Check out our Windows Customer Showcase page for customers having success with their Windows 7 deployments!
Small businesses are the genesis of all large companies today. While it’s hard to believe, we’re a good example of this. Microsoft started with two employees – Bill Gates and Paul Allen and grew to more than 90,000 employees today, with 1.1 billion PC users worldwide. Key to this growth, Bill and Paul had a clear vision for how personal computing could transform the world. It’s this entrepreneurial spirit that drives innovation and job growth, making small businesses the critical driver in fueling global economies. We know helping small businesses be successful is in all our best interest.
This year we hosted several events for small businesses – called Smart & Simple Strategies for Small Business – across the U.S. with local chambers of commerce to help small companies make the most of technology to grow their businesses. More than 100 small businesses joined each of the events, which were held in Chicago, Los Angeles, Cleveland, OH, Greensboro, NC and Seattle.
The events provided a great forum to network and attend sessions. The sessions covered a gamut of topics including mobile technology, how to take advantage of social media, and green IT solutions. It also included hosted discussions on how small businesses can take advantage of ‘big’ business strategies.
From a technology perspective, one of the things we talked about was the benefits of Windows 7 Professional and why now is a good time to upgrade if you’re a small business owner. Below are some pretty compelling stats supporting this notion and provide a glimpse into small businesses that have upgraded or have future plans to.
I also included a snapshot of what we heard from some of the small businesses in attendance about Windows 7 Professional and how it has helped their business. We hope this inspires you to consider upgrading to give your business a competitive edge.
Some of the feedback we received from business owners included:
We’re extremely excited to be helping small businesses become more efficient through technology. For more information on how Microsoft Windows 7 Professional can help your small business, please visit the Windows 7 Professional website.
What a great write up! I was just discussing with a "friend" of mine that this site needs more write ups, more video, and just simply more content on how Windows and Microsoft can help small business. As a small business owner myself I see every single day how Windows 7 and Microsoft help drive my business. I am passionate about my work, and I need a platform that supports our heavy use. A platform that is secure, reliable and efficient, that platform is Windows.
In these economic times I feel like small business is getting overlooked, they need more training, they need more tutorials, they need to see how the Windows line can really boost productivity, and turn those amateur users into advanced users, and Windows 7 has that power. Small business is the key to our economic growth, and a business has to be small before it can ever be large, and I think Mr. Gates and Mr. Allen are true testaments of what a small business can become. It can become an epicenter for economic growth and jobs, we just need to the tools and guidance to get there. THAT IS WHY I CHOSE WINDOWS
I would love to see Microsoft's official response to the Gartner report last week about Windows 7 upgrades costing IT departments significantly more money over the next few years. It's a claim that I, as an IT administrator performing upgrades already, can criticize sharply. I have a scheduled upgrade cycle every 3-4 years for PC's purchased. We buy them with 3 year warranties and replace them in the 4th year. This is planned, and obviously new PC's are licensed with the latest version, and I opt to downgrade if necessary (as with Vista to XP).
With Windows 7, the only *new* expense to my IT budget is with licensing upgrades because I WANT to upgrade sooner than 3 years. But, given the benefits of the OS, it becomes a no-brainer because of lowered support requests. My Windows 7 users are performing faster than ever, have fewer crashes and stability issues, and I can offer them more capabilities. It's a win-win for my environment. Moreover, because I'm pushing it through this year, it means the next two years won't require any additional expense.
It's an approach not every IT department can take, but whether you do it up front or spread it out over time, the cost is the same. Any IT department not planning an upgrade needs to hire new IT leadership (in my humble opinion, of course), because I guarantee there are other tech needs not being fulfilled.
I'm just an IT student (that could explain some of my comments), but I love to read the Posts as the comments on them. This is a great place to stay informed and learn. Thank you!