Enterprise analysts react to latest Microsoft Business Apps accomplishments, strategy
Microsoft has revived its industry analyst event for business solutions (not just Dynamics). This week's forum in Redmond has already provided some fresh and concentrated feedback via Twitter as enterprise software veterans were guided through Microsoft's latest product roadmaps, demos, and results.
MyPOV: the @Microsoft #MSBizApps leadership team. @HaydenStafford Alysa Taylor (she needs a handle) @JamesMPhillips @mclarehenry pic.twitter.com/Hn0r5cyAnT
— R Ray Wang (王瑞光) (@rwang0) February 12, 2018
For anyone who may not have been paying attention to Microsoft business solutions in the last two to three years, today's flurry of #msbizapps activity offered a rapid catch-up session as executives, product managers, and other Microsoft personnel whipped through everything from Dynamics 365 enterprise solutions to LinkedIn to PowerApps, Power BI, Talent, licensing, Adobe, and more. The company made some clear statements on their future commitment to business apps (strong) and how they will rationalize software investments in these product areas with their overall vision of digital transformation.
What follows is a selection of reactions and thoughts from analysts as they absorbed a day's long round of briefings in Redmond on Monday. High level plans and goals seemed well-received by most of those live tweeting the event. The most popular point in the day seemed to be the PowerApps demonstration. By contrast, there seemed to be a broader spectrum of reactions seemed in areas like the Dynamics 365 for Marketing solution in its position alongside the Adobe partnership, the introduction of D365 for Talent, and the co-existing sales solutions from LinkedIn and Dynamics 365.
Licensing plans for Dynamics 365, not seen publicly for some time, also made an appearance, with a future that will include refinement to the current model.
To see the range of solutions held up in some detail, one after another, also speaks to the work that the teams overseen by James Phillips on the product development side and Alysa Taylor in product marketing have done to make key decisions that would, in Taylor's words (as reported by analysts), "[reboot] all the strategies, both vertical and horizontal."
Microsoft Corporate Vision
And @mclarehenry shares the 5 @Microsoft priorities:
— Holger Mueller (@holgermu) February 12, 2018
- Gaming
- Modern workplace
- Business apps
- AI
- Infrastructure #MSBizApps pic.twitter.com/qSQEkQeXZS
#msbizapps here’s why Microsoft focuses on Digital Transformation pic.twitter.com/eIAbXcaP3J
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps Alysa Taylor says that they are rebooting all the strategies, both vertical and horizontal when it comes to business apps. PG Note: curiouser and curiouser. Let's see where this goes.
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps PG Note: My thinking is that Microsoft's vision a la Satya Nadella is that Microsoft wants to be mission critical to 21st C business infrastructure, not just services/software
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
MyPOV: @Microsoft Alysa Taylor taking stage sharing her background #msbizapps she's emphazing its more than @msftdyynamics pic.twitter.com/dYLFuRGHCW
— R Ray Wang (王瑞光) (@rwang0) February 12, 2018
@AlysaTaylor GM of #msbizapps saying that focus is around empowered employees, engage customers, optimize operations, transform products
— Kate Leggett (@kateleggett) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps Alysa Taylor GM of Biz Apps - "its about our portfolio of business applications, grounded on the data."
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps Alysa Taylor says that they are rebooting all the strategies, both vertical and horizontal when it comes to business apps. PG Note: curiouser and curiouser. Let's see where this goes.
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
MyPOV - Call me biased - but as #HCM aka #futureofwork Analyst - I like @Microsoft leading with employee #empowerment ... #msbizapps pic.twitter.com/iPGkAXuuAj
— Holger Mueller (@holgermu) February 12, 2018
Summary of #MSBizApps this a.m. at @Microsoft HQ in #Redmond:
— Dion Hinchcliffe (@dhinchcliffe) February 12, 2018
- Major effort evident in integrating #crm + #hcm + #erp
- Growing realization of high value use cases, especially w/ #automation
- #Analytics + #AI increasingly evident to enable an impactful ‘digital feedback loop.’ pic.twitter.com/ihuOi1toKL
Dynamics 365 is now core to the Microsoft Cloud strategy - we've taken many bold steps as a company over the last couple years to transform it from an "odd part" to an "integral part" of what we're doing as a company.
