Innovations in Office 365

 Feb 16, 2015

The technology industry runs on innovation: new products, new features and new ideas. Innovation is the arena in which technology companies compete to offer products and services that are better, faster and more secure.

Microsoft's commitment to innovation and delighting customers has been a hallmark of Microsoft Office since they introduced the very first version of the productivity suite. Since then, their continuous innovation has enabled them to far outpace competitors such as Google, who suggests that their Google Apps for work are “good enough for most people,”. Perhaps this is why the  “Top 100 Innovators” study recognised Microsoft as a leading Software innovator, whilst Google was only recognised only for Search?

Over the past year, Microsoft developers and engineers have introduced a stunning array of new Office 365 innovations, more than 60 in all, including:

  • Office Graph and Delve—Office Delve is a new way for you to discover the most relevant and important information and connections from across your work life. With Delve, you don’t have to go searching for the information you need; the information finds you and is presented in a beautiful and intuitive card design.By analysing insights it receives through Office Graph, Delve knows what is relevant to you. The software's sophisticated algorithms is designed to map the relationships between people, content, and activities across Office 365.
  • Office for iPad, iPhone and Android —After introducing Office for iPad in March, they added printing and a host of other top-requested features. In designing Office for iPad, they didn't attempt to overlay their existing Office suite on the iPad platform. Instead they redesigned Office from the ground up, making sure iPad users would have the same great Office experience that their other customers enjoy. In November, they released new Office apps for the iPhone, updated their Office for iPad apps, and made them all free, so users are no longer required to have an Office 365 subscription to create, edit and share Office documents on their mobile devices. They also kicked off the preview of Office for Android tablet, which will enable even more people to enjoy the same great Office experience on all their devices.
  • Yammer and Enterprise Social— They have also continued to deepen the integration of Yammer and Office 365 , as well as rolling out the first phase of Groups in Office 365, enabling more people to work like a network with Enterprise Social.
  • Office Sway—With Office Sway, they introduced a brand new app to the Office portfolio and an entirely new way to express yourself and bring your ideas to life. Sway makes it easy for you to create a beautiful, interactive, web-based expression of your ideas from your phone or browser. You provide the ideas and inspiration; Sway will take care of the design work.
  • Office Mix—Office Mix enables you to transform your PowerPoint slides into interactive online lessons and presentations. After they invited customers to preview Office Mix in May, it quickly became a game-changing technology for teachers. They recently added more innovative features to Office Mix, such as easier editing and the ability to create mixes “live” while you are giving your presentation.
  • Tell Me—Designed to be fast, convenient and efficient, the new Tell Me feature in Office Online can help you be more productive by showing you how to perform any Office task that you can’t quite remember how to do or still need to learn. Use simple language, or even partial words, to ask your question, and Tell Me provides the answer.

Why settle for “good enough?” At Microsoft, the goal is to make all of their products the best in their class.

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About the Author:

Steve Wiggins  

Steve is a highly experienced technical trainer with over 10 years of specialisation in Software Application Development, Project Management, VBA Solutions and Desktop Applications training. His practical experience in .NET programming, advanced solution development and project management enables him to train clients at all levels of seniority and experience. Steve also currently manages the IT infrastructure for New Horizons of Brisbane, providing him with daily hands-on experience with SCCM, Windows Server 2012 and Windows 8.

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