Nortel/Microsoft Unveil Local Collaboration Plans
Nortel/Microsoft Unveil Local Collaboration Plans
May 8, 2007: The Nortel /Microsoft relationship has made significant local headway with the launch of their unified customer road show and the unveiling of plans to launch the first Asian Collaboration Centre in Australia.
In a local milestone for unified communications capabilities, the announcements mark the first significant Asia Pacific move on the Alliance since it was announced in 2006. Nortel says they’ve been working closely with Microsoft ever since striking the unified deal by undertaking staff and partner training, product familiarisation and strategic planning sessions.
“This has given us a framework to showcase real-world examples of our solutions through numerous demo centres, resulting in a number of new customer wins over the past few months,” says Mark Stevens, Nortel president for Australia and New Zealand.
This morning the two companies launched their innovative Communications Alliance National Roadshow in Sydney, promising similar events to follow suit in al Australian capitals, New Zealand and Asia. The pair announced two new Australian customers at the Roadshow including financial services group Austock and Victorian water utility Wannon Water.
Asia’s first innovative Communications Alliance Collaboration Centre will is planned to get underway in the second half of 2007. Meanwhile, both Nortel and Microsoft have announced the completed of national Alliance demo centres across Nortel offices in Australia and New Zealand.
According the Mark Stevens, Nortel president of Australia and New Zealand, the goal of the Alliance is to simplify the way people connect in their workplace. With Nortel’s open architecture communication platforms alongside the global usage of Microsoft’s productivity software and operating systems, Stevens believes workplace connections will benefit greatly from the Alliance.
The Collaboration Centre planned for later this year is due to replicate an individual customer’s operational environment, with certified Nortel and Microsoft staff available to workshop the deployment and implementation process on how the technology can impact business. Customers will be able to trial out the technology in real-time, ultimately allowing them to experience how unified communications will enable benefits in their organisations.
According to Tracey Fellows, managing director of Microsoft for Australia and New Zealand, the Microsoft and Nortel unified platform will harness significant productivity benefits. “As businesses become more interconnected, they face the challenge of empowering their people to collaborate and communicate more effectively across disparate locations and time zones,” she says.
The unified platform will work to integrate communication methods like email, instant messaging and conferencing.