May, 2011

Have you ever heard of a Microsoft Technology Center (MTC)? Wonder what an “Envisioning Center” is all about? How can a MTC help Microsoft customers? Sven Ingard, who serves as the Microsoft Technology Center (MTC) director in Boston, recently offered the following insights into the innovative facility: Q: Tell us Sven, what is a Microsoft Technology Center (MTC)? Sven: The 10-year-old Boston MTC was the very first center (currently 23 worldwide). Microsoft invests in MTCs because they provide a unique way to connect with our customers; each MTC is a purpose-built collaborative...

Last Friday, May 20, the YMCA of Greater Boston honored Microsoft at a breakfast event in recognition of a $250,000 grant given to YMCA Training, Inc . In February , the YMCA of Greater Boston was one of 12 organizations chosen to receive a Microsoft Elevate America Community Initiative Grant , which helps the organization offer technology skills training and job placement services to the Greater Boston community. In today’s economy, finding a job without basic technology skills can be extremely difficult. To help address this issue, Microsoft partnered with YMCA Training, Inc. to provide...

Gas prices continue to soar and the economy forces employees to do more with less, threatening the work/life balance everyone craves. With that in mind, Microsoft and Ipsos Public Affairs released a new study that assesses the opinions and attitudes of 4,500 information workers in 15 U.S. markets, including Boston, toward telework at their businesses. According to the study, Boston workers report having the longest commute out of all 15 cities surveyed, and many wish to work outside of the office to not only avoid traffic, but create a better work/life balance. The resolution for Boston businesses...

I recently attended Microsoft’s 7 th annual Health Plan Executive Forum at our New England Research and Development (NERD) Center in Cambridge. For the three previous years, the forum was hosted in Redmond, so we were particularly excited to have the event in New England because of the caliber of healthcare institutions in the Northeast and the fact that Massachusetts is leading by example in health reform. Since this was an invitation-only event for health plan leaders, I’d like to share a bit of what I learned at this forum. The overarching theme for this year’s forum...