Insight

The accelerator effect

Microsoft is capitalising on Office 2003 and a suite of solution accelerators to extend Office in the enterprise, says Srikanth R P

In the past, Microsoft has always sold Office on features. However, a large installed base which leaves little room for rapid expansion has prompted Microsoft to look beyond the suite’s traditional positioning. For starters, it built Office 2003 with support for XML with applications such as Infopath that can interact seamlessly with existing business systems.

The next big step involves ‘solution accelerators’– a common set of integrated software components and templates designed for specific business scenarios. Microsoft has released twelve of these addressing diverse enterprise needs. For instance, the solution accelerator for Six Sigma gives companies the tools to manage and measure Six Sigma projects. Similarly, the Sarbanes Oxley Solution Accelerator has been designed to help organisations comply with sections 302 and 404 of the Act. Organisations that wish to improve the quality of their hiring processes can now turn to the Recruiting Solution Accelerator. Other solution accelerators strategically developed for diverse business areas include Extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), HIPAA, proposals, business scorecards and Excel reporting (aimed at extending the reporting capabilities of Excel).

Two birds with one stone

With its solution accelerators, Microsoft has two objectives. The first one is obvious–to position Office as the de-facto and stable enterprise platform on which Microsoft and its independent software vendors (ISVs) will develop solution accelerators. The other is the familiar strategy of encouraging enterprises to upgrade to Office 2003 and associated Microsoft products. A big selling point is that Microsoft is offering solution accelerators for free to its customers and partners. This is significant as enterprises have been paying for these solutions procured from other vendors. Most analysts Express Computer spoke to said that this was a master stroke as the adoption of these accelerators could trigger growth for upgrades to Office 2003.

Says Karthik Padmanabhan, business group head, Microsoft India, “We realise that room for exponential growth is limited as almost everybody uses Office. If we want to take Office to the next level, we have to position Office as a productivity and collaborative suite. With solution accelerators, we believe we would be giving enterprises better value for money spent on the Office suite.” Padmanabhan likens the solution accelerator approach to the fast food business model (combo orders) that organisations adapt to fuel growth.

Into the fast lane

With solution accelerators we will be giving enterprises better value for money spent on Office. Karthik Padmanabhan Business Group Head Microsoft India

From initial reactions, the strategy of winning customers with the accelerator approach seems to be paying off. 25-30 Indian customers have already deployed solution accelerators. The list includes names such as Infosys Technologies, Dr Reddy’s Labs, Godrej & Boyce and the Intelligroup. Both Infosys and Dr Reddy’s Labs are using the Microsoft Solution Accelerator for Six Sigma (MSA). Infosys has initiated Six Sigma for its projects in the engineering services group to capture project metrics. The software giant piloted the Six Sigma accelerator on a live project to get accurate information about process improvements. With MSA, Infosys can customise project tracking tools that map onto Six Sigma methodologies. Additionally, the dashboard and integration with existing Microsoft tools such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint is a big plus.

Similarly, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories is using the MSA for streamlining new product development. Using customisation features available within the accelerator has helped the company implement Six Sigma methodology-DRDDI (Define, Research, Discover, Develop, and Improve) suitable to its requirements. The company is also equipped with resource management tools via Project Server to provide information on resources across projects based on skill sets and equipment. Additionally, the financial tool in the MSA helps project managers capture the financial impact associated with the project including budgets, forecasts and expenditure.

Godrej & Boyce, one of the largest manufacturers of consumer appliances, has used the Business Scorecards Accelerator to build a business intelligence solution. Before the deployment of the accelerator, the workflow pertaining to data collection was not automated and data collection relied on Excel worksheets that needed to be uploaded. Today, using the accelerator, the company has developed a solution that offers Web-based collaboration and gives it the capability to speed up its planning process using balanced scorecards. Says Sunder Raman, vice president, Godrej & Boyce, “The productivity of our knowledge workers has improved. The ratio of time that an employee spends focusing on strategic as opposed to non-strategic work has greatly improved. With this solution, we expect 30 to 40 percent productivity improvement in a year’s time.” Another customer, Intelligroup India is using the Office Solution Accelerator for recruitment and to draft proposals.

Padmanabhan says that the accelerator approach is a customer requirement and has been formed specifically to address customer pain areas. In the future, one can expect solution accelerators for every possible service which could do with a set of rules enforced by software. As India is a huge services economy, there is considerable potential for software tools that automate processes. Padmanabhan also sees a huge opportunity for Office in government as almost every government agency uses standardised forms. This is where Microsoft is pitching Infopath to good effect.

Repositioning Office

In conclusion, this is a good strategic move from Microsoft to reposition Office from a commodity suite to a platform for building business applications. It lets Microsoft’s partner ISVs earn additional revenues by way of customisation and implementation services built around solution accelerators. While Microsoft will not earn directly in terms of revenues from solution accelerators, the spin off effect is tremendous. Apart from driving upgrades and sales of Office 2003, Microsoft is also hoping that Office will become a platform for third party development in the future. Whichever way you look at it, Office 2003 and its solution accelerators are stepping stones for Microsoft in the enterprise.

srikanth@expresscomputeronline.com