If you have never been to an ERP user conference, one of the most energetic and entertaining is the annual Microsoft Dynamics “Convergence“ event.
Billed as “the biggest Microsoft Dynamics event of the year,” I arrived in Atlanta earlier this week for the keynote address. Despite the early hour of 8:30 in the morning of Tuesday, March 4 – day one of the conference – the Phillips Arena in Atlanta was rocking with energy and excitement. The Spirit of Atlanta Drum & Bugle Corps made the event even more exciting with their dynamic performance.
The real reason Ultra is attending is to get a sense of where the MS Dynamic’s leadership will take the company next.
One of the keynote addresses was provided by Kirill Tatarinov, Executive Vice President of Microsoft Business Solutions He is responsible for the Microsoft Dynamics business across development, sales, marketing and operations.
We’ll be sharing other highlights from the addresses and sessions, but for now, here are some of the main points Tatarinov shared during his Microsoft Dynamics Convergence 2014 keynote.
“We are not always the first, but we will deliver it all.” Tatarinov shared the compelling statistic that there are 1.4 billion world-wide Internet users. Experts predict that there will be 15 billion intelligent connected devices by 2015. Microsoft champions a customer-centric view that stresses meaningful customer interactions as they “Bring the Dynamics technology to everyone in the world.”
Customer Centricity: Microsoft’s leading vision is to “Engage customers on their terms… to nurture the relationship, and delight…” and this approach will be evident in all product developments. Tatarinov stressed that Customer Centricity equals principled, humanized, “end to end” innovation. Their mission is to develop solutions that let users realize their full potential, whether in high value added activates at work, at home, or on the road. “We strive to help people do more amazing things.”
Integrating CRM and ERP: ERP and CRM will function seamlessly together as a single business solution. Tatarinov sees this as a way to help the enterprise work more effectively and productively.
“Innovation is the platform for everything we do.” Tatarinov highlighted technology advances in the areas of cloud services, agile operations that exceed customer needs, and engagement across the Web, social media, apps and mobile devices. Of special note are the new advancements of MS Cloud; Multi Model Social Interaction offered by Yammer, Office 365, SharePoint; and improved business insights offered by Big Data. He noted that Microsoft Power BI is now part of Office 365. As a “platform for innovation”, Extensibility allows for ISV’s to build unique solutions.
I’ll be sharing further highlights from the event. In the meantime, visit the “Virtual” Microsoft Dynamics Convergence 2014 site for an inside look.
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