Questions & Answers
What is Microsoft Services?
A: Microsoft Services helps customers maximize their investment in Microsoft technology through Architecture and Planning, Technology Consulting and enterprise and consumer Support.
We offer a wide range of consulting and support competencies to meet IT and business management needs
We have the deepest expertise in the industry on the Microsoft platform, developed through access to product and business
group leadership and collaboration across a vast partner ecosystem.
Through a growing portfolio of service offerings and packaged support options, Microsoft Services is a strategic business partner
for every phase of solution development, implementation, expansion, and success.
How many people do you employ within Microsoft Services?
A: Globally Microsoft Services employs over 16,800 people. As an organisation we are present in over 82 countries across the International region, spanning over 11 different time-zones. Microsoft Services has been in the region since the early 1980s and we continue to grow our reach into new countries within the region.
What role do partners play in Microsoft Services strategy?
A: Microsoft has always been a partner-led company; more than 95 percent of our licenses are sold by partners, and more than 98 percent of IT projects on the Microsoft platform are delivered by partner companies. We have over 35,000 service partners worldwide.
As Microsoft Services works with our customers and partners to achieve our mission, we are planting the seeds of market growth for Microsoft’s enterprise products and the professional services that support them. We’re growing a market that is overwhelmingly served by partners. We have a responsibility to enable our partners to take advantage of opportunities to serve companies that are deploying, operating and optimizing Microsoft technology.
You say Microsoft Services is growing; won’t you be taking revenue and market share from partners?
A: We adhere to the “a rising tide lifts all boats” principle. As we do our job of promoting Microsoft technology to enable companies and individuals to reach their potential, our platform will gain market share and Microsoft will be well positioned as the platform of choice for much of the industry growth.
What kind of customer scenarios does Microsoft engage in directly?
A: In some cases customers request Microsoft’s specific involvement in technology consulting or implementation of a Microsoft-based platform. Examples of these are scenarios are deployment of new technology at a large scale, when Microsoft itself has been the earliest adopter and our own IT department, part of the Microsoft Services and IT group that includes Microsoft Consulting Services, has learned valuable lessons that will make early engagements go more smoothly to grow the overall market. Similarly, we work with customers on what we term ‘lighthouse engagements’ where the customer is taking Microsoft products in new directions or to a new scale. Finally, we work directly with customers while we are in the early stages of developing SKUs for Microsoft packaged service offerings that codify our best practices.
In all these scenarios, our goal is to meet our customers’ particular needs and help develop the market. Indeed, they all include a role for our partners to work with us, co-engaging to learn skills, and performing services that Microsoft does not offer, such as business strategy or work in homogeneous environments. We will continue to know, value, and work with the partners that work in their geography and in the industries that they serve.
