The Time to Change is Now
Charles Rudolph
Practice Development Manager
Microsoft Australia
The last couple of years have been a time of great change. Even though I have been in IT of some sort for more than 25 years, I only joined Microsoft five months ago. I have also just moved from Melbourne to Sydney and I am the proud father to a five-year-old son so yes, a lot has changed for me in the last few years.
On a less personal level, but sticking with great change, I am seeing the most significant change in our industry happening right now. It is the first time that a confluence of events, technology changes and business model disruptions has seen such a massive transformation happening across almost all industries. Many companies have realised that in order to be successful in the future, they will need to become technology companies in their own right.
One challenge is the required skills are not readily available and are rarely found inside most organisations. It is my job to work with technology companies to help them build capability and deliver the best possible outcomes for their customers. I first attempt to understand what these companies are trying to accomplish. Then I look to leverage all that Microsoft has to help them build and grow their businesses.
And now, in the middle of this huge digital transformation I see an increasing need (and desire) for cloud technology.
Adoption of cloud computing can be truly transformational for IT and their business. And with organisations looking to add technology as a core skill to their existing business, everyone needs to understand more about all available technology. How it can be leveraged to disrupt their own business and how it can be utilised to be more competitive in a fast-changing market.
At the moment, IT tends to be more about running applications and not about reimagining their organisation’s business models through the innovative use of technology. It is the latter that will separate businesses from surviving to thriving. I believe the first thing a company will need in their quest to become a technology company is a culture that promotes constant challenging of the status quo. The second is the skills to leverage technology, skills which do not usually sit within an existing business.
With regard to the actual technology Microsoft Azure is a platform capable of doing great things, a platform which is flexible enough to meet and extend customers’ innovation programs, build and reimagine new solutions, and the scale to deploy anywhere with Microsoft Cloud. A cloud they can trust.
But in order to use this revolutionary platform, deep skills, expertise and confidence are required. That is where the Azure Skills Initiative comes in and why it is so important.
The Azure Skills Initiative allows organisations to get started with flexible, modern learning options. Microsoft have put together three training offers that combine free access to their library of flexible, online courses, discounts on their industry-standard Microsoft Certified Professional exams, and a discount on Linux certification offered through the Linux Foundation.
Cloud computing skills are in short supply and we are only on the tip of this massive shift as organisations contemplate and execute on their Digital Transformation strategies. As these businesses accelerate their move to becoming technology companies they will require the technology partners to support their undertakings. Now is the time to evaluate your existing skill set and take the opportunity to ensure you have the ability to create value for your customers. The Azure Skills Initiative is a key resource in upskilling your teams.
If you are about to embark on the Azure Skills Initiative be conscious of the opportunity in front of you. The skills that are required to be relevant are changing at a rapid rate. The effort and focus you put into building the right proficiencies is invaluable.
It’s a time of great change. Embrace the change, just like we do in our personal lives.
