The Botswana Ministry of Local Government needed to automate its business management systems to reduce a huge backlog of unclosed manual accounts in local authorities. The ministry worked with Microsoft® Certified Partner PSU International in deploying Microsoft Dynamics® GP 8.0 business management software. Today, 60 per cent of local councils are up to date with their returns compared to zero in 2002, when the project started.

TWP Projects in South Africa needed a single integrated system for project management and accounting, including a tool to integrate employee timesheets with invoices. The company replaced its Softline Pastel and open-source systems with Microsoft Dynamics® SL business management software. Now, it has an integrated view of operations and revenue streams, which is boosting its ability to maximise profits and eliminating the risk of billing time incorrectly.

To drive continued growth, Plante Moran, a leading U.S.–based financial services firm, needed to automate business development efforts. The company sought to replace its IBM Lotus Notes contact management system with an easy-to-use customer relationship management system built on a flexible, scalable platform. After evaluating a number of packaged solutions, Plante Moran chose Microsoft Dynamics® CRM based on its intuitive interface, powerful built-in toolset, and integration with line-of-business systems and productivity applications. Microsoft® Gold Certified Partner Ascentium helped Plante Moran tailor the solution to automate key business functions, such as its client acceptance process. Since deploying the solution to 1,600 consultants, Plante Moran has strengthened its business development efforts and gained the agility to pursue strategic growth initiatives.

The CaveDigital Board Meeting solution is enabling the City of Porto to be much more efficient in how it schedules and manages council meetings and how it has greatly reduced their use of paper.

Based in the United Kingdom, Betfair is the world’s biggest online betting community. To address issues with an aging operating system, such as system performance lags that negatively impacted employee productivity, the company decided to migrate to the Windows® 7 and Windows Server® 2008 R2 operating systems. Still early in its deployment, Betfair has increased system performance, improved user experience, and streamlined IT management.

Travel Dynamics International (TDI) provides luxury cruises based around cultural and educational themes. For 10 years, the company relied on a custom-built reservation and booking system. However, this system lacked built-in tools for sales, marketing, and customer service. Employees used a variety of nonintegrated applications to perform daily tasks, restricting TDI’s ability to automate processes to improve efficiency. After spending an average of U.S.$50,000 a year to maintain its aging system, the company opted to implement a customer relationship management system. TDI chose Microsoft Dynamics® CRM based on its ease of use and the flexibility offered through xRM, the application development framework that underpins the solution. Now, TDI has seen a four-fold increase in workforce productivity, improved its customer service, and projects year-over-year sales growth of 10 percent.

Melbourne Business School needed to improve information management regarding its prospective and current students, alumni, donors, guest lecturers, and other constituents with whom the school interacts. Working with Oakton, a Microsoft® Gold Certified Partner, the school turned to Microsoft Dynamics® CRM and its underlying development platform, xRM, to accelerate the creation of integrated solutions that track communications and automate workflow processes. Consolidating data sources and automating processes frees school staff to cultivate closer relationships with constituents, which ultimately contributes to increased revenue, overall business agility, and the school’s reputation for progressive, global leadership.

Financial services firm Baker Tilly is one of the first businesses to deploy a solution based on the Windows® 7 desktop operating system on a companywide basis. Baker Tilly expects to reduce labor of ongoing IT tasks and help keep IT resources focused on high-value functions. Benefits include direct IT cost savings averaging £116 (U.S.$191)/PC/year, made possible by improved network access, automated deployment, desktop management tools, and PC power cost savings. Windows 7 helps ensure that company fee-earners are affected less by common desktop update and support tasks. The business benefits have potential to recover more than two days of billable time for each mobile worker, representing an estimated £425 (U.S.$700)/PC/year in additional value. The potential value of this business benefit is the equivalent of about one-half of one percent of the company’s current annual gross revenue.

Turkcell, a leading mobile communications provider, is deploying the Windows® 7 operating system to 5,000 computers. Once deployed, Turkcell expects to lower support by 20 percent and to improve user productivity by 830 hours weekly. Turkcell also anticipates improved network security.

Telekom Austria TA AG, (Telekom Austria), is the fixed-net segment of the country’s principal telecommunications company, Telekom Austria Group. Telekom Austria wanted to increase employee productivity and enhance communication internally among teams and externally with customers. As a part of the Microsoft Rapid Deployment Program (RDP), Telekom Austria deployed Microsoft® Exchange Server 2010 to take advantage of its improved communication capabilities. As a result, the company now has a unified communications solution that has increased productivity and improved communication. The company’s IT team also are able to take advantage of the simplified management and flexible deployment enhancements, while increasing network resilience and ensuring network availability for all Telekom Austria employees.