. If you are a Dynamics CRM user imaging having access to any of the data in your CRM system anytime from you phone. Log sales call notes, look up client information, initiate workflows or processes on the road from your phone. Pretty powerful stuff.

I spent some more time exploring the social media side of things again. There is such an opportunity for businesses to communicate and connect with customers and potential customers through social media sites like Twitter or LinkedIn. Watch out for our tweets coming soon.

So made it down to New Orleans today for the 2009 Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference. Thousands of Microsoft Partners from around the world are here learning about new technologies and sharing ideas on how to help businesses through the effective use of technology.

A couple announcements today... Windows 7 is now officially going to be launched in the middle of October. Also, saw the very early version of the new Office 2010. Looks great.

More information to come