Microsofts trends and thoughts for the market in 2012

Listening to many Microsoft Executives and Kevin Turner doing his anually speach from stage, I wanted to share some of my obeservations with you. 

First of all, lets look into the amount Microsoft is investing in R&D. Nothing less than 9 billion dollars will be spend on R&D in this fiscal year. The priortizations will be fueled by these thoughts on trends:

1. We have reached an inflection point in moores law. Today a motherboard is smaller than a phone. This will enable a new generation of devices, smaller, faster and everywhere that we have not seen. Also much more intelligence on the devices.  All together enabling us to deliver data where you want it, how you want it and when you want it.
2. Cloud will define the scenarios.  The cloud is a next step for our industry.  The cloud is enabling new scenarios on how to change the world, that our industry never have been able to deliver before.
3. Consumeration of IT is the fastest force of adoption in technology ever. The digital generation is expecting and inventing using IT in ways we have never seen happen in our industry earlier.
4. We will have unified eco-system with PC-Phones-TV. In 2012 it will be sold 1 billion smart computers in one of these 3 groups, versus 400 million in 2010. Microsoft will support this with a coherant and consistant strategy with iE 9 as the same browser for all 3 devices.

Based on this how do you move with a global R&D agenda and with some of the best people in our industry?  Well you make bets, the bets are as follows:

1.      Develop and deliver the best Cloud services

2.      Keep a sharp eye on the end user/consumer, and let their opinion shape the R&D investment

3.      Keep on moving with Search and have the best solutions for display advertising on any devices across any platforms including game-consols.

4.      Grow your market share on the Phone

5.      Redesign Windows with version 8 som will run on arm and the system on a chip.

Exciting and challenging.  The presence Microsoft has in different segments give them an opportunity to deliver the best solutions powered by ICT-technology when we want it, how we want it and where we want it.

Microsoft Partner Network, the largest Open Innovation Case winnig together every day around the world

On an annual basis I have the privilege to attend the Microsoft World Partner Conference.  This event is for partners only and are on premises (also digital www.wpc11.com)  beeing a meetingplace for partners and employees in Microsoft around the world.  This week we have been more than 14.000 people working together on the mission of how winning together will change the world.

Bullshit, you might think. This is just comercial and marketing, and yes you are right. But the more I work with exciting solutions I am getting a keen beliver in doing good business is good business, and that trusting somebody with your idea you can change the world.  And let me give you some insight into my experiences this week.

1. First by picking the theme for the conference Winning together, Microsoft is saying it all. They do not belive in going alone (like many of their so hyped competitors in fact do), they truly believe in togetherness. This not only mean doing business, but investing together in great initiatives like Haiti NetHope Academy, giving young people access to demanded technology skills giving them a profession and also a job slowly redesigning their own country
2. Second believing in partnership and openess takes comitment.  Microsoft Comitment comes in many shapes and colours, but hosting open innovation is their Partner Network.  On a platform free for all partners (you just have to say you want to be a partner and you are in). In this hosted network (free of cost ) for all partners to join and search for other parnters or post their solution and idea.  Today this network has more than 6.000 partners using it. To be honest I do not know about any other open innovation platform with that many users.
3. Thirdly believing in openess takes available business funding to work on a solution changing the world and bringing value to all inn.  Like all the present theory on Open Innovation, this part is a continusly negotioans as the business case moves along and mature.  But upfront Microsoft is trusting you with available funding programs to help you develop.  Yes, in some sense comparable to the Apple appstore, but then again not, because Microsoft will not charge you forever, they will have a need to share but in a much modest manner, but also requiring you to co-invest with them.

I do every day believe I am priviliged to work with technology. Considering myself contributing to a better world by beeing a change maker, I can not think of anything more powerful than technology doing this.  But beeing here at Microsoft World Partner Event, I feel  even more priviliged.  Because I am a truly believer in open innovation and by trusting somebody you will gain more than you loose.  Microsoft is visualizing for me a network of 640000 partners, with more than 15000000 employees changing the world in small and large projects using Open Innovation to win together. 

... and Bill Gates who obviously has been a thoughtleader on this model, is now taking it to a even better mission in the foundation also here utilizing the power of Open Innovation.