— James Phillips (@JamesMPhillips) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps PG Note: James Phillips says he's "the throat to choke" when it comes to customer success. Does that mean that Microsoft doesn't have a customer success team specifically w/a responsible individual exec at the head? Or...?
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 13, 2018
#msbizapps full bore data integration Dynamics 365 + Office 365 + LinkedIn. Very compelling. pic.twitter.com/BflvZorg51
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps PG Note: I'm surprised that there is a LOT of attention being paid to Sales Navigator as a key differentiator. Again, not a huge fan. LinkedIn has so much more to offer than that (maybe just not being emphasized?) - especially if they open the API up again. Hint, hint.
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
This dealbook and buyercircle features sound fantastic. Buyers circle will use @LinkedIn #Sales Navigator team link extend to reach 3rd party connections in an org. #MSBizApps @MicrosoftARC @MSFTDynamics365 pic.twitter.com/UTvT55rN7J
— Cindy Zhou (@cindy_zhou) February 12, 2018
MyPOV - 1 year + 2 monhts after official closure of the @Microsoft acqusition of @LinkedIN - integration and synergies - at least on the #CRM side - are moving at pedestrian speed best. Maybe some non mentioned heavy platform lifting in the background ... #msbizapps
— Holger Mueller (@holgermu) February 12, 2018
Showing the power of @LinkedIn + @MSDynamicsCRM - tracking movement of employees across companies; surfacing empl. data at the right point in an engagement process, and in office etc.#msbizapps #CRM
— Kate Leggett (@kateleggett) February 12, 2018
#CRM - Microsoft plans LinkedIn/Dynamics enhancements/integrations including data validation, dealbook w/buyer's org chart to drive greater productivity #MSBizApps https://t.co/zf6xs4oC1U
— Nucleus Research (@NucleusResearch) February 12, 2018
This has always been the challenge of wrapping business models around social networks: How to use the data fairly without losing the #trust of customers. I encourage full, prominent, & updated disclosure of how @LinkedIn data is used in products like @MSFTDynamics365.#MSBizApps https://t.co/86boUOWpRM
— Dion Hinchcliffe (@dhinchcliffe) February 12, 2018
Frankly, overuse of #SalesNavigator by zealous #sales teams is a real reputational risk for @LinkedIn. #HCM and #talentmanagement are much safer product categories. Also a far more welcome corporate use for customers (who doesn’t want to be recruited for a better job?) #MSBizApps
— Dion Hinchcliffe (@dhinchcliffe) February 12, 2018
#SalesNavigator now has deep integration with @Office365, @MSPowerBI, @PowerApps, all designed to help maximize the effectiveness of #sales teams through usage #analytics and custom #apps based on targeted use cases.#MSBizApps #crm #SaaS #EnSw pic.twitter.com/gCLuDGXPL0
— Dion Hinchcliffe (@dhinchcliffe) February 12, 2018
Adobe
[1Slide] All @Adobe and @Microsoft integrations span across
— Holger Mueller (@holgermu) February 12, 2018
- @MSFTDynamics365
- @MicrosoftTeams
- @PowerBI
- @SharePoint
- @bing #MSBizApps pic.twitter.com/ZQjMTHXQzx
#msbizapps PG Note: One thing I've learned via convos w/Microsoft and Adobe is how serious both are about this partnership and about the exceptional depth of the integration at the architectural level. Was far deeper than I expected. Far deeper.
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
Looking @Adobe support of l the customer story. #MSBizApps pic.twitter.com/pRCdwhpo16
— Holger Mueller (@holgermu) February 12, 2018
Microsoft and Adobe feature summary for marketing use cases. #MSBizApps pic.twitter.com/gsxHqPQUUg
— Rusty Warner (@RustyWarner) February 12, 2018
#msbizapps PG Note: Watching a demo of PowerApps - building an app from scratch. I have to say this is one of the most impressive demos I've seen in a long time. This tool is amazing. Easy to use, visually appealing, navigation/app creation nearly intuitive.
— Paul Greenberg (@pgreenbe) February 12, 2018
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