November 23, 2022
Trustmarque’s Microsoft monthly round-up
Introducing your monthly digest of Microsoft-related news and updates from the UK IT sector.
Trustmarque is a Microsoft Specialisation Partner and for over 35 years we have successfully delivered IT solutions in the NHS, public sector and private businesses across the UK.
Microsoft is constantly developing its range of business software to ensure that new technology can be utilised across the customer base to improve the user experience, as well as remaining competitive.
However, announcements can be missed or difficult to determine what the changes mean for your organisation. Here’s our round-up of what you need to know in November.
Microsoft in the news
Four in five UK workers stuck in pre-pandemic office spaces
A new Microsoft Surface report reveals how a lack of investment in sociable and collaborative workplaces may be holding UK employees back from returning to offices.
The statistics show that for many, going into the office can limit their creativity, if the correct resources are not in place. The majority (71%) report ‘doing emails’ every time they go into a shared office space. Additionally, less than one third (31%) of office workers say that their organisation has invested in technology to improve collaboration in the past year – with just 6% of IT decision makers recognising meeting room technology as a priority investment.
At Trustmarque, the modern workplace isn’t just about the technology, it’s how users experience and adopt the technology to meet your digital transformation objectives and be successful.
Nation-state cyberattacks become more brazen as authoritarian leaders ramp up aggression
On February 23, 2022, the cybersecurity world entered a new age, the age of the hybrid war, as Russia launched both physical and digital attacks against Ukraine. This year’s Microsoft Digital Defense Report provides new detail on these attacks and on increasing cyber aggression coming from authoritarian leaders around the world.
What we learned at Microsoft Ignite 2022
Here’s our rundown of the big announcements from Microsoft Ignite 2022 with Bridget Denby, Trustmarque’s Microsoft Alliance Manager.
This year’s Microsoft Ignite came back to its rightful place on centre stage with a bang. Filling our screens and schedules by combining in-person talks, pre-recorded material, plus on-demand demo content. This year’s theme ‘do more with less’, promised to propel our long-term technological goals through Microsoft Cloud.
But the most impactful points around this year’s event centre around key focus areas for the technology industry including digital inclusion, the power of AI for sustainability, accessibility and diversity in technology. There were also some significant announcements regarding core Microsoft solutions and products, such as Teams, Edge and Power Platform.
Spotlight on Local Government and AI
Why Local Government organisations need to start their Intelligent Automation journey now – A Trustmarque webinar
Local Government is facing significant challenges across the board, from declining budgets to increased demand for its services. Intelligent Automation can help alleviate these pressures by automating business-critical processes that are time-consuming and repetitive, providing time back to your employees so they can focus on higher-value work.
Intelligent Automation is a combination of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Robotic Process Automation (RPA). AI helps technology make well-informed, purposeful decisions, and RPA uses technology to execute processes and perform activities fast, accurately, and without interruption.
In this session, we discussed some of the applications of Intelligent Automation within Local Government, how these translate into significant cost savings and improvements to services, and how to get started on your Intelligent Automation journey. If you would like a copy of the recording, then please email Luke Griffiths – Intelligent Automation Practice Lead through the button below.
Systems updates and changes
What’s new with the Microsoft 365 app?
Over the last couple years, Microsoft 365 has evolved into our flagship productivity suite, so we are creating an experience to help you get the most out of Microsoft 365. In the coming months, Office.com, the Office mobile app, and the Office app for Windows will become the Microsoft 365 app, with a new icon, a new look, and even more features.
Microsoft introduce the Microsoft 365 app which will replace Office.com (starting in November 2022), as well as the Office mobile app and the Office app for Windows (starting in January 2023). The ‘traditional’ perpetual licences for Office 2021 will stay branded as Office at this time.
Announcing Microsoft Teams Premium
Recently Microsoft announced Teams Premium, which will be in public preview in December and generally available in February 2023. It will be licensed via an add-on to Teams with an expected price of £10 per user per month.
In terms of functionality, expect AI features such as intelligent recaps to summarise meetings with actions, and live translation for captions, as well as options for keeping confidential meetings confidential, help in streamlining registration workflows, and the availability of rich analytics.
The link below will allow you to compare the features existing Office 365 vs Microsoft 365 customers will have access to, compared to the additional Teams Premium license.
Trustmarque and Microsoft
Our technology experts help our customers to automate processes, manage cloud migrations, drive efficiencies in your licensing strategy, transform datacentres and storage, enhance your cyber security for your IT estate and users, have a wide range of network connectivity solutions, and empower your people through flexible working solutions.
Written by Julia Bluckert